The Adventures of Flat Griffin: J'adore Paris!

We’re baaack! What a super week in Paris; so much to do in such little time. Sorry we haven’t been in touch for a while. After walking around the city all day, we were just too tired to get on the computer at night. So after a day of settling back in at the place in Vence, we wanted to share some memories from our trip to the City of Light.

We were able to cover quite a bit of ground in just 5 days. The best part was being able to meet up with and see some of mommy’s friends in Paris.

Sunyi and her husband Egil, who is in the Norwegian military and completing a masters program in Stockholm, were in Paris for a school-related trip. Sunyi reminded me a lot of Ms. Laurie and Mrs. Wolk, my teachers back in Maryland. This makes perfect sense since Sunyi is now a Montessori pre-school teacher in Sweden and works with one and two-year-old children. She’s so much fun! We splashed around in the River Seine and haggled with vendors for Eiffel Tower souvenirs. I’m really looking forward to seeing her again in a few weeks. Here are few photos of me and my new BFF, Miss Sunyi:

Waiting in line at the Eiffel Tower

Sharing a Happy Meal at our apartment

Counting M&Ms along the River Seine

We also had a chance to picnic with the Watts family – Bill, Erin and baby Isaac – at the tip of the Ile de la Cite where the Notre Dame cathedral is located. While the adults drank red wine and feasted on Parisian sandwiches, I showed Isaac how to splash around in dirty puddles and pick up random trash around the park. Boys will be boys and Isaac has to learn the ropes early, especially since he’s a city boy. Here are photos of the Barrett/Watts clan in Paris:

"Okay, Isaac...on the count of three, we make a break for the Buddha Bar. Ready?"

The Watts and Barrett families in Paris

All in all, it was nice to share the experience with good friends. Other highlights of our trip included: fantastic weather everyday, riding the open-air bus all around the city, strolling through the very nice Madeleine neighborhood, all the motorcycles and police cars, a great meal (two, actually) at a nice Thai/Chinese restaurant near our apartment, wandering around the artsy Marais area, the renowned ice cream on the Ile de St Louis and, of course, riding the elevator to the top of the Eiffel Tower.

By the way, we continued to enjoy our apartment in the 8^th district. While mommy and daddy sipped their coffee or wine with a nice Paris breeze coming into the open windows, I had a ball playing with all the toys, watching some great kid movies and eating my new favorite food - beignets!

The train ride home was, thankfully for my folks, uneventful, and we were happy to arrive back in Vence on Saturday night.

We are heading to Stockholm in early June to visit Miss Sunyi and Egil. Until then, our plan is to chill here in Vence and the surrounding area. Daddy has some biking to do, and mommy may sneak away for the Cannes film festival. We still need to visit Saint-Tropez and Aix en Provence, and daddy and I (along with Stefan) may check out the Grand Prix race in Monoco.

Below are some additional pictures from our trip to Paris – enjoy!

Love,

Griffin