Europe - Paris

Beautiful Paris.  The last week was spent in Paris and walking our feet off!  We actually had to buy Robyn a new pair of walking shoes as her old shoes could not keep up with her feet! 

We focused on some of the classics with the kids:

• The Eiffel Tower.  Mish and the girls climbed up (674 steps) the tower and had an awesome view of Paris. An interesting fact is that they repaint the Eiffel Tower roughly every 7 years, and the colour has changed over time (from red to yellow to shades of brown).  There is even an “Eiffel Brown” paint colour! Whilst the tower for built for the 1889 Exposition Universalle, it was also to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the French Revolution.   

• Arc de Triomphe, the only roundabout in Paris with no road markings, and 12 radiating Avenues from the roundabout! It’s basically a free-for all, and a scary driving experience! The Arc de Triomphe honors those who fought and died for France during the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars, with the names of all French victories and generals inscribed on its inner and outer surfaces. Under its vault lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from the First World War.

• Champs-Élysées, a , 1.9km long and 70m wide shopping heaven, running between the Place de la Concorde in the east and the Place Charles de Gaulle in the west, where the Arc de Triomphe is located. 
• The Palace of Versailles.  An amazing and opulent palace.  We walked through the palace taking in the history and the richness of the place, and imaging how the kings and queens lived (& danced) in the palace.  The bedrooms were very interesting, especially with how high the beds were.  The whole palace is actually massive and it took us a few hours to walk through, but one could have easily have spent 5-6 hours going from room to room and learning the details of each.  The girls decided that the Palace of Versailles would be the perfect place for a massive game of hide and seek! We discussed the ‘treaty of Versailles’ with the girls as an introduction to studying WWI as we travel across Europe. 

• Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris, its currently undergoing reconstruction following the fire of Notre Dame in 2019. Notre Dame, meaning "Our Lady of Paris" is a Medieval Catholic Cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the Seine River). The cathedral, dedicated to the Vrigin Mary and is considered one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture. It’s not much to look at presently as it’s covered in scaffolding, but we went to see it anyway. 

• Family-friendly Cabaret: the kids really enjoyed this even though it was in French! It was an eclectic mish-mash of acts, signing and dancing but a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon.

• Le Louvre: We spent a long time here, and studied the outside and the building architecture as much as the paintings inside. We walked through halls and halls of artworks, starred at the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo, and many many religious fresco’s in the Louvre’s collection. We got a little lost, and thought we were losing our minds when walking past paintings we had seen before! Eventually we escaped to a rainy afternoon, so sheltered in a cafe for hot chocolate.  

• Sacré-Cœur. Prominent Catholics saw the link between the sins the French committed during the French Revolution and this humiliating military defeat, so they decided to build a church dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Christ. The Sacré-Coeur, consecrated in 1919, is one of the most iconic monuments in Paris. At the top of the Butte Montmarte, it has one of the most beautiful panoramic views of the capital, from 130 metres above ground. In a Roman-Byzantine style, the Sacré Coeur is recognizable by its white colour. After studying the church,  we ate Crepes on the steps… a Green family tradition, that Norman and Avril did when they were young, brought Rex and Robyn when they were kids and Robyn has strong memories of delicious crepes on these steps. Tradition has continued, and we hope that the girls experience will leave good memories too. 

• We walked past the Moulin Rouge, and took our obligatory photos!

• Our last day in Paris we stayed local to our accommodation, went to a french Bistro for lunch, Mish got his much coveted tartare and the atmosphere was great. In the afternoon we had a girls drawing competition based on the art we saw this week - “The Mona Lisa Twist” judged by Mish - and Maxine with her Robonna Lisa won! Well Done Maxine. 
  

We have now left Paris and had a travel day yesterday to Amstaerdam/Utrecht. Will blog again in a week when we leave here.