I woke up to discover that my dear hubby had already shopped at the local patisserie for croissants and pain au chocolate. I was feeling pretty rough and hadn't slept well the night before. He made a good cup of green tea and fed us pastries and fresh berries. We ate a yummy breakfast in our room and then we headed to the train station.
The train ride was pretty simple. Our plan was to spend the day on the Isle de Cite. We started at the Sainte Chappel. It takes your breath away. Really, it does. The stained glass windows are in order. They tell the story of the Bible from Genesis through Revelation. When my FIL came to this church, he actually tried to count them and estimates there are 300,000 stained glass windows. It is something to behold. They stone carvings also tell stories from the Bible. The children enjoyed naming the stories from the scenes depicted.
We walked through the courtyard of the Justice Department and had a picnic by the river. Then we went to the Concierge. The kids were disappointed. It may be the first palace, but there's not much in it. There was a very good video about the history of French politics, complete with graphic beheading scenes. I read that it was set up like it had been during Gothic times, but there really wasn't much in there.
We headed out to get a sweet treat before going to Notre Dame. This was our first repeat activity of the day. I can't imagine ever tiring of looking at Notre Dame. Even the front facade is mesmerizing enough to get lost in. The interior, even more so. The sheer number of prayer chapels, statues, paintings, and friezes, is overwhelming. It really is huge, even by cathedral standards. It's ginormous.
We were going to go to the top, but the line was incredibly long. Instead, we went to the park behind it (again) and had a great time remembering Leonardo on that silver spaceship spinning things. It's still there. The girl's both journaled about their trip there while Jasper spun in circles for about an hour. It's a beautiful place to soak up the sun and breathe while you take it all in.
After our leisurely pause, we headed to the crypts. This was a new one for us, and I LOVED it. It's an archaeological site that was discovered during the installation of a parking lot. They never put the parking lot there because the Roman ruins of the original city from two thousand years ago was found there. You get to look at about four city blocks of ancient Roman ruins. There's a plethora of ancient roman coins with roman artifacts. There's lots of interactive maps, 3D images of the city over the course of a millennium and parts of the original wall that fortified the city. It's a home schooler's dream come true for ancient studies! We stayed there until they closed.
Then we hopped back on the bus and cooked dinner in our room. My dear hubby had grabbed some yummy sweet sausage to go with our pasta. The plan was an early dinner and a prompt bedtime to help the kids shift their circadian rhythms. it worked for two out of three of them.
Two hours after bedtime, our youngest is still bouncing off the walls while everyone else sleeps. He can't help it. It's jet lag. The kids with the most predictable schedules at home are the ones who have the hardest time adjusting to the new time zone.
Sunday, April 2, 2017
We're baaaaaaack!
We made it back to Paris! Our family looks a little different. Leonardo isn't with us because he's in college. We have no kids in diapers! We have a fourteen year old, an eight years old, and a seven year old, so we are going to see things in Paris that we didn't even bother with last time.
We splurged on an Uber ride to get us from the airport to the hotel. We unpacked and promptly headed out to the Monoprix for a few things before going to dinner at a creperie around the corner. We were all miserably tired and jet lagged. It was a struggle to stay awake until 9 pm that night, and then we all got that crazy energy thing and the kids didn't sleep until 10 pm. The adults were closer to midnight. We all slept until 10 am the next day. So we felt human again when we got up.
Day One: We ate breakfast in our room. Then we went shopping for lunch goodies. We got bread, cheese, and sausage at the Fran Prix. Then we walked to the Champs de Mars for a picnic in front of the Eiffel Tower. The kids are old enough to know what the Eiffel Tower is, and our youngest, in particular, is completely in love with the Eiffel Tower. We walked to the very back of it and got some great shots of the Military School. This was a part of Paris we didn't see last time. In fact, the rest of our day was all about new experiences.
We continued our walk out to Napoleon's Tomb. The gardens surrounding it are amazing. The old walls and moats that surround it are very cool too. There is grass growing in the moats, because they no longer hold water. They are just a decorative part of history now.
The shrine around Napoleon's tomb is absolutely mind blowing. I expected something a little more modest. I guess because I've seen Grant's tomb in the US. I did not expect the wow factor. It is a WOW! We spent a solid hour in the shrine.
Then we headed out back to the Cathedral. The Church attached to the shrine is so similar to St Louis Cathedral in New Orleans that my jaw dropped. The floors are different, but the shape of the church and the decorations are almost identical, right down to the light fixtures and the flags.
Then we headed to the Military Museum. I am not into the military at all, but this was really a very cool place. My husband loves to read historical fiction and he's read books about both the French and the English armies and navies from long ago. The uniform displays are a costume maker's dream. I took a ridiculous amount of pictures for my Elizabethan costume club. The weapons were really cool too, and they even have Napoleon's actual horse preserved through taxidermy.
We spent about two hours in the Military Museum before heading to our next stop. We grabbed a bus to the Arch de Triumph. We hiked up to the top. OMG. My legs burned. I also got dizzy from the narrow, spiral staircase. You can't beat the views from up there.
Then we walked about three blocks to St. Joseph's. It's a modern church, underground, that offers an English mass on Saturdays at 6:30. Everyone there was so friendly and welcoming. My children even got to help at mass!
We walked around about two blocks and had dinner at the first place we found. I think it was the Hotel Sophie. The food was excellent. Service was great. It worked perfectly for us. We tried to Uber back but our Uber had a fender bender, so we ended up walking along the Sienne to get back. The kids had a carousel ride in front of the Eiffel Tower. The Tower was lit and sparkling, and it was just good fun for us. We finished our walk home, and sent the kids straight to bed. It was 10:30 pm.
They had the decency to sleep until 9 am.
We splurged on an Uber ride to get us from the airport to the hotel. We unpacked and promptly headed out to the Monoprix for a few things before going to dinner at a creperie around the corner. We were all miserably tired and jet lagged. It was a struggle to stay awake until 9 pm that night, and then we all got that crazy energy thing and the kids didn't sleep until 10 pm. The adults were closer to midnight. We all slept until 10 am the next day. So we felt human again when we got up.
Day One: We ate breakfast in our room. Then we went shopping for lunch goodies. We got bread, cheese, and sausage at the Fran Prix. Then we walked to the Champs de Mars for a picnic in front of the Eiffel Tower. The kids are old enough to know what the Eiffel Tower is, and our youngest, in particular, is completely in love with the Eiffel Tower. We walked to the very back of it and got some great shots of the Military School. This was a part of Paris we didn't see last time. In fact, the rest of our day was all about new experiences.
We continued our walk out to Napoleon's Tomb. The gardens surrounding it are amazing. The old walls and moats that surround it are very cool too. There is grass growing in the moats, because they no longer hold water. They are just a decorative part of history now.
The shrine around Napoleon's tomb is absolutely mind blowing. I expected something a little more modest. I guess because I've seen Grant's tomb in the US. I did not expect the wow factor. It is a WOW! We spent a solid hour in the shrine.
Then we headed out back to the Cathedral. The Church attached to the shrine is so similar to St Louis Cathedral in New Orleans that my jaw dropped. The floors are different, but the shape of the church and the decorations are almost identical, right down to the light fixtures and the flags.
Then we headed to the Military Museum. I am not into the military at all, but this was really a very cool place. My husband loves to read historical fiction and he's read books about both the French and the English armies and navies from long ago. The uniform displays are a costume maker's dream. I took a ridiculous amount of pictures for my Elizabethan costume club. The weapons were really cool too, and they even have Napoleon's actual horse preserved through taxidermy.
We spent about two hours in the Military Museum before heading to our next stop. We grabbed a bus to the Arch de Triumph. We hiked up to the top. OMG. My legs burned. I also got dizzy from the narrow, spiral staircase. You can't beat the views from up there.
Then we walked about three blocks to St. Joseph's. It's a modern church, underground, that offers an English mass on Saturdays at 6:30. Everyone there was so friendly and welcoming. My children even got to help at mass!
We walked around about two blocks and had dinner at the first place we found. I think it was the Hotel Sophie. The food was excellent. Service was great. It worked perfectly for us. We tried to Uber back but our Uber had a fender bender, so we ended up walking along the Sienne to get back. The kids had a carousel ride in front of the Eiffel Tower. The Tower was lit and sparkling, and it was just good fun for us. We finished our walk home, and sent the kids straight to bed. It was 10:30 pm.
They had the decency to sleep until 9 am.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Photos
We have 9803 pictures and 86 videos from the trip. Suffice it to say, it will take a little while to sort through and post them all. I plan to do that over the next month or two, so stay tuned.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
A Whirlwind Week in Paris
Well, we are leaving Paris tomorrow and tonight is my first opportunity to sit for an hour or so and blog. Paris reminds me of NYC in so many ways, but the architecture and the food here are so much better and there are many, many, more parks than NYC.
My first adventure in Paris was going to mass Sunday at Sacre Couer Basilica. A truly stunning church, and A very young building (only two hundred years old). I got there thirty minutes early, did the whole mass, amd then waited another twenty minutes before taking pictures (without a flash) and found myself accosted and almost thrown out for doing so! I left church rather rattled! We had a horrible lunch after mass before going to the Salvador Dali museum. I loved the Dali museum and learned a lot, but he was a lot stranger than I thought. After the museum, we took the kids to a playground, and just let them play and run around.
We did a few really touristy things the next day. We went to Notre Dame and Sean and Leonardo climbed up into the bell towers. Tiff and I did the indoor tour and caught a daily mass (a great nap moment for Jasper). Most of my pictures didn't turn out because flash photography was not allowed and there isn't as much light in there as Sacre Couer. Now Notre Dame contstruction began in 1146. So I am sitting there pondering the millions of people who have sat in this church over the last eight and a half centuries, mesmerized by it's beauty. It is stunning. And after reading "Pillars of the Earth" I can't look at flying butresses the same way! (thanks, Paige):) After Notre Dame, and the park behind it, we walked to the Louvre, and looked around and took some pics. Didn't bother going into the Louvre with small children. We sat around Les Jardins de Tuilleries and rested before going to the Eiffel Tower. Sean, Tiffanie, Claire, and Leonardo all went to the very top of the Eifell Tower. I was perfectly content sitting at a lovely playground with the littles, enjoying the brisk weather. Then we had to haul butt home to get ready for the Moulin Rouge. I will provide a comlete review of the Moulin Rouge in a separate post!
Wednesday we took the train to Versailles. I used to wonder what the difference between a castle and a palace was. Well, now I know. Castles have large, beautiful gardens, Pallaces have acres and acres and acres of gardens. Castles are large. Palaces are several large buildings put together. Castles have beautiful rooms with wood paneling and painted ceilings and walls. Palaces have fabriced walls, marble panelling, painted ceilings and sculptures on the ceilings and walls. You can walk through an entire castle and its' grounds in one day. You need a golf cart to drive around the palace grounds in a day. There are no metal detectors and security staff at a castle. You have to go through the same level of security at a palace that you go through at the airport.
Thursday was my favorite day. We went to the Jardins de Luxembourg with the kids. It's an amazing park with a wonderful playground, and we let the kids just run around like crazy. We finished up with rides on the carousel.
As you may have noticed, we didn't do a lot of the traditional touristy things. We didn't go into the Louvre, or the Orsay, or any of the museums except the Dali one. We didn't walk the Champs Elyees, or see the Arc de Triumph either. But I told Sean (and Tiffanie), the littles were really loud, restless, and ill-mannered in places like that. I figured out early on, that keeping them outside and in child-friendly places really brought out the best in them, which made me more relaxed. I feel very blessed to have seen a lot of parts of Paris that most tourists never see, which is a shame, because we saw a lot of really cool, wondrous stuff! So I thoroughly enjoyed my kid friendly tours:)
My first adventure in Paris was going to mass Sunday at Sacre Couer Basilica. A truly stunning church, and A very young building (only two hundred years old). I got there thirty minutes early, did the whole mass, amd then waited another twenty minutes before taking pictures (without a flash) and found myself accosted and almost thrown out for doing so! I left church rather rattled! We had a horrible lunch after mass before going to the Salvador Dali museum. I loved the Dali museum and learned a lot, but he was a lot stranger than I thought. After the museum, we took the kids to a playground, and just let them play and run around.
We did a few really touristy things the next day. We went to Notre Dame and Sean and Leonardo climbed up into the bell towers. Tiff and I did the indoor tour and caught a daily mass (a great nap moment for Jasper). Most of my pictures didn't turn out because flash photography was not allowed and there isn't as much light in there as Sacre Couer. Now Notre Dame contstruction began in 1146. So I am sitting there pondering the millions of people who have sat in this church over the last eight and a half centuries, mesmerized by it's beauty. It is stunning. And after reading "Pillars of the Earth" I can't look at flying butresses the same way! (thanks, Paige):) After Notre Dame, and the park behind it, we walked to the Louvre, and looked around and took some pics. Didn't bother going into the Louvre with small children. We sat around Les Jardins de Tuilleries and rested before going to the Eiffel Tower. Sean, Tiffanie, Claire, and Leonardo all went to the very top of the Eifell Tower. I was perfectly content sitting at a lovely playground with the littles, enjoying the brisk weather. Then we had to haul butt home to get ready for the Moulin Rouge. I will provide a comlete review of the Moulin Rouge in a separate post!
Wednesday we took the train to Versailles. I used to wonder what the difference between a castle and a palace was. Well, now I know. Castles have large, beautiful gardens, Pallaces have acres and acres and acres of gardens. Castles are large. Palaces are several large buildings put together. Castles have beautiful rooms with wood paneling and painted ceilings and walls. Palaces have fabriced walls, marble panelling, painted ceilings and sculptures on the ceilings and walls. You can walk through an entire castle and its' grounds in one day. You need a golf cart to drive around the palace grounds in a day. There are no metal detectors and security staff at a castle. You have to go through the same level of security at a palace that you go through at the airport.
Thursday was my favorite day. We went to the Jardins de Luxembourg with the kids. It's an amazing park with a wonderful playground, and we let the kids just run around like crazy. We finished up with rides on the carousel.
As you may have noticed, we didn't do a lot of the traditional touristy things. We didn't go into the Louvre, or the Orsay, or any of the museums except the Dali one. We didn't walk the Champs Elyees, or see the Arc de Triumph either. But I told Sean (and Tiffanie), the littles were really loud, restless, and ill-mannered in places like that. I figured out early on, that keeping them outside and in child-friendly places really brought out the best in them, which made me more relaxed. I feel very blessed to have seen a lot of parts of Paris that most tourists never see, which is a shame, because we saw a lot of really cool, wondrous stuff! So I thoroughly enjoyed my kid friendly tours:)
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Claire's corner: take eight
I made it to the top of the Eiffel Tower! It was pretty fun! I also went to the Norte Dame. How are you guys? This was all done yesterday. Today we walked a lot. I went to this place, I don't know what it was but it was fun! I love Paris! You have to come and see it! What i love about France is the Leonardo de Vinci playground. We had the best pork 1 night ago. My dad tried to make French pork. It was delicious!
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Claire's Corner: Take Seven
Were in Paris. I think I'll get a scarf. Paris is a busy place for business. I hope you guys are ok. Only a few more days till we leave. Were really having fun. You are missing out!
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Castles
We left Avignon the day after Sean's race and took a train to a town outside of Amboise. I must confess, the train ride to Amboise was not pretty. In fact, both of my littles set new records in bad behavior and in tantrum volume. More than one passenger shifted their hostile eyes between us (with our dueling scream-a-tronic-2000 models) and the doors. At one point,I feared a mutiny, but we were within walking distance to the station. This day was truly the low point of the trip. My children have never been so awful in public. Its the kind of record you hope you never break (again). We rented a small bus there, (nine seat van) and drove to Amboise. We were (not) so surprised to find a medieval wall around the town and a castle smack dab in the center of the town.
It's actually becoming a norm for us. I know it sounds awful, but at frst you think "I can never get tired or bored of these castles. Its just so amazing" But then, after dozens of them, you find youreself thinking, "oh look, it's another castle, *sigh*" and you feel ashamed (a little) because you know that most people never see one back home, but they are everywhere here!
Would you believe we never made it to see the Amboise castle? We spent our first night there just having a lovely dinner at the hotel and getting the kids to bed. The next day, we wandered around, saw an incredible gothic church, and meandered through town and the shops, walked along the Loire, and had a nap. Then we saw the last home of Leonardo da Vinci. This place was so cool! Working models of so may of his inventions. Including the round flotation device, the paddle boat, a working water loch system for canals, water pumps, the crane, and some of the weapons he designed. What is really amazing is how many things we use today that are based on his designs:)
The next day we managed to squeeze in three castles (and we were exhausted that night). We saw
Cheverny, a small castle, still lived in by current royal descendants, and immaculately furnished. Then we headed over to Fourge a Beivre, a medieval castle, that is almost empty. BUT, this castle was very cool because inside, it has demonstrations and examples of how people actually built these castles, and it had real tools that were used. Fascinating. Our last castle of the day was Chenonceau. It's a castle on an island in the middle of a river.
King Louie the XIV was one of it's inhabitants! Catherine de Medici's garden was my favorite:) the kids loved the maze the most. Naturally. It's like the world's best hide and seek game:)
Our last full day in Amboise, we spent half a day doing chores. Laundry, the post office, and market day. But we still managed to go to a museum and two castles. The museum was the Maurice Dufremse museum and it was nothing short of amazing. This guy had a love of inventions, and he collected agriculture machines, automobiles, toys, bikes,fire trucks, horse buggies, and a menagerie of mechanical engineering equipment (not to mention weapons). Then he bought an old mill and put all of his stuff there. We learned so much. My favorite was the weaving looms from the eighteenth century. We stopped at a castle for pictures only, can't remember the name, and then we saw Villandry. We only saw the gardens at Villandry. But the gardens there were amazing. Another labryinth for the kids to runaround in. The vegetable garden was mind-blowing. My gardening is to Villandry what finger painting is to Renoir. Sammy ate grapes off the trellises (and the ground) by the fist fulls.
I felt like we missed out on so much in the Loire valley. There are archeological sites, mushroom caves, wine caves, candy store tours, and dozens of other things to do there that we just couldnt get to (not to mention a couple of hundred more castles), but we have lots left to do for next time!
It's actually becoming a norm for us. I know it sounds awful, but at frst you think "I can never get tired or bored of these castles. Its just so amazing" But then, after dozens of them, you find youreself thinking, "oh look, it's another castle, *sigh*" and you feel ashamed (a little) because you know that most people never see one back home, but they are everywhere here!
Would you believe we never made it to see the Amboise castle? We spent our first night there just having a lovely dinner at the hotel and getting the kids to bed. The next day, we wandered around, saw an incredible gothic church, and meandered through town and the shops, walked along the Loire, and had a nap. Then we saw the last home of Leonardo da Vinci. This place was so cool! Working models of so may of his inventions. Including the round flotation device, the paddle boat, a working water loch system for canals, water pumps, the crane, and some of the weapons he designed. What is really amazing is how many things we use today that are based on his designs:)
The next day we managed to squeeze in three castles (and we were exhausted that night). We saw
Cheverny, a small castle, still lived in by current royal descendants, and immaculately furnished. Then we headed over to Fourge a Beivre, a medieval castle, that is almost empty. BUT, this castle was very cool because inside, it has demonstrations and examples of how people actually built these castles, and it had real tools that were used. Fascinating. Our last castle of the day was Chenonceau. It's a castle on an island in the middle of a river.
King Louie the XIV was one of it's inhabitants! Catherine de Medici's garden was my favorite:) the kids loved the maze the most. Naturally. It's like the world's best hide and seek game:)
Our last full day in Amboise, we spent half a day doing chores. Laundry, the post office, and market day. But we still managed to go to a museum and two castles. The museum was the Maurice Dufremse museum and it was nothing short of amazing. This guy had a love of inventions, and he collected agriculture machines, automobiles, toys, bikes,fire trucks, horse buggies, and a menagerie of mechanical engineering equipment (not to mention weapons). Then he bought an old mill and put all of his stuff there. We learned so much. My favorite was the weaving looms from the eighteenth century. We stopped at a castle for pictures only, can't remember the name, and then we saw Villandry. We only saw the gardens at Villandry. But the gardens there were amazing. Another labryinth for the kids to runaround in. The vegetable garden was mind-blowing. My gardening is to Villandry what finger painting is to Renoir. Sammy ate grapes off the trellises (and the ground) by the fist fulls.
I felt like we missed out on so much in the Loire valley. There are archeological sites, mushroom caves, wine caves, candy store tours, and dozens of other things to do there that we just couldnt get to (not to mention a couple of hundred more castles), but we have lots left to do for next time!
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