04 Jun Stumbling Across Great Music in Paris

Sometimes it is necessary to plan, especially for short vacations, but even then, oftentimes the best experiences are those you happen upon randomly. Such as our experience in Toronto with a street band marching around Kensington market, or watching a captivating band playing on the steps of Sacre Coeur in Paris. These are some of our favorite experiences and I’m glad I’ve learned to plan down-time into our schedule. I try to pack too much in–I want to do and see everything! But, taking time to wander and enjoy the little things always ends up being enjoyable.

On our last day in Paris, we decided to check out the Marché d’Aligre and the covered Marché Beauvau nearby. I love walking around local markets eying all the fresh delicious looking food.

After perusing the market, we decided to head over to Montmartre, where we browsed the many shops lining the steep hills, stopped at the original Moulin Rouge building and wandered amongst the artists at Place du Tertre.

We eventually made our way up the long staircase to the Sacre Coeur Cathedral. As we were looking at the view of the city, Micah ran off saying, “I’ll be by the stairs!”. Apparently he spotted a drum set and had to stop to take in the music action on the stairs. He is a drummer himself and was instantly drawn in. I finally found where he had ran off to and we settled in to listen to some tunes.

Although the stairs were crowded, we really enjoyed listening to the band, Felix Fables, and when we heard they were playing a show near the Latin Quarter in an Irish Pub later that evening, we decided we had to check it out, even though we had to wake up for our flight at 5 a.m. Their shows are entertaining, and staying out late to catch one was worth any sleep deprivation it may have caused. I’m glad we didn’t have other plans holding us back so we were able to check out new music in Paris; we are going to make sure to plan more free time like this during our future trips. Here is a video of one of Felix Fables’ songs from the Irish Pub–the venue didn’t have the best mix, but they were still great to listen to. Also, be sure to check out their new EP!