Airfrance from lax to where???
 

Okay... as I have mentioned I have airfrance airline tickets that I need to rebook within the next few weeks.

Hubby and I have decided to "let" the girls stay behind and venture out on our own. We took the girls on the trip over the summer... Paris, Switzerland and Italy -

We are only going for a long weekend. We would like to leave on Feb. 14 and return on Feb 18.

Based on this where would YOU go? I am tempted to go to Paris as we did not have the best experience and it is the only direct flight that I can find on Airfrance from LAX (or we could go to Papette but I cannot work points for the hotel there)...

I know it is short time but I am already a nervous nelly about leaving the country without my children... and dh has work and I have classes...

So where would YOU go and why? :-)

If you no leave from LA is that ex-lax?

LOL - you are very funny ;-)

soooo... I want to leave LAX... where to?

Dawn,
Are you sure you can't go for a whole week? Because of course the answer is Paris, but with jet lag...4 days is so very short. A week could be fabulous!

The girls will be fine!

Rose - I really cannot go for a week - and I know it is some long trip... that is the fear that we will both be tired and miserable...

Thanks for the confidence on the girls :-) I hate to leave them...

Maybe I should just book the tickets out and pay the 100.00 change fee and buy myself more time... I would like to plan Italy for the summer of 09... but they do not book that far out.

Dawn -
How old are your girls?

When my son was 4 DH and I left him and his older sister, age 14, with my MIL and went to eastern Europe for 3 weeks. It was a little too long and I really missed the kids. And MIL really missed her home. Then we did the same thing again when the kids were 18 and 8 and went to Italy. That was a blast and very romantic. Now we can better afford to travel together as a family, so we do.

I'm really excited about the new non-stop west coast to Paris flights on Air France. So perhaps it wouldn't be too terrible to go for 5 days. I'm flying non-stop Seattle to Paris 1/26 so I can report back! I hope that with a 9 hour flight I'll feel fine quickly.

Then, after a week in Paris, I fly to Nairobi to visit my daughter. Maybe! She may not be there anymore by then.

Some people might think this is crazy, and I can't argue, but you could spend a night or two in Chartres as part of your trip. Just go straight to Gare Montparnasse from the airport (the Air France coach is an easy way to do this), and catch the next train to Chartres. It's such a lovely little town with, of course, the amazing cathedral. Then on your return to Paris, you could stay at a hotel near Gare Montparnasse before your too-soon return to LAX.

You could not go wrong just simply staying in Paris, of course. Yes, you will have jetlag, but with such a short trip, you can just rest and go as you please.

I hope this all works out for you.

Rose,

Our girls are 10 and 14 (almost 11) - I would have my Stepdad come and stay most likely.

I would not be able to do 3 weeks.. I might curl up and die... I did almsot 2 weeks in Thailand years ago and it was WAY too much - I was a mess (and was not with dh).

Willtravel - thank you for the advice - yes, I know we will be tired, and that is actually why dh said not to bring the girls - too hard/fast of a trip - he said if we never want to leave the hotel room - sleep in et - we can when it is just the two of us.. I might try to pull this off!

oh and Rose - PLEASE do report back! I will be anxious to hear!

dawn & Rose,

I flew AF non-stop Seattle to Paris back in October. Even in coach it was a was a nice flight. The food was better than I had expected. And the FREE wine was nice.

I really liked the fact that the flight left in the early evening and arrived around noon. I had virtually no jetlag. Same with the return flight.

Tom

Hi Dawn,
I'll report back on all of it! The grand new non-stop to Paris experience, but also on what's going on in Kenya.

There's almost no information coming out from Kenya and this is soooo frustating. You'll be glad to hear that DD is quite safe and bored. We're thankful she went to the coast for Christmas! There was an article in yesterday's Washington Post, an interview of one of her friends who stayed in west Kenya for Christmas and was finally evacuated on Friday with 34 others. They were in terrible situations.

But back to you - Paris! Even 4 days would be wonderful.

Thanks for the information Tom - this will be the one flight I look forward to. I like that it leaves Seattle at a civilized time too.

My return flight will be 2 long flights, as I fly from Nairobi to CDG, then something like 7 hours at the airport :0 then non-stop home.

Rose - yes, please do share about Kenya - I have been wondering how your dd is doing... the food situation???

Oh Rose... the reason I have the airfrance credit is I was suppose to fly Paris to Jo'burg over the summer with our girls to work with orphange/group homes of HIV children - but our dd was sick with Mono and possible Hep and a few other things and her dr. advised us not to go to Africa and work with compromised immune systems (and her being ill as well)...

I received an e-mail from Air France a week or so ago, advising that they are starting a direct LA -London service, but I do not remember starting when. So here, another destination.

Anna Roz

I would go to Hawaii, less stressful flight for such a short time. Have fun wherever you go.

Hi Dawn,
Now I remember the decision you went through quite well as my dd had just left to do similar work. I hope your daughter is well now? I hope you can take that trip someday with the girls. I think it would be rewarding.

Our daughter has plenty of food now and we hear from her several times a day. I copy and paste the interesting Kenya articles for her, thank goodness for her internet phone. I sent her the link to the post last week with your (and others) very kind words and she loved reading that :). I have all of her and our friends organized sending emails every day or so to keep her spirits up.

This next week the Peace Corps makes a decision on what to do with these folks. While fighting in Kenya has calmed, there are now 250,000 people displaced with little food and poor access to clean water so things might get worse quickly. Neither politician seems willing to yield.

Last night I dreamed she was relocated to Australia LOL! (This reflects only my wishful thinking - can you imagine Australia needing Peace Corps volunteers?)

Oh, I see, you wnat to use airfrance tics. Then I would go and, what was your question again?

How about Papeete? (PPT)? Air France has non-stops from LAX to French Polynesia - about 8-9 hours each way.

Yes, how about London? Lots to see and do there -- all hours of the night and day for those jetlagged. Of course, the same is true for Paris, but with only 4 days I'm afraid you'll just have another bad experience.

It won't be too long before your daughters are leaving home. Part of parenting is teaching children to be independent, giving them the confidence that they can handle the world on their own. Taking a short trip away from your daughters will help them along this path. Have you sent them away to camp? You shouldn't let your own problems with letting go interfere with parenting your daughters -- or with your relationship with your husband.