I have said before that any day in Paris is a good day.  It is a city teeming with life, beauty, history, and magic.  On this day we decided to start at the top in Montmartre.  Located on a large hill in Paris’ 18th arrondissement, it is dominated by the stunning white domes of the Basilica of the Sacré-Coeur.  At the beginning of the 20th century, during the Belle Époque, many artists had work studios around the area including Claude Monet and Vincent Van Gogh.  On our honeymoon this was where we had our portrait made and where many artists still gather.  The two churches at the top are of great import to me — Sacré-Coeur of course and the oldest church in all of Paris which lies inconspicuously in its shadow, Saint Pierre.  However, I shall save them for another blog.  We took the funicular after enjoying French beer (1664) at the top of the myriad of steep steps one always sees on Pinterest in black and white photos.  Although I speak fluent French, I have made a couple of funny now, but embarrassing then gaffes.  On our honeymoon we ate on a Chinese boat and I had never seen or heard of lychees.  I freaked because I thought they were some sort of eyeballs in a bowl!  (Now they are my favorite fruit.)  At the bottom of the hill there was a street vendor selling something which smelled absolutely delicious.  I stood awkwardly contemplating the look of incredulity on the vendor’s face as I told him I had no idea what it was.  Of course he told me in French and I still had no idea.  Finally his wife must have overheard me speaking English with my husband saying I wished I knew what they were.  “Zey ahr ze chessnuts, madame” she said to me in English, looking as if I might be a little touched in the head.  Exclaiming I had never tried them (which I’m quite sure she had already surmised,) I happily doled out three euro on a bag.  They were nutty and warm and I found myself hoping we’d get to come back during the holiday season sometime.  Nat King Cole’s “The Christmas Song” played through my head as I thought how magnificent the lights would be on the Champs-Elysées.  We went back to our favorite playground for our little one which lies across the Seine with a direct view of the Eiffel Tower.  I happily sat on a park bench nibbling my new discovery as I watched my baby doll playing with my husband.  The air had the barest hint of a chill in it and everything seemed to hold a glorious perfection.  We took a boat tour that night and it was indescribable passing under the city’s lit bridges filled with angels.  RIGHT as we disembarked the Eiffel Tower lit up!  And it didn’t just illuminate — it had a million twinkling lights running up and down its length.  I believe it goes for about ten minutes on the hour at night and the rest of the time it remains solidly lit.  We decided to cap off our magical evening going around the Champs-Elysées in this cool pedicab you see pictured here.  It was the most splendid, tricked out one I’d ever seen.  Just when I thought it could not get any cooler he turned on LED lights overhead and started blaring the current new hot song, “Happy.”  Our little one was rocking out and I watched my husband trying to loosen up and get into it.  I will never forget looking back as we rode down the most famous street in the world while it started to lightly rain.  There was a sheen on the street given off by the headlights that created a sort of blur.  I suddenly understood “La Vie En Rose” written by the French chanteuse Edith Piaf in 1945.  The Canadian-American actor Will Arnett said, “I am happy because I’m grateful.  I choose to be grateful.  That gratitude allows me to be happy.”  As I looked back on the day I realized three different songs had gone though my head, and they all involved being happy.  I was so grateful to be back in my beloved Paris I decided to create a new song playlist … entitled “happy.”