Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Paris

I keep trying to find all this great time to tell you all about our trip to France, but only seem to have a few moments. So, I am going to try to take a few moments to tell you about our time in Paris.

Paris was wonderful! It was one of our favorite places we've visited in Europe. Most of the time that we were there, we talked about how we would like to see more of.... on our next trip to Paris. We will definitely plan to see Paris again (and again and again.) We may not have time while we are still living in Germany, but some time when grandparents can spend quality time with Ashlyn and Christopher (right?)

Our first morning we headed to the Louvre. We fortunately arrived before the museum opened, so things weren't TOO crowded at first. I really prefer smaller museums in general, because they don't feel so overwhelming. In order to combat this, I planned that we only HAD to see the Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo (while standing near Venus, a group of ladies turned away from the art and, instead, admired our children.) Everything else was bonus. I even forced myself to do very little research on the art in the Louvre, so my list wouldn't get longer. It was nice to just walk along and get excited about seeing different paintings that I didn't even realize were in the museum. By 11 the place was packed and after we went to lunch, we decided not to spend the rest of a pretty day indoors.

That afternoon we took a short boat tour of the Seine, went to the Eiffel Tower (but didn't go up due to the long lines), and Ashlyn went on a carousel.

We walked down by the river where there were a few market stalls set up and what appeared to be Native American dancers. After dinner by the river, we walked back to our apartment, just enjoying the city.



The next morning we made it to the Notre dame Cathedral, again it seemed just in time as lines were much longer as we were leaving. In other cathedrals, we've always skipped going into the towers in part due to long lines and many stairs. We decided to go up to ND's tower,mostly because we'd bought a pass that covered that sight, and why not? There were many, many winding stairs. Ashlyn burst into tears as she was walking up and the stairs just didn't seem to end. Yes, Allen carried her up. Christopher had enough not too far into the tour and we (C&I) rushed to get back downstairs for eating purposes. It was a gorgeous view, though, but perhaps not one that we would need to repeat on our next trip.
Our children (and us) were pretty tired, so we napped in the apartment that afternoon before walking to the Arc de Triomphe . We had a pass to go up into that as well, but skipped it. Instead we walked down Avenue des Champs-Elysées, window shopping and through a bit more of Paris streets.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

So, Paris is child-friendly? We only live 2 hrs. away from Paris and I think we are planning on visiting for about one week. Where did you stay? It looks like a GREAT trip!
Brenda

The Dunns said...

J
E
A
L
O
U
S

in

fairblah, alaska

:)

Unknown said...

I love these two posts.

I love love love Paris. I'm tentativly planning a trip back with a best friend next Spring. I love Louvre, Musee d'Orsay and Centre Pompidou was a complete surprise. I loved it. Matt's not interested in Paris, for reasons beyond me. Mostly, it's a city and he doesn't like cities. He tolorates them b/c he loves me. If he can't love Paris, he'd suck the romance right out. I'd rather go with someone who would really appreciate it. So, I've decided to go w/o him. Besides, he's already been to France (French Riveria/Cannes) and will probably hit Paris for work soon.

I'm so glad you had a good time. I feel the same way you guys do about Paris (oh, and CREPES!!! And all the food-yum) and am glad to find someone who feels the way I do.

I could go again and again!

Anonymous said...

I enjoyed seeing everything in Paris (especially the Louvre) but didn't like the people or the city. My choice would definately be quality time with Ashlyn and Christopher!

Grandma Vicki

Angie said...

You only live two hours away!!!! I am so jealous. I would just hop on a train and go all of the time.

We thought it was pretty child friendly. People were so helpful. The main thing that wasn't child friendly was the subway. It was more of an underground maze than we've seen anywhere else. Tough when you have a stroller!