With a gradual heat wave approaching, we spent the latter half of the week looking for more opportunities to do more lounging and less walking. And on that note, I should acknowledge how fabulous the Paris metro system is in connecting everything so efficiently. In general, we can easily get to places within one transfer (except for our park on Thursday), the stations are relatively clean and, granted we are not riding during peak hours, I have never felt like ...

It was a windy, overcast day, but I arrived early to queue up before the masses of tour busses embarked on Champ de Mars. Turns out I was even late for that. While I waited in the blustery cold for nearly a half hour before they opened, I was able to listen to an incredibly useful audioguide app I downloaded earlier. I highly recommend to anyone making the trip. The view from beneath the tower, where I waited, was stunning and far more awe inspiring that any ...

Tuesday Night was our 3rd date night which means Andrew gets a break from Mom and Dad for a few hours. Lovella, our fantastic babysitter arrived, the little man was all smiles, so Mark and I set off for an evening in Les Halles. Since being in France and the weeks leading up to our trip, we have read more restaurant reviews than I can keep track of. We got recommendations from travel blogs, French guidebooks, and friends who had either lived here or traveled...

Monday morning the three of us boarded a giant, double-decker sightseeing bus to get a closer look at a northern neighborhood we have not yet explored. We started in the Opera Quarter and set out to make a loop largely around the 9th Arrondissement. The two great things about this type of tour? You can get off at any point along the way and when you're ready to get back on, you're never waiting more than a few minutes. We only stepped of once (and almost a 2...

Week 2 impressions? This city is massive, gorgeous (even when it rains all day) and incredibly busy. We are staying in a very central part of the city, the 7th Arrondissement, which means we're super close to the Eiffel Tower, Champ de Mars and access to the Seine. Finding a quiet moment, and a break from the constant whir of the diesel fueled charter busses, takes a bit of effort. As we've explored more and more neighborhoods since being here, I've been su...