Thankfully our apartment is...

...only a block away from the metro. It sits along Rue Yvonne le Tac, in the area of Montmarte. My first sight of Montmarte was a carousel, which is visible as you exit the Metro and head up to street level.

My next view was of cobbled roads with streetside cafes and charming store fronts, some of which were already closed considering the late hour. The drizzling rain lent a bit of drama to what was already a very pretty scene. If I wasn't so tired already, I would have scrounged around my bag for my camera and taken a shot. We walked the block to the apartment gate where our friendly host was already waiting for us in front of a simple building, with vine-covered walls. She typed in the code that opened the front iron gate and another set of code to open the main door. She then led us along a short narrow hallway which opens to a snall common courtyard. Following her, we crossed the courtyard, went up the worn wooden stairs and into one of the 2nd floor apartments.

The apartment is...hmmm...how shall I describe it...well, it's tiny. But it has all the basics. The space was just enough for a double bed which folds up to a couch, a coffee table and a book shelf. On the left wall is a smal cabinet, a small refrigerator, 2 stove tops, an oven toaster, a clothes washer and a sink. Along the top are cupboards and there was a box of a shower at the far corner. The toilet was across the hall.

Ashley, our host, showed us how everything worked, gave us the codes to the gate and the main door, the login information for the WiFi and a map to the closest supermarket and other placea of interest in the neighbohood, and since this was Montmarte, there's a lot of those. She was also sweet enough stock up on some basic provisions for us so thankfully we didn't have to go out and look for a brasserie or a restaurant when all we wanted to do was bathe and sleep at the end of a very long day.