I can’t remember when I first started wanting to visit Provence.

It might have been in college when we watched La Gloire de Mon Pere in French class.

Or maybe it was earlier, when my grandmother introduced me to Vincent Van Gogh through paintings of his sunflowers. I don’t know when I learned that Van Gogh loved painting in the south of France because of the light, but I wanted to follow in his footsteps to see where he painted that Starry Starry Night.

For sure a seed was planted when I read Peter Mayle’s books about Provence in the 90s. I remembered reading his descriptions of the sunshine in southern France during dark, cold Chicago winters.

However, in my own trip planning, I had never made getting to Provence a priority, so when an offer came through to lead a slow, springtime wander through Provence with Ramble Worldwide, I jumped at the chance.

I took the train from Bristol to London, then the Eurostar to Paris, a taxi across Paris and then a final train to Avignon to lead a group of ladies between the ages of 60 and 86 around Provence.

I had a couple of days to get my bearings before I took the train back to Paris to meet the group, so even though I didn’t have time to do everything on our itinerary ahead of time, I was familiar with two of the main towns (Avignon and Arles) before the official trip began.

I spent most of my prep time wandering streets to learn my way around, checking train and bus schedules and doing a couple of the walks that we would do together later in the week. Then I took the train back to Paris to meet the sweetest group of ladies who would be my travel companions for the week.

It was evening in Avignon by the time we made it back with the group, but I offered to lead a little orientation walk after dinner just to the center square and back. Sometimes it just feels good to get your bearings, to put your feet to the ground after a full day of sitting on trains. Plus an evening walk always seems to make sleep come a little easier, especially after a rich French meal.

I knew immediately that I was going to love this group when, as we walked through the streets of Avignon, one lady told a story about hopping on a sailboat at the spur of the moment to be a fourth crew member for a trip around the world and another reminisced about dancing in this same square in Avignon over 50 years before, her face lit up with delight at the memory, like it was yesterday.

The next day we wandered the streets of Avignon in the daylight and met up with a guide who told us the papal history of the town.

Even though we kept our pace to what I like to call “a wander,” these spry ladies walked all day long for seven days straight.

They soaked up the history like it was their first cobblestoned town, which of course, it was not.

I am always in awe of folks who are still learning all the way through life, asking questions, looking for more to understand about the world.

After a quick lunch in town, we met a different guide in the afternoon for a trip to a Châteauneuf-du-Pape vineyard.

In the shade of the olive trees, our guide Nicolas told us about how these vines, which are shorter than most I’ve seen, send their roots down deep. And the rocks hold the warmth from the sun that the grapes need. These vines can be over 100 years old. When one dies and the vineyard owner plants a new vine, they are planting a vine for their grandchildren. Running a vineyard is definitely a job for someone who is willing to plan well into the future, and even to imagine a future for when they will no longer be around.

After our vineyard walk, we got to taste some of these full-bodied wines. Then we all might have dozed off on the short ride back to our hotel.

On Day 2 of our time in Provence, we walked the top of the medieval walls that go all the way around the village of Aigues-Mortes.

The walls are perfectly preserved.

In one direction, you can look out into the salt marshes where the famous fleur de sel de Carmague is hand-raked and harvested. (It was for sale everywhere we went, so I definitely brought some home in my suitcase.)

After walking the circumference of the whole village, observing the narrow streets from the bird’s eye perch of the medieval protective fortress, we descended some tower steps and made our way to the center square.

The four edges of the square were lined with cafes and table spilling out into the streets. Children were running around a fountain in the middle of the square. A man played an accordion on one side of the fountain and in front of him, a little girl danced to the music.

As we took in the scene, I looked over at my travel companions and said, I think we might be in France.
We laughed, knowing that imagining moments like this exact one was what drew us to Provence.
All too soon, it was time for us to finish our coffees and head off to the next stop on our tour of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France.
As I got up reluctantly, I thought to myself,

Sometimes I think I’ve traveled halfway around the world to live just so I can sit in squares.

(Maybe I should start doing tours that revolve around sitting in squares?)

We left Aigues-Mortes to go for a walk in a bird conservatory where we saw about 1 million flamingos, after which we visited the Black Madonna in Saintes-Marie-sur-la-Mer, followed by ice creams by the sea, naturally.

Every evening, we ate dinner together at our gorgeous hotel or at one of the local restaurants in Avignon.

Our meals were gorgeous every night, and our desserts even prettier.

The food, a highlight of any trip to France for sure, fueled us through our days of wandering.

Across the Rhone River from Avignon is Villeneuve, a small, fortified medieval town. It served as sort of a suburb for cardinals during the papal era of Avignon.

At the top of the town is a former Benedictine abbey surrounded by the most lovely gardens.

A few of us spent a free afternoon roaming the gardens before going back to Avignon for a late lunch.

Next time I visit the gardens, I’ll bring a picnic lunch as there are charming spots around every corner to enjoy lunch outside.

For many of us, these few hours in the Saint André Abbey gardens were the highlight of the whole trip.

Slow days full of sunshine will live strong in my memory of what it’s like to be in Provence.

I didn’t see the classic lavender fields of summer, but I’ll take spring in Provence any day.

Our next full day was market-themed, another classic French village staple.

Besides salt, we consumed many buckets and bags of fresh French strawberries.

As I wandered markets, I dreamed about coming back and staying in a cottage with a little kitchen to which I could bring a market basket of goodies home to prepare a meal.

From the market town of St-Remy-de-Provence, we made a little pilgrimage to the psychiatric hospital where Van Gogh stayed after his mental breakdown.

The path to the hospital is lined with little markers bearing Van Gogh’s signature, so you can easily find your way.

In the hospital, you can see the bedroom he painted several times. Van Gogh did over 150 paintings during his time in St Remy. He seemed to thrive in the quiet time away from the world.

The next village we visited was Les Baux-de-Provence, a name from which the word bauxite comes as it was mined from these hills.

We did a loop walk around the outskirts of the village at the base of the rock on which it is built, before wandering into the pretty village streets.

Even if my ladies were a bit tired from the previous day, they didn’t want to miss anything so they opted for the extra loop around.

I was amazed at how fit my group was, and how I had to work to keep up with them as we went from village to village.

We always managed to find somewhere to have a rest with a treat though, an ice cream or a drink.

Usually with a view!

After Les Baux, we were off to see some famous windmills, one of which an author (Alphonse Daudet) actually used as a residence in order to have a quiet place to write.

We felt like it was a fairly extreme move just for a little quiet.

Next stop, Roussillon, a village that falls within the national park of the Luberon and is known for its red buildings made from the ochre hills nearby.

We walked the red and orange hills before visiting the village and they reminded me of hills I’ve seen in Colorado or Utah.

The village was gorgeous, and I think my picnic and pastries from there might have been the best I had all week.

A recurring theme of our trip, since we visited around three villages each day, was that we all wished we could have more time in each village.

Every place we stopped seemed like somewhere you could rent a little room for a long while and be happy in.

But this was especially true of Roussillon!

Between Rousillon and Sorgues, we made a quick stop to see Gordes, the village on the a hill that was made famous by Peter Mayle. One of the funniest stories from the week was that a lady in our group thought we were going to get to meet Peter Mayle, so she was very disappointed to hear that he had been dead for several years.

We ended this day with walking along the Sorgue River.

We had a picnic lunch along the way and made it to see the source of the river, walking past lots of places where it would have been lovely to stop for lunch.

But our schedule always called for a picnic, which was fine because our dinners were so elaborate.

Most days I had a baguette for lunch filled with roasted vegetables, goat cheese, lettuce and tomatoes.

We ended our week with a train trip to Arles, another placed Van Gogh lived in the south of France.

It’s a beautiful town with lots of original Roman ruins still in tact, including an amphitheater that is still used today.

Outside the walls of the old town of Arles is Les Alyscamps, an old Roman necropolis.

Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin chose the Alyscamps as the first place they painted side by side in Arles. One of the paintings from that day was sold in 2015 for over $66 million.

As we walked around Arles, I could understand why Van Gogh had chosen it as a place to live and work.

Arles was a perfect ending to a delightful week in Provence.

Soon it was time to pack our bags and hop an early train back to Paris and then to London, where we were met with rain. We all went home longing for the slow days of wandering in Provence, but we were grateful for our memories in the sun!

The post Snapshots of Provence appeared first on Alison Chino.

One of the advantages of where we live in Germany is that we are just a few hours from several other European countries.

So earlier this winter we headed to the closest French town west of us:

Strasbourg.

I’m surprised it took us this long to get to Strasbourg because we have a dear friend who is living there at the moment, and if you asked the boys in my family what they enjoyed most about our weekend in Strasbourg, they would all say it was just getting to be with Jake.

Not the food.

Not even the gorgeous crepes with salted butter caramel sauce.

Or dark chocolate.

They would not remember to mention the turquoise shutters.

Or the multi-colored cobbles in La Petite France.

They wouldn’t say wandering the streets or eating yummy Tartes Flambèes.

Or seeing the building where Strasbourg teenagers go to high school. Can you imagine attending high school in this insanely gorgeous place?

Instead of telling you about going to see the Notre-Dame of Strasbourg and climbing to the top,

Ben and Simon might tell you about the silly stories Jake told them about some of the statues carved on the outside.

And Taido would tell you how wonderful it was to have someone to “talk shop” with all weekend. Jake and Taido were in the Aberdeen Divinity department together and are both learning languages in order to read their respective favorite theologians in their original languages. (Barth in German and Ellul in French)

I, however, would say that climbing to the top of the cathedral was almost my favorite part of the weekend.

Mostly because of how you can see out the windows all the way up the stairs.

You get closer views of the impressive structure from every level, and you an wonder as you climb how on earth these stones were stacked this high in 1439.

Also, the views from the top are pretty great.

Even on a cold, cloudy day.

I would also have to mention that everything I ate in Strasbourg, from the morning croissants that Jake brought us to the open faced brie + walnut + honey sandwich, reminded me of why I love French cuisine. It’s just so beautiful!

But overall, I have to concur with the boys. Being with Jake is pretty wonderful.

The post Snapshots of Strasbourg, France appeared first on Alison Chino.

I’m pretty sure there are three main reasons it took me five trips to Paris to finally make it to Versailles:

Number 1. My first four visits to Paris were really short.

Number 2. On three of those occasions I had children with me who would have whined all day, and that’s fun for no one.

And Number 3. (and let’s be honest, this is the main one) I was scared. Every time I started reading about visiting Versailles, the whole experience felt just way too overwhelming. Multiple ticket lines and different ticket options depending on how much you want to see. The fountains are only on at certain times on certain days. Also, apparently it’s really crowded.

So even on this, my fifth trip to Paris, I was not sure I would make it out to Versailles. Why should I travel outside of Paris, where there is already plenty to do, just to face the hassle of crowds and infuriating French ticketing systems at Versailles?

I told my mom and sister as we were planning this trip:

I would really like to go to Versailles. It will probably be a long and frustrating day. I’m not sure it’s worth it. You will mostly likely hate it. And we don’t have to go if you don’t want, but I kind of just want to. 

Why do I kind of just want to?

I blame Ms Greenway, my high school French teacher, from whom I learned very little French.

But one day she showed us pictures of Versailles that have forever remained burned into my brain.

One of them was of this yellow room.

Ms. Greenway told us stories of Louis XIV and the extravagance of Versailles, its furnishings and lavish gardens and crazy grandeur.

And somehow, I have managed to hold on for over a quarter of a century to the idea that this place is something I should see, which I have to say is a pretty decent accomplishment on the part of Ms. Greenway.

Mama and Anna agreed to the adventure of visiting Versailles, even if it turned out to be an overrated disappointment, which I continue to assure them it would probably be.

The night before we visited Versailles, Anna found an article online about a stress free visit to Versailles and read it aloud. We laughed heartily at the fact that we had already made several mistakes, especially the one about not buying and printing out our tickets ahead of time, but at that point it was too late.

I, in turn, read aloud from the comments of visitors to Versailles on Trip Advisor, which are hysterical, by the way. They say things like:

Don’t even bother going inside the palace. It’s hot and everyone is shoving you!

or

Who cares if it is famous and beautiful? You can’t see anything with all the people there.

Also super helpful, this quote from the unofficial guide to visiting Versailles:

When you enter the castle, don’t murder anybody. 

You think she is joking, but even in winter, you might want to murder someone.

Hint: It might be the group of attendants standing around chatting instead of opening a second (or even third!) security line.

But we decided that we would go for it. We would get there super early and have positive attitudes!

Also, there is a Starbucks right outside the Versailles train station, super handy if you’ve made your mom and sis take the first train out of Paris to be at Versailles before the gates are open, so they get to begin their day by standing out in the cold for thirty minutes outside the ticket office.

Also for those thirty minutes, they get to watch the other line gather and grow outside the palace. The one full of people who already have their tickets.

But because it was winter, even getting through this ridiculous two-line system (one for tickets, another to enter the palace) was not as bad as we had read online.

We managed to get through both without killing anyone, mainly because my sister does not take any smack from anyone and rushed us through so we made it to the other side of the security checks in one piece, just in time to see Louis XIV looking smug as if to say,

I may be dead, but look at what you’ve gone through just to come to my house. 

And really, it is quite a house.

And in February, there were not unbearable crowds.

Not even in the hall of mirrors.

Or the king’s apartments.

In fact, some places were quite empty.

But some others were being renovated and off limits, including the queen’s apartments. (Bummer.)

After the palace, we grabbed a bite to eat and then bundled up and headed to the gardens.

The scale of the grounds at Versailles is pretty baffling.

We committed to being there for the whole day to see it all, but we took our time, stopping often.

This is Mama, grabbing a hot drink and adjusting her audio guide.

(We downloaded Rick Steve’s free audioguide to Versailles, which I recommend doing ahead of time via the Rick Steve’s app. The audioguide you get with your ticket is only for the palace.)

In winter there is no pressure to make sure you get there at the right time for the fountains, because they are all off.

Less pressure for me.

Also, all the statues are covered.

The Grand Trianon and the Petit Trianon (two other palaces) are open. They are a good haul away from the main palace, but worth seeing and in our case, were almost completely empty.

I actually enjoyed seeing the rooms in the Grand Trianon more than the palace.

In fact, if were I to make a summer visit, I would consider skipping the palace altogether.

And if you have people with you who say things like,

All these rooms sort of look the same to me,

then you will bore them less by just heading to the Grand Trianon. 

The Grand Trianon has its own Hall of Mirrors.

Its own gorgeous outside.

And courtyards and gardens.

Its like a mini Versailles.

Only with pink.

The Petit Trianon is quick to tour and serves as an entrance to Marie Antoinette’s Hamlet.

Mama and I had both watched the most recent version of Marie Antoinette before this trip so seeing the parts of Versailles that were a sort of haven to her might have been the best bit of the day.

Here’s the music room in the Petit Trianon.

And onward to the Hamlet, a miniature English farm village Marie Antoinette had built in order to escape the palace.

It’s easy to see how this more simple corner of Versailles would be a relief after the grandeur of everywhere else. 

Of course, straw-thatched houses don’t maintain themselves, so Marie Antoinette’s house is under renovation and we could not go in it.

If you’re counting, that’s at least three strikes for a winter visit to Versailles, but I’ll take all three in exchange for the lack of people.

By the end of the day I was properly exhausted, and not a little cold. But when we rounded the corner to see the palace in the distance on the long walk back from Marie Antoinette’s Hamlet, I was very grateful not to be making the journey in the heat.

We walked back up the long garden, past all the covered statues, said our goodbyes to Versailles and hopped on the train back to Paris.

As I settled into my seat, I tried to decide if I was glad to have visited Versailles just so I could check it off my list or if it is a place I would go back to, but I was asleep before I could make up my mind.

The post Snapshots of Versailles appeared first on Alison Chino.

In a corner of a massive gothic church in the heart of Paris is a monument to the fruit and vegetable sellers who, after 800 years of selling goods in front of this church, were relocated to a suburb in Paris to make way for a train station and a giant shopping mall.

Until 1969, the food market operated in front of this church (L’eglise Saint-Eustache).

Called Les Halles or The Halls, merchants came from all over to sell food to Parisians.

Near the church, in a local foie gois shop, I took a photo of what Les Halles looked like a long time ago.

In front of and in the halls of Saint-Eustache is where our Belly of Paris Tour with Context Travel began.  We walked with our guide Carolin Young as she painted us a picture of a Paris table long ago.

We walked through the streets listening and learning some history of Paris and food.

And we made stops along the way. For sure one of the highlights of our walk through Paris with Carolin was all the shops.

Foie gois shops, cheese shops, wine shops.

Even an open air market or two.

And then there were the chefs’ shops. 

My sister was super excited to purchase a few tools for her kitchen from the places where France’s greatest chefs buy their copper pots and knives.

Within a few blocks of each other, there were four or five of these storied old restaurant and chef supply stores. 

Here’s Anna in front of one of the oldest ones. We had a hard time getting her out of there.

But we bribed her with food.

Our guide, Carolin, chose a few cheeses.

And a few more cheeses.

And baguettes and croissants from a well-loved boulangerie.

These prize cups represent many “bests” in Paris baking….best croissant and best baguette to name a few.

At the end of our tour, Carolin led us, along with our treasures to a room painted with old frescoes in Le Rocher de Cancale, one of the oldest restaurants in Paris, to have a simple meal of wine, cheese and bread.

Le Rocher de Cancale translates to the Rocks of Cancale, which is an area in Brittany famed for oysters, hence the rock and oyster sculpture on the outside of the restaurant.

A couple days later, Anna and I had oysters in an open market, where they served them fresh and then filled your empty shells with white wine to follow.

Fresh from the sea, we experienced having the freshest ingredients in Paris from all over France.

As Carolin had told us, in Paris, the food is not necessarily local, but you can have the best that is available in the capital city of France, and because of the central markets in Paris, it has always been this way.

In Paris, you can have the very best.

And we had SO many meals in Paris that were the very best.

One of our favorites was prepared for us right in our apartment by Chef Fabrice from La Belle Assiette. We were super excited to get to watch a seasoned chef in action, admiring his knife skills and asking questions about sauces.

And little warm melt-in-your-mouth chocolate molten cakes.

Divine!

Another of our best meals was at Les Papilles. We happily took the last 10pm reservation available at this popular Paris bistro.

Every day the chef has one set menu, which you have family style at your table.

Our first course was a gorgeous carrot soup that came in a tureen that we poured over these beautiful bowls of bacon, croutons, creme fraiche and herbs.

Then we had a copper pot full of slowly stewed beef with potatoes, onions, carrots and mushrooms. So tender. So delectable. So full.

Followed by cheese and fruit.

And a salted caramel pot de creme.

The meal at Les Papilles was for sure one of our very best.

But also high on our list was one of the many lovely recommendations we got from Carolin, another bistro called Terroir Parisien, a nod to local food in the region of Paris.

Anna had smoked trout.

Mama and I had the menu of the day, which was local eggs and bacon. (We’re still dreaming about these.)

Chicken and potatoes.

And a pear clafoutis that I will be trying to recreate very soon.

In fact, there are so many desserts from our time in Paris that I would like to re-create. We ate many gorgeous crepes, of course.

Like this one with chocolate and bananas that arrived after Anna asked our waiter to bring us his very best crepe.

Another dessert highlight was this roasted apple with caramel and nuts from La Grande Epicerie.

And this rose macaron from Pierre Hermes.

We had so many gorgeous pastries and tarts. I kept saying that I am going to make more efforts to make my food beautiful when I serve it after being in Paris.

Where even a simple fruit salad is a work of art.

Our very first meal in Paris was a meat, cheese and bread board, which we devoured in a street cafe, slightly stupefied that we were all sitting in the middle of Paris.

But a week later, we pracitally considered ourselves regulars at the patisserie just a few steps away from that same cafe, where even the Queen of England has been to taste the famous eclairs.

On our last night in Paris, we named all of our favorite foods we had eaten over a week of filling our bellies with so many delights, and we could not narrow it down to one meal. It was all the very best.

A big thanks to Context Travel for sending us on the Belly of Paris tour for free to help promote this fun walk through the history of Paris and food. And thank you Carolin for a lovely afternoon in the heart of Paris!

PS. You can watch our highlight videos from Paris on Vine!!

The post Snapshots of Eating in Paris appeared first on Alison Chino.

Snapshots of Shopping in Paris

Mama was lagging behind as we made our way through the Tuileries.

Jet lag had caught up with her on our first full day in Paris, and we all needed re-fueling after a morning of walking and sightseeing.

But then,

we hit the Champs-Élysées.

The Grandest Boulevard in all of Paris.

The one where all the shops are.

And suddenly, Mama recovered her energy.

These two gals are as different from each other as “chalk and cheese” as they say here in Britain, but one thing they share in common is their love of shopping.

Myself, I am not much of a shopper, but the storefronts and shops in Paris are beyond gorgeous.

The shopfronts are works of art in and of themselves.

So while Mama and Anna shopped, I took photos of storefronts.

Many, many storefronts.

Like this funny dress shop that looked like a bookstore.

The next day we went to Le Bon Marché, where everything is crazy expensive, but Anna and Mama each found a little something to buy just to mark their experience.

Anna bought a lipstick with a built in mirror from the cosmetic counter, and Mama found a shirt upstairs.

While she was trying on clothes, I rode these gorgeous escalators and took photos.

Here is one of the places in Le Bon Marché where you can try on clothes. Hello fancy.

Next to Le Bon Marché is La Grande Epicerie, which is to food what the Le Bon Marché is to clothes.

Again, the displays in Paris make buying salted caramels and even radishes a delight.

There was no end to our shopping (and window shopping) in Paris.

We shopped for flowers for our apartment.

Which was lovely by the way.

And for art on the streets.

And for food. There was much shopping for food, of course. Eating and shopping and eating and touring and eating and reading restaurant menus. So much food.

But that’s next week’s theme,

Food in Paris!

The post Snapshots of Shopping in Paris appeared first on Alison Chino.

While we were in Switzerland this past summer, we took a quick camping trip to the French Alps. We only managed to get in one real climb while we were there, apart from walks around our campground and the darling mountain town of Chamonix.

Taido chose a hike to Lac Blanc, a long walk up to a lake that would take us past gorgeous vistas of Mount Blanc and many of the other striking peaks in the area.

But when we started up the mountain, we couldn’t see much of anything.

Well, we did see a few mountain goats. That was exciting.

But for the most part, we were just heading up further into the clouds.

The kids found it to be super discouraging, and they kept asking to turn around. We had a picnic lunch in the car that we had left behind thinking we would be down before lunch.

We didn’t reach Lac Blanc until well after lunch.

Even in the mist, it was really gorgeous.

And lucky for us, there happened to be a crepe stand this high up in the French Alps.

On our way down, the mist began to clear.

We had to climb up (and then back down) all these ladders that I found to be a bit scary, but no one else was bothered.

About halfway down, we finally started to see blue sky and glimpses of Mount Blanc.

The clouds were constantly changing so you had to be watching to see all the different peaks.

One minute you could see them, and then the next they would be covered up again.

But when we could see them, they were just gorgeous.

We could even see the village below us.

As usual, I ended up being glad I had followed Taido up the mountain that day.

Everyone ran down the last few miles and then we went to town for ice cream.

I took a couple of vines on our day of climbing: one of goats and one of the mist then blue sky. Gorgeous!

The post A Walk to Lac Blanc {France} (41/48) appeared first on Alison Chino.

Taido has always longed to see the French Alps, and specifically, the mountain town of Chamonix, which is nestled just underneath Mont Blanc. Engelberg is about five hours away so we loaded up our camping gear and spent a couple of nights in this little French campground.

When we first arrived, the clouds were covering the mountains so we didn’t realize how perfectly situated the campsites were.

After we got our tents set up, we went into the town to explore. There was a jazz festival in Chamonix the week we were there so we ended up getting a dinner picnic at the store and eating it on a green space in the middle of town where we could hear the music.

Our whole family really loves a good mountain town vibe. Like all mountain towns, Chamonix was full of fun little gear shops and restaurants, but you could also find boulangeries, gelato and even macarons.

Even fresh fruit and vegetable markets.

And cheese. So much good cheese in France.

When we woke up the next morning, the clouds had cleared a little bit and we could see the mountains just over our tent.

Our campground even had a little coffee shop with picnic tables. So adorable.

The most fun surprise at our campground was that a bakery truck arrived every morning and set up shop, selling baguettes, croissants and other yummy pastries out of the back.

Ben and Simon took off running in the morning when they heard him honking his horn.

We were sad to say goodbye to Chamonix after just a couple of nights, and we all said we would love to go back again one day. Also we wish all campgrounds had bakery trucks!

The post Snapshots of Chamonix appeared first on Alison Chino.

Leaving London.

We landed in Paris, went through customs and took the train into town, arriving at our apartment to meet our host at 11pm.

We all chose beds and fell quickly into them. It was Saturday night, and there was lots of activity on the streets. I flung open the windows of my room so I could fall asleep to the noises of Paris.

For a while I could hear singing and then a voice from a building somewhere above me yelled at the revelers to be quiet. I caught a bit of it on Vine because it made me giggle. It would be morning before I could see Paris, but we were already experiencing it.

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Day 1

We woke up to rain falling and sleepy kids, so Peter and I ran out in the rain to grab coffee and pastries. We were going to get some groceries to have at the apartment but I had forgotten that most of the markets in Paris are closed on Sundays. We were fortunate to find a patisserie that was open, so we left finding a market until later and went back with croissants and treats.

We decided to stay close to our apartment on our first day. We were about ten minutes from Notre-Dame on the Ile de la Cite, so went there first and then explored the island.

The Notre-Dame was predictably mobbed, and this clown was determined to be in my photo. You can tell from the looks on our faces that he was uninvited. I feel the same way about clowns as I do about crowds, so we moved on quickly to smaller streets.

There are lots of crowded spots in Paris, but I do love that it is fairly simple to get away from the crowds. Usually if you just walk a couple of blocks in any direction, you can escape the madness and find your own secret Paris.

The boys loved walking along the river, and they were not at all bothered by the rain or the puddles.

In fact the rain was kind of perfect. Ben and I had just watched Midnight in Paris where Owen Wilson keeps talking about walking in the rain in Paris.

I do love all the rainy Paris photos.

We had classic baguette sandwiches for lunch and then went to Amarino to get gelato.

Our afternoon was dominated by trying to find a market that was open.

We finally found a tiny one where we bought a few groceries to hold us over.

Then I went for a rainy walk by myself while everyone rested for a bit back at the apartment.

The boys and I stayed in and had pasta while Peter and Whitney went out to dinner. I wanted them to have a night out in Paris without worrying about the kids begging to leave a restaurant.

Everyone was happy! The World Cup final was on, and you could hear the cheering in the streets.

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Day 2

Monday was Bastille Day and we knew it was going to be a long day. Our plan was to spend the day slowly walking to the Eiffel Tower, making stops along the way. That way we would be there to have our dinner picnic and claim our spot for the fireworks.

We walked to the river and meandered along at our own pace.

First we made a stop at the Pont des Arts, also known as the Love Locks Bridge.

Next we went to the Louvre.

Paris museums are free on Bastille Day so we took the kids in for just a few minutes, to get a glimpse of the Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo. Seeing the Mona Lisa was on their list, so we were excited to make it happen, but Simon’s favorite painting in the Louvre was one he found of some dogs.

Inadvertently we managed to exit the museum through the Medieval Undergound which I did not know existed. It is a tunnel through the original foundations of the Louvre, a fortress in former days. At first I thought we were in an extension of an exhibit for Egyptian pyramids but Peter figured it out that we were actually in the underground of the Louvre. At the end of the tunnels, there is a model of what it used to look like. It was all super fascinating and in contrast to the rest of the museum, completely deserted. (Again, always head away from the crowds!)

When we emerged under the famous Pyramid, planes were flying over as part of the celebrations for Bastillle Day.

After we walked out of the Pyramid, we grabbed sandwiches from a stand and just let the kids play in the grass.

The memory of our boys playing in the grass outside the Louvre is one of my most happy + idyllic.

We wandered back to the river bank because I could not wait to show the boys all the summer fun that they have set up on the Left Bank in Paris this summer.

We took our time enjoying the games, the views and the sunshine along the river.

It’s a cross between art and play this summer on the Left Bank, with lots of interactive installations.

Like this giant chalkboard.

And this dance party under a bridge where you can tap in via bluetooth and play your own music.

We followed our river walk with a trip to Rue Cler for more gelato and to pick up the food for our Eiffel Tower Picnic.

We reached the Eiffel Tower around 4pm, which was perhaps a little early for the fireworks (not until midnight!) but if you’re going to wait around all day somewhere, I cannot imagine a better setting.

We took turns keeping our spot while the kids made trips to a nearby playground. Ben and I rented bikes and rode up to the Arc de Triomphe so he could see it and feel what it’s like to be on a bicycle in Paris.

We also left to get more food, because when you’re sitting around people watching all day, you need a lot to eat.

Honestly, I was a little bit worried that the whole experience was going to be a letdown. That there was no way it could handle the build up. Plus I knew we had a VERY long walk home in the middle of the night. I had read that it would be impossible to find a cab and that there would be a crush on the Metro. We had geared ourselves up and even took a few little naps on the lawn, but I was still concerned that we might be sorry.

Also, the crowd grew thicker and thicker all evening, and we had to be kind of territorial to hold onto our spot.

Soon the music started and after a while the band began to play songs that were familiar to the surrounding Parisians. The Eiffel Tower began to light up in all different colors. People were waving giant flags and blowing bubbles and standing up and singing along.

It was beautiful.

Then just before the fireworks, the National Anthem of France played. The singing became so loud and the enthusiasm in the air was palpable. I felt myself start to get a little lump in my throat and there were tears in my eyes, and the fireworks had not even started.

Then they began, and all concern about whether or not it was really worth it to come to Paris for Bastille Day immediately washed away.

Pictures cannot capture the magic. Neither can videos.

C’etait incroyable!

The music and the spectacle were all timed together, with loud horns for the big bangs and soft violins for little sparks. At one point there was a man swinging from the center of the tower and another one climbing down the side. You could see them because they were wearing lighted costumes.

The fireworks shot from behind and from the top and from every possible level of the tower, and they went on for almost an hour.

The walk home at 1 am was long and hard and crazy, but we all agreed that it was worth every step. When I fell into bed dizzy with the wonder of the day, it was almost 3am.

It was the event of a lifetime for certain, and given the opportunity, I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Day 3

The next morning we all slept in. Our train was at 4pm, so by the time we got moving, we just had a few hours left in Paris.

We spent them on the Ile Saint-Louis and  along the river. More pastries of course. And then a pile of baguettes and other foods for the train ride, and we were off.

But because it is Paris, we never want to say Au revoir.

So we just say A bientot!

The Boys Favorite Parts of Paris:

The Fireworks (of course!)

Croissants + Gelato + Macarons

Stomping in the puddles along the Seine

We are partnering as a family with GowithOh this year as we travel around Europe, so we received a discount on our GowithOh apartment in Paris. More photos from the apartment can be found in our Google+ album of our trip to Paris. Stay tuned for more glimpses of our life on the road or perhaps subscribe.

The post Snapshots of Paris with Kids appeared first on Alison Chino.

I know what you’re thinking.

How can anyone possibly discover anything new about the Louvre that has not already been covered ad nauseum on the internet?

And maybe you are right. But I had done my homework before going to the Louvre. Not the homework about what is actually inside the Louvre. I mean, I know that is important and all but hello, OVERWHELMING.

No, what I mean is that I had done my homework about the best way to get into the Louvre.

The best time to visit. (early)

When to go for free. (first Sunday of every month, oh and also Bastille Day!)

Which entrance to look for. (Go past the Pyramid and enter by the underground shopping mall instead, the Carrousel Entrance)

But nowhere in all my internet scrolling and guidebook reading did I ever find this secret.

We woke up early on Bastille Day to walk over to the Louvre Museum. My brother and his wife, Peter and Whitney, and our four boys had decided that it would be fun to go to the Louvre for a very short visit if the lines were not long since the museum is free on Bastille Day.

We were going to be walking by it anyway and even if we did not go in, we could catch a glimpse of the glass pyramid in the courtyard. Our boys wanted to see the Mona Lisa, and Ben wanted to see Venus de Milo, but none of them were excited about long lines or hours of looking at art.

So off we went to the Louvre, holding our plans loosely and enjoying the beauty of Paris along the way.

We saw the line to the Pyramid before we even realized we had reached the museum. Even though the Louvre is free on Bastille Day, everyone still has to go through security and have bags checked. So we walked a few blocks and went into the courtyard from another entrance to see the Pyramid. All the while the kids were all saying things like:

We’re not getting in the line are we?

I don’t really care that much about seeing the Mona Lisa.

I told Peter that I had read that you could also enter through an underground shopping mall, the Carrousel Entrance, and we just had to find it. We took pictures of the Pyramid and watched the line for a minute to see how quickly it was moving. Then we set off in the opposite direction to find the other entrance.

Then Peter said,

Wait a second. I’m going to ask someone.

Stationed throughout the line to the Pyramid were attendants for the museum, so Peter went over to one and asked,

Excuse me, can you tell me where the Carrousel Entrance is to the museum?

Yes, it is just on the other side of the courtyard there (pointing) but if you walk down just to the end of this wing to my left, you can enter through the Porte des Lions and there is no line there.

Peter came back over to us and we followed him to the Southwest corner of the Louvre.

While we were walking I thought: Porte des Lions? What? How can it be that I’ve never heard of this entrance? And if it really is empty, why are all the people lined up at the Pyramid instead of going over there?

But true to the attendant’s word, there was an entrance in that corner and there was no line. Zero people waiting.

We walked right in.

I kept waiting for the catch, like we were going to have to go back to the front to be checked for security or that we would find another line inside the building.

But there was no catch. We wandered in and discovered that we were already really close to the Mona Lisa. Ben had a map and we followed him to the places he wanted us not to miss. Then we went underground to the Medieval Louvre, which I had never before seen. (Very fun)

We exited through the Pyramid so we got to stand under the glass, and there were even planes going over for Bastille Day.

We walked out into the sun and past the (still very long) line outside the Pyramid to have picnic lunch on the lawn in the courtyard.

We could still see the empty Porte des Lions and in fact, we watched people walk past it for the next hour, only to go stand in the line by the Pyramid.

It’s like you don’t really think it could possibly be an entrance because it’s so deserted. Also there are no signs indicating that you can enter there. So everyone just follows the crowd. You want to go and stop them but when you try to talk to strangers in Paris in English, they think you are going to steal from them and they just shake their heads at you. And it is true that there are a lot of con artists robbing people just by getting their attention for a minute.

So we just shrugged our shoulders, leaned back in the grass and felt smug about not having to stand in line.

Now I told you that there was going to be a secret about the Louvre buried somewhere in this story, so did you spot it?

Here’s a hint.

The secret is not that the Porte des Lions is the best entrance for the Louvre.

In fact, after I got home, I googled it and I found some information about it. Sometimes it is not open. If it’s not a free day at the museum, you have to have your ticket ahead of time to use the entrance.

So if that’s not the secret I wanted to share about the Louvre, then what is it?

Well I’ll tell you.

When you’re wondering if you have to stand in line to get inside the Louvre (or anywhere else), find someone to ask.

I am really the worst when it comes to thinking I can figure it out for myself. The worst. I don’t want to look like a fool.

But on this trip, I learned more than once from my brother that asking not only saves time, it opens doors.

I would LOVE to hear. When was the last time you discovered something wonderful, just because you were willing to ask?

We are partnering as a family with GowithOh this year as we travel around Europe, so we received a discount on our GowithOh apartment in Paris. Stay tuned for more glimpses of our life on the road.

The post A Story about the Louvre Museum appeared first on Alison Chino.

When Mary Polly and I were in Paris in June, we rode bikes from our apartment in Marais to Montmartre early in the morning, so we could spend our last morning in Paris walking the hill that overlooks the city.

Sitting on the steps of Le Sacre-Coeur was on Mary Polly’s Paris Wish List, so off we went through this park to find the famous stairs.

We began to catch glimpses of the church as we climbed higher.

And then, we were there. We spent over an hour just sitting here on these steps, looking out at the city and watching people. A bride was being photographed. A group of people were filming something. Tour buses came and went.

We were both glad we had made the effort to see this spot we’ve seen in so many pictures and films, and we were reluctant to leave the stairs at all but we took a spin inside Le Sacre Coeur before we went on to have a bit of breakfast and a walk through this quatier of Paris!

La Mere Catherine claims to be the first cafe in Paris, so we had our coffee and pastries here.

I loved watching the artists set up in the square for the day and all the people coming and going, shouting Bonjour Madame! Bonjour Monsieur!

We walked through the square a couple of times before setting off to find Rue Lepic, the long winding street that takes you back down the hill.

Along the way, you get to see the former home of Victor Hugo and his brother. Amazing.

It’s just a normal house that someone still lives in with a small plaque to the left stating that he and his brother lived there once upon a time. Number 54.

And at the bottom of the road, The Moulin Rouge…

With a big Heineken truck in front of it.

After seeing The Moulin Rouge, we turned around and walked all the way back to the Seine to spend our last hours in Paris by the river, Mary Polly’s very favorite Paris spot!

We are partnering as a family with GowithOh this year as we travel around Europe, so we received our apartment in Paris gratis. We love staying in neighborhoods and having space to hang out together, as well as being able to cook. Stay tuned for more of our fun summer travel adventures!

The post A Walk in Montmartre {Paris} (21/48) appeared first on Alison Chino.