Ahhh, the end of June – long days of sunshine and clear skies, the end of the school year, and time for travel. This year we flew to Paris for four days of crepes, wine, and city life.
Marais
Marais is a historical neighborhood in the 4th arrondissement, and where writer Victor Hugo once lived. Its trendy and filled with cafes and shops, and is considered a very Parisian neighborhood, away from the more touristy areas surrounding the Seine. For our first day in Paris we strolled, ate crepes, and drank cider; a perfect Saturday afternoon.
After lunch we climbed up to the Coulée Verte René-Dumont, a 4.5 km walking path built on an old railway line, similar to the High Line in Manhattan. It was a very hot day, but the leafy shade and blooming flowers made the walk very pleasant. From the Coulée Verte, you can see the buildings and boulevards of the city with a different perspective.
We walked to our next destination, something off the beaten track but well-loved by my littlest, surprising her with a trip to Le Café des Chats, on Rue Sedaine. This is, as the name states, a cafe complete with cats. Twelve of them, to be exact. We sat down with our lemonades and waited for the cats to come to us. My eight year old was practically bursting with excitement, but a cat cafe requires a great deal of self control. You are not allowed to pick up the cats, or to follow them around; you have to let them come to you. This is an ecstatic torture for my little cat-adoring daughter. Luckily she was patient and quiet enough to attract a few, and we had a purr-fectly pleasant time (I just had to).
Rue Cremieux
In the 12th arrondissement, the pedestrian street Rue Cremieux is a pastel paradise of row homes. This street is a very popular spot to photograph, and since we were nearby, we decided to take a look. Charming, of course.
Tour Eiffel:
Well of course we had to do some more touristy activities. And so we booked tickets for a walk up to the second floor of the Eiffel Tower, and then the elevator up to the top floor to see the sunset. Brilliant plan, except that we didn’t account for the lines! Up to the second floor no problem (and got a great workout in as well), but arriving at the elevators we realized that sunset might come and go during our wait. The line took about 45 minutes, and at 9:30 at night with multiple children in tow, our group was feeling pretty miserable and discouraged. But, at the top the views were great (ALMOST makes up for it). My girls perked up right away, in particular in getting to see Eiffel’s apartment, which they thought was really cool.
Strolling Paris
Let’s be honest. Most of the time in Paris, we sat at cafes and walked around. We bought pastries in patisseries and sandwiches in boulangeries. We drank cider and wine and people-watched. We looked at buildings. That’s it. Perfection.
Seine River Tour
One great activity with kids is to book an hour long tour on the Seine. Its lovely to sit on the boat and enjoy the view on a hot, sunny day. The cost was reasonable, about 12 EUR a person (less for kids), and you can enjoy a beer or wine while relaxing for the hour and taking in the sights, including an excellent Tour Eiffel view.
Jardin du Luxembourg
We walked through the gardens just to enjoy the views. Picture-worthy. Enough said.
Marché aux Oiseaux
Lucky enough to be in Paris on a Sunday morning, we took the opportunity to see the Marché aux Oiseaux, or bird market, in full effect. Every other day of the week is market is the Marché aux Fleurs, an equally exquisite flower market, which we also visited. But on Sundays, the street is simply birds, birds, birds. Tropical birds, song birds, big birds, little birds, birds all over. My kids went wild for them.
Street Art in Paris
Since we explored a lot, we saw some great street art. It wasn’t always easy to get a photo, though. Here’s a few good ones.
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