Trip Report: Christmas in Paris with 9- and 10-year-old kids
Feb 17th, 2016, 06:57 PM
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TRIP REPORT, Day 3 in Paris, part 2:
When we got back to the apartment from our trek to and from the Arch de Triumph, it was probably around 2:00. The kids were hungry, so we had the last of the soup in a carton from Monoprix along with an orange and ham sandwiches on bread from the bakery at Bon Marche (sliced in the bakery as Mr. TigerMac waited). Post-lunch, the boys headed upstairs to lie about on the bed and play electronics (and eat some of the chocolate Euros that came in their stocking). Mr. TM went up with them.
I turned off the apartment heat, opened the window to the balcony slightly, and snoozed on the sofa. I mention the heat and window not because I took so many detailed notes but because this was a theme during our week in Paris. Heat on low at night as we were getting ready for bed, when it dipped into the 30s, heat off during the day as our little apartment got WARM when the sun came up.
We were all up and having afternoon coffee and tea around 4:00. Chocolate bars were also consumed. It was a bit too early to begin dinner, so we headed over to 'our' metro station at D'Orsay and went up to Notre Dame again. Barriers are still all around the cathedral and if I remember correctly, there's a bit of a line (not that long) that we think is for a Christmas service. The park behind is closed, but we find a little touristy cafe (across the bridge on Isle le Saint-Louis) that is open with a little bar selling Berthillon glaces. Lots of places on Ile Saint-Louis advertise Berthillon places, fyi. I don't remember the name of the place that was open that day, but it faced the back of Notre Dame.
Everyone is 'adventurous again' (i.e., I'm the only one who changed my order from the day before). I order Creole, which is rum raisin and amazing, and I do not give Mr TM more than the tiniest bite. There was someone performing on the bridge between Ile de la Cite and Ile Saint-Louis every time we went, and today was no different.
We eventually head back to the apartment (after crossing another bridge behind Notre Dame that is also filled with locks...and people selling locks), but it is a bit to early to start on dinner. The smaller boys want to play on their electronics and the big boy wants to flip through the 1,000 channels on the apartment's satellite tv (which is why we don't have this or cable at home).
So I headed out for a walk on my own after the sun went down. I was curious to see what was open, how many people were out, etc. I headed down Rue du Bac toward the Monoprix area, away from the River and tourist spots.
Lights were gorgeous as usual, crowds were very light as was traffic, and iit was really easy to see the window decorations without streams of people on the sidewalk. I forgot my phone, or else I'd taken tons of pics. I remember the lights better, perhaps, because I was busy looking instead of taking pictures.
Other than a convenience store near our apartment, everything was closed...with the notable exception of florists. I walked past two that still had their wares displayed along the sidewalk (the smell was gorgeous), and people *were* stopping to pick up flowers on their way out for the evening. I had heard ahead of time that Christmas Eve was the big night off in Paris and that shops would 'slowly' start opening late on the 25th, but not in our area...things there shut down early on Christmas Eve and (other than the florist) stayed shut. Maybe it is different in places further removed from the tourist center.
Restaurants and cafes were closed (other than those along the Champs-Elysees near the Arch de Triumph), large groceries were closed, etc. Hotels *were* a bit more lively, with a steadier stream of people going in/out there than I saw elsewhere. I even was stopped at one point by the first (very sleepy/jet lagged) older American tourists I encountered who asked me to take a photo so they could text to their kids back in the states and prove they'd made it safely etc.
After a while, I headed back to our apartment, stopping first at the little convenience store. We needed milk for the boys, and I found the perfect sized jars of mustard and cornichon for us (the jars at Monoprix were really too large for a one week stay, and I don't like leaving perishable goods behind in rentals as they tend to get thrown out rather than used).
Once back at the apartment, out came the baguettes and pate and cheese and newly-purchased cornichon jar along with a few salads we'd found at Bon Marche. While everyone was eating appetizers, Mr TM and I went online to look up the user manual for the apartment oven. Manual found, I went about prepping veggies and the chicken to roast (did I mention the salty butter Mr TM picked out at Bon Marche? That's all I used on the chicken, and it was really all I needed other than the onion/garlic/lemon I used to stuff the chicken cavity).
Our chicken had the words 'eleve en Liberte' prominent on its packaging, which Mr TM translated into 'lived free'. We had a good joke about how lucky the chicken was to live free...until we cooked it and ate it.
I wish I remember who made the oven. It was really easy to use, AND it made the best roast chicken and potatoes I've ever had. We put a bit of white wine in a roasting pan that slid into the oven's rack-holders and roasted the chicken on a high heat, breast side down, for about 15 minutes or so. Then took out the pan, took out the chicken, added the halved finger potatoes (rolling them in the wine with a little oil added) and placed the chicken breast side up on top of them...cooked until brown and toasty.
Mr TM saluted green beans on the stove with a little ham and onions, and we made salad. When everything was ready, we pulled out wineglasses, poured wine for us and OJ for the boys and had a great Christmas dinner.
Despite the number of great patisseries we passed the few days before, we opted to skip cakes etc. for the time being and had chocolate for dessert.
After was our usual routine...shower for the boys and onto the sofa bed, lights down...I sat with them downstairs and posted on Facebook while Mr TM headed upstairs to shower and fall into bed. Another glass (or two...it was Christmas!) for me, and I was upstairs as well.
NOTE: I am really happy that we go the apartment for our Paris stay. With youngish kids (who have big appetites), it made it so easy. And cheaper than eating out, I'm sure. I'll do a side post about what I witnessed in regards to kids eating out...but we did not do much of this at all. If we ever make it back, we'll head out to more cafes and such, but we will still rent an apartment for the room and convenience (kitchen and the washer/dryer combo which was slow but was amazing compared to laundry mats, which we used in Europe in the past and while quirky, weren't 'fun').
Next up: We find Remy at the sewer museum, have raisin bread so good that Ten asks if we can immigrate to Paris, and I am surprised at what enthralls the boys at the military museum (though I really should have seen it coming).
OH, and lots and lots more churros.
When we got back to the apartment from our trek to and from the Arch de Triumph, it was probably around 2:00. The kids were hungry, so we had the last of the soup in a carton from Monoprix along with an orange and ham sandwiches on bread from the bakery at Bon Marche (sliced in the bakery as Mr. TigerMac waited). Post-lunch, the boys headed upstairs to lie about on the bed and play electronics (and eat some of the chocolate Euros that came in their stocking). Mr. TM went up with them.
I turned off the apartment heat, opened the window to the balcony slightly, and snoozed on the sofa. I mention the heat and window not because I took so many detailed notes but because this was a theme during our week in Paris. Heat on low at night as we were getting ready for bed, when it dipped into the 30s, heat off during the day as our little apartment got WARM when the sun came up.
We were all up and having afternoon coffee and tea around 4:00. Chocolate bars were also consumed. It was a bit too early to begin dinner, so we headed over to 'our' metro station at D'Orsay and went up to Notre Dame again. Barriers are still all around the cathedral and if I remember correctly, there's a bit of a line (not that long) that we think is for a Christmas service. The park behind is closed, but we find a little touristy cafe (across the bridge on Isle le Saint-Louis) that is open with a little bar selling Berthillon glaces. Lots of places on Ile Saint-Louis advertise Berthillon places, fyi. I don't remember the name of the place that was open that day, but it faced the back of Notre Dame.
Everyone is 'adventurous again' (i.e., I'm the only one who changed my order from the day before). I order Creole, which is rum raisin and amazing, and I do not give Mr TM more than the tiniest bite. There was someone performing on the bridge between Ile de la Cite and Ile Saint-Louis every time we went, and today was no different.
We eventually head back to the apartment (after crossing another bridge behind Notre Dame that is also filled with locks...and people selling locks), but it is a bit to early to start on dinner. The smaller boys want to play on their electronics and the big boy wants to flip through the 1,000 channels on the apartment's satellite tv (which is why we don't have this or cable at home).
So I headed out for a walk on my own after the sun went down. I was curious to see what was open, how many people were out, etc. I headed down Rue du Bac toward the Monoprix area, away from the River and tourist spots.
Lights were gorgeous as usual, crowds were very light as was traffic, and iit was really easy to see the window decorations without streams of people on the sidewalk. I forgot my phone, or else I'd taken tons of pics. I remember the lights better, perhaps, because I was busy looking instead of taking pictures.
Other than a convenience store near our apartment, everything was closed...with the notable exception of florists. I walked past two that still had their wares displayed along the sidewalk (the smell was gorgeous), and people *were* stopping to pick up flowers on their way out for the evening. I had heard ahead of time that Christmas Eve was the big night off in Paris and that shops would 'slowly' start opening late on the 25th, but not in our area...things there shut down early on Christmas Eve and (other than the florist) stayed shut. Maybe it is different in places further removed from the tourist center.
Restaurants and cafes were closed (other than those along the Champs-Elysees near the Arch de Triumph), large groceries were closed, etc. Hotels *were* a bit more lively, with a steadier stream of people going in/out there than I saw elsewhere. I even was stopped at one point by the first (very sleepy/jet lagged) older American tourists I encountered who asked me to take a photo so they could text to their kids back in the states and prove they'd made it safely etc.
After a while, I headed back to our apartment, stopping first at the little convenience store. We needed milk for the boys, and I found the perfect sized jars of mustard and cornichon for us (the jars at Monoprix were really too large for a one week stay, and I don't like leaving perishable goods behind in rentals as they tend to get thrown out rather than used).
Once back at the apartment, out came the baguettes and pate and cheese and newly-purchased cornichon jar along with a few salads we'd found at Bon Marche. While everyone was eating appetizers, Mr TM and I went online to look up the user manual for the apartment oven. Manual found, I went about prepping veggies and the chicken to roast (did I mention the salty butter Mr TM picked out at Bon Marche? That's all I used on the chicken, and it was really all I needed other than the onion/garlic/lemon I used to stuff the chicken cavity).
Our chicken had the words 'eleve en Liberte' prominent on its packaging, which Mr TM translated into 'lived free'. We had a good joke about how lucky the chicken was to live free...until we cooked it and ate it.
I wish I remember who made the oven. It was really easy to use, AND it made the best roast chicken and potatoes I've ever had. We put a bit of white wine in a roasting pan that slid into the oven's rack-holders and roasted the chicken on a high heat, breast side down, for about 15 minutes or so. Then took out the pan, took out the chicken, added the halved finger potatoes (rolling them in the wine with a little oil added) and placed the chicken breast side up on top of them...cooked until brown and toasty.
Mr TM saluted green beans on the stove with a little ham and onions, and we made salad. When everything was ready, we pulled out wineglasses, poured wine for us and OJ for the boys and had a great Christmas dinner.
Despite the number of great patisseries we passed the few days before, we opted to skip cakes etc. for the time being and had chocolate for dessert.
After was our usual routine...shower for the boys and onto the sofa bed, lights down...I sat with them downstairs and posted on Facebook while Mr TM headed upstairs to shower and fall into bed. Another glass (or two...it was Christmas!) for me, and I was upstairs as well.
NOTE: I am really happy that we go the apartment for our Paris stay. With youngish kids (who have big appetites), it made it so easy. And cheaper than eating out, I'm sure. I'll do a side post about what I witnessed in regards to kids eating out...but we did not do much of this at all. If we ever make it back, we'll head out to more cafes and such, but we will still rent an apartment for the room and convenience (kitchen and the washer/dryer combo which was slow but was amazing compared to laundry mats, which we used in Europe in the past and while quirky, weren't 'fun').
Next up: We find Remy at the sewer museum, have raisin bread so good that Ten asks if we can immigrate to Paris, and I am surprised at what enthralls the boys at the military museum (though I really should have seen it coming).
OH, and lots and lots more churros.
Feb 18th, 2016, 01:33 PM
#66
I must admit that I am alarmed that you bought so many items at <i>La Grande Epicerie</i> at the Bon Marché, unless you enjoy paying triple the price for everything.
I also gasp when people say they paid 12 or 15 or 18 euros for a rotisserie chicken, when they cost between 5 and 6 euros in my part of Paris.
I also gasp when people say they paid 12 or 15 or 18 euros for a rotisserie chicken, when they cost between 5 and 6 euros in my part of Paris.
Feb 19th, 2016, 08:22 AM
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I also took my daughters to Paris for Christmas back in 2009 when they were 8 and 5. Unfortunately, my 8 year old broke her LEG jumping off the bed literally an hour after we arrived at the rented apartment. So, there was that. However, the medical experience was efficient and extremely inexpensive. There is a TON of walking, so it was tough putting the older girl into the younger girl's stroller just to get her around. Thankfully, my husband and son are strong so they carried both girls almost everywhere. We loved the Christmas market and ice skating rink they opened in the Tuileries with Father Christmas joining in the fray. The girls loved the Louvre, esp. the Napoleon III area (which is practically empty!). Lastly, we took them to EuroDisney which was COLD but still a terrific day. There were a lot of free concerts at the various churches for the holidays. My best memory is my youngest walking down Rue Cler with tulips under one arm and a baguette under the other, stocking up for our Christmas dinner. Even with the challenges/injuries, they still talk about it 6 years later...
Feb 19th, 2016, 06:29 PM
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kerouac, I can assure you that I do not usually enjoy paying more for what I can get cheaper elsewhere. In our case, we were staying in the tourist center and grocery shopping on Christmas Eve with two pre-teen older BOY boys. Were it any other time of year, I would have went to Bon Marche to mostly 'shop with my eyes', buying only a few speciality items there and going to a local, slightly less expensive Monoprix or similar for staples.
But we had one (somewhat jet-lagged) morning to shop. And it was Christmas Eve. So I decided we'd just shop at Bon March (as they had more selection for a holiday dinner). Was it expensive? Yes, though our bill wasn't three times what we would have paid at the Monoprix near our apartment for the same items. And, actually, the bill at Bon Marche wasn't that much more than the weekly bill I rack up at my local US east coast grocery...and the 'bulk' items we ate during the week (cereal, fruit, veg, meat, pasta) came from Bon Marche.
I would never recommend Bon Marche as a 'one-stop-shop' unless under specific circumstances (like ours). Local, smaller stores outside of the tourist center obviously offer better deals. But our trip to Bon Marche was budgeted for given the half-day window I knew we had to get Christmas supplies.
If I were to go again, I'd find an apartment a bit further out from the center and shop at less expensive places. But for THIS trip on this specific holiday, Bon Marche was a splurge that we planned on and budgeted for, and it worked with our family.
Next trip, I will not be go generous!
dvbaresel, I cannot get over the broken leg...it is so awesome that you all worked through it to have a great holiday! I can very much relate with your memory of your daughter with tulips and a baguette. I will always remember Ten and Nine confidently walking well ahead of us and navigating street crossings without our help.
While we in Paris, we looked at concerts that would appeal to us as a group, but those we found were not 'Ten and Nine' friendly given what we know about their specific interests. Ten would be fine at certain concerts, but Nine...is not at that point yet unless the concert is very specifically targeted to youth. I envy you if you were able to enjoy music with your daughters when they were so young.
Still, I really do think Ten and Nine will remember this trip for years to come. They talk about it every once in a while...and it will be interesting to see what they retain five years down the road vs what they focus on now.
But we had one (somewhat jet-lagged) morning to shop. And it was Christmas Eve. So I decided we'd just shop at Bon March (as they had more selection for a holiday dinner). Was it expensive? Yes, though our bill wasn't three times what we would have paid at the Monoprix near our apartment for the same items. And, actually, the bill at Bon Marche wasn't that much more than the weekly bill I rack up at my local US east coast grocery...and the 'bulk' items we ate during the week (cereal, fruit, veg, meat, pasta) came from Bon Marche.
I would never recommend Bon Marche as a 'one-stop-shop' unless under specific circumstances (like ours). Local, smaller stores outside of the tourist center obviously offer better deals. But our trip to Bon Marche was budgeted for given the half-day window I knew we had to get Christmas supplies.
If I were to go again, I'd find an apartment a bit further out from the center and shop at less expensive places. But for THIS trip on this specific holiday, Bon Marche was a splurge that we planned on and budgeted for, and it worked with our family.
Next trip, I will not be go generous!
dvbaresel, I cannot get over the broken leg...it is so awesome that you all worked through it to have a great holiday! I can very much relate with your memory of your daughter with tulips and a baguette. I will always remember Ten and Nine confidently walking well ahead of us and navigating street crossings without our help.
While we in Paris, we looked at concerts that would appeal to us as a group, but those we found were not 'Ten and Nine' friendly given what we know about their specific interests. Ten would be fine at certain concerts, but Nine...is not at that point yet unless the concert is very specifically targeted to youth. I envy you if you were able to enjoy music with your daughters when they were so young.
Still, I really do think Ten and Nine will remember this trip for years to come. They talk about it every once in a while...and it will be interesting to see what they retain five years down the road vs what they focus on now.
Feb 24th, 2016, 07:19 PM
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TRIP REPORT, day 4 in Paris, part 1:
The afternoon before, while I was prepping the chicken for Christmas dinner, Mr TigerMac had his computer out and was looking at a few suggestions I had for the next day. I wanted to visit Musee de l'Armee (the Army Museum) and mentioned a few places nearby I thought the boys would like as well.
Mr TM immediately gravitated toward the Le Musée des Égouts de Paris, known from here on out as the Sewer Museum. I mentioned it because I thought the boys (being boys) would love it because sewers are 'gross'. Mr TM, who is an engineer, was intrigued by the construction and declared that was our first stop the next day, Saturday December 26.
We woke on the 26th around what became our usual wakeup time in Paris...between 8:30 and 9:30 pm. Coffee and tea were leisurely consumed by all, while we went through our stash of yogurt, eggs, ham, and cereal for breakfast.
Post-breakfast, Mr TM watched satellite tv while the boys played on their 3DS. Given that we were planning on wandering a bit today, I tried to download a map of Paris on my phone, with very little luck. After 30 minutes with no usable map on my phone, I gave up and simply found a map online via my laptop and studied it for a bit...I knew just where the entrance was to the Sewer Museum and had the names of major streets around the military museum and a few other monuments memorized.
Note: I did a lot of planning ahead of time, but for some reason, I didn't download a map onto my phone that we could use without wireless or streaming data *before* we left for Paris. I ended up getting the map to download Saturday night, and it was very helpful the rest of the week. We were fine on Saturday without it...but it really was something I should have thought about in advance.
After giving up on the map, we headed out, back toward the Seine and our home stop at D'Orsay. The Sewer Museum is very near Pont de l'Alma, which is two (if I recall correctly) stops up from D'Orsay. Once we were off the subway, it was a *very very* short walk to the museum.
The Sewer Museum entrance is near a big blue and white sign that said "Visite Des Egouts Des Paris"...and a little white hexagon shaped (I may be getting the number of sides wrong) kiosk sits right behind. You pay at the kiosk and take steps just to the side of it down into the museum.
Now, remember, I am taking Ten and Nine, who are boys...and being boys, they never saw or smelled or heard a gross thing that they did not immediately fall in love with. Until the Sewer Museum. It wasn't as though the museum smelled like a *real* Parisian sewer would smell like...but it still smelled *a bit* like a real, deep down, 'Remy and his family are sailing along here" sewer might smell.
Ten and Nine were immediately grossed out.
Let it be said that their being grossed out did not mean they did not want to go into the museum. They simply enjoyed groaning about the smell and how 'icky' the water looked below us at points when we were walking above active water/sewer flow.
Mr TM and I enjoyed the museum...Mr TM especially, and he read as much as he was able. Ten and Nine read the first few displays with their dad, but the further we got into the museum, the less they were interested in reading and talking.
At one point, we passed by a little divot in a stone wall that was glassed over...there was a display inside the little area that included a very mangy looking stuffed rat. A few years ago, I took Ten and Nine (when they were eight and seven) to Disney World...and we had lunch at one of the French restaurants in Epcot. During lunch, a waiter would push a cart around with a silver platter that had a little animatronic Remy on it. The kids LOVED it and were sad when they found out later that the restaurant in question stopped carting little robot Remy around shortly after our visit. So when we saw the mangy stuffed rat in the Sewer Museum, I told them this was where Remy went when Disney kicked him out...
They believed me for about point five seconds.
Eventually, the boys and I headed out of the Sewer Museum a few minutes before Mr TM and walked toward the Seine to watch the tourist boats gliding along. Once Mr TM met up with us, we decided to meander along the streets leading to the Musee de l'Armee. I had the major streets in that area memorized, so off we went...
More in part 2.
The afternoon before, while I was prepping the chicken for Christmas dinner, Mr TigerMac had his computer out and was looking at a few suggestions I had for the next day. I wanted to visit Musee de l'Armee (the Army Museum) and mentioned a few places nearby I thought the boys would like as well.
Mr TM immediately gravitated toward the Le Musée des Égouts de Paris, known from here on out as the Sewer Museum. I mentioned it because I thought the boys (being boys) would love it because sewers are 'gross'. Mr TM, who is an engineer, was intrigued by the construction and declared that was our first stop the next day, Saturday December 26.
We woke on the 26th around what became our usual wakeup time in Paris...between 8:30 and 9:30 pm. Coffee and tea were leisurely consumed by all, while we went through our stash of yogurt, eggs, ham, and cereal for breakfast.
Post-breakfast, Mr TM watched satellite tv while the boys played on their 3DS. Given that we were planning on wandering a bit today, I tried to download a map of Paris on my phone, with very little luck. After 30 minutes with no usable map on my phone, I gave up and simply found a map online via my laptop and studied it for a bit...I knew just where the entrance was to the Sewer Museum and had the names of major streets around the military museum and a few other monuments memorized.
Note: I did a lot of planning ahead of time, but for some reason, I didn't download a map onto my phone that we could use without wireless or streaming data *before* we left for Paris. I ended up getting the map to download Saturday night, and it was very helpful the rest of the week. We were fine on Saturday without it...but it really was something I should have thought about in advance.
After giving up on the map, we headed out, back toward the Seine and our home stop at D'Orsay. The Sewer Museum is very near Pont de l'Alma, which is two (if I recall correctly) stops up from D'Orsay. Once we were off the subway, it was a *very very* short walk to the museum.
The Sewer Museum entrance is near a big blue and white sign that said "Visite Des Egouts Des Paris"...and a little white hexagon shaped (I may be getting the number of sides wrong) kiosk sits right behind. You pay at the kiosk and take steps just to the side of it down into the museum.
Now, remember, I am taking Ten and Nine, who are boys...and being boys, they never saw or smelled or heard a gross thing that they did not immediately fall in love with. Until the Sewer Museum. It wasn't as though the museum smelled like a *real* Parisian sewer would smell like...but it still smelled *a bit* like a real, deep down, 'Remy and his family are sailing along here" sewer might smell.
Ten and Nine were immediately grossed out.
Let it be said that their being grossed out did not mean they did not want to go into the museum. They simply enjoyed groaning about the smell and how 'icky' the water looked below us at points when we were walking above active water/sewer flow.
Mr TM and I enjoyed the museum...Mr TM especially, and he read as much as he was able. Ten and Nine read the first few displays with their dad, but the further we got into the museum, the less they were interested in reading and talking.
At one point, we passed by a little divot in a stone wall that was glassed over...there was a display inside the little area that included a very mangy looking stuffed rat. A few years ago, I took Ten and Nine (when they were eight and seven) to Disney World...and we had lunch at one of the French restaurants in Epcot. During lunch, a waiter would push a cart around with a silver platter that had a little animatronic Remy on it. The kids LOVED it and were sad when they found out later that the restaurant in question stopped carting little robot Remy around shortly after our visit. So when we saw the mangy stuffed rat in the Sewer Museum, I told them this was where Remy went when Disney kicked him out...
They believed me for about point five seconds.
Eventually, the boys and I headed out of the Sewer Museum a few minutes before Mr TM and walked toward the Seine to watch the tourist boats gliding along. Once Mr TM met up with us, we decided to meander along the streets leading to the Musee de l'Armee. I had the major streets in that area memorized, so off we went...
More in part 2.
Feb 27th, 2016, 11:48 AM
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What a fun report! I loved the interaction between your French speaking son and the old French lady with dog. So sweet! And so sorry to hear about another Paris bridge with locks and the lock sellers. Ugh!
I'll be following your report since I'll be traveling to Paris with my family this month.
I'll be following your report since I'll be traveling to Paris with my family this month.
Feb 29th, 2016, 04:16 PM
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I've been following along thoroughly enjoying your trip report. I must tell you that it finally sent me over the edge. I read your latest installment last night. Then when I woke this morning I booked air arriving in Paris December 15, returning to the US Thursday January 12th! 4 weeks and I will finally cross off my bucket list a Christmas and New Year's in Paris. I thank you for finally motivating me to do it now rather than latter. I'm not getting any younger! Now to find just the right apartment....
Feb 29th, 2016, 08:16 PM
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Great TR, thanks so much! I love the detail. As a parent of a 6 and 9yo I appreciate it as there are few TRs with children in that age bracket.
We are planning a France/Italy trip next year and I am taking notes.
We are planning a France/Italy trip next year and I am taking notes.
Mar 1st, 2016, 08:17 PM
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Thank you everyone for your very kind remarks. I am especially glad to know that this trip report might be helpful to those with kids in that 'middle' age (nine to 12ish range). I am equally glad to know that this trip report is enjoyable for those with older/younger/or no kids . Because we really had a wonderful time in Paris. For all of you venturing over there, I sincerely hope you have as good of a time as we had (despite Nine's moaning about the walking).
TRIP REPORT, day 4 in Paris, part 2:
Once we were all out of the Sewer Museum and caught up together, Mr Tiger Mac, Ten, Nine, and I headed toward the Musee de l'Armee on Avenue Bosquet. We walked along there for a bit before turning left onto Rue Saint-Dominique.
Nine was complaining a bit at this point about the walk, but was easily distracted by the sights along Saint-Dominique. We walked by several store windows with very quirky holiday displays...displays so fun that even the boys were intrigued by them (very few of these shops were open, but this was before noon on December 26).
One particular shop window included a Barbie wearing red Christmas type apparel; but the best thing was, the Barbie was riding a stuffed wolf that sat underneath a low-hanging, very ornate chandelier...and the wolf was surrounded by clothes that were sold in the store. The wolf had a tiny garland of red flowers on its head. The boys thought it was hysterical and made me take several pictures of the display.
About a block and half later on Saint-Dominique, we came across the tiniest bakery I've seen yet in Paris. It had one little window to the left of its entry door where an employee was decorating a Buches de Noel (which they seem to sell though New Year...we saw more bakeries with such displays over the next few days). The other side (right of the door) included a little counter where you could buy bread...and there were two kinds of bread on display, plain fat loaves of white bread and fat loaves of raisin bread. Those three items...the Buches de Noel, white and raisin bread, were the only things we saw on sale in the store.
Ten and Nine are Hobbits, so even though it was a while before lunch, Mr TM ran into the bakery to get a loaf of the fat raisin bread. Post-purchase, we wandered along the rest of Saint-Dominique until we found the large green/park space that separates the Seine from the Musee de l'Armee.
Once in that park area (called Esplanade des Invalides), we found an empty park bench and sat for a minute before proceedingn to tear the bread into pieces and devour it. The bread was amazing. It was so amazing that 1) Ten asked if it would be possible for us to immigrate to Paris to live, 2) Nine begged his dad to go back to the bakery to get another loaf, and 3) neither Ten or Nine asked to give the resulting pigeons that surrounded us as we ate any crumbs...a first for the boys.
Interesting note: while the boys did not beg to feed the pigeons, they did take note of the state of the birds' feathers/wings/talons. None of the pigeons we saw outside of Musee de l'Armee were injured or missing feet (compared to those we saw in the park near le Bon Marche).
This is a short update, but it's late, and I want to get into as much detail as I can about Musee de l'Armee. It was a really fun museum, even though the boys got bored in the WWII portion. They LOVED certain aspects of the medieval displays. Will write more about that in length in part 3.
To close I'll just say that it was a lovely walk from the Sewer Museum to the Esplanade. The window displays we saw during our walk were especially quirky (compared to what we witnessed near D'Orsay). And that raisin bread is still talked about by the boys close to two months later.
Coming up: part 3, the Musee de l'Armee, followed by afternoon naps, a trip to the Monoprix and surrounding neighborhood, and sunset on our little apartment balcony.
. Because we really had a wonderful time in Paris. For all of you venturing over there, I sincerely hope you have as good of a time as we had (despite Nine's moaning about the walking).TRIP REPORT, day 4 in Paris, part 2:
Once we were all out of the Sewer Museum and caught up together, Mr Tiger Mac, Ten, Nine, and I headed toward the Musee de l'Armee on Avenue Bosquet. We walked along there for a bit before turning left onto Rue Saint-Dominique.
Nine was complaining a bit at this point about the walk, but was easily distracted by the sights along Saint-Dominique. We walked by several store windows with very quirky holiday displays...displays so fun that even the boys were intrigued by them (very few of these shops were open, but this was before noon on December 26).
One particular shop window included a Barbie wearing red Christmas type apparel; but the best thing was, the Barbie was riding a stuffed wolf that sat underneath a low-hanging, very ornate chandelier...and the wolf was surrounded by clothes that were sold in the store. The wolf had a tiny garland of red flowers on its head. The boys thought it was hysterical and made me take several pictures of the display.
About a block and half later on Saint-Dominique, we came across the tiniest bakery I've seen yet in Paris. It had one little window to the left of its entry door where an employee was decorating a Buches de Noel (which they seem to sell though New Year...we saw more bakeries with such displays over the next few days). The other side (right of the door) included a little counter where you could buy bread...and there were two kinds of bread on display, plain fat loaves of white bread and fat loaves of raisin bread. Those three items...the Buches de Noel, white and raisin bread, were the only things we saw on sale in the store.
Ten and Nine are Hobbits, so even though it was a while before lunch, Mr TM ran into the bakery to get a loaf of the fat raisin bread. Post-purchase, we wandered along the rest of Saint-Dominique until we found the large green/park space that separates the Seine from the Musee de l'Armee.
Once in that park area (called Esplanade des Invalides), we found an empty park bench and sat for a minute before proceedingn to tear the bread into pieces and devour it. The bread was amazing. It was so amazing that 1) Ten asked if it would be possible for us to immigrate to Paris to live, 2) Nine begged his dad to go back to the bakery to get another loaf, and 3) neither Ten or Nine asked to give the resulting pigeons that surrounded us as we ate any crumbs...a first for the boys.
Interesting note: while the boys did not beg to feed the pigeons, they did take note of the state of the birds' feathers/wings/talons. None of the pigeons we saw outside of Musee de l'Armee were injured or missing feet (compared to those we saw in the park near le Bon Marche).
This is a short update, but it's late, and I want to get into as much detail as I can about Musee de l'Armee. It was a really fun museum, even though the boys got bored in the WWII portion. They LOVED certain aspects of the medieval displays. Will write more about that in length in part 3.
To close I'll just say that it was a lovely walk from the Sewer Museum to the Esplanade. The window displays we saw during our walk were especially quirky (compared to what we witnessed near D'Orsay). And that raisin bread is still talked about by the boys close to two months later.
Coming up: part 3, the Musee de l'Armee, followed by afternoon naps, a trip to the Monoprix and surrounding neighborhood, and sunset on our little apartment balcony.
Mar 2nd, 2016, 04:01 AM
#79
Adelaidean, you mean the last family trip where you are in charge! Lots of adult children continue to travel with their parents, but the decision process of where to go and what to eat often gets reversed.
Mar 9th, 2016, 03:08 PM
#80
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As kerouac said, there is still time for family trips when the children become adults...the trips simply change 
. I haven't posted my next update because I am in the midst of planning an extended family get-together over spring break. It's my parents, sisters and brothers-in-law, and assorted kids (grandkids). We are very much NOT doing the same thing every day all together, and that's part of our planning--figuring out what meals to eat together and what we're doing 'on our own'. It took us a while to figure out these kind of trips, but we're almost pros by now!
It did take a few 'messy' vacations with my parents to figure things out, though! They wanted to still plan everything everyone was doing down to the last detail. We're over that now, though!
I hope to post about our trip to the military museum by tomorrow.
Ten and Nine are still talking about our trip!
. I haven't posted my next update because I am in the midst of planning an extended family get-together over spring break. It's my parents, sisters and brothers-in-law, and assorted kids (grandkids). We are very much NOT doing the same thing every day all together, and that's part of our planning--figuring out what meals to eat together and what we're doing 'on our own'. It took us a while to figure out these kind of trips, but we're almost pros by now! It did take a few 'messy' vacations with my parents to figure things out, though! They wanted to still plan everything everyone was doing down to the last detail. We're over that now, though!
I hope to post about our trip to the military museum by tomorrow.
Ten and Nine are still talking about our trip!
