Going to Paris!!!

[deenass]

DH has a business trip first week in April and I'm tagging along!!! My parents will watch DS for the week!!! YEAH!

Any suggestions/advice? I'll be on my own most of the day (though I'm told it's easy to get around). I speak NO french (except for je parle englais and ou est la lavabo!)

How should we explain this to DS? My parents live 5 mins away and he is VERY familiar and comfortable with them (has spent the night at their house, etc) but we will be gone a week? He's 3. Any advice?

[dogmom]

Spend two days in the Louvre so you don't get overwhelmed. Try to get out to Versaille for a day. Make your DH take you to an expensive restuarant and business expense it. But, most importantly of all, just wander around.

Oh, wait, were you talking about your child????? ;)

I sort of believe my three year old has the same emotional level of my dogs. And, like dogs, time is either NOW or FOREVER. I guess many people will have much better suggestions than me. The only thing I can suggest is by a pre-paid phone card to make it cheaper to call home. You can probably make a calendar for him that he can mark off the days on until you come home.

I'm green, green, green with envy.

Jeanne
Mom to Harvey
1/16/03
& Eve
EDC 6/18/06

[Sillygirl]

The song is "April in Paris" because it scans well - but April in Paris is d@mn cold. Pack warm clothes.

I like to focus on one type of art at a time at the Louvre - sculpture one day, painting another, etc.

Consider reading "The DaVinci Code" if you haven't already just to get some ideas for places to see.

Get croissants every day.

Don't miss Notre Dame and the other little church on the same island in the Seine - beautiful windows.

DK guidebooks are fantastic.

[wencit]

>Don't miss Notre Dame and the other little church on the same
>island in the Seine - beautiful windows.

That would be the Sainte Chapelle, and I agree with Katie -- it takes your breath away, it's so beautiful.

Get a Paris Museum Pass. The price alone was worth walking straight pass the 2-hour lines that wrapped around Versailles.

Have a great time! Paris is my favorite place in the world.

[emily_gracesmama]

very easy to use the metro, their subway, to get around. get a carte orange, a week long pass that is a small orange ticket, much cheaper than pay as you go. musee d'orsay is amazing as is the louvre and the rodin museum too. You must see the eiffel tower at night as well as in the day. Day is better to go up in the tower to look around. We loved ice cream at berthillion on the ile saint louis. our fave restaurant was l'epi dupin, pretty inexpensive for a three course meal, like 22 euros and great food. the bakery paul, www.paul.fr, they are all around in different sections, has great sandwiches for takeout and walking. the pompidou center, the modern museum, was too weird for our taste. But the picasso museum was cool. I wish I had gotten the headphones at the various museums, i feel i would have learned more and appreciated all the art more. Enjoy it is so amazing everytime we go I try to figure how to move there and live we love it so!

[Mamma2004]

You must be so excited!!! I have no advice regarding your son - just know that he is in good, loving hands and remember to bring back something special for him (and for your parents!) from Paris.

I just need to reiterate that Paris in April is astonishingly cold and damp. Think London and pack accordingly. You'll want to dress in layers, wear comfy shoes and prioritize your sightseeing ahead of time, noting when certain museums close. The Louvre, Musee d'Orsay and Rodin museums go without saying. Each is truly special. The churches are spectacular and just walking around the Quartier Latin will give you that great feeling of Paris. Everything is quite expensive, especially now with the Euro. English is seemingly everywhere but there are many bistros with menus and staff in only French so be sure to have a little dictionary so you'll know what you want to order!

Take lots of photos and enjoy the best croissants anywhere!

Stephanie

[deenass]

What is a "DK" guidebook?

[bostonsmama]

DK is a publisher...and yes, their books are great: full of pictures and great recommendations. A French-English phrase book and pronunciation guide should do you well, too.

Larissa

Making the decision to have a child - it's momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking outside your body.
~Elizabeth Stone

[deenass]

Well, we were in London in July and it was cold, so I can handle that (besides, I live in CT and have lived in Chicago so cold doesn't scare me!)

[jk3]

That's great! You will have an amazing time. Definitely got to the Musee D'Orsay. We were underimpressed by the Picasso museum. Walk around as much as possible. Most people speak English so you should be okay. I'll try to remember some specifics.

Jenn
DS 6/3/03

[bostonsmama]

I love Paris, but not in the springtime (LOL). Il fait froid! (It's cold). I've gone in late April, June, and July in 3 different years, and I have never tired of the most famous tourist attractions: Chateau Versaille (save time and skip the gardens), La Tour Eiffel (I went only up to the 2nd level to save $), shopping/browsing on the Champs Elysées (leading up to Arc de Triomphe), Place de la Concorde, a glass river-boat ride on the Seine (22 euro), Notre Dame (they don't heat it...bundle up!), climbing the steps to the Sacre-Coeur Basilica at Montmartre (breath-takingly beautiful inside-I guarantee it-and quite a workout to take the stairs), and the Louvre.

Notes on the Louvre: visit the food court upstairs and find the place that serves only quiche. It is the best quiche in the entire world, and I get it every time I go back. They also have wonderful fruit pastry. I don't remember the name...but I know other cafes in the court served pricey and just okay food. Also, get the Mona Lisa out of the way first...and then check out Delaroche's "La Jeune Martyre" painting...my all time favorite. Yes, the museum pass is nice, but you can also pass the lines by finding a kiosk/ATM where you can buy tickets w/ Visa & Mastercard.

Check out the Fragonard Museum of Perfume while you're there. It's free admission. They do have tours in English...and the smells are amazing...american perfume will seem boring to you after this tour. You can buy a medly of most popular scents for about $22 (Soleil, Grain de Soleil-gold & silver, Emelie, and Arielle). You can also custom blend your own fragrance, or have a "super-nez" (nose specialist) make one for you if you have $$$. http://www.frommers.com/destinations/paris/A25346.html

L'Hippopatomus is a great "Applebees" type of restaurant there that I enjoyed with friends. We also ate at Josephine's on 29, Rue Saint-Lazare. Let's just say the alcohol was free-flowing and the ambiance was lovely (stone walls down in the basement) w/ live music. http://www.josephine-paris.com/
A cheap sandwhich to order in cafes is "un croque monsieur"-grilled ham and cheese. They don't give out tap water for free...but you wouldn't want to drink it anyways (chalky)... jus de pomme (apple juice) is cheap and satisfies.

Bring some coins for bathrooms on the street (they're everywhere, but beware they open after 20 minutes and self-clean w/ hot water...so the seat might be damp).

No advice on the kid-front, but I'm sure you'll miss him more than he misses you (since it sounds like your grandparents are great). Be sure to leave them all the emergency contact #s and Bon Voyage!

Larissa

Making the decision to have a child - it's momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking outside your body.
~Elizabeth Stone

[jbowman]

There are a million great museums there! Of course there is the Louvre...my advice: don't try to do it all (or consider going twice so you don't get "museum head," LOL!). :)

The Picasso Museum, Rodin Museum, the Musee d'Orsay (many Impressionist paintings there), the Marmottan (also Impressionist), and the Cluny Museum (Medieval) are all wonderful too:

http://www.musee-orsay.fr/ORSAY/AccueilMO/HTML.NSF/c5ad27560274b3dfc125642800567d48/322da73321db3942c1256714004e756a?OpenDocument

http://www.marmottan.com/francais/

http://www.musee-moyenage.fr/

The Pompidou Center has contemporary art and is just an extraordinary work of architecture:

http://www.musee-orsay.fr/ORSAY/AccueilMO/HTML.NSF/c5ad27560274b3dfc125642800567d48/322da73321db3942c1256714004e756a?OpenDocument

And go to Sacre-Coeur in Montmartre--it is gorgeous! And the Place des Vosges is beautiful too (nice place to sit and relax).

As a PP indicated, the Sainte-Chapelle is amazing. IMHO this is the thing NOT to miss in Paris...along with all of the pastries. ;)

Have fun!

[barbarhow]

>>Don't miss Notre Dame and the other little church on the
>same
>>island in the Seine - beautiful windows.
>
>That would be the Sainte Chapelle, and I agree with Katie --
>it takes your breath away, it's so beautiful.
>

One of our favorite evenings of our honeymoon was sitting in the Ste Chappelle and listening to a concert. I cannot remember the specifics, I just remember that it was incredibly beautiful as the sun went down and shone through those amazing stain glass windows.

Find a recent Gourmet or Food and Wine that reviews Paris restaurants. Pick one, find it and enjoy. There is nothing like the food there. I agree with the Louvre, Versailles and of course you have to see the Eiffel Tower.
Have fun! I am so jealous!!!

[DebbieJ]

Have fun! What a great boondoggle!

~ deb
DS born at home 12/03
2 year check up: 25 lbs with clothes on and 35 inches!
BFARed for 20 months and 6 days
(Breastfeeding After Reduction is possible! www.bfar.org)

http://www.bfar.org/members/fora/style_avatars/Ribbons/18months-bfar.jpg

[HannaAddict]

I love Paris and found it fine in April. We had low 70's and gorgeous blue sky and sunshine in early April 2003, mixed with short rain showers that freshened the streets. I don't think it is particularly cold, but I am from the NW, and I would dress in layers and bring a pashmina style scarf you can use as a wrap too.

I love Cafe Marly at the Louvre. Not "in" the Louvre like a food court, but overlooking the courtyard. They have heaters and you can have coffee outside too, or have a fabulous lunch in their gorgeous dining room. Love the Isle St. Louis to wander around. Great shops, etc. I probably wouldn't do two days in the Louvre but would rather just explore. I would see the Rodin museum in wonderful home in Paris and it has wonderful gardens too. And it doesn't take all day. Go shopping at the Monoprix, French (Target type bargain store. I have a red purse I bought there for like $12 and I get tons of compliments on it. The "real" shopping is amazing too of course.

Have fun, I am soo jealous. I would buy some French children's books and clothes too. Great illustrations, etc.

Kimberly

[kozachka]

Dare I suggest, skip Louvre. I did the first time DH and I went to Paris and instead spent time wandering streets and smaller museums. We'd see a museum or two, if small, in the first part of the day, take a nap, and explore the city in the afternoon. Nice dinner in the evening is a must. Our most fond memories are of the
La Fermette Marbeuf 1900 restaurant which is located at 5 rue Marbeuf, and could be reached at 01.53.23.08.00. It is open
noon-3pm, 7-11.30pm Sun-Wed; noon-3pm, 7-12.30pm
Thur-Sat. On a more general note I would suggest you buy Micheline's Red Guide for Paris. I found myself using it daily, even for a quick lunch. The book has neigbourhood maps and you can see what the place specializes in and if they offer pre-fix meals and for how much. You can also browse the guide online for tourism info, hotels and restaurants review at www.viamicheline.co.uk for free as long as you register but I liked to have the book handy.

See what the site says about The Picasso Museum for example:

5 r. de Thorigny - F - 75003 Paris
Telephone: 01 42 71 25 21
The most important collection of work by the master from Malaga.

Opening:
Accessible to people of restricted mobility, Apr-Sep: daily (except Tue) 9.30am-6pm; Oct-Mar: daily (except Tue) 9.30am-5.30pm. Closed 1 Jan, 25 Dec.
Rates:
5.50€ (children: no charge); no charge 1st Sun of the month .

Comments:
In the Hôtel Salé (17C) over 200 paintings are collected enabling you to follow the development of the painter and the man, an exceptional collection of sculptures, 3 000 drawings and engravings and a number of ceramics by the master from Malaga. The painter's personal collection made up of some fifty works by painters he admired (Braque, Cézanne, Rousseau, etc. ) completes the exhibits, a donation.

[justlearning]

I highly recommend Rick Steves' Paris guidebook (my version was his 2002 book). In addition to being a very helpful guidebook to the city, he provides detailed descriptions of the art that you'll see in each museum. We felt like we had our own personal tour guide due to how detailed his descriptions were of each piece. Before Paris, I had very little experience with attending museums but his book allowed me to really appreciate and understand the art that I was seeing.

I second the suggestion to take very comfortable walking shoes with you. Our first day I wanted to look more "European" and sophisticated so I wore what I considered to be comfortable shoes, but whew--my feet were killing me at the end of the day! After that, I didn't care about how I looked and wore tennis shoes and it was much better.

I agree with the previous posters' suggestions regarding places to visit and the tip about getting the pass that works for all the museums. Regarding leaving your child, we left our son for six days with my parents (whom, unlike your situation, he lives far away from and gets to see infrequently) when he had just turned two. We called him multiple times a day from Hawaii to "talk" with him, which I think helped. I think it depends on the child's personality, but our son did great. He enjoyed the new toys that his grandparents had for him to play with at their house and was very happy there. He never even asked where we were or when we were coming back. I think your son should be fine, especially considering how comfortable he is with your parents and their home. I would suggest leaving him small gifts to open each day from you and calling him often.

BTW, we went in March and did find it to be cold (I wore a coat, hat, and scarf everywhere) but we also found it to be much less crowded than it would have been in the summertime, Oh, one more thing--I would suggest taking a very lightweight purse that you can carry comfortably (I wore my LeSac purse messenger style). I would only carry the absolute essentials with you for two reasons. First, it'll be easier on your shoulder to do so but secondly, security will inspect your purse each time you enter a museum (at least they did so when we were there) so it's faster if they don't have much to look through. Because my purse was so small, it also worked very well to wear under my coat which made me feel safer.

Have fun in Paris! :)

[Sillygirl]

Sorry, I should have explained a little more what "DK" was. Fortunately Larissa picked up the slack.

I'm horrible with languages - anything I try to say in French (or Spanish, for that matter) comes out in a Midwestern accent and sounds horrible - and I'm not even from the Midwest! And many French people really do seem kind of impatient, even angry, if you mangle their language. I've had Parisians simply walk away from me, or yell at me, and that's never happened to me in thirty other countries. So I would ditch the language book if you have absolutely no knowledge of French, because I don't think it would help you.

[Thatchermom]

We went to Prague for 3 weeks just before DS turned three. I was wildly worried about leaving him, but I think it was definitely harder on me than it was on him! My sister and her son (14) came to stay with him. They took him camping, backpacking, to amusement parks and beaches, mountains, everything you could think of and more. He still talks about their time together at least several days a week. During that time he gave up his binky with no arguments and started eating everything in creation we'd never gotten him to even try. I would definitely say his little life was deeply enriched by the experience of being without us. He asks us when they are coming to stay again all the time!

We did talk about going away for quite a while before we left. We did a chart with stickers for each day until we returned (it is still up in his room - he won't hear of us taking it down). We called every other day, but often he hardly had the time to stop playing and talk with us!

He will be fine - you will have an incredible time. Can I crawl in your suitcase???

[bostonsmama]

Yep...I think it's a Parisian thing, though, b/c my dad used to take me to Strasbourg once a month (we lived in Germany), and we never had the same "snooty" language problem there. My poor dad could butcher French all day long and they hung with him through it to help us out.

I was only 6 credits away in college from a double major in French (and studied it all the way from 7th grade until my junior year of college), so I'd like to think I was pretty darn proficient...and still, while at a MacDo (McDonalds) in Paris in 1999 for a quick lunch, the cashier acted like he couldn't understand me when I tried to order a burger and coke. I asked 3 times in my most perfect french, but he kept saying he didn't understand me (in French). When I broke down and said in English what I wanted, he said "Okay, one hamburger, one coke. Toute suite!"

*sshole!.....anyways....I say try once in French, if they act like they don't understand, try English, if they're still nutty, then leave & go somewhere else.

Larissa

Making the decision to have a child - it's momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking outside your body.
~Elizabeth Stone

[saalmc]

How lucky! You are going to have so much fun.

I've never been, but from what I've heard I would plan to make at least one visit to the Louvre (spreading it over two visits sound even better),the Musée d’Orsay (Impressionist heaven) and then I would hit the chocolate shops! (La Maison du Chocolat, Christian Constant)

My friend runs a website that gives travelers info/help planning their Paris trips, if you are interested or need more help: www.paristriptips.com There is a discussion page as well, if you want to post questions.

Have fun planning, and I hope you have a wonderful time!

Sara

[michlyn]

Oh, I love Paris! Re: the Louvre, we went and spent very little time there - saw the basics, Mona Lisa, etc, and then we were in and out in about an hour - probably setting a speed record for quickest visit. We're not much for museums, though, so this may just be a personal preference.

Go on the Notre Dame tour - it's an amazing cathedral - my favorite. Drink hot chocolate (the best) in a cafe. We loved having dinner and walking along the Seine at night. I loved the Latin Quarter - the area around the Arc De Triumph is pretty touristy.

I also second the DK guide books - they are the most colorful.

[Lynnie]

A great restaurant that we went to last time we went, five years ago on our honeymoon was Le Petit Zinc, and it was fabulous. I was a french major in college, so had been many times, but always as a student, so going as a grown up was different, and really fun ! We are actually going back the last week in March, for our 5 year anniversary, if DH ever gets the tickets, that is. Wow, we'll just miss you - too bad !

I second the suggestion to have croissants every day ! And crepes - they have little crepe stands all over the place. And pastry shops. yum. and cafes for wine and coffee. And it is very easy to get around. And, just in case, you could always bring a business card with the hotel name and address just in case you wander far away and just want to grab a taxi back. But the metro is great, and easy.

I never had a problem with people being rude, but I speak the language ok. I think most of the time, they just don't like people being loud and rude and expecting them to automatically speak english. Of course, there are rude people everywhere, especially in cities, so you never know what you'll run into. I think just asking them nicely in french if they speak english will help immensely with that kind of thing. (Si vous plait, Parlez-vous anglais ?)

As far as telling DS - we are going to have to tell our two guys, too. I would try phrasing it as something he "gets" to do too. You and daddy are going on a trip, and he is too, he gets to go to grandma and grandpas house for a long big boy visit, and you can highlight some of the things he'll get to do. Maybe let him stay up later, or watch a special movie with them, etc.

Now, I am going to re-read all the replies you got, and get some good ideas for my trip, too.

HAVE FUN !

[ribbit1019]

Oh! Have fun, I was in Paris breifly when I was 18 and I so did not appreciate it the way I would now.
As it has been so long I don't have any pointers. But I am jealous and I hope you have a great time!
I second (fourth?) the stickered calendar idea!

Christy
Maddy born 6/09/04
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Little Man due 3/02/06
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Co-Owner Ribbit Baby

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