How does one begin to communicate an experience that occurs across the world, ensuring that friends and family are able to capture the experience you lived? Honestly, today, I am at a loss. I feel as though I am grappling with impossibility on this particular blog post. In order to share with you the beauty, the history, and the butterflies and smiles within my soul is going to have to be left to the pictures this time. As for my words, I promise to write as descriptively and eloquently as my tired eyes and fried brain can but Paris... regardless of my current mental and physical state, was indescribable.
If you remember from Part One, I referred to Paris as stealing a piece of my heart. It wasn't just particularly Paris. Paris is not merely a place upon a map. Paris is not the Eiffel Tower. Paris is not Notre Dame. Paris is where I fell even more deeply in love with my family and my life. So, to truly reflect our experiences in Paris, my dear friends and family, I fear is impossible. It is left to my heart. It is left for me to continue to relish in memories.
Day One:
When we arrived into Paris from Disneyland, we entered our apartment we rented for the week (which was a genius idea- if not purely for the clothes dryer:)). The entrance was rather elaborate, almost a little psychedelic. Luckily, we were on the ground floor in one of the last apartments down the hall. The apartment was clean and lovely. Rather simple and decorated with glass tables and white furniture- a child's dream. Laura took us through the apartment to show how to work French appliances, internet, phone, etc... After she left, Mr F and I decided with all of the white and our security deposit, we better set some apartment norms with the kids. Pretty simple- no jumping on the furniture or putting the white cushions on the floor. Our kids, as usual, did wonderfully. We managed to get our entire security deposit refunded.
When people normally decide to go to Paris for six nights, their itineraries are packed full of all the amazing places to see. However, after much research about the metro, the different erroindesments, and the endless attractions to visit, I ended up just making a list of the places that I REALLY wanted to see. I Google mapped where the apartment was in relation to the attractions and we quickly realized we can walk to every one. The walk may have lasted an hour or so, but really, it was amazing to take in the sites along the way. Much better than being underground in a tunnel.
The first night we arrived, Mr. F ran across the street to find us some food. All four of us were hungry. We hadn't eaten since Planet Hollywood. He found a convenience store that is essentially a cross between a hanut and a 7-11. (Wondering what a hanut is?? Stay tuned:)) He grabbed some frozen pizzas. I do believe that this was the first time Mr. F and I have ever eaten a frozen pizza together. However, we didn't have any other option. They weren't bad, except it took us a while to figure out the French oven. Really need to work on my French. We put the ever exhausted kids and parents to bed to prepare for day one!
Day Two:
In the morning, Mr. F and I talked about our plans for the day. We decided that we needed a day without major plans. Mr. F decided to walk to a Crossfit gym and put in his first French Crossfit WOD (in which Mr. F walked 45 minutes to then begin his workout!). He met the two owners, which, enjoyed having him around (who doesn't right??!! This guy KILLS me that everyone loves him. Stop it Mr. F. You are making the rest of us look bad.).
The kids and I wandered around for a grocery store. I quickly found a Franprix just down the street a bit. We walked around, slightly lost in the store but now that I have lived in Morocco for nearly five months, I at least know how to survive and navigate foreign labels. We bought snack, bread, peanut butter, jelly, vanilla extract (what! what! I can bake now!:)), amongst other food items for the apartment. When we got back, Claire was exhausted from that physical output of the stroller ride (mmmhmmm). Chad drew a picture of Mike and Sully while I became obsessed with laundry because there was a... DRYER! My clothes were so fluffy amazing and warm!
When Happy woke up, she decided she would munch on some raisins... well, I have to give her props for creativity. Placing them in the decorative bowl and literally diving in head first. She was thrilled with herself. Then, she managed to top off her outfit with Daddy's shoes. Always a ball of fun with this beautiful girl.
When Mr. F arrived back at the apartment, I was itching to get out to see Paris... even if it just meant 'normal Paris.' Mr. F suggest we walk to dinner, so that we did. We began walking in the only direction familiar to the both of us- towards Franprix and Crossfit. Earlier in the day, when Mr. F and I were both about Paris, it was quiet. People were here and there, but it was not crowded. However, as it started to get later in the day, the streets started to fill. The stores, restaurants, theaters were all bustling. We ended up deciding to eat at a little place called Frog Burger. We talked a bit with the server, finding out that Frog Burger is a branch of Frog Pub; a pub from Britain. In pure excitement for an actual beer, I quickly ordered one called Inseine. Mr. F ended up with one called Ba Ba Boom. I wanted to steal his but mine was delicious as well.
While we waited for our burgers, we just loved on the kids and I was able to surprise Chad with a huge slobbery kiss. He got be back though.
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| The food arrived! |
On our way back to the apartment from Frog Burger, we captured a few dark images, but images of Paris nonetheless!
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| The Seine River |
A quiet first day, which ended up being one of my favorites. Why? The simplicity. The lack of planning and direction. Just being complete with my family by my side.
Day Three:
The next day in Paris, we decided to head to The Louvre, the Tuilleries Garden, and end with a late lunch at Angeline's. We Googled the general direction of The Louvre and set out on the trek. As we walked, we become engrossed with the beauty of the architecture, the history entangled on every corner. The independence reflected in Paris was evident.
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| Hmmm... Hopefully the red car has a few strong friends. |
The buildings all captured a beauty that is rare to see within The States. Every corner we turned, looking to the right, looking to the left... wherever our eyes wandered, we tried to capture what our eyes were seeing in hopes of comprehending everything we were seeing. Our eyes darted everywhere- there was so much to take in!
We ended up walking through a side of the Louvre which was not crowded at all. We entered the courtyard in the middle of the palace. We spent a chuck of our time just looking up admiring the craftsmanship, the architecture and listening to Chad ask endless questions about how big it is and how many people lived there, was it a good palace...?
Our photography natually lead us toward the main entrance of the Louvre where the famous pyramid sits.
It was apparently a very popular photograph to stand upon a cement slab and pretend you were touching the tip of the pyramid... you know those photos- holding the sun, holding up the Leaning Tower of Pisa... yep... there was not an empty slab out of about seven different ones. In fact, many people were waiting off to the side to have their turn at this very 'original' photo.
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| Crazy face #1! |
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| Crazy face #2! |
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| Wow... that is a good looking family! |
We walked out of the Louvre and headed to the Tullieres Gardens just at the Front Entrance to the Louvre. The ornate architecture was breathtaking. We walked around the gardens looking at all the the incredible sculptures. The details of veins, faces, muscles, hair, wieners, and more wieners was a big discussion between the two of us. The artists who crafted these sculptures had such a talent of creation especially thinking of the craft and the tools available in the past.
Down the dirt paths, we passed by a garden play area for the kids. However, it was raining, so we decided to keep heading in the direction of Angeline's. The garden has trampolines set at ground level and were gated in by a fence. It was amazing. I wanted to play. It was probably in our best judgement not to walking around with two kids in soaked clothing though. We might have to return just for this park!
One of the expats here in Morocco told me about Angelina's and that it was a must find if we wanted an incredible cup of hot chocolate. We walked out of the Louvre and started to make our way back towards the apartment, my eyes searching for Angelina's. Near the end of the street, there it was. However, as we approached, I realized there was a line out of the door. People patiently waiting their turn to head in. My first thought was "Wow. This place must be amazing." Followed by "Oh, but another line!" I decided that we should wait because it really is supposed to be worth it. Within ten minutes, a man walked out the door and gave every one in line the sign of approval; a huge thumbs up. So, we waited for about forty-five minutes, we may have even have bought some of the famous hot chocolate mix! Yum!
Finally we were called in the door and seated in a room in the back. By the blurry picture below, you can see how absolutely amazing the hot chocolate was. Essentially, we didn't need the meal we ordered. It was rich hot chocolate that we classified as fondue-like; melted mousse in a cup... I don't know, but whatever it is, Angelina's is famous for it.
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| One sleepy and chocolate-satisfied girl. |
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| My accidental creation! |
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| Full bellies and tired family on our way to the next adventure. |
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| Big Bubble Maker! |
I refuse to tell you the story Mr. F captured below. If you decide you must know... you will have to convince Mr. F with some sort of bribery. No, I am not giving any bribery item hints.
After using the odd public restroom, we continued our walk back to the apartment. Chad loved to run anytime we walked because the sidewalks and bike lanes made the sidewalks open and comfortable.
And for Claire, well, she just continued to be her perfect self. Always Happy, always making others smile.
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| More art for Chaddy! He has grown to be an amazing artist. |
Day Three:
As our time in Paris seemed to be passing by quickly, I had an itch to rise and shine nice and early. But, as you may be able to relate, sleeping is SO amazing! I decided to call it what it is and just wake when the time was right. Often, that happened to be around 930 or 10a. This usually put us at a 'late start' to our day, but with no itinerary, we never felt rushed or pressured. Mr. F worked out at the Crossfit gym again. I decided to take the kids to Starbucks and get hot chocolate. Chad, Claire and I walked the streets of Paris, just the three of us and oddly, it felt like home. We could easily navigate the area. It was easy to get around and remember where you were going (wait for day four!). Mr. F called after he completed his workout and met up with us. We decided to go to the Pompidou since we were relatively close.
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| The blue and the gigantic PVC pipes made the Pompidou easy to find |
Upon arriving, we saw this statue. As you may be able to tell, he is a living statue. He did a fantastic job. He was still as a mouse. Chad was really interested in what the statue was knowing that something about it's manner and reality was different.
When walking past, the courtyard, we stopped and watched this man with his chalk art. The talent within the movement of his hand and creativity of the mind was incredible.
We spent sometime running about in front of the Pomidou and watched some street talent. There was a young man who performed a show with a crystal ball and classical music. But the weather was making us rather chilly and craving warm drinks, so we decided leave the Pomidou. On the way out, we saw a group of hypnotists, so we watched them perform on audience members. It was interesting to watch, especially with the language barrier. Not understanding the language left all communication to the body language and perception developed from that.
We walked back towards the apartment, but decided to stop at Notre Dame which was essentially across the Seine River from our apartment. We took some pictures of structures as we walked past.
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| Crossing the Seine River |
Approaching Notre Dame... it was breathtaking! The sun was setting reflecting off of the building creating a beautiful orange glow. Swarms of people were everywhere. The line into the Notre Dam wrapped around the outside sidewalk zigzagging right and left- curling up the stairs. Tonight, we decided to take the sights in of the exterior and try to enter Notre Dame early in the morning.
After taking in the sights at Notre Dame, we headed back to the apartment. The interesting thing about Paris is that as you walk down the streets near the river, you have streets lined with books and comic books. At night, the owner merely closes the lids and locks up the bolted in boxes until he returns the next morning. As we walked, we looked at book covers and art which nearly all were in French.
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| Comics! |
The sun started setting as we continued our walk. The cloudy sky darkened and the temperature dropped drastically. It was time to head home to eat.
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| Chad taking a peek at some books |
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| Nice Chad... good pick... |
Day Four:
Mr. F walked his bulbous muscles to the Crossfit Paris once again. This time, we decided he would meet us again. I took these to creatively dressed kids to Starbucks again (had to take advantage!). Chad rocked Mr. F's tie all day with is Captain America hat, Spiderman Sweatshirt, and Green Lantern shirt. I LOVED seeing this confidence and personality shining through. It warmed my heart to see his independence just shine.
Claire, she rocked her unicorn hat that Nana crocheted and sent with daddy to Paris. In addition, the picture does not show her new princess skirt that she insisted she wear all day and even to bed.
After Starbucks, the kids and I walked back to Notre Dame. Mr. F called and said he would meet us there. In preparation, I stood in line waiting for him to show up so we would be able to enter quickly. I had my Moroccan Phone with me, which was out of minutes, so I was unable to call him, but he could call me. So, we waited about 30 minutes for a phone call. We started walking into Notre Dame without him. I waited, kept looking at my phone for his call. Finally, as we were looking around the beautiful church, Joe called. He was lost. Uh oh. I told him we were in Notre Dame but were going to be headed out the door within a few minutes.
We met Mr. F across the Seine River and were hungry. So we walked until we ended up in a shopping district filled with gobs of shops and people were everywhere! We approached a restaurant called Hippopotamus. It was a steak and burger restaurant. The menu looked delicious but was incredibly pricey... those Euros add up fast!
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| Claire and Chad both ordered a jus mixte fruits and baked macaroni and cheese |
Finishing up our dinner and beverages, we made the trek home, continuing to explore the city. The night brings a life that is indescribable. The lights, weather and people all fill the streets to create a picturesque environment that ingrains lovely memories into your mind.
Day Five:
Today was the day we decided to visit the Eiffel Tower and Arch de Triomphe. It was determined to be quite a walk to both of them, but walking is now a way of life without a car in Morocco. We walk every where. An hour walk is a normal part of the weekend to get to places. We decided to cross the Seine River and walk on that side of the river since we hadn't spent a lot of time taking in the sights over there. This route took us by the Notre Dame again, but the opposite side of the church. We walked past a street vendor selling mulled wine to go. We had to buy some... drink warm wine as you walk about Paris in the middle of the day!? Who would pass up such an awesome opportunity? Not me.
We continued walking toward the Louvre and Eiffel Tower. We passed the lock bridge. People from all over the world buy locks and lock them onto the bridge with initials such as J + L = <3 and through the key into the river. The bridge is covered in locks.
Many more statues decorated bridges and streets. If they happened to be wiener-less, someone decided to fix that.
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| Notice the chalk addition?? |
After about an hour walk, we arrived at the backside of the Eiffel Tower. The entrance was not grand nor breathtaking coming in from the side street. However, we were able to see how LONG the line was! Oh my! It snaked from one side of the Eiffel Tower block to the complete opposite side- just to buy the tickets!
We walked out the entrance of the Eiffel tower and decided to get the munchkins a little treat... (or big!). Mr. F and I officially had the worst coffees that may be in existence but also tried a yummy french hot dog. It was in a baguette with melted cheese, hot dog and bacon! Yummy!
The entrance had a much more grand view. Stairs and an open area made the Eiffel Tower look incredible. We spent a lot of time taking in the grandness of the view.
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| Haha... told you... they are everywhere! |
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| Tired from the sugar high?! |
We left the Eiffel Tower and headed toward the Arc de Triomphe which was about a 20 minute walk away from the tower. We arrived, excited to make our way to the top of the tower. We crossed some streets, took lots of pictures, raided a departments store in search of a bathroom for Chad, and made our way back to the Arc. In order to get to the Arc de Triomphe, we had to go underground through a tunnel. One we made it across (underneath) the road, we emerged ground level and took in the ornate details of the Arc.
Once we arrived on top of the Arc, Mr. F and Chad had to make their way back down to buy tickets so we could take the stairs to the top. They waiting in line for about ten minutes when all of the sudden, the closed the ticket booth. Apparently, they closed access to the top early due to a firework show. We were disappointed, but put our big girl panties on and accepted it for what it was.
We ended up walking through a Christmas market that was incredibly busy. The hustle and bustle of New Year's Eve in Paris! It was packed. Chad was hungry, so we stopped and bought him a Nutella Crepe. Yum! Claire was asleep in the stroller... that tends to be the name of the game. We ended our Paris trip with toasting each other in the apartment in dinner and champagne and watching a French New Year's Celebration show. Perfectly perfect.
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| Ending nearly where we began; just the opposite side:) |
The next morning, we hailed a cab and packed our bags into the trunk. The taxi driver drove us to Charles de Gaulle. It took every part of me to hold it together. Saying goodbye to my family was utterly heartbreaking. The tears flowed easily and painfully as I hugged my men and kissed them on the cheeks. Life was about to change again. Not for the better, not for the worse, but just different. More empty.
Since Paris, I miss my men more than anyone could imagine. Claire and I find ourselves expressing our love for each other often and without restraint. Claire has become a cuddler and is very attached to me- as I am her. I cannot wait until the day arrives that I get to wrap my arms around both of them again.
Oh how Paris has captured every part of my being.
xo
Lex
