CHEMIN

I popped over for a short trip to Paris recently to catch up with my mother (who regularly visits France to see her family). As opportunities to catch up with either of my parents are rare these days, I booked us a lovely room in my favourite part of Paris; Rue Mouffetard in the Latin Quarter.

Rue Mouffetard is one of the oldest streets in Paris, and used to be part of the trading route through the city. This narrow cobblestone street still attracts its fair share of foot traffic, though it certainly isn't the most well known spot to frequent for visitors to the city. There are open air produce markets almost every day of the week, along with a host of patisserie, cheese and seafood shops. The Mouffetard markets are probably the nicest, nostalgically Frenchest markets that you will find in Paris.

I have a real soft spot for this street, probably because my first month alone in Paris was just around the corner from here so over the course of about 5 weeks I'd stop by every couple of days to pick up...well, knowing how low on funds I was at the time (and how I can still manage to be a food snob regardless) I was probably surviving on endives, crackers, goats cheese and grapes. If you're ever heading over to the French capital, I can highly recommend a self-guided stroll from Place St Michel near the Notre Dame though the winding streets that lead to the top of Rue Mouffetard.