Paris videos

So I've been trying out this cool online video software to put together videos from our Serving Sundays, like this one. And so then I put together these videos of pictures from my first few days in Paris last year with the family.
--Matt

August 16 – Farewell Paris, Hello London

We said a sad goodbye to the Paris apartment early this morning. It has been a great home away from home. It was also hard to say goodbye to Jessica at the airport, we enjoyed such a great week together.

The girls and I had such a long layover in London that we decided to go into the city for a tour. We had fun viewing many of the famous sites atop one of the typical London tour buses.

Evelyn was excited to see the famous red phone booths that always appear in story books and shows about London.

I was also surprised how much she had heard about Big Ben, so we were sure to take many pictures during this part of the tour.

Finally, the flight to Seattle came and we are back here in the United States. Like many experiences, the trip feels long and short at the same time, yet this is an experience we will never forget. We are all thankful for this special time this summer.

August 15 – Parc de la Villette and Galleries Lafayette

For our last day in Paris we took the girls to a new park, Parc de la Villette, which did not disappoint us – there were all sorts of new playground features that they had not seen before!

We also saw a large format dolphin and whale movie in Paris’ version of an omnidome theater.

For the afternoon, we went on to the flagship Galleries Lafayette department store for some final shopping and to enjoy the view of Paris that they offer from roof of the eighth floor.

We all had a great dinner together at the café right out in the square in front of the apartment. Evelyn has fallen in love with the French Croque Monseur sandwich, so I’ll have to be sure to learn how to make this at home!

August 14 – Versailles Palace

Today we had a relaxing day trip out to Versailles Palace, which was constructed by Louis the 14th and was a royal residence up until the French revolution. The gardens behind the palace are beautiful in the summertime. We packed a picnic and had a great lunch right in the gardens.

Afterwards we had fun on one of the small rowboats that are on the garden pond. The girls enjoyed feeding bread to the swans and ducks up close, as well as having a turn at the oars.

From the gardens we toured both the petit palace getaway that was constructed for Marie Antoinette as well as the main chateau; room after room of portraits and high ceilings, including the famous Hall of Mirrors. It is hard to imagine what this monolithic palace was like when it was full of as many as 5,000 royals!

August 13 – Disneyland (Part 2), the Louvre and Montmartre

The girls and I spent the day full of Disney “magic”. Carolyn had her dream come true of wearing her Minnie dress in the happiest place on earth. I was ready to go at their speed and return home when they were tired (particularly after the Nice excursion), but they surprised me by going to distance to the light parade and nightly fireworks show – which completely awed both of them!

Meanwhile, Jessica spent the day touring the Louvre and then walking through Montmartre and the Sacre Coeur cathedral.

August 12 – Monaco and Mediterranean Sea

While Jessica took the girls to the beach this morning, I took the quick seaside train ride over to the small country of Monaco. I spent a few hours doing a walking tour of this small county, which dramatically tumbles down the hillsides into the sea. There is plenty of yacht gawking and beautiful view points here.

I also walked around the palace, which continues to be the prince’s residents.

To finish, I toured through Monaco’s central cathedral, which includes centuries of Monaco royalty buried around the back of the transept, including Grace Kelly.

For the afternoon, we had fun exploring Nice. We found one of the gelato shops that makes the flower cone (one of the to-do’s on Jessica’s list).

Then we took a boat cruise around the bay off of Nice. We were able to see some of the neighboring beaches and villages, as well as some of the mega villas that super stars like Elton John and Sean Connery have built there.

We ended the day picnicking on the train and watching the views back to Paris.

August 11 – Nice is nice!

We fell in love with Nice the instant we stepped out onto the large promenade bordering the Mediterranean. After spending the morning on the train, it felt great to get on our suits and play on the beach.

The beach at Nice is pebbly, yet thousands of people are there enjoying it, and we did too. The water felt great. I was surprised to see how much Evelyn enjoyed laying in the sun!

We found a great Nicoise restaurant for dinner and enjoyed a great meal of bouliabaise, salad, truffle sandwiches, country chicken, and more. After dinner, we were again astounded as how much activity extends into the night. The girls had fun riding a carousel all lit up with lights and there was a stretch of the road by the sea that they blocked off and turned into a performance pavilion. The seaside was full of people out enjoying life!