4 years of high school French counted for little as we struggled with anything more than bonjour, merci, pardon, au revoir and faites-vous une chaise haute pour bebe si' vous plait (do you have a highchair)? Nevertheless, we had a wonderful, if not exhausting week in Paris. We've included a few photos below but for those with nothing better to do, we've posted some photos on flickr ......We started with 2 days in Disneyland where the kids loved meeting (and in Ethan's case, cuddling) the Disney characters. The parades were great but we got drenched in pouring rain on both days and had to resort to purchasing ridiculous Disney ponchos to keep dry. The kids also loved the rides, putting a petrified Meaghan to shame. Another highlight was the Rainforest cafe were we dined surrounded by moving and grunting lifesize gorillas among a host of other jungle animals amidst a tropical storm (although we'd had enough of the rain by then).
On Tuesday, we headed to Paris to our nice little boutique hotel next door to Jardin de Luxembourg. We started with a cruise on the Seine to familiarise ourselves with the sites - not that we saw much between trying to stop Ethan from crawling overboard and taking Noah to the toilet.
Wednesday started with a walk around the Marais, a visit to the Picasso museum, and a delicious falafel lunch in the Jewish quarter before escaping the rain in the Georges Pompidou Centre (modern art museum). We managed to dump the kids with a babysitter courtesy of the neice of our French neighbour in Oxford and went out for dinner at the Brasserie Lipp in St Germain (thanks for making the reservation Jules). Trying not to be intimidated by the French-speaking, tuxedo-laden waiters, we struggled through the French menu and ended up going with the recommendations of the American couple next to us on the long banquet table. While the duck was delicious, Meaghan was a little disturbed by the uncooked mince steak tartare which was actually quite edible (helped by some nice French champagne and wine).
With the weather improving by Thursday, we walked from Place de la Concorde up the Champs Elysee to the Arc de Triomphe and climbed the spiral staircase to the top (only to discover the lift on the way down). The views over Paris were quite amazing. Next was the impressive Rodin Museum with its beautiful sculpture garden and then a picnic in the Parc du Champ de Mars in front of the Eiffel Tower. Meaghan was finally allowed to do a spot of clothes shopping but was horrified at the prices - didn't stop her buying a pair of shoes though.
Friday started in the Cluny Museum, before Mark headed up the 387 steps to the top of the Notre Dame tower to visit the gargoyles (Quasimoto wasn't home) and enjoy the breathtaking views over Paris, while Meaghan and the kids went shopping for souvenirs. A brief visit to St Chapelle and the Conciergerie before heading to the Louvre where we spent about 15 minutes - saw the Mona Lisa and left before the kids got too ferral. Took a walk through the Jardin de Tuileries and ended up at a lovely creperie for dinner.
On Saturday we headed to Montmartre and visited the Sacre Couer on top of the hill overlooking Paris. Saw the Moulin Rouge in a pretty seedy area before a bit more shopping for Meaghan. By this stage, it was hot, we were exhausted after shlepping the kids all over Paris for the past week and I think we were looking forward to getting back to Oxford the following day.
We managed to pack so much into what was an amazing week. The kids seemed to enjoy it (mostly) although they did have their moments. By the end of the week, Noah was walking up to people saying bonjour and merci (which is about all we could remember from our school days). Now for a crash course in Italian - less than 11 weeks till we hit Venice, Tuscany and Rome. Ciao!
On Tuesday, we headed to Paris to our nice little boutique hotel next door to Jardin de Luxembourg. We started with a cruise on the Seine to familiarise ourselves with the sites - not that we saw much between trying to stop Ethan from crawling overboard and taking Noah to the toilet.
Wednesday started with a walk around the Marais, a visit to the Picasso museum, and a delicious falafel lunch in the Jewish quarter before escaping the rain in the Georges Pompidou Centre (modern art museum). We managed to dump the kids with a babysitter courtesy of the neice of our French neighbour in Oxford and went out for dinner at the Brasserie Lipp in St Germain (thanks for making the reservation Jules). Trying not to be intimidated by the French-speaking, tuxedo-laden waiters, we struggled through the French menu and ended up going with the recommendations of the American couple next to us on the long banquet table. While the duck was delicious, Meaghan was a little disturbed by the uncooked mince steak tartare which was actually quite edible (helped by some nice French champagne and wine).
With the weather improving by Thursday, we walked from Place de la Concorde up the Champs Elysee to the Arc de Triomphe and climbed the spiral staircase to the top (only to discover the lift on the way down). The views over Paris were quite amazing. Next was the impressive Rodin Museum with its beautiful sculpture garden and then a picnic in the Parc du Champ de Mars in front of the Eiffel Tower. Meaghan was finally allowed to do a spot of clothes shopping but was horrified at the prices - didn't stop her buying a pair of shoes though.
Friday started in the Cluny Museum, before Mark headed up the 387 steps to the top of the Notre Dame tower to visit the gargoyles (Quasimoto wasn't home) and enjoy the breathtaking views over Paris, while Meaghan and the kids went shopping for souvenirs. A brief visit to St Chapelle and the Conciergerie before heading to the Louvre where we spent about 15 minutes - saw the Mona Lisa and left before the kids got too ferral. Took a walk through the Jardin de Tuileries and ended up at a lovely creperie for dinner.
On Saturday we headed to Montmartre and visited the Sacre Couer on top of the hill overlooking Paris. Saw the Moulin Rouge in a pretty seedy area before a bit more shopping for Meaghan. By this stage, it was hot, we were exhausted after shlepping the kids all over Paris for the past week and I think we were looking forward to getting back to Oxford the following day.
We managed to pack so much into what was an amazing week. The kids seemed to enjoy it (mostly) although they did have their moments. By the end of the week, Noah was walking up to people saying bonjour and merci (which is about all we could remember from our school days). Now for a crash course in Italian - less than 11 weeks till we hit Venice, Tuscany and Rome. Ciao!
