H has just turned six, his birthday was yesterday however with the commotion of our lives, coming home, and his birthday I couldn't get this posted yesterday. H is very interested in history and loves adventure, I think he would be a pirate if I would let him. It all started with a simple request. I want to see the Eiffel tower for my birthday Mom. Now I was gleefully excited because not only could I fulfill this wish, but I had been meaning to get to Paris since forever. I didn't need any convincing that is for-sure. I booked the hotel ( 1 block from the Arc de Triumph) and booked us a tour of the city for a full day.......... That is how it started. H's Birthday is 6 days after mine so most of the fan fare of birthday celebration lands here. Both of us were very excited, H has talked about the Eiffel tower since we came here and he saw a picture of it. H wanted to go to the very top and see everything there was to see. We planned a whole family weekend.
Now I have to go back just six days to my birthday, and tell you that things with T have taken a very awful turn of events T's condition has worsened to the point we have no choice but to be sent state side and he be hospitalized. It is not life threatening as you know T has bipolar and the doctor here has mismanaged his medications so horribly that things are so awful. On my birthday ( why we haven't had a post since) Sam and I were called into countless meetings regarding this matter, and the process of our family being forced back to the states. It has been a horrible gut wrenching week filled with one shocking event after another followed by countless meetings, appointments and all early in the morning and late hours at night. I will post more on this later . My birthday was not a birthday at all it was 3 meetings involving T and the situation at hand that started with a phone call at 7 am and a meeting at 8 on my "birthday". But as promised here is a picture of me on my birthday with candles......
the sad thing I am sure I am jinxed I was so upset and it was so awful of a day I didn't even make a wish when I blew out my candles my mind was blank..... maybe next year will be better I can honestly say this year was the worst birthday I have ever had.... I want to celebrate H's birthday and a trip with adventure so no more on this .....
Adventure...... Due to recent events with T it made it impossible for him to travel and all of our trip details were finalized with no option to cancel.... So Sam stayed home with T I went with the 3 little ones and headed to Paris. It is suppose to be a 5 hour and 45 minute drive, which on paper is very doable. I have driven this far and more with the 3 little one before.... However, I have to say I have become spolied I am used to driving on the Autobahn with no speed limit and even though I have a gonern on the car I still fly. France has toll station galore with a stop I swear every 10 miles. They have a speed limit of 130 KM which is about 83 mph.... which feels like a snail pace. There is the beautiful countryside of France miles and miles of farms and vineyards, which in the spring and summer I am sure are breathtaking. In the fog and rain of winter it becomes mind numbing. 7 hours later we arrived to Paris just in time for rush hour traffic...... 8 hours later we arrived at our hotel with 3 very tired hungry kids.
Our room was tiny very tiny and there was a mix up with our beds and instead of 2 there was 1 large bed. It didn't matter WE WERE IN PARIS !!!!!!!! with the Arc de Triumph!!!! H was absolutely mesmerized he loved the city everything about it the lights the streets the buildings we had to walk for awhile from our parking garage back to the hotel and we caught a glimpse of the lit up Eiffel tower he stared for a good 5 minutes. It was amazing to be in Paris.
The next morning after little sleep ( all 3 kids thought being in a hotel was so much fun why not stay up and "party" ) We left to take the city train to the area where our tour agency was. The trains were so much fun, H remarked that we have ridden all kinds of trains in all kinds of cities and " Mom you are getting to be good at riding the trains and going places" I guess this was his 6 year old way of telling me he was impressed I never got us lost on a train..... We rushed and ran to meet our tour because unlike the trains I did get us lost on the streets of Paris looking for our tour....
The Louvre was our first stop, H absorbed everything that the tour guide said asking questions and wandering. We saw the highlights on our tour, the foundation walls, walking in the moat, the sphinx, the Venus De Milo, the Mona Lisa ( H loves this painting) H said walking in the moat was the best part. However, he also liked seeing all of the art students in the painting gallery painting. H chatted and wandered among the artist. We saw crown jewels and ancient sculptures, we even got to see an area secured ( someone in another tour group touched something setting alarms off, we were almost sealed in a room with the group) A very exciting tour of the Louvre indeed.....
Next stop the boatbus to ride the river Seine to the Eiffel Tower. H could hardly sit still in his seat on the boat ( another huge favorite) we saw the Tower emerge from the fog and H was speechless.
I think he was about to fall over when we told him that part of the tour included lunch under the tower..... Lunch it was on another barge parked right under the tower. The entire lunch H just stared at the tower asking questions and gazing at the tower. After lunch H raced to the top of the stairs to get to the tower he jumped up and down at the tower, he was very worried about wether or not he would have a turn to ride the elevators......
We boarded the very crowded elevator to go to the 2nd floor. ( note to any parent going to Paris pay for the city tour there is no waiting at any of the attractions, museums and monuments and this with small children is worth every cent if I had tried to go to each of these places individually I would have saved 5 euro between the tour price and pay admission.... but I would have had to have found parking or transportation and I would have waited an eternity in lines )
As soon as we reached the 2nd floor H insisted we get to the top. We bought our tickets for the top and 5 minutes later we were in a very small glass elevator to the top....
If you are afraid of heights don't do this. I am not so this was fine but, wow a glass elevator to the top, the views are stunning !
H was so excited he could hardly breathe. Once at the top we explored every view,
every square of the tower "no stone was left unturned"
we even looked up and saw the radio antennae.
Now I have to tell you at the top you can take stairs to the outside deck so we did of course you are only in Paris once right.......
top of this open deck is the radio antenna which is like maybe 15 feet away... there is a small workman's ladder/stair here to the antenna.... asked me more than once if I was sure that we were at the top. I pointed out to H the antenna explaining we were at the top any higher and we would have to be on the antenna...... H being an adventurous 6 year old asked me if this was possible to see the antenna up close ( because 15 feet above us wasn't close enough)
We took in the views discussed the tower what it was made of, how it was built, how cool it would be to live at the top.....
then came the trip down and H saw all the gears and cables etc......
back on the 2nd floor we joined my Mom ( Nan) and the twins........
I had to divert here Thank you Rachael, my friend with a blog who is living in Japan..... if I hadn't read from her how the japanese love to take pictures of her boys like they are a tourist a attraction I would have spent the day freaked out. Everywhere we went where there were groups of japanese tourist they were following my kids like the paparazzi taking a million pictures. If my children hadn't grown up with photographer parents they probably would have freaked out. I mean hordes groups of like 20 people following my kids through the Louvre and the tower snapping pictures. At the Eiffel tower there was one group who insisted on having their pictures taking with the twins ( they were like winning the lottery fair haired blue eyed twins) I mean at least 15 people lined up and took pictures with the twins. I had to laugh and think of Rachael.
After H explored the whole 2nd level with Nan ( while I entertained the Japanese tourist) We had to meet with the tour for the next part of our tour.
The ride down was filled with more wonder and awe and at the bottom H especially liked seeing the machine room for the elevators on the tower, the base where the cement and posts go into the ground. I can honestly say we saw nearly every square inch of the tower.
She takes pictures of bathrooms and if you look back she took one of the bathroom at the top of the Eiffel tower In honor of this ( and H had to go to the bathroom at the top to see it) I took a picture of the bathroom at the top of the Eiffel tower too....
next was the boat tour of the Seine river and the Notre dame.....which is another post for another day..... believe me the tower can fill this one.
H got his wish to see the Eiffel tower ( Mom got to see Paris) and adventure was had by all. H is still talking about the tower and a small metal statue of the tower is now his pride and joy ( he hugs it before bed) H will tell anyone who will listen about the amazing Eiffel tower....
The best part for me was making a wish come true and seeing a smile a mile wide..... I wish it was always that "easy"
HAPPY 6TH BIRTHDAY H !!!!!!!
Oh the pirate part..... like I mentioned H is obsessed with pirates loves everything to do with them the history, the boats, the stories..... he LOVES his playmobile pirates the only other thing he asked for was the giant pirate ship from this play set.... So that is what we gave him his one present...... Now this boat is huge and so the other reason for the delay in the post..... I was up until 1 am putting together this huge ship....... I am telling you I am not sure any birthday after this will ever hold as much adventure...... Paris and Pirates what could be better.
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