Day 2 in Paris- The 20,000 step day

Our goal on these international trips, is to see as many highlights as we can, without burning every one out. We do not (normally) go from sunrise to sunset. I don’t want my kids to be so tired that they don’t remember anything. So, I usually try to schedule 2-3 things- or 1 big excursion per day; with the goal of being back at the apartment or in our neighborhood for dinner, and back in time for a regular bedtime, so that the kids (and we) have some down time in the evenings. Trust me, if your kids love the gaming and electronics like mine do- they will thank you, and yet still be willing to go see the sights with you during the day. You can read more about how I loosely plan itineraries HERE. We did pre-purchase the Paris Museum Pass for us adults (we had it shipped to the US, but you can purchase it or pick up there, too); kids under 18 are free- but ALWAYS ask if they need an actual ticket before you go to the admission line. Rodin did not require it, but everywhere else did, so I think that was a fluke.

On dining- I'll be elaborating in a separate blog. These things are getting too long if I don't. 

2^nd Day (Sunday)

You should note that many shops and stores are 100% closed on Sundays- this includes the Monoprix (grocery store). Some museums have free days, but we’d heard they are busiest then, so we avoided those. Our original plan included the Seine river cruise- because in London, it was a great way to get an overview of the city. But because of the weather, we decided to forego that. Here is what our day ended up looking like:

·        Musee Rodin

·        Hotel des Invalides  and Musee de Armee

·        Lunch at the Invalides museum

·        The skies cleared, so we decided on impromptu visit to Eiffel Tower and went to the top.

·        Crepes and hot wine at the street vendor along the Seine

·        Catacombs

·        Dinner at Les Antiquaires

Musee Rodin (Rodin Museum)

Photo by Martin Hueneke

For our first official stop, we walked to the Rodin Museum, and it was very cold, and very rainy, so the gardens were closed. We did have a short wait out in front of the building because of security. The highlight was that the boys took a picture with The Thinking Man, and I mean, who doesn’t want to do that? Besides that, the boys ended up liking it more than I expected. I was surprised by the way they examined the details of the sculptures in the museum. This *may* be due to the fact it was the very first thing that we did in Paris…. So they weren’t quite over museums yet. If you have kids with you, I would recommend doing this toward the beginning of your trip while they are still interested. Ha! I’m sure that if the gardens had been open, they would have enjoyed it even more.

*Parental note- there are several sculptures that feature nudity, and even sexual interaction. My youngest (10) giggled in the beginning at the “boobs” (Oh my gosh, I said, “boob”!), but I quickly said, “This is France, this is art, you better get used to it.” The more intimate sculptures were beautiful, but I just sped past them, and the boys kept on going and didn’t really comment on them and I’m not sure they even noticed (okay, the fourteen-year-old probably did). More on my stance on this type of art, and why we let our kids experience it- later.

Without the gardens, we got through this museum in probably about 45 minutes to an hour. If you’re a Rodin fan, you could probably spend a lot of time here, but when you have kids, you need to keep moving.  Don’t miss looking at the actual building! It’s beautiful. That is one thing that I love about French museums- the beauty of the actual architecture.  We did not do an audio guide for this museum, but did look at the signs on each piece.

Hotel des Invalides and Musee de Armee (Napoleon’s tomb and the Army Museum)*

Hours: Monday- 11-6pm; Wednesday-Friday 11-6pm; Sat/Sun- 11-7pm; CLOSED Tuesdays

It was pouring by the time we went to this museum, and this was the moment where we regretted our choice of tennis shoes for footwear. I think, if you visit   in March- go ahead and prepare yourself for rain, rain everywhere. Invest in good, warm rain coats, a scarf, a hat, and comfortable shoes. Bonus, if the shoes keep the rain out. As much as I warned my kids about puddles- it was inevitable, and miserable when it happened. I really, really liked this museum but I am a history and war buff. My kids loved it for the firearms and the swords, and World War 1 and 2 relics. Personally, I was floored by Napoleon’s hat, personal items, and his war horse. And yes, I said war horse. They apparently stuffed the poor thing and saved it for us. I mean, no words here.

We got through this in probably 2-3 hours, but if you really want to look at everything, and do an audio-guide- this museum could turn into at least a half day, if not a full day- if you let it. After touring this museum, we popped into the museum café for lunch.

Wonder of wonders, as we left the café, lo and behold, the clouds parted, and there it was- the Eiffel Tower, right across the street. We had originally planned to reschedule this visit because it was so cold and rainy, but as the clouds and rain moved out, and ushered in a bit of blue sky and sunshine- we realized that there was probably no line and the timing was good… so off we went…

Eiffel Tower: Hours- Tours every day 9:30 am – 11 pm is the winter schedule. Sparkles for five minutes on the hour I think starting at 9pm.

·        Tickets to the top- 11 euros per adult, 8 euros for teenagers, 4 euros for under 13, I think. Total for all four- 58 euros. There is also a ticket to the second floor only, which is still pretty high.

We had read numerous blogs and warnings to beware of pick pockets and scammers in this area and I must say I think my youngest would make a great policeman. Security was very good. There is an outer perimeter fence around the tower, and you must have your bag inspected and walk through a metal detector. This raised my alarm because C had purchased a letter opener that looked like a sword at the army museum (we weren’t planning to go up the Eiffel); but they did not open the souvenir box. I had already been practicing my French for “Can you please hold it for us?” and they waived us through. Huh. Okay. But then, there is another security check point to go up the tower. This one is in an airport style xray machine, as well as a metal detector. Needless to say, we were flagged. I unleashed my French phrase, to no avail; and we were the spectacle to some British visitors. And poor C had to surrender his precious letter opener, which ended up being a big deal by then end of the trip…. More on that later. 

Next up, we waited in line for the lift to the second floor- and it’s much higher than you might expect- when the doors opened I thought we were at the top. We got off and got some good pictures, and then waited for the lift to the top. The top is as you would expect it to be, with champagne available for purchase, with a price tag that was as you would expect it to be. I got my kiss at the top of the Eiffel, though. The boys liked the inside level because it had pinpoints of how far you were from famous cities. I liked it because it was warm. We caught a quick elevator down to the second level, and then, for some reason- time seemed to stand still while another huge storm rolled through with drenching rain, wind and cold. Yep, I mean, it’s always fun to stand in that for 30 minutes. We bonded with some Americans though, from Iowa I think- as we shivered and suffered in solidarity in the cold. For some reason, the other lift line moved faster than ours, and we never figured that out. All in all, I would still say it’s a must do. For this, I was thankful for a winter visit that had winter lines.

         Street Crepes and Hot Mulled Wine- Street vendor close to the Seine- better picture location! 

The Catacombs- Open Tuesday- Sunday 10am- 8pm; Under 18 is free; Recommend pre-book as the line is very long- even in cold winter.

As you can imagine at this point, we were starting to fade, but we had done the recommended and pre-booked our tickets to the Catacombs. So, on we went…. We had to take a train over to this location- it’s not ideally right beside where we were or anything, but our itinerary being what it was- Sunday was the best day to do it. Note that there are no restrooms below in the catacombs- we popped over to a McDonalds to handle that before entering. The audio tour was approx. 30-45 minutes, and I don’t think I would have found it as interesting without the audio guide. So do that. My kids thought this was super creepy and cool- but if you have little ones, they might be spooked. If you have a problem with caves, note that it is underground, without light. I’m fairly claustrophobic, though and I did ok. All in all, the catacombs were among the top favorite spots for my kids. You can read the full trip advisor review: HERE. 

Photo by Martin Hueneke

Dinner- Les Antiquaires; 13 rue de Bac, Paris; reservations accepted and probably recommended

That concluded our really long first official sight- seeing day. I just referenced my steps on the activity log on my phone, and yes, this day banked over 20, 500 steps and 29 flights of stairs. So, needless to say, we were ready to get off our feet. This was our heaviest walking day in Paris, but what a good one.

My next blog will be on Day 3, and I’ll cover the Louvre, Notre Dame, St. Chappelle, and our fantastic river cruise on the Seine. Check back soon!