Go to Gendarmenmarkt

Our first proper outing in Berlin took us on a short walk from our apartment to the Gendarmenmarkt area. It's a nice shopping area built about around a large square containing two matching churches (the French and German Cathedrals) and the music hall, called the Konzerthaus.

The Konzerthaus

Most historic buildings in Berlin have a dramatic history -- as they were either bombed, disassembled or looted within the last 200 years. Most buildings have since been put back together with painstaking attention to detail. The three buildings in this square are no different.

But the real jewel of the Gendarmenmarkt is the two-story chocolate store called Fassbender & Rausch. Hello! Two words: Chocolate volcano. You can be sure we'll be bringing back samples.

There are also a bunch of shops around the area, connected underground -- including a French market! Bonjour! Leah got a new Hello Kitty dress from the H&M store. Fancy!

As we walked back to the apartment, we identified some restaurants we'll want to try while we're here. And then it was out again to the grocery story to pick up a few more essentials. Interesting fact: they don't bag their groceries at the checkout. They put their items back into their cart and walk over to a nearby counter to bag them.

Back in Berlin!

Dave had to drag me kicking and screaming into the airport-bound taxi, where I then spent the entire 30-minute ride comparing my beloved Paris to all the second-rate cities I've visited. Sadly, it wasn't a long list.

Ahh, Paris. We Miss You Already

I did give the classic Paris vs. London argument some thought, -- but eventually had to give the title to Paris, since the weather is much better. Though, bonus points to London for hanging on to its monarchy. Wouldn't France be cooler if there was a king and queen roaming about, living in one of those palaces? Maybe they're looking for one, in which case, I volunteer!

Back in Berlin, we picked up our rental car -- as we now start our long stretch in Germany. "Oh lord, won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz." Oooohhhh jyeah, that's right! We're driving an C-class. My VW Rabbit at home is now dumpsville.

We made it back to the apartment with not a scratch added to our hot ride, and once the kiddies were settled in, I ventured out into the great beyond for some essentials. Like soap. And bread. I choose the Kaiser, the neighborhood market we didn't check out last week and was very overwhelmed by my choices -- most I couldn't quickly identify. I only got a handful of goods, but plan on returning this weekend, once my head stops spinning, to collect more basics.

Thankfully, a weekend is here so we can organize for the coming weeks. What would a stay at home moms do all day if she were in a foreign city?

Beats me!

I'm in Louvre!!!

"They said it was big, but I didn't think it was going to be ... BIG!" 

Someone could have warned me about the sheer size and awesomeness of the Louvre, because I wasn't expecting it when we crossed out of the Tuileries and entered the park. It is the most amazing site I have ever seen. Ever. Immediately, I was in love. 

Today's Realization: I must quit my job, sell my house and spend the next two years investigating every nook and cranny of that grand and glorious building.

The Girls Felt Like Dancing at the Louvre

I did a little research about the Louvre and though it's quite old -- it was first built as part of a wall to keep pesky Normandy invaders out in 1100ish -- it's had a pretty sad history of being abandon many times and for over hundreds of years -- including by the royal family who relocated to Versailles (I *must* see that place) in 1682. It eventually was used as storage for all the cool artifacts and art the French royalty accumulated and opened its doors to the public as a museum in 1793 (!).  

(By the way -- 10 points to the person who can name the movie where I got the above quote! Hint: None of the movie was filmed in Paris -- though, it was based on a French play. Discuss.)

And Now a Quick Word About French Ice Cream

Ice cream was enjoyed at several different locations, as Leah is just beginning her love affair with the ice cream cone (it was only in cups until now). Thought these pictures were enjoyable, taken at the Tuileries. Can't you just taste the ice cream?!

She's saying "cheese" but really, she's an advertisment for ice cream. Or toothpaste. 

As the little sister, Alice was given ice cream in the lid of a water bottle. Not that she was complaining.

Ice Cream, You Scream, We All Scream for Ice Cream! 

Paris Day 3 - A Special Guest on Our Last Day

On Our Way to the Tower

This morning we were joined by ... David! His conference now over, though a few phone meetings remained, he was able to see the town. His request ... the Eiffel Tower. So we headed in that direction once again. Major bonus: He pushed the World's Heaviest Stroller!

During our first trip to the Tower, we didn't actually cross the street to see it up-close. So, that's what we did. Even on this second trip, I couldn't get over how massively tall it is. I mean, it's TALL! Statue of Liberty-tall! (Which makes sense, right?) And of course, we had to hit the carousel, too ... again.

After lunch at a charming cafe, we hopped a metro to the bottom of the Champs-Elysees to make the grand walk to the Louvre. This street is tree-lined and lovely, with peek-a-boo glimpses of the Grand Palais and Petit Palais, as well as other delectable buildings.

Oh, Obelisque

This is where I'm going to gush: Oh my, how I love this city! It's so beautiful. So historic. So decadent. And so massively big, I never felt closed-in by the crowds. I'm completely smitten by this place. New York is going to seem like the poor man's Paris from now on. I never want to leave.

Okay. Enough said.

Place De La Concorde has a cool story. In the center, there used to be a statue of some king, it was toppled by the masses and replaced by the guillotine during the Revolution. Over 1,000 people were beheaded here including Marie Antoinette. The guillotine is long gone and now a simple Egyptian obelisque stands in the center -- all wreathed in a circle of massive traffic. Cars speeding in every direction!

Pond-side at Tuileries

From there, we entered the Jardin Des Tuileries, which was wonderful. Lots of kids attractions including ... a playground! And a carousel! Joy! We took our time meandering here and there. It's flat and very stroller-friendly. The pools were beautiful and Alice enjoyed shooing another type of bird -- ducks! They don't shoo so easily.

And then, there it was, the Louvre. My thoughts on the Louvre is getting its own post but I will say again that this sucker is BIG. But not in an overdone sort of way. Total eye candy. I immediately loved it. And I got some national pride knowing that I.M. Pei designed the pretty glass pyramids in front of it. Yay America!

Upon seeing those pyramids, Leah had to find a potty -- pronto. So we took in some long looks, a bunch of pictures and found the nearest street exit to prevail upon the goodness of a cafe host for the use of the lou. (And we made it, in case you're interested to know.)

How Could I Not Love This?

With a promise to return to my Louvre in the future, we headed down the steps of the Metro (Dave swearing at the World's Heaviest Stroller the entire way) and took the ride back to our neighborhood. It was a little early, so I took the kids to the nearby playground while Dave worked. When it started to rain, we headed out to dinner. Croque Monsieur! My goodness can this city do cheese and bread!

Last night in Paris. I feel like I only scratched the surface, so of course I have to come back. Who's coming with me?!

An American in Paris

One reason I have such a crush on Paris is that three movies from my Top 10 Favorite Movies of All Time list take place in Paris. One of them, I quoted earlier. And today, I happened upon this store...

Jesse and Celine Reconnect

In case you missed the film reference, Shakespeare and Company (or City Lights) is used in the movie "Before Sunset" -- the sequel to "After Sunset" with Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy. I'm not one to seek out movie sets, but this one was exciting to see. I took a moment and daydreamed about the film. 

"Amelie," which usually tops my Top 10 list, is the one exception. I would love to go to Montmarte and see a few of the landmarks in the film. But that area is all hills! And did I mention my stroller is the Heaviest of All Time? Not this trip. 

A New Day, A New Video of a Playground

Day two video and another playground. The second of the day was in the Etoile neighborhood near Rue Brunel.

Alice needed to eat (surprise!), so Leah ran around and acted like she owned the place. Paris agrees with them.

Paris Day 2: Where I Take a Wrong Turn

We started the day a bit late thanks to hotel blackout shades and an ounce of jet lag, but got underway around 10:30. 

The first challenge of the day was getting onto a Metro and off to City Island, home of Notre Dame. This Metro isn't quite as user friendly at first pass. I'm hoping to make peace with it on subsequent trips. Long story short: it took about an hour to get tickets and onto a train. 

Just Hanging Out

After hauling up the Heaviest Stroller on Earth two flights of stairs at the Hotel de Ville stop, I looked around and without much to guide me, started walking in a direction that looked interesting and was hopefully toward Ile de la Cite and Notre Dame. I was wrong, of course, but didn't figure that out for about an hour. On the brightside, we found another playground. So, while I studied the map and reoriented myself, the kids played and bullied French kids.

Not Exactly the 1st
Picture of Notre Dame

Notre Dame sure is something!! What I like best about it is that it's surrounded by other equally old and beautiful buildings. Not like in NY where St. Paul's Cathedral (for example) is next to a windowed high-rise and a department store. Everything in this neighborhood matched. I gawked for awhile, while Alice shooed pigeons and Leah had a minor meltdown. Good times. 

We hit a souvenir shop then walked to a corner take-away place for lunch. Hot dog and frites. (Because in France, it would be redundant to call them French fries. Har har!) We found a bench with a view of the Conciergerie, with its beautiful golden gate, for our lunch a la fresco. Everyone was much happier after a meal. 

Then I decided, as I usually do in a city, that I needed to walk, so we spent about the next hour on the road from Ile de la Cite to the Musee d'Orsay. It was a lovely stroll on the river overlooking ornate building after ornate building. Catching all the detail on the buildings is almost tiring. 

The Musee d'Orsay is one of my top places to visit, but it was getting late so I had to resign myself to looking at it from the outside and changing Alice's diaper in an inconspicuous spot. (Maybe I shouldn't have confessed that.) 

Look!  A Paris Leaf!

Then, back down the stairs hauling the World's Heaviest Stroller, onto a train and back to the hotel where, in route, we found yet another playground. More playing, a little less bullying -- clearly, they were losing steam.

Realization For the Day: Must return to this Paris without kids (or when kids are older) so I can actually enter a building.

Motto For the Day: Think of how big my arms will be from hauling the World's Heaviest Stroller up and down Metro stairs!

The Paris Playground Tour - Day 1

More than anything, I think I'll be seeing a lot of the Paris playground. Here's a video of the one by the Eiffel Tower. Sorry for the shakiness!

I'll try to capture video of something other than a playground tomorrow.

Ahh, Paris! Day 1

The flight this morning to Paris was only about 2 hours, so much easier for the kids than yesterday. We arrived to sunny weather and about 17 degrees c. Very nice.

Leah took to this photo!

Riding horses!

x

The hotel is swanky and our room is shoe-box sized. About what I expected. Dave ran off to his meetings and, once we had settled in our room, I dropped the kids in our stroller and headed out. Way too excited to see the city.

We stopped at an Italian cafe for lunch immediately. If I'm starved, I know the kids will be, too. Pizza and spaghetti. We all shared. I'm getting more bold about using my French. Merci!

I saw the Arc de Triomphe from the taxi to the hotel, so I headed in that direction. It wasn't far until we reached it and it's just as cool as it is in all the movies. Tourists were everywhere taking pictures at all angles. And I couldn't believe all the cars circling it. And with no lines to follow!
(And yes, I did mumble the movie quote: "I will triumph!" as I walked by.)

We headed down the Champs-Elysees for several blocks, though being in SoHo every day, this wasn't that big a deal. I had heard it was all "chain stores" but I didn't recognize that many. I had expected to see a Gap on every corner, like NYC, but saw none.

I spotted the Eiffel Tower in the distance, so that was my next destination. Pushing the kids was a good workout. And the Eiffel wasn't close. But we made it there. This was a pretty big deal to me. (It's bigger than I imagined!) The kids were semi-impressed but spotted the carousel in its shadow almost right away.

After going around in circles for a while, I found a playground they could run around in. There was a little girl making the kids on the slide pay her a "high 5" (however they say it in French) before they could go down. Leah and Alice were fascinated they couldn't understand her. But they eventually paid the toll.

Then it was a looong walk back to the hotel. Alice fell asleep with her face down on the tray. That got a lot of chuckles and comments from those who passed her. Yeah, I think she was impressed with her first day in Paris.

Put My Money Where My Mouth Is

Which reminds me ... holy cow was I scared getting into the car and leaving the house with 5 suitcases, three carry-ons and the two most precious things I have -- Leah and Alice. (And David, too!)

It has always been a dream of mine to live in Europe. It's was an ambition Dave and I shared but never thought we'd do.

And now, here I was dragging my kids away from their routines, cousins, beloved grandparents, toys (!) and taking them on this adventure that they might not want. Might not even enjoy. Not to mention the worries over safety. Comfort. Natural disasters! Oye!

But now it was time. The opportunity was there. And we jumped. Put my money where my mouth is. I've always wanted this, so suck it up, right?

Then, as we were pulling out of the driveway and I felt near vomiting, I looked at this incredibly huge smile on Leah's face. "I'm so excited, Mommy!"

Yeah, she's my kid alright!

We've Landed!

I have to pinch myself, because I can't believe I'm here! After so many months of planning...

The journey wasn't a total nightmare, but it did have plenty of tantrums and challenges. We left at 5:55pm, and arrived at around 1:30am -- 7:30am local time. So we were hoping to sleep on the flight. Leah struggled but fell asleep pretty quickly. Alice circled around her seat for almost an hour. She was desperate for sleep, so it was almost painful to watch her many attempts to get comfortable. And then, when she did fall asleep, it was a restless sleep.  I was constantly catching her before she fell off the front of seat, or slid under the armrest to the aisle. So, it wasn't the relaxing flight I had hoped for. On the brightside, no one cried and woke up half the plan.

View from the Living Room window

Our apartment on the top floor of the building - 9th! Five rooms off a main hallway. The kitchen is adorable - very European-like. And tall wardrobes in all the rooms. Everything is clean and new-looking. Very functional.

We all took long naps once we were unpacked and comfortable. Then, we loaded up the stroller and took a walk around the neighborhood. We're in a very residential part of the city. And there are several embassys nearby. Lots of grocery stores that we checked out. And a gigantic park we'll be sure to return to.

We got sandwiches for dinner, chicken and eggs. And some kind of sausage on a roll. I practiced my German! Danku!

The weather is fall-like. Warm sun and cool breeze. It was a bit rainy today -- just like home.

I better get back to packing for Paris. And get the kids to bed -- even though it's 1:51pm their time!