Planning a trip to Paris in the Fall? Here are some of the art exhibitions you won’t want to miss:

Picasso et les maîtres from October 6 to February 2. With over 210 paintings the exhibition puts the work of Picasso face to face with that of the grand masters - painters Picasso studied, used and never quite rejected. Included are works by Goya, Ingres, Delacroix, Manet, Courbet, Degas, Cézanne, Renoir, Rembrandt and Van Gogh. Morning tickets require a reservation which you can get on their website (in French) or aim for the evening openings.

Grand Palais. 3, avenue du Général Eisenhower  75008. Metro Champs-Elysées Clemenceau. Open Wednesday to Monday 10am-8pm. Open late Wednesday nights until 10pm. Closed Tuesday. http://www.rmn.fr

PHOTO : Portrait de l’Infante Marie-Marguerite, fille de Philippe IV, roi d’Espagne (1661-1673), Velasquez, musée du Louvre © Photo RMN - Gérard Blot

Raoul Dufy  from October 17 to January 11. An exhibition of over 120 paintings, plus ceramics and fabrics, that aims to put the work of this avant-garde artist - who today we tend to think of as being light, colorful and “happy” – back into perspective as having an important influence on his times.

Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris. 11 avenue du Président Wilson, 75116. Metro Pont d’Alma or Iéna. Tuesday–Sunday 10am-6pm. Closed Mondays. Open late on Thursday until 10pm. www.mam.paris.fr

Van Dyck from October 8 to January 25. The first ever retrospective in Paris of this Flemish painter (1599-1641), who studied with Rubens and went on to become a great portrait painter for the court of England.

Musée Jacquemart-André. 158 boulevard Haussmann, 75008. Metro Miromesnil. Open daily 10am-6pm. Open late on Mondays until 9:30pm. http://www.musee-jacquemart-andre.com

Paris’ most creative pastry chef opens a new boutique, his first on Paris’ Right Bank. Hermé who trained at Fauchon before creating a renaissance at Ladurée (famous for their macarons) and later breaking out on his own, is famous for his inspired taste-combinations. The new Pierre Hermé boutique (4, rue Cambon,75001) is dedicated entirely to chocolate and macarons (the French almond-cake version not the chewy coconut number) and a new addition: gourmet scented candles.

I have to admit my Pierre Hermé favorites are more classic: his sublime lemon tart and a coffee tart to die for. For those I’ll have to go to his Left Bank boutiques. But one of the new Fall creations, the Bonbon Chocolat au Macaron, might just become one of my must haves. It’s a chocolate covered cube with a little mini-macaron on top. Inside layers of chocolate macaron and almond paste are exposed. Heaven.

Left Bank Pierre Hermé boutiques: 72, rue Bonaparte, 75006 and 185 rue de Vaugirard, 75015; www.pierreherme.com

My first real Paris apartment was off of Rue Montorgueil, one of Paris’ oldest and best market streets. I rarely went to grocery stores for food. I had everything I needed within a few minutes walk, plus cafés where I could regroup before carrying my fresh vegetables, cheeses and crusty breads (and later baby) up the five flights of stairs to my little piece of Paris.

I thought I was doing great going to the market then and now. Even if I had started farmer’s market shopping in Atlanta, I still eat healthier today than I did when TV dinners and box-mix cakes where the norm in my 60’s to 70’s childhood. Don’t I?

Maybe not. Maybe I should be eating organic, or as the French say, “bio.” Seems that some of the fruit and veg I buy is certainly chemically treated. So even if it is traceable - I know what farm my chevre was made in, it’s written on the label.  I trust Christophe (Mr. Chicken) who does sell organic grain-fed chickens for those who want them, and Raphael (cheese) at my local market and they appreciate their loyal customers. Call me nuts, but I don’t feel like being any healthier.

I grow strawberries, tomatoes and pumpkins, have an old pear tree in my yard that yields pretty well, and I don’t use chemicals on them.The French gastronomic experience has become a way of life. We love food and would rather make a grilled cheese of fresh bread and Comté then pop a frozen snack in the oven.

So when recently asked to write an article on Green Paris, I had to ask myself should I be working harder to be green? 

One thing is sure, my local recycling obligations are far more rigid then anything I saw on my recent trip to Texas. We have 4 garbage cans to take out on various night of the week – garden debris like plant cuttings, plastics and paper waste, glass waste, and everything else. There are separate bins at the town hall for plastic bottle caps and old batteries, and more…

As for eating, I have decided that I’ll trust my eye, going for freshness and quality. The “bio” shrimp at the market actually do taste better, and I buy them, but when the new potatoes arrive from Brittany I’m just going to stock up and enjoy.

For those of you who only want organic however, Paris’ most famous “bio” market is on the lower half of Boulevard Raspail every Sunday morning until about 2pm. A true guiltless pleasure.