After months of planning, several hundred emails and countless meetings, Saturday 25th February 2012, the date of our very first trip abroad arrived! Woopie! The crisp morning welcomed 15 effervescent young ladies, ready to have fun and rock ‘n’ roll in the French capital.
We met bright and early at St. Pancras International Station and everyone was surprisingly alert and perky! Although, this may be attributed to the copious amounts of caffeine which was bought and consumed in record timing (we had to drink all liquids before passing through security!).
After a few hours of gist with each other, networking with the other passengers (everyone in our carriage knew who For Ladies Wot Brunch were by the time we arrived in Gare Du Nord!) miniature munchies and several aggregate hours of power naps, we arrived in Paris, ready to show the Parisians how fabulous we were!
The countless hours spent planning the trip meant that we had an airtight itinerary: every minute was accounted for! Our day’s activities included a trip to the stunning Louvre Museum, sightseeing at the Eiffel Tour, a cruise along the River Seine and shopping in Galleries Lafayette and environs. But of course, with plenty of activities, we expected we’d build up a hearty appetite and so a sumptuous pit stop for a delicious dejeuner would be required.
Food
Chez Francoise, situated near the Eiffel Tour was the venue chosen for our French lunching experience. My research churned out rave reviews, and the restaurant promised to have something to offer each diner. On arriving at the restaurant, we were a bit sceptical: from the outside, it was not the most glamorous, nor the swanky looking of venues, however on entering, all our fears were allayed. The decor was low key luxury, mood lighting relaxed our eyes and hushed French accents created a sumptuous background hum. We were seated at our table and swiftly greeted with complimentary champagne. Salud!
As the majority of us opted for the seasonal set menu, we ended up having an array of French dishes spread across our table. The voyeuristic diner in me was disappointed that typical French fare such as snails and crème brûlée were not on the menu, but of course, this didn’t stop me from ordering: I was starving!
The group’s favourites on the menu were the Game Pâté for starters, the Cod with Langoustine Linguini and Parsley Sauce for mains and the Chocolate Fondant cake with Vanilla Pod Ice Cream for dessert. Several of the Ladies, who initially ordered the veal for their main course, ended up having to send it back and order the cod instead, complaining that it tasted like kidneys… Ewww!
Although the food was not to everyone’s taste, where the food fell short, the service and decor made up for it by a mile. Our personal waiter Luke, was an absolute darling! Catering to 15 divas is no easy feat, but he handled us like a gentleman answering the several translation questions we had and effecting and fetching various amendments to our orders.
The restaurant staff overall were also fantastic, greeting us with their suave French charm and bringing out the food and drinks graciously. They even corroborated with my sneaky plan to organise a birthday cake for one of our Ladies who was celebrating her birthday that day and all came out to sing joyeux anniversaire to accompany the celebratory sponge cake. Tres joli!
Highlights
As you can imagine, there were several gist fuelled conversations, lots of picture taking and lots of shopping! Here are the highlights of the day:
Louvre-licious Ladies: As soon as we arrived at the museum en masse, it was difficult to miss us: clearly 15 glamtastic women don’t hit Paris very often! From the security guard who was so keen to speak with us and find out about the group that he let us in for free (Dratz! We shouldn’t have been so efficient and pre-purchased our tickets!) to the Japanese tourist who was so convinced we were models that she insisted on taking photos with us, our first stop at the home of Paris Fashion Week gave us a little snippet taster of what we could look forward to if we ever decided to change careers…
Snooze and you don’t lose! After a hefty 2.5 hour lunch and a last minute dash to make our River Seine cruise, we were all happy to rest our feet and view Paris from the comfort of the luxury liner. Some were perhaps a little too happy… It was perfect for a power nap! Zzzzzzzz!
Macaroon Wars: by the time we arrived at Galleries Lafayette, there was limited time available to shop. Throughout the course of the day, the Ladies had quietly joined one of two camps: Ladurée or Pierre Hermé Macaroons. Which do you prefer? Both sides presented their arguments, laced with personal experience and filled with pride. When the culmination point arrived, the Ladies purchased several boxes of delicious french fancy. I personally could not reach a conclusion, perhaps another 2-3 boxes will help me decide… Tee hee hee!
Overall
I can honestly say that the day was an absolute blessing. The laughter, the company and the positive energy made The Brunch Club’s first trip abroad a memorable one.
A huge thank you goes to Feyi who worked with me closely to plan the trip and of course each and every single Lady Wot Brunches who attended and ensured the day was a success. They brought exactly what they were asked to: positivity, a smile and the penchant to have some fun! I’m already itching to plan the next trip!
For Ladies Wot Brunch 