Paris is Always a Good Idea

After spending July in the U.S., we came back to Switzerland to celebrate Swiss National Day, and then we hit the pavement and took a family road trip . . . to Paris! We left Zurich on a Saturday morning and by Saturday evening we were enjoying the sights of Paris and Nutella crepes! 

Our first foray into the Tuileries

We stayed at the lovely Hotel Brighton. They were super kid-friendly and our room, a king suite, worked nicely for our family of five. The rate included breakfast, and if you've been reading my blog, you know how much our children appreciate that. The best thing about the hotel is its location. It is located right on the rue de Rivoli, directly opposite the Tuileries Garden, in the 1st arrondissement. Staying in Paris with small children? This is the location! We spent a lot of time in the Tuileries, as our children prefer green spaces to miles of concrete. August was also the perfect time because there is a fantastic carnival right across from our hotel, in the garden. The kids loved the games, the rides, and the cotton candy.

Caroline & Grant in the Place de la Concorde 

We triumphed!

We did make them walk, however. On Saturday evening we walked from our hotel all the way to the Arc de Triomphe. Caroline and Charlie took turns in the stroller, but they were all troupers and made it to the Arc. Because we had the stroller with us, the man let us use the disabled persons lift and Grant said, "I've never been so happy in all my life that we still use a stroller." The kids were very happy when we arrived at the top! And even happier when we took the Metro instead of walking back to the hotel.

We made it to the top!!

Then we rewarded ourselves with slushies at the Tuileries carnival

On Sunday we spent a good deal of time in museums. Grant was particularly keen to see Napoleon's Tomb and the Army Museum, so we spent much of the day there. Before we did that, we started in the Rodin Museum gardens, which the kids and adults alike very much enjoyed. 

Charlie has been terrorizing pigeons all over Europe

The four thinkers

The kids at Les Invalides, home to Napoleon's tomb

The children, with what appears to be a life-size statue of Napoleon.

Grant, our war buff, loved all the armor and canons at the Army Museum.

On Sunday evening we dined at 58 Tour Eiffel, a brasserie located on the first level of the Eiffel Tower. That was a true highlight for all of us. It was a "fancy restaurant" to the kids, but it could not have been more kid-friendly. Our waiter, Olivier, was amazingly kind to the kids. He brought them "cocktails" and offered to take a picture of us and was generally a lovely person. He actually made the experience for all of us. The food, which admittedly probably isn't the reason people dine there, was fantastic. After we ate, we walked around the decks of the first level and took pictures and pointed out our hotel, etc. The kids really enjoyed the evening and behaved amazingly well. Grant proclaimed it, "Probably the best dinner of my life." 

Dining in the Eiffel Tower. 

Cheers!

Charlie loved the special menu cards.

The children's starter ... Mommy ate most of it.

Chocolate Eiffel Tower Cake. I didn't even get 1 bite!

First level of the Eiffel Tower. Paris behind us.

On Monday we didn't really have any plans and consequently, we did not go indoors the entire day. We started out in the Tuileries and walked around the Louvre. We even did a geocache at the Louvre pyramids. We then walked up to the St. Germaine area where we sat outside and had lunch at a pizzeria (our kids will eat pizza anywhere!). Then we walked up by Notre Dame, but it was overrun with tourists so we did not go inside (I went inside on my first trip to Paris, last September). We walked to the Ile St. Louis for ice cream and a bit of shopping and then we walked to Place de Vosges, which was so lovely. It's a beautiful park and the kids played while Tobi took a conference call. Late in the afternoon we took the Metro back to our hotel and we decided to visit the carnival one last time for games and dinner. 

A healthy dinner.

Grant had asked months ago for us to visit Paris while we lived in Europe, but I will admit that I was a little skeptical of taking little kids to Paris. However, it was a fun trip for our family and the children really loved it. Charlie told me that when he gets older he's going to live in Paris and be an artist. I told him his mother will visit. A lot.

Au revoir,

Tiffany

Up Next: Normandy