Oddly enough, as we meandered in and out of Marais shops, Richard and I began to notice that each boutique seemed to have its own distinctive scent. Most remarkably, the children’s shop smelled a lot like the orange blossom scent that began the tour. That Richard noticed this is part of the charm of taking an individualized tour with such an affable guy: the experience is very personalized and friendly. I think this is what really won me over in the end. This tour had none of the gruelling pavement-pounding of a standard tour that tries to cover as much ground, physically and historically, as possible.
Last Glances
One of our final shopping look-sees was a discount designer outlet shop that, Richard claimed, is the only of its kind where finer threads are actually discounted. Wary and skeptical, glutted on fine designer goods, and afraid to hope I might finally be able to afford something, I went in to take a look. Lo and behold! This is a place I will return to when I have a full afternoon ahead of me and only two days since payday behind me.
