Living like a local in Paris with Line in Montmarte

While in London and Florence, my choice of renting a room from airbnb was largely determined by the price, my choice of renting a flat in Paris was driven by location as well as the availability of a lift. Hahaha. It being my last stop and all, a lift was really an essential factor in my decision making process, which turned out to be the best decision I made.

You can read about my previous posts on my stay in London here, and my stay in Florence here.

I was so happy to see the lift, even if it could only fit me
and my luggage if I didn't breathe.

French elevators are weird. They stop in between floors. Hahaha.

At first, I was quite worried about staying the the Montmarte area,
even if I love it so, because it's known to be not-so-safe,
unlike my previous neighborhood near Pereire in the 17th.

I was quite reassured when I saw that the street was
a quiet area, and the building seemed to be secure.

My landlady, Line, gave me really clear instructions on how to get to her flat from CDG, but I opted to take the Roissy Bus to Opera, then take a cab to the city, so I won't need to spend time looking for the correct place. Line was waiting for me when I arrived, she even prepared some Zucchini Soup, Cheese and Wine in case I was hungry from travelling.

Line's studio flat in Montmarte was so much more beautiful than the pictures on the Airbnb listing. Line's apartment is on the top-most floor, with the studio apartment that she rents out across the hall. 

You enter the flat through the right door. The left door
is for the storage, where you can put your luggage.

When you enter, you see the bed and the table.

On the other side is a sink, with the storage to the right,
and the toilet and bath to the left.

The toilet was clean and very modern.

My landlady is an artist who loves the sea.
She painted this, which she used to decorate the bathroom.

It was so nice to finally be able to leave my toiletries in
the bathroom because I no longer have to share it.

The pictures around the flat makes it feel really cozy.

If you're the type who likes to cook,
the kitchenette beside the bed will come in handy.

There are a lot of pots, pans and plates, as well as the basic stuff
like coffee, tea and sugar. Line even says you can borrow from her kitchen.

There is also a table across the bed.

It has cards with basic information, like the wifi password
and emergency numbers.

Line cooked the Zucchini Soup herself and it was very tasty. 

There are also a lot of books on Paris that you
can read through.

I really loved the view from the flat.
You can actually see the rest of Paris on the far left.

I could imagine myself living here. Seriously.

The flat of Line is just off Rue Lepic, which is the street with Moulin Rouge on the corner.

Just around the corner from where I lived.

I couldn't resist a selfie with the Moulin Rouge.

Rue Lepic is bustling with food stores. It has several Patisseries, a Fromagerie, numerous fresh fruit and vegetable stands, so it was so convenient to just go down in my pajamas to pick up some breakfast. More on Rue Lepic on a separate post.

This is me in my PJs under my coat, with my breakfast
haul from Rue Lepic.

However, since I was having connectivity issues with the wifi (only on my tablet), Line invited me over to her flat for breakfast which I gladly accepted.

Breakfast was toasted Artisanal Baguettes with homemade strawberry jam.
Really good stuff.

I ended up saving this for the next day.

Fresh chevre avec figs (goat cheese with figs), avocado, and croissant.

And when in France, coffee comes from a French Press.

This is how I prepare breakfast.
I can eat this (or something similar) every day.

My day old croissants were still good.
Especially when eaten with goat cheese and fig.

Who would have thought goat cheese with fig goes so well with avocado.

On my last day in Paris, I was surprised to see a note outside my door,
with a dinner invite from Line, which I again gladly accepted.

I added buying flowers to my errand list of the day, so I could bring
my landlady a hostess gift.

Line was very happy with the flowers I got her and my thank you pop-up
card which I wrote in my very basic French.
You can read my post on where I bought the pop-up cards here.

Line is such a great cook. I really enjoyed the soup she made which can be eaten hot or cold, I also really loved the strawberry jam with the artisanal baguette, but the simple dinner she prepared for us (she also invited a friend from Georgia, the country between West Asia and Eastern Europe, who works for Lanvin) was so tasty, it was hands down the best meal I had in Paris.

We had tomato topped bread thins for hor d'ouvres.
Ofcourse, the tomatoes were cooked by Line and very tasty.
Line also prepared a light starter as we were chatting, but I didn't take a pic.

The main course was lamb from Normandy cooked with fresh rosemary.
Line says you can't get lamb that tasty elsewhere as the lamb from
Normandy grows by the sea, which makes them yummier.

Dessert was pain perdu (forgotten or leftover bread)
which is the real French Toast made from baguettes.
It needs to be old, as dry bread absorbs milk more,
soaked for at least half a day then sprinkled with sugar.
I love the American version, but this was much better.

Dinner was made even better with the company. It was nice chatting with Line and her friend. In fact, Line was already going through her mental address book to see who she could set me up with so I could get married, settle in Paris with Sofia and live happily ever after.

We called it an early night because I still needed to pack. It was a great two weeks vacation for me, but I was also looking forward to going home.

I was so excited, I woke up early the next day with enough time to make
a last cup of French Press coffee for the road.

Then I knocked on Line's door to hug her good bye and return the keys,
waiting in the lobby for the cab to pick me up.

I really loved my stay with Line. I felt like I found a home in Paris, and definitely gained a friend, who took care of my like a mom. I will definitely contact Line again the next time I visit Paris.

You can find the link to Line's studio apartment in Montmarte here, but please stay with her only if you don't plan on asking her to find you a husband before she finds one for me. Hahaha. just saying.