Magnifique! My daughter and I had a wonderful mother/daughter vacation at Julien's home. It's warm, wonderful, and VERY inviting. I was in love with the nature wood and stone, and the morning sunlight was gorgeous. Julien welcomed us to his home with warmth and understanding (we were hungry which he somehow knew, and left us a lovely note pointing us to a wonderful breakfast spot - the only one open so early on a Sunday for arrival! I didn't know we were booking our flat from a mindreader! :D )
The neighborhood is ten to fifteen walking minutes straight up Stephenson from Gare du Nord (he's also close to a couple of bus stops but it seemed to take more time to wait for the busses than it was to simply strike out on foot.) The neighborhood is active and full of life, a true Parisien experience that quiets down around midnight most nights we were there, and calm after that - we didn't hear a peep from our neighbors all week long!) The pizza restaurant below his flat is really good, and there is a small market right across Stephenson from his place. They were super sweet, and told us to beware of pickpockets in Paris, and that most of them were children. I saw some in the Champs-Elysee area, but none around Julien's neighborhood. There's a wonderful wine shop on Rue Myrha (they also sell hand-crafted jewelry - a fun combination!), and further on down, a grocery store.
Nearby are two bakeries on Stephenson that speak very limited English, and were very patient with my limited French. Down the street on Myrha though, is the Boulangerie Tembely - you know it's there by the smell! It's wonderful and the croissants there are warm, buttery goodness.
We felt very lucky to have found Julien's flat - it was designed like we were in the middle of the tourist area, but without the transportation challenges that being in the city center can bring to tourists (or the expense!) It is smack-dab in the middle of a working-class neighborhood, so we felt not like tourists, but more like locals (and were treated like local by the vendors!) We also loved the vibrancy of the neighborhood, and how everyone was polite, friendly, and looked out for each other. We met street artists, learned about wine and the properties of yeast and butter, learned that Adolphe Sax invented the saxophone around the corner from where we were living, and discovered tiny pocket gardens that had been there since the early 1900's. We loved living like Parisiennes, and long to go back. Merçi mille fois, Julien. Merçi!