Day 6 May 9th Perfume & Paris at Night

We woke up early and made time to actually enjoy our hotel breakfast before heading out on foot for our morning adventure—just around the corner in the St. Germain neighborhood.

Our perfume workshop took place at Molinard Paris VI, located at 72 rue Bonaparte. When we arrived, the door was locked and no one was inside.

After calling and messaging Naman, we noticed a connected perfume shop next door. Luckily, they directed us to our instructor who took us to the workshop in the back.

Turns out we were the only two signed up that morning, so we had the place to ourselves. We learned to build our custom scent in layers—three top notes, three middle notes, and four base notes. Mom and I had the best time sniffing everything and declaring which were winners… and which were definite “yikes!”

Ten minutes before the hour was up, we had to lock in our choices. We carefully measured and mixed our perfumes, counting every drop to avoid a mistake.

Our final blends were packaged beautifully in bags along with certificates and a promise that they’d be ready to wear in 30 days.

We stopped at Café La Mairie and sat outside, people-watching at a sunny sidewalk table. We both ordered omelets, trying to fill up—knowing it could be nine hours until dinner. Our Paris by Night tour was scheduled for 6:00, and we weren’t sure if we’d have time to eat later.

Snafu with dinner

After we ate, we stopped by our hotel to drop off our perfume. Our hotel concierge really wanted us to try her favorite restaurant. She got us in Monday night and we cancelled asking her to change it to Thursday night but we had the Vivaldi concert, so we asked her to change it to tonight. What was I thinking? We had Paris at Night vintage car tour at 6pm. Do I cancel? Do I move the dinner to Saturday night?

This was her third time switching the reservation!

Look at how formal her note is to us! I messaged Naman again, asking if he could push the tour to 7:30 or move to Saturday night, so regardless we could enjoy early dinner and still see the Eiffel Tower sparkle at 10:00.

Musée de l’Orangerie

While these issues sorted themselves out, we hustled to the Musée de l’Orangerie to make our 2:00 p.m. entry. Located at the west end of the Tuileries Garden, it was originally a greenhouse for orange trees. Now, it’s the permanent home of Monet’s dreamy water lilies.

The oval rooms with Monet’s panels were peaceful and almost meditative. We explored the lower-level galleries too, where we found four paintings grouped together that caught our attention.

Monet’s Water Lilies

Mom’s favorite:

Novo Pilota by Modigliani – elegance and arrogance.

My favorites included:

Procession in a French Village – Utrillo

We hopped out at Sacré-Cœur, glowing in the evening light
Took a photo of the famous “Sinking House” illusion
Watched part of a circus performance happening in the square
Stopped by the I Love You Wall, which was (sadly) locked—but we still got a photo from the fence

Tuileries Garden & Midday Snack

After the museum, we wandered through the historic Tuileries Garden, originally designed for Catherine de’ Medici in the 1500s and later opened to the public after the French Revolution. It’s filled with sculptures, fountains, and endless people-watching.

Tuileries Garden

We planned to stop at Angelina for their famous hot chocolate, but the line wrapped around the block. So we detoured a few blocks to the Tuileries Café instead. We split an apple tart and sipped iced coffees while watching the world pass by.

Then came the text from Naman:

He moved our tour to 7:30—yes! We could eat dinner at 6:00 after all. Of course, we were a little full already… but we pushed through!

Walk back to hotel to tell Valerie we had to move our dinner reservation once again!

These are the sites we see walking near our hotel!

Dinner at Café Louise

We sat inside but near wide-open windows, so it still felt like we were part of the Paris scene. Our waiter was lovely and respectful of our time crunch. The food, as always, did not disappoint

Paris by Night with Niko

At 7:30 sharp, we met our guide, Niko de La Faye, who arrived in a bright yellow vintage open-air Citroen.

He immediately asked:

“What have you already seen?”

He built the tour around the gaps in our itinerary. Here’s what made it special:

Left Bank Highlights

Emily in Paris locations: Gabriel’s restaurant and Emily’s apartment doors
A Roman courtyard, once used for brutal animal fights, now a neighborhood soccer field
Luxembourg Palace & Gardens

Gabrielle’s Restaurant in Emily in Paris

Roman Courtyard

Île de la Cité

We stopped for ice cream at Berthillon and listened to a street musician while eating our cones on a pedestrian bridge over the Seine. Pure Paris.

Back in the car, Niko pointed out:

Île Saint-Louis
Notre-Dame Cathedral
Hôtel de Ville
The iconic green bookseller boxes along the Seine

Montmartre (Take Two)

With Niko as our guide, Montmartre came to life.

Then it was back in the car to wind through the lesser-known corners of Montmartre as Niko shared stories of the artists, the revolution, and the rhythm of daily life. At one point, he asked about our plans for tomorrow. When we mentioned Galeries Lafayette, he gently suggested a change—he told us to go to Bon Marché instead, saying it’s far more authentic and beautifully curated. We hadn’t even heard of it, and were surprised to learn it’s actually right in our St. Germain neighborhood. Thanks to Niko, we have a new shopping idea to squeeze in before the trip ends.

The I Love You Wall in Montmartre was created in 2000 by artist Frédéric Baron and calligrapher Claire Kito. It features “I love you” written over 300 times in 250+ languages on dark blue tiles. The red shapes represent pieces of a broken heart, symbolizing love’s power to heal.

This is a historic windmill-turned-restaurant nestled in the heart of Montmartre at 83 Rue Lepic. Famous for inspiring Renoir’s painting Bal du Moulin de la Galette, it was once a lively dance hall and guinguette where Parisians came to relax and celebrate. Today, it serves classic French cuisine in a charming setting beneath one of the last original windmills in Paris, offering a unique blend of history, art, and gastronomy.