The City of Lights w/ Family

At the Jardin des Tuileries with the Louvre in the background.

Friday, Sep 9 -- Paris

Today we ventured across the English channel to visit my cousin Kim and her husband Justin in Paris.  Kim and Justin are traveling around Europe during Kim’s  HLTA -- no idea what this stands for -- as she’s on tour with the Canadian forces in Southern Italy.

A tip to any would be Eurostar travelers – book well in advance.  We paid a small fortune for the one day trip because we booked last minute but we love Paris and always want to meet up with friends and family abroad.

We booked on the 0652 train to make the 2.5 hour journey plus the one hour gained in France. Arriving at the train station at 0640 we were in good form to miss the train provided a) the ticket required 30 min check-in b) we have never been to the international train station c) as an international trip there is airport level security; and d) customs. Our driver was kind enough to save us from entering the wrong door and upon checking the departure sign 10 steps inside the building the board already read ‘closing’.  We kept moving quickly clearing the empty security point and reaching French customs (inside British train terminal).  A few stamps and we’re moving full pace up to the platform and on to car 16 to take our seats.  Incredible – we made it.  Train travel is the greatest thing ever.

Early morning travel aboard Eurostar

Ten minutes later we realize the train is moving. Absolutely the quietest thing ever – gotta love the high speed trains of Europe.  We booked into economy class and the seats offer plenty of space and we were sure to book nearest the baby change stations.  Zipping along the track the pressure changes felt like we were flying with ears popping as we moved along.   There are food/bar carts but as with most places in Europe you can bring your own food/drinks (incl. alcohol).  We didn’t bother either except to grab some bottles of water from the hotel. While bottles of water are free I discovered the gym has fridges full of them so I always lug up as many as I can after a rowing session.

Absolutely knackered after less than a few hours sleep the night before we arrived at Paris’ Gare Nord around 1030. We owe a special thanks to the soon to be defunct RIM for facilitating our meeting with Kim/Justin who were also at the train station depositing their luggage for their trip later that night. Denying the attempted scammer we hopped the metro over to the Louvre station. Taking a stroll through les jardin tuillerie and to the Louvre gardens we had our first pit stop on the grounds of the gardens to change Owen and for I to swap to shirt #2.   Without great effort we couldn’t bring the stroller so we opted for the carrier and 3 changes of shirts for me. Friday was expected to be the warmest day of our trip – how convenient.

Nothing like an open-air diaper change, inside the ropes!

We stopped for some lunch at les Deux Magots in PSG to enjoy some beautiful weather and typical Parisien people watching.  As we crammed into the super tight seating of a typical Parisien bistro Owen made it until mid-meal until he decided he was ready to be somewhere else.  Wiggling back out of patio seating Owen and I went for a quick hoppy stroll to calm “ourselves”.  Mission moderately accomplished.

Lunch with Kim & Justin

Starting out on foot for the catacombs we had to make another pit stop to feed and change Owen.  Fortunately les jardins Luxemburg were nearby and on our list of  places to check-out. Chalk up Paris park diaper change #2.  Strolling around the park it took a while before we found the gem of this well regarded park.  The massive tree line and palace(?) were definitely worth seeing.

Chairs in parks make perfectly acceptable changing surfaces.

After this stop Kim/Justin wanted to stop by “tower” as they had already bought tickets.  Sure, we were up for anything.  Aside from the “tower” being an absolutely eye sore it provided amazing views over all of Paris.

By the end of our tower advantage it was too late to make it over to the macabre catacombs so we decided to head over to another bistro to grab a bite and a pint.  We were quickly reminded that in Paris it’s practically impossible to get food before 730pm but drinks flow freely.  After grabbing a beer we continued to search for a bistro or restaurant that would be serving food at 6ish.  We finally took down some pizza and then were ready to hop the metro back to Gare Nord.  After arriving back at the train station for our 910 departure Kim/Justin realized there were at the wrong train station.  Fortunately they had enough time to make it to where they needed to be.  We headed up to the Eurostar level to get checked-in and pass through customs.  This trip resulted in four passport stamps; an in/out for each country.

Luckily I had stumbled on the fact that the British version of the Amex I carry grants complimentary access to the Eurostar business premier lounge – similar to airport lounges.  I figured I’d try my luck and assume they wouldn’t look on the back of the card to see Amex Bank of Canada – and they didn’t.  Next trick was to convince them to allow a guests, which is standard at airports, but not at Eurostar.  Easy peasy as I had a child strapped to my chest and obviously needed my wife! The lounge was a welcomed sight as the seating area was full and it’s difficult to disagree with free drinks, food and other treats.

Back in Paris at approximately 1030  we concluded our trek with relative ease.  Owen handled the train similar to the plane only getting a bit fussy at the end.  Fortuntely the train offers more flexibility and I simply took him to the baggage/bathroom car and bounced him around. We were likely our taxi drivers least favourite fare with a screaming baby but we all made it back safe and sound.