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Published: January 23rd 2009
December flew by with the kids busy at Dunbeg school doing Xmas concerts, Xmas parties, Xmas discos. We were lucky to have Brads sister and family visit us for Xmas. It was the first time in 6 mths that the kids had been able to get excited about visitors. We had a lovely few days with them , the kids enjoying seeing their cousins . Once they departed it was all go, pack and clean for our Jan 1 departure.
We left Oban on Jan 1 heading to Paris. After a 600km drive to Manchester we finally flew to Paris.
Our apartment was quaint with its crooked creaky floors, smallest kitchen I have ever seen but was cosy and was so well located right in the heart of Montmartre with Pigalle and Absesses Metro both only 50 mtrs away. Brad was not the least bit impressed in lugging 111kg of luggage down one flight of stairs, across the courtyard and then up the spiral staircase to the 2nd floor . I had planned a full on itinerary for our 6 days in Paris, trying to pack in as much as was possible with 3 kids. We opted for the
Eiffel Tower on our first day as the weather was clear, this turned out to be a wise decision as the remainder of our stay we were confronted with a cold spell, seeing temps down to -5 deg and snow. Brad and I did a little reminiscing on the Eiffel Tower ( for those who do not know this is where we were engaged 12 years ago). During our week we managed to get through my list, including Eiffel Tower, Musse D’Orsay , Arc De Triumph, Basillica Sacre Cour,, Old shopping arcades, Notre Dame Cathedral, Centre George Pompidou- Modern Art Gallery and the Catacombs, plus more.
We shopped on the market streets of Rue Lepic, and Rue de Martyrs where the most delicious food is on offer. We ate fresh croissants and baguettes from the boulangerie every day ( though after 3 weeks in France no one can face another baguette) and delicious treats from the patisseries. We used the metro a lot but also walked for kms each day ( needed to walk off those delicious pastries). It was a great week , full on with the kids ( especially with a toddler) , and the boys will be
happy if they don't visit another art gallery or museum for a while.
After leaving Paris we had a 600km drive to Flaine ( French Alps- one hr drive from Geneva) where we have just spent 2 weeks skiing/snowboarding. After 5 skiing lessons Harrison is a ski demon, the steeper the run the better, Jake is great on the snowboard, loving the powder snow off piste, I am happy with my decision to switch from snowboarding to skiing as I remained injury free after 2 weeks on the slopes, Brad also enjoyed his snowboarding however with 3 beginners in tow he spent a lot of time waiting for everyone. Emily enjoyed going for rides in the sled or on the snowboard- she calls it skiboarding.
The weather was amazing, blue sky for the first week, followed by heavy snow which made for great skiing this week with fresh snow on the slopes. We were only unable to ski for one day due to high winds which forced the closure of the gondolas and chair lifts. The scenery is spectacular with views of Mt Blanc on a clear day.
Another 600km drive is ahead of us tomorrow as
we depart the slopes heading for the French Riviera, Nice..Brad has a conference there next week so the kids and I will be happy to take it easy before heading back home. I don't think we will be able to swim in the sea but we are hoping for some warmer weather as we have not seen temps above 0 deg since leaving Scotland.
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