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.)

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. 

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.

Hello Paris!

It's official. We'll be going to the City of Lights for four whole days!

So, I ran out and bought a travel book and "Madeline" -- because a girl can't see Paris without reading that book first. It only took a week before Leah could identify the Eiffel Tower.

I'm also teaching them all the polite words - hello, goodbye, thank you, please. I just need to learn "I'm so sorry for my children," which will absolutely come in handy.

The Air France reservation lady was very nice. She commented about my husband's last name: "Can't get more German than that!" Heh! She also referred to my girls as "Irish twins." Ahh, the French!

Lastly, this isn't going to be the trip to Paris I have been planning since I was 16 and completely in love with Monet's garden. But, I'm quickly adjusting to the idea of slowly strolling the charming streets of Paris pushing a yellow stroller -- pointing out birds and boats to two little girls. I might be skipping the Louvre, but I'll probably see the zoo, aquarium and a few playgrounds.

And that's just as good.