Paris in June

Insert June 7, 2012 – I apologize for the tardiness in posting my blog. Our hotel in Paris did not have Internet connectivity and there was not much time as the days were long, so I was negligent in my responsibility.  Below is the post up to June 6^th, 2012. I wrote the various postings at different times so you will notice there are parts written in the present and some in the past. Now that we are in one place for a week I will be more prompt with my posts.

Bonjour from Paris, France!

We arrived in Paris at 8:30 am on Sunday morning, with a total travel time of 17 hours from our house to Charles De Gaulle Airport. The 7 hours flight from Montreal to Paris was easy. When traveling with kids, I would recommend breaking the flight up , it gave us a chance to stretch our legs and avoid flying straight for 10-11.  Air Canada was fantastic and the individual TV were perfect,  Carrie and I watched 21 Jumpstreet the movie and YES it was very funny. The weather in Paris was cold and wet when we arrived but we were tired so it did not really matter. It was clockwork from the moment we left the plane – bags, check  cab, check, hotel check.

Our hotel has been somewhat of a fiasco – A little back story on our hotel – I have spent a fair amount of time in Paris and realize that a nice hotel in Central Paris is expensive and the rooms are small. Therefore, I chose to stay at a Holiday Inn during our stay in Paris. The price was reasonable ($300/night) yes, that is reasonable for a good location in Paris. One caveat, it was a four person hotel room and that rule is strictly enforced. I felt that we would get away with 5 in our room since Kalli is only 6 years old and I was not going to spend $600 a night for two  rooms. When we arrived at the Holiday Inn Montparnesse they checked us in right away and we headed to our room. A room that ended up having one queen bed and a descent floor space, NOT WHAT I HAS RESERVED. I let the front desk know that there was only one bed in the room but they assured me the coach folded out to a bed. Unfortunately no couch existed in the room. We decided to deal with this issue later and went out for lunch and a stroll around Paris.

Lunch was interesting as we were running on about 3 hours of sleep, and serious jet lag. We were unable to make a decision, and lunch ended up at a Chinese restaurant, yes a Chinese restaurant that was sure to give one if not all of us the runs. Luckily the food was bad but did not cause an unwanted bowel movement. After lunch we headed to the Eiffel Tower but decided to go up the next day, as Isabel was not feeling well. We headed back to our hotel for a nap and to deal with the hotel situation. At that point in time I felt like a care slowly rolling over a cliff and all I wanted was to sleep for a few hours.

Arriving back at the Holiday Inn I went to speak with Joseph at the front desk and point out that we reserved a room for four with two queen beds. Joseph by this time was not happy with me and asked how many people were staying in the room; I could not lie and confessed to 5, which prompted Joseph to explain in detail, the bed rules in France. I knew that the situation was turning for the worse, this is when Joseph told me that 5 could stay in the room that night but we needed to figure out an alternative plan for the remaining time in Paris.  That is when the car went off the cliff.  I went upstairs, gave Carrie a quick summary of events, moved us in to our nice LARGE 2 bed room and took a nap. After a 3-hour nap I was no longer concerned with Joseph and we went out for a fantastic dinner and beers.  What was he going to do, throw us out on the street?

Day 2 in Paris

We woke up around 10 and hit the streets around 11. In order to confuse the hotel with the number in our family/staying in the room, Carrie would leave and enter with one or two children and I would follow 15 minutes later with the remaining children. The weather remained cold in Paris with brief rain showers. We visited the Eiffel Tower and proceeded to climb to the first level. Eli and I have a heights issue and turned back on our way up to the second level but the ladies made it to the second level.  We also visited the Arc De Triomphe, shopped on the Avenue Des Champs Elysses,  and walked in the Tuileries. That night we had another fantastic dinner on St Louis en lile. At this point in time, were no hassles from the hotel and our ruse was working or they simply do not care, either way it is fine with me.

Kids on a bridge over the River Seine

It has been really interesting to watch the kids take in the sights and sounds of Paris. Paris is their first large city experience, except for Isabel (New York last summer), and they are definitely blown away with the size and the speed of the city.  They have adapted very well and have been great about the amount of walking we have done each day.  They are enjoying crepes with Nutella each day  and they have been adventurous with their eating – Steak Tartare, Carpaccio, Fondue, Croque Monsuir.

Day 3

On our last day in Paris we visited the Rodin museum, which is my favorite museum in Paris. The Rodin is mainly outside and not a huge commitment of time; the gardens and statues are amazing and the kids were able to touch the statues, which is a big deal.  The kids seemed to enjoy this museum and even listened to a little history on Rodin- we left out his personal life, but if you have a chance read about it.

Eli at the Rodin Museum

We spent the rest of the day walking to the Notre Dame and the Louvre, and hanging out in the Tuileries. There is not a huge urge to go and check out the museums. Our goal was to expose the kids to the culture and so far this has been a success.  Our dinner in the Latin Quarter was forgettable. The Latin Quarter has become a small version of Mexico. Each restaurant has a person at the front door heckling the pedestrians to eat at their establishment.  I knew it was a bad idea, but the kids wanted fondue so we went for it. You win some and lose some! At least the kids had their 99^th crepe with Nutella at the end of the evening!

Waiting for the Train (funny story behind this picture)

Leaving  Paris

We left Paris early this morning. There were no issues with the hotel during checkout, which was a huge relief. The mini-van that we rented is extremely small but it does have 3 rows, so it is manageable. Kalli is all the way in the back (her choice) surrounded by suitcases. We drove SouthWest for 7 hours today to Saint Emillion in the Bordeaux region of France. The drive was beautiful and as we left the main highway the scenery was amazing – lush vineyards and chateaus throughout the entire countryside. Carrie and I decided we are coming back without kids for a wine/bike vacation -  this is an experience not to be missed. The town of Saint Emillion is beautiful and quaint. It is a small-fortified town tucked in the hills of Bordeaux. The kids had a blast walking around the town and exploring the cobblestone streets. As usual we had a crepe or two, I must say a day is not a day without a crepe with Nutella.  Although the experience was amazing,  we all were glad to be out of Paris.  Carrie and I were happy to show the kids Paris but it was definitely a little harder than we had expected it would be. The kids were great and adapted well but Paris is an adult city, yes there are things to do with children but not like Chicago or New York.  Most of the history is thousands of years old and the paintings have men in tights, enough said. No, EuroDisney was not even in the discussion!

Tomorrow we head for the beaches of San Sebastian Spain