5.8.10 ~ 100 word diary (in Paris: Pschitt and stuff)

Tony & Jo head off for another try at the Louvre and the rest of us explore the Jardins de Luxembourg. We stop for some time at the playground and then later stop for another disappointing lunch. Alyx’s hot dog was too French (in a baguette and covered in melted cheese) and my panini was not Italian enough. The chips were good though, and Alyx enjoyed her Pschitt. We all met up later for a wander through Ile de la Cite, where Jake made us all carry him while running until we chanced upon a picturesque playground near a monument.

In the playground of the Jardins de Luxembourg

A monument

4.8.10 ~ 300 word diary (in Paris: mishaps, Shakespeare & Co and fear of torture)

While Alyx, Paul, Jake & I wandered through the Musee d’Orsay, Tony & Jo tried to get in the Louvre but gave up when they saw the queues. So we met for lunch where Tony had a burger served without a bun which he will never forget. Then we got on the Batobus (boat) for Notre Dame (which I didn’t like as much as the Sacre Coeur), and Shakespeare & Co where I could’ve stayed happily for several hours. Even Jake enjoyed the children’s section and Alyx sat reading The Book of Genesis by Robert Crumb.

Later, another boat trip to look up the skirts of the Eiffel Tower and then back to the apartment. Leaving Jake with Tony, Jo &Alyx, Paul & I went out for our first night out alone together for over two years. We went to Au Grain de Folie, a veggie restaurant in Montmartre. The food was good but there was one (very charming) woman doing everything and we had to wait half an hour for a menu and over an hour for our food. By the time we’d finished our meal, we decided to have our apple crumble takeaway since we wanted to get back in time to put Jake to bed ourselves. In truth, Paul started us both worrying that Jo was going to simply lock Jake in the bedroom and let him scream himself to sleep the way she did with Alyx when she was Jake’s age. So the end of our meal was somewhat tainted by fears of Jake being mistreated. Of course no such thing happened, though Jo reported that Jake was sad the whole time we were gone and clearly missed us, crying a lot and wandering around the apartment looking for us. Even Alyx couldn’t cheer him up.

Forgetting my hat and having to wear Paul's

No photography is allowed inside museums, galleries or Churches in Paris.
This was a poster outside the Musee d'Orsay.
Kind of lucky, since it was also my favourite painting in the Musee.

Notre Dame, detail

A park near Notre Dame and Shakespeare & Co

I think I might need a tissue Daddy.

3.8.10 ~ 100 word diary (in Paris)

A mad day full of epic meandering, starting at the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs d’Elysee, to a tranquil park for snacks, then past the British Embassy where Tony got told off for taking photos, past Place de la Concorde to Opera, where Alyx was accosted by a filthy giant chicken, then lunch. I had the most tasteless salad ever and Jake gave himself tomato-sauce face from eating pasta, and then finally back to Montmartre for the grand but quietly impressive Sacre Coeur, despite the tourists, with an essential stop for ice cream and sorbet eaten with cardboard “spoons”.

Hmmmm, how did that happen?

Improvised "spoons"

Sacre Coeur

3.8.10 ~ 100 word diary (in Paris)

The view from one of the bedrooms of our rented apartment

Travelling everywhere should be as simple and easy as getting to Paris on the Eurostar. Even Jake enjoyed the journey. The Paris Metro made me realise how good the London Underground really is. We arrived in Montmartre in the rain and went the wrong way to our rented apartment on foot, but all was forgiven when we stepped through the door. On a private street and four floors up, it’s the poshest place I’ve ever stayed. But cosy too. After getting settled and having takeaway kebabs for dinner, we wandered around the neighbourhood and found a lovely park and playground.

The private road our apartment was on