Jennifer Lambert

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Paris with Kids

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May 3, 2017 By Jennifer Lambert 44 Comments

We took our second trip to Paris last fall for Liz’s 16th birthday.

We also had gone to Paris for Liz’s 14th birthday.

We went to Greece for her 15th!

October is a great time to travel. We homeschool, so we don’t have to worry about schedules and we can take advantage of deals and lesser crowds. We can coincide our trips with our studies.

She’s such a lucky girl.

I bought the Rick Steves Paris this time and it was great!

We got to stay a little longer this time and saw most of what we didn’t have time to see before. Which was super nice and almost leisurely.

But there are still reasons I want to go back! I still want to see the Rodin Museum and Carnavalet was closed. I would love to sit in the café at the Shakespeare and Company bookstore. I want to browse at the Clignancourt Flea Market. I want to see Paris in springtime.

The kids love practicing their French! We’ve never felt the attitude that others complain of in Paris. People are super friendly and helpful if you try a little and know the etiquette.

Day 1: Marais

We took the train from Kaiserslautern to Paris, then the Metro to our apartment. We bought week passes for the Metro for everyone.

We checked in to our apartment in the 3rd Arrondissement, at the edge of the Marais. It was really nice and had a rather large kitchen and a bathtub! There’s a sweet little bakery right across the street. It was quiet but close to everything!

We started out with Rick Steves’ Marais Walk – Bastille to Pompidou.

We ate an amazing lunch at La Place Royal in Place du Vosges. They had the best Caesar salad I’ve ever had. The staff were amazing.

The kids played in the park in Place du Vosges for a while.

Then, we continued our Marais Walk to Hôtel de Sully which has a gorgeous courtyard.

We got Amorino gelato by Pompidou Center.


We stopped by the G20 grocery to get some pizza for the kids for dinner.
Aaron and I went to A&M for dinner and got this lovely salmon risotto and rosé wine.

Day 2: The Louvre

We did the Louvre.

Surprisingly, I wasn’t that keen on going to the Louvre, but I’m so glad we did! I was overwhelmed by the size and worried we’d get all cranky before even seeing half of it. The kids were troopers! I wasn’t.

We bought tickets online and used the Mall entrance. No lines, super easy.

We got there right when they opened. We bought an app with maps and guides. There are also pretty good brochures at the entrance.

We all but ran to see the Mona Lisa first. There are signs and arrows, so you can’t miss her!

I was so excited to see Sleeping Hermaphrodite by Bernini.

The kids loved The Louvre. They especially loved the Egyptian wing. I was the one who got hungry and tired and wanted to leave. There was only one wing we didn’t see: The Richelieu Wing – Northern Europe Paintings. And some of the Spanish art wasn’t open, but we viewed it through fences. So, I think we did great!

We had lunch at a touristy Provençal restaurant down an alley. It was simple and fine and there were actually lots of locals who showed up as we were finishing up.
We went to Les Halles for Liz to go to Sephora and the kids to go the Lego store. We got drinks at a fun little café.


Aaron and I had dinner at Madame Tartine beside the Stravinsky Fountain. It was windy and starting to drizzle, so we had to rush our mixte charcuterie et camembert chaud.

Day 3: Montmartre

We took the Metro to Montmartre.

The stop is right down the hill from Sacré-Cœur Basilica.

Sacré-Cœur was lovely.

We rubbed Peter’s foot for blessings.

We had a nice quiet lunch at Chez Plumeau.

Delicious salmon pasta.

Gorgeous rose wine. At sixteen years old, Liz can have a sip now!

Enormous hot cocoa.

We walked Montmartre. It’s in Rick Steves Paris.

We got to see many famous landmarks, like Picasso’s studio and the houses where Vincent van Gogh and Toulouse-Lautrec lived.

Moulin de la Galette is in a famous Renoir painting.

And also scenes from the movie Amélie.


The Rue Cler and Pig Alley walks intersect here too. They’re boring for us though.

We got a snack of macarons at a bakery. And of course, a baguette. We stopped for drinks farther on at a corner café and ate our macarons. I’m a little obsessed with the Kir Royal Pêche cocktail – champagne with peach liqueur.

We walked the Rue des Martyrs and saw Le Cimetière du Père-Lachaise.

I finally got to see Jim Morrison’s grave.


We all had dinner at La Salle à Manger. We had a lovely memory of it the first time we came to Paris and Liz decided she wanted her birthday dinner there. They were out of almost everything, but we got steak and salad with an amazing Bordeaux wine.

Day 4: Versailles

We took the train to Versailles. Check out my detailed post about our Versailles day trip.
We made the kids dinner at our apartment. Aaron and I had dinner at Le Grand Cerf right around the corner from our apartment. Salmon and gratin dauphinois.

Day 5: Basilique St. Denis

We walked to Place de la Concorde. It’s absolutely gorgeous and a great location for pictures! (unlike its history)


We took the Metro to Basilique St. Denis.

All the royal families of France are buried here.

We loved the basement with all the gravesites for Marie-Antionette and her family.

We ate lunch at a café right at the entrance. It was just ok.
We found Laguiole Marais to buy some knives and a cool wine opener for Aaron. So cool it was open on Sunday!
We peeked in the gate at La Passage du Grand Cerf.


The kids got Nitrogenie ice cream.
We walked to the Eiffel Tower just as it started to sparkle. Such a great way to end our magical trip!

Everything was closed for dinner. I forgot that about Sundays. We should have had a very early dinner. I was hungry!

We just love Paris. It’s one of our favorite places!

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Filed Under: Europe, France, Paris, Travel Tagged With: familytravel, France, Paris, travel

Versailles with Kids

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May 3, 2017 By Jennifer Lambert 3 Comments

We spent a week in Paris and took a day trip to Versailles.

We took the train from Paris to Versailles.

We followed advice in the guide Rick Steves Paris.

The train stop is just around the block from the palace. We ordered tickets online.

We arrived early, before the crowds and it was perfect.

The chapel is right pretty.

I’m a little bit in love with Bernini (like, his self-portrait is the background image on my laptop). There’s a Bust of Louis XIV that he sculpted. It’s fabulous.

It took my husband a loooong time to get a single shot of me with the Hall of Mirrors.

Then, we got the kids in the picture.

I thought we would have tantrums that Marie-Antoinette’s apartements were closed for repair, but Katie handled it much better than I did.

So, we got some macarons at Ladurée.

The kids loved the Mesdames Apartments.

We chose to visit Versailles on a day the musical fountains are on. I highly recommend this, even though it costs a bit more. It was soooo worth it! We absolutely loved it.

The lady at the gate to the gardens was super helpful and circled the best fountains to see so we didn’t have to waste time, since it is really quite huge. It can be overwhelming. Here’s a good guide to viewing the fountains at Versailles.

There are lots of little fountains that are lovely, but it’s also a lot of walking on gravel. And don’t think of stepping a toe on grass or leaning on anything because guards will blow their shrill whistles at you! They need more benches.

Our favorite was the Mirror Fountain. It plays to synchronized music every 10 minutes. I think we watched it two or three times!

VIEW IT HERE> Mirror Fountain Versailles

The Latona Fountain is quite large.

The famous Apollo Fountain

We ate delicious baguette sandwiches by the Grand Canal.

We walked past the Grand Trianon and Petit Trianon. We just weren’t that interested.

We really liked The Grotto. It was really quite pretty and idyllic.

The map really was a bit deceiving, making Marie-Antoinette’s little peasant hamlet seem a lot closer than it was.

After my tantrum – because I was tired and sore and really wanted to see it, especially since her apartments were closed in the palace, we finally got on the right path and found it.


We took the Petit Tram back to the Grand Canal because I was done.

I sat on a bench while Aaron and Katie went to view the Dragon fountain.

We had a snack of crêpes at Breton Café right across from the train station before heading back to Paris.


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Filed Under: Europe, France, Paris, Travel Tagged With: familytravel, France, Paris, travel

A Weekend in Paris

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November 6, 2014 By Jennifer Lambert 3 Comments

What can you do for just a weekend in Paris?

Quite a lot.

We took a very early ICE train from Kaiserslautern to Paris. We left our luggage at our hotel (Hotel Cactus) and took off for sightseeing. Not a moment to waste!

We were up early to catch the train and we knew we’d not be able to stay out late.

Day 1: As many of the famous sites before we drop.

Le Tour Eiffel.

Liz was thrilled to round a corner and see this:

Eiffel Tower

We took an early birthday trip to Paris. How many teens get to do that?!

Happy Birthday

We had ice cream at the Trocadero and watched people.

We walked everywhere. A lot. Of walking. My Fitbit loved me. Liz and I adored seeing all these familiar street names and locations from books and movies and history.

Avenue Victor Hugo

l’Arc de Triomphe.

Quite a lovely view from the top. I highly recommend paying to go up. And having your kids speak French to the ticket agents is a great way to get smiles and occasionally discounts. Always check for family tickets to save money and some attractions have deals for multiple sites.

Arc de Triomphe

We had a late lunch at Chez Clément on L’Avenue des Champs-Élysées. I do not recommend this restaurant – or perhaps just this location. The restaurant chain was raved about in the guidebooks and online as a great affordable, family-friendly place. The food was just ok. We had other, much better dining experiences. It was fine for a first time munch for nervous and hungry travelers. (Did you know the name of that famous street is French for Elysian Fields?)

We were running short on time so we took a fun motorcycle taxi to Notre Dame. The kids absolutely LOVED it. It was about €30, but it worth these smiles and that it fit all six of us. The driver gave us all Gummis and played awesome French radio.

Open Taxi

River Walk Tour with Paris Discover Walks. Lots of tours to choose from – all for the price of a nice tip. Great trivia and fun – all in English.

While we were waiting for our tour guide by Notre Dame, we fed the pigeons.

Notre Dame Pigeons

The college student who ran our walking tour was awesome and full of trivia, like an anaconda was found in the River Seine. Really, y’all.

Great restaurant recommendations and fun stories by a Paris local – all in English. Check out these tips for Paris shopping.

Along the Seine

Look around! History and literature is EVERYWHERE. This was on the corner by our hotel. Rue Plumet.

We stayed at Hôtel Cactus. A great find online with free croissants and hot drinks in the morning.

La Rue Plumet

Day 2: Churches and a Museum with a Grand Finale Evening

We checked out Le Cité this morning.

I love the Arte Nouveau look of the Metro.

Cite Metro Station

This flower market was renamed in honor of Queen Elizabeth.

Marche Aux Fleurs

Cathédrale Notre Dame de Paris

We got there early and viewed the inside in awe. We waited in a rather long line to climb to the top. They kinda corral you at various points in the tour – the gift shop, the gargoyles, the top level, before releasing you to descend.

The bells are outside in the courtyard. There’s a lovely garden and park too!

The Bells of Notre Dame

A fun café across the street from Notre Dame.

Brasserie Esmeralda

Check out this time machine rickshaw. Love it!

Rickshaw Time Machine

La Sainte-Chapelle

Gorgeous stained glass!

Everything was just stunning. The walls, the doors, the floor, the ceiling. A favorite.

Saint Chapelle

Dinner at La Salle à Manger. This is our absolute favorite restaurant in Paris. Such fun and delectable food. The waiter was darling and took the kids on a tour of the restaurant to pick out their ice flavor after they ate.

Apparently, to the right of this sandy park, Johnny Depp used to live there.

La Salle À Manger

Musée d’Orsay.

Pictures aren’t allowed inside, but we saw all this great Impressionist art! Statues for each continent are outside in the courtyard.

North America

La Tour Montparnasse.

This was great fun for our whole family! We feasted on ice cream, macarons, peanuts, and Champagne while the sun set and the lights of Paris delighted us.

We skipped going up the Eiffel for seeing it all a-twinkle and the whole city of Paris from the top of Montparnasse. Well worth the money!

La Tour Montparnasse

We loved seeing Le Tour Eiffel all sparkly. Magical.

At the Top of Montparnasse

Day 3: A lazy Sunday in Paris.

Le Jardin Luxembourg.

Of course, we had to play with the sailboats! This was a lifelong dream for me.

Liz, being a Whovian, chose the UK boat.

Les Bateaux

I lived vicariously through my kids, giving them pony rides through the garden. They loved it!

Pony Rides in Luxembourg Garden

We admired the statues and fountains.

Little Statue of Liberty

At the entrance, we saw this delightful organ man!

Street Organ

We walked to Ladurée for macarons and had dinner at l’Odeon. This was probably our least favorite food, but it was really fun and a great location! The wait staff were darling and impressed with our attempts at French.

Salad at l'Odeon

Finally, a crêpe! This is all she wanted the whole weekend and I’m glad I kept putting her off, not wanting to get her a mediocre one from a street vendor, and found this darling little shop Amorino near La Cimetière Montparnasse with all-natural gelato.

Crepe with Gelato

Square Saint-Lambert. We really loved this park and garden. Free wi-fi, a playground, fountain, walking trail.

A Weekend in Paris

We spent the evening at this lovely Paris playground, relaxing on our last evening in Paris. Europe has the best playgrounds.

The kids loved speaking to other kids in French and English.

Paris Playground

We purposely did not go to The Louvre. I just felt it would be a bit much for me and the kids on such a short trip.

This was a just a taste of Paris for our family. We’ve never really traveled anywhere outside The States so we weren’t sure what to expect. We were pleasantly surprised and delighted. Having a larger family, it’s sometimes awkward and expensive.

We had a delightful experience, no issues with tourist traps or rudeness at all. Because we all tried very hard to be polite and respectful.

We plan to return to Paris next year and see lots more!

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Filed Under: Europe, France, Paris, Travel Tagged With: cathedral, familytravel, Paris, travel

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