Paris, France - By Heather Brama Traveling to the City of Light during the holiday season did not disappoint. The streets were decorated with holiday sparkle and the Eiffel Tower appeared more twinkly than ever. Okay, so maybe the latter of that was only our imagination but it twinkled nonetheless. We stayed in an AirBnB with a Parisian feel in the center of the 8th arrondissement. The location was perfect for walking quickly to the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe and the Champs Elysées. It was also just down the street from our favorite Italian spot Balilli. This family-friendly restaurant gave us the feeling of being amongst family and we loved that so much we even went twice. I was that ‘Emily in Paris’ girl ordering my first ever Kir Royale, which I enjoyed more than I anticipated. The girls loved the pizza and I have to agree, it was the best I’ve had. Every pasta we ordered over the two trips was amazing – I recommend everything! On our first full day, we had a family photo shoot on the Bir Hakeim bridge and in the process witnessed not one, but TWO marriage proposals. We found an incredible photographer online using the website The Paris Photographer. Following the shoot, we hopped on a bus and made our way to see the Louvre Pyramids, a site the girls recognized from one of their favorite shows, Miraculous Ladybug. We walked a bit further to the Musée Des Arts Décoratifs where we were lucky enough to see the Shocking! The Surreal World of Elsa Schiaparelli exhibit. Our oldest who is currently into creating her own dress plus accessory designs was fascinated by the work. To try our hand at French cuisine, in a family-friendly atmosphere, we found ourselves having a lovely meal at Le Café de la Régence. Chris and I were surprised by how much we liked the escargot and both the girls tried Parisian sparkling water which they both decided was ‘spicy.’ A local holiday event we attended was the Les Sentiers Lumineux de Noël. This was a magical experience throughout the Parc Floral. The event included 22 magnificent light and music installations – each affecting us in a new way. From installations where we danced to installations that gave us all the feels, we were impressed from start to finish. We took two train trips while staying in Paris, the first was to visit the Palace of Versailles. This was a very comfortable trip and we especially appreciated not having to pay attention to the stops since our stop was the last one. Our walk from the station to the palace was exciting as we tried to imagine what it would have felt like to walk this route back in history. As expected, the palace itself was stunning and I think we all enjoyed the beauty of the Hall of Mirrors the most. Since we visited in winter there wasn’t much to see in the gardens so we will certainly need to make a trip back some day. Before heading out we stopped for an assortment of macarons at Ladurée. The other train trip, much to the girls’ delight was also a final destination stop (truly love not having to pay attention) but this time we headed to Disneyland Paris. Three out of four of us had nothing to compare it to since we haven’t visited a Disney before but I will stay if this is a ‘small version’ it still held plenty of magic. We enjoyed short lines everywhere and had a fantastic view of the parade. Being December, there was also a lot of holiday cheer throughout the park which added to the magic for our family.
Monte Carlo, Monaco - By Heather Brama For any James Bond fans visiting Nice, a quick 30 minute train ride to Monaco is a must. And look forward to some special feasts for your eyes if arriving around Christmas time. The entire country can be walked in 45 minutes...stretch that to an hour or so when traversing with a 4 and 6 year old. We started in the direction away from the famed district of Monte Carlo to find a restaurant called Wake & Waffle. Along the way we climbed up a massive set of long stairs to find ourselves at the Prince's Palace of Monaco. Much to our delight, a military ceremony was in action when we arrived. Following the climb, made more difficult by the need to carry the 4 year old the whole way, we welcomed the ability to take a pause to enjoy the ceremony. Next we wound our way through narrow pedestrian streets to arrive at Wake & Waffle. It seems our luck ran out at this point as the restaurant was closed in order to run a stand at the Port Hercule Christmas Market. So we meandered on to our next stop, the Musée Océanographique de Monaco. Our ravenous crew acquired some crusty, but delightful, French bread sandwiches outside the museum. Some nearby pigeons sure appreciated how much of that bread cracked off onto the ground. The museum was quite impressive with a beautiful outdoor sea turtle area outside overlooking the sea. To exit, one must travel through the gift shop and somehow we ended up with a pink octopus and fuzzy seal by the time we reached the street. Next up, we headed to the Port Hercule Christmas Market in search of some more substantial dining delights. We finally had our Wake & Waffle waffles and also devoured some sort of baked cheesy potato dish. With full tummies we set off for Monte Carlo. Once again, we encountered a hill. This time no stairs and it was extremely steep requiring another round of carrying the 4 year old and also some 6 year old carrying as well. Upon reaching the summit we were treated with quite the view while we caught our breath. We carried on down the road, taking time to stop at festive Chalets set up as Christmas stores. On the opposite site of the road stood the permanent fixtures of Gucci, Hermès and Valentino. We stuck to the chalets and managed to find some great Christmas ornaments to bring home. On our way to the Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo we passed the Monte Carlo Casino, queue the James Bond quotes and overly expensive cars. We took a few photos, marveled at the beauty of this building and journeyed on. Arriving to the hotel, we found a cozy lounge area in Le Patio to try out their special for the season, Chocolat Chaud Alain Ducasse. Why? Well, have you ever had a hot chocolate recipe crafted by a Michelin star chef? Neither had we until this day. And let me tell you, there were some whopping smiles following those first sips. Warm and full of cheer we left the hotel in search of the famous Fairmont Hairpin Curve - apparently the most famous curve in the Formula 1 circuits. We were so close, so we had to find it. On our way, we meandered through the lovely Japanese Gardens and even located a water dragon. When we reached the curve we had some fun taking action shots in the life-size Formula 1 car statue. Now that the evening began to strip the light from the sky, it was time for our final stop - the Casino Garden. From here we watched Christmas glitter to life across the Monte Carlo Casino grounds. The light show was truly beautiful and it was fun to see both Christmas trees AND palm trees lit up for the season. In Casino Park there is a carousel so the girls once again saddled up and took a spin to close our time in Monaco. Nice, France - By Heather Brama When you visit Nice and feel the need for a little workout that offers a reward, you'll want to check out Castle Hill. There isn't actually a castle up there but the panoramic views over the city of Nice are quite lovely. We took a few breaks for our 4 and 6 year old daughters...okay, fine, I appreciated the breaks as well. All in all, it was a fairly easy climb consisting of mostly stairs. There were some fun things to see along the way including a few observation decks, cathedral ruins and a man-made waterfall. We also found a beautiful door. Cece gave it a knock and a 'hellooooo' to see if any fairies would answer but they must not have been home. At the bottom of Castle Hill, we found the 'I Love Nice' sign offering up a great photo opp for tourists like us. And Cece, of course, enjoyed sitting in the giant C. Next stop on our self-tour of Nice, was the beach. It is a rocky beach and the sound the waves make as the water is pulled back out to sea is unlike anything we've heard before. We spent a relaxing hour sitting there listening to the soothing ripples while our children threw rock after rock after rock into the water. Obviously the most prized rocks were set aside for future enjoyment while the most prized-of-all-rock was brought home as a gift for Grandma. After a day of walking and climbing, what better activity to partake in than our first ever European Christmas Market. It was pretty easy to find after scouting out the giant ferris wheel from atop Castle Hill. Upon arrival we got straight to business buying tokens for the wheel. Dahlia went back and forth on loving it and not loving it due to the height while Cece found it to be the most enjoyable moment of her life to date. We rode at the absolute perfect time of day and got to watch the sun sink into the sea and the twinkle lights of the market come to life. Next up the girls took a spin on the pony 'rollercoaster' and as a family we rode inside a jingle ball on the Christmas tree ride. All those rides worked up an appetite for all so we made our way to the food chalets. We settled on a hame and cheese sandwich. The melty cheese preparation was unlike anything we'd seen before. They had large wheel of cheese sliced open and under heat lamps. They take a long metal tool and scrape the ooey gooey cheese right onto the warm ham and bread sandwich. It filled us right up but as usual there was enough room for dessert. Chris found a waffle chalet and selected a strawberries and cream Belgium waffle that was so delicious we may never look at a waffle the same way again. Safe to say our first Christmas market in Europe was a success. The next day Chris and the girls went back to make sure we didn't miss anything. Good thing they did as they discovered a carousel (Dahlia's favorite ride, ever) and cotton candy! Nice France - By Heather Brama The world had the chance to reopen its doors to tourists once again. As a result, we decided to bring our children (4 and 6 years old) on their first trip out of the United States. We looked for both Christmas spirit and better weather than the Midwest was offering and landed on Nice, France....and Paris...and Monaco and Spain...and Portugal. Once the planning started, it spiraled. What can I say, we had been cooped up for TOO long. Our Airbnb in Nice was perfection. A quick ride from the airport, it was located in the center of historic Nice right on the Cours Saleya, a pedestrian street famous for its flower market. The building was also historic and although there was no elevator, the 4 flights of stairs to the third floor was absolutely worth it for the picturesque views of the sea from the living area's two balconies. Wine, water, coffee were all in stock in the kitchen as well as cooking staples and all the utilities you need for a home cooked meal. For dinner on our first night, we took a walk through the winding, ally-like streets of Old Nice. It wasn't long before we made our way successfully to Peppino. A highly rated Italian restaurant that only fits in about five tables a night due to the cozy interior (a few more tables when it is nice enough for outdoor seating). The menu is written on a chalkboard in French and I imagine it changes by the night. Both our French and Italian are quite poor but the duo working that night were welcoming nonetheless and whatever we ended up with was truly some of the best food of our lives. It really felt as though we had stepped into the home of family, a family with incredible culinary skills that is. We had not a drop of room left by the end of our charcuterie, bread and pasta but we somehow found ourselves ordering dessert and espresso's anyway. The girls had torrone flavored ice cream, which I managed to sneak a bite of - best ice cream ever. And being in an Italian restaurant, we had to get tiramisu as well. It would have been truly sinful not to. We one million out of ten recommend eating at Peppino if you find your way to Nice! Do come prepared with a reservation. (Tip: I made one through Facebook Messenger) If you cannot get a reservation, they also sell bottles of wine, fresh cut meat and cheese, as well as several Italian treats and snacks to go. |