We've been so full of the merriness of the "Holiday Season" that I haven't had a chance to post about Paris.... what of it there was....
We took the TGV last Saturday. It snowed on the way to the station and blizzarded through the Jura mountains. Very exciting! We discvered that the train actually doesn't go that fast for most of the trip. It needs high speed rails, which are nearer Paris. Silly me also thought that there's only one TGV (duh)- when we pulled into Gare de Lyon I saw all platforms chock full of glittering, new, double decker TGVs! I reckon ours is the oldest one working! I shouldn't put it down, as it got us in, bang on time :) To make it even nicer, Grace was waiting for us! We took the metro to Vaugirard, and on the way Allie got to look out the front like a driver (we were on a new line with un-manned trains). Toby decided to lick the poles,which is pertinent to the rest of our 'story'. We all went out to look at the Christmas windows at Galleries Lafayette. Since it was the last weekend before Christmas, the rest of Paris was there too! On Sunday we walked around the neighbourhood. Vaugirard is a really nice area. There are little squares with all the different kinds of shops one could need, and plenty of cafes and bistros. It felt far removed from touristy. Sunday night my parents arrived and Monday morning we braved rain to see the Musee de l'Armee
Walter wanted to see a new exhibition of Ancient arms. It was enjoyed by all :) My Dad and Walter went to see Napoleon's Tomb too. On Monday afternoon, my parents did tourist stuff and we went to a local....park! Grace met us and we just let the boys wander. Walter and I got to go out that night and walked arouond the Eiffel Tower area and river. We had a tasty crepe dinner with plenty of cider. I guess cider is big in Brittany (it was a Breton crepe shop). On Tuesday Walter had to work, and toby had to get a really nasty stomach bug (remember the poole in the Metro?). I stayed in the hotel with him all day while my parents fed Allie hot chocolate and paraded him around to the Parisiens. With Toby recovering on Weds morning we walked around Vaugirard some more. We know it very well now, and I like it more :) Walter finished up work and we jumped on the TGV home in the afternoon- seen off by Grace! It was lovely to see her and my parents, and to see a little of Paris. It is a magical city, even for a little taste. I can see why Grace wants to stay.
Sadly, I didn't take many photies. Here is my series of 'Landmarks Growing out of Allie's Head'
We stopped at a carousel:
We had a spattering of snow on Christmas. The temp. has barely been above zero, with -10 C expected by the end of the week. It's a good reason to eat a lot of rich food and watch the telly. Sadly, James Bond wasn't on the international BBC channel for our Christmas dinner. I'm not sure what the Swiss traditions are on christmas, but when we went for an afternoon walk, there wasn't a soul around... anywhere. The boys got nicely over excited with all their presents and signs of Father Christmas' visit and Walter and I got nicely tired. The tree decorations are slowly migrating to the top of the tree as Toby tries to eat or throw them ;)
Here are a few bonus pics.
DinasourBoys!
A good way to watch the snow.
I couldn't really get the essence of Toby sucking his whole jaw into a glass.
Can you see the snow covered Alps?
Next stop New Year (Hogmanay)!!!
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