Le Bateau

June 20, 2012


In the afternoon, we walked over to Pont Neuf and hopped on a boat for a lovely one hour ride up and down the Seine. I think we all enjoyed sitting and watching the scenes go by from the boat. It was fun counting the bridges we went under (we lost track after about 11), imagining life in a house boat, and looking at the people on the banks. I also enjoyed seeing the underside of the bridges. 

Hotel Resting

June 20, 2012

The post-Eiffel Tower rest was thoroughly restorative. I enjoyed the sounds from our hotel as I napped, the girls enjoyed doing crafts with Nana. Not a bad way to spend the afternoon, if you ask me. :)

Pictures:
View from our room
clara, hard at work crafting doggies from pom pms
crafty girls concentrating on their project.

Out on the Town

June 19, 2012

Enjoying the walk back from the restaurant, and the late-night sunset.

Pictures:
Grand daughters and grand parents in Paris
Walking along Rue Jacob
Saying Bon Nuit to some fish along the rue
Our hotel at sunset

La Tour Eiffel

June 20, 2012

Who can visit Paris without at least trying to go up in the Eiffel Tower? Molly chanted "Eiffel Tower" every time we talked about it, so we decided to brave the crowds. And indeed, there were crowds. Although we had planned on arriving early to avoid the long lines, we ended up sleeping in (at last!), and found ourselves in the thick of the crowds. Plus, it turns out, one of the two elevators was out of service, so everyone who wasn't prepared to walk up to the first level was forced to wait in the same line.

We did everything we could to try to make it go smoothly, and the grandparents were amazing at whipping out tricks and distractions at every possible moment. But the truth of the matter is that the wait was at least an hour and a half, and tears were shed by each kid (not to mention the ones the adults wanted to shed!). But we made it, and as far as I can tell it was worth it, if only because as soon as we were going up in the elevator the kids forgot the long wait in the line.

The views from the top were, of course, amazing. The construction is beautiful. And on the way down, Zach, Molly, and I decided to walk down from the 2nd level, which was a fun was to feel immersed in the tower.

After the climb, we took our picnic to the nearby park and the girls ran around for a while. Until I began feeling sick and so Susie and I headed back to the hotel for extra rest, while Zach, Charly, and the girls stayed on for a carousel ride.

Sleepyheads

June 20, 2012


The morning started out sleepy, in spite of our big plans the night before to get an early start off to the Eiffel Tower. But, after all our travelling, who could disturb these sleepyheads?