When the girls got up today they begged ... can't we stay home today?!? We're soooo tired. How is it possible that we’ve worn these girls out? At home, they get up and are immediately bouncing off the walls – in Paris, they just want to stay home and play Fruit Ninja on the iPad. Luckily, Sundays are our easy day so we put Natalie down for her morning nap at home and we all puttered around the apartment at our own activities until lunchtime. Once Natalie was up, we went out to our neighborhood brasserie for lunch - steak frites again! After lunch, we decided to go in the opposite direction to the hordes of people streaming into our neighborhood - it was the final day of the Tour de France today and everyone was lining the Champs-Élysées to see the winner cross the finish line and do a victory lap. There were lots of yellow jerseys on the streets (generally worn by people who’s physiques betray a more sedentary relationship with the sport) and we wanted no part of it!
We walked to Parc Monceau, which is a popular destination for local families on the weekend, and it was packed. The enterprising young man offering pony rides was stationed right at the front gate so he was impossible to miss. We happily obliged and the girls took a short amble out to the duck pond and back. As I’m sure you can guess, our next stop was back to the pond to feed the ducks. After another carousel ride and, a meltdown at the candy counter (“I don’t want candy … I want ice cream” etc.), we finally made it to the playground for a quick scamper while Natalie took a little siesta in the bjorn.
On our way home, we stopped at Dalloyau, which is also featured in our Patisseries of Paris book, to get pastries for us and a couple of macaroons for the girls. They are said to have invented the Opera Cake and, since Jack is a fan, he needed to experience the original. After a few bites, he started to dissect it, teasing apart the layers and tasting each one in order to divine the individual flavors that combined to make such a luscious and gratifying whole. Now that’s putting your high school science training to good use.
We enjoyed a family dinner at home and were happy to be in bed early. Today marks the end of our third week in Paris. This coming week promises sunny skies and moderate temperatures so we are planning a full week of family fun and sight seeing. Now let’s hope we can get the girls on board with this plan.
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