Searching the World for Tomorrowland

My girl has the weight of the world's future on her.
Tommorowland, Hong Kong Disneyland

"There's a great, big, beautiful tomorrow

Shining at the end of everyday

There's a great, big, beautiful tomorrow

And tomorrow's just a dream away"

- Song from the Carousel of Progress Ride

Disney's new movie Tomorrowland opens this week to much anticipation. I. Cannot. Wait.

Disney is more than just a cartoon mouse and theme parks. It's a place where nothing is impossible. There's a part of it, courtesy of the vision of founder Walt Disney, that beckons people to become dreamers and explorers. To embrace global unity because "it's a small world after all" and to aim for a tomorrow that's bright, shiny and new. It challenges the imagination and immerses guests into alternate realities of the past and future. It celebrates those who have inspired us to think big and change the path of what might be.

My family has traveled around the globe, and woven in among our world travels are visits to Disney parks in 5 cities spread across three continents. We've sailed with them on the high seas, too. Even with all the sights a foreign land has to offer, we're drawn to Disney. Not because it's familiar, but because of that feeling of optimism and hope that seems to well up inside whenever we're surrounded by the fantasy Disney has created. It just plain makes us happy.

Old and New in Paris

Here's another view of Stravinsky Fountain which I mentioned in my post about the Pompidou Center next door. What draws me to this scene is the juxtaposition of old and new, the modern and the traditional, the quirky and the classic.

Modern Art and Confusion at the Pompidou Centre

Outside Paris' Pompidou Centre, you can see blue air ducts, green pipes for liquids, yellow electricity conduits, and red escalators and elevators.

The Pompidou Centre was not on my original itinerary for our Paris trip last June. My daughter was the one who suggested it. Since I gave my kids the Lonely Planet Not-for-Parents Paris Everything you ever wanted to know book prior to our holiday, I should have suspected that it may inspire them to make requests.

"Well, why are you interested in the Pompidou Centre?" I asked.

She replied, "The book says it's inside out and upside down."

Looking for Mary at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris

When I walked into Paris's Notre Dame Cathedral last June, it felt a bit like coming home. I had spent the previous year visiting Shinto temples in Japan, Buddhist temples in Thailand and both Hindu temples and Muslim mosques in Malaysia. Whereas all these places were interesting, the amount I know about these various religions would fill one short paragraph at the most. I always felt on the verge of greatly offending someone by ignorantly doing the wrong thing.



Notre Dame Cathedral's South Façade as seen from across the Seine River.

Notre Dame, on the other hand, is a church for the Catholic religion that's been with me since birth. Finally, I was visiting a place where I knew the rituals like the back of my hand and the stories depicted on the walls and windows without having to refer to a guide book. Okay... small confession... I did have to look at the guide book a little because the imagery is sometimes unclear, but the stories were familiar to me after a lifetime of religious education classes and Sunday mass.

Notre Dame means "Our Lady." Specifically, it refers to Mary, the virgin mother of Jesus. During this time of year leading up to Christmas, I often think of Mary. What must it have been like to travel so far from home while hugely pregnant? What did she think of winging it with accommodations once they got to Bethlehem? Did she look at Joseph and ask, "Seriously? A manger? That's all you could get us?" Or was she patient, kind, and compliant? Perhaps she was thinking, "At this point, I don't care! I am about to pop." At least she and Joseph did not have that whole "what to name the baby" quandary since the Angel Gabriel specifically told her, "You are to give him the name Jesus."

Notre Dame is huge with so much to take in and see. Let's focus on just one theme. This post is in honor of Mary as I show you some of the many ways she is depicted throughout the cathedral. If you like, listen to this recording of "Hail Mary" sung by the Notre Dame choir as you read on.

128 Hours 55 Minutes of Air Travel in One Year

This has been a banner year for travel for my family. I've often said that living the expat life has prompted us to travel, and my oh my, we really embraced that notion these last 12 months. We literally traveled around the world heading westward until we returned to our starting point in Penang. On another trip, the kids made their first hop back and forth across the Equator.

Would Icarus be jealous?

Here are some statistics for our family's air travel for one year.

• 128 hours and 55 minutes in the air, not including layovers
• 31 flights
• 20 airports
• 12 airlines; hence, abysmal accrual of frequent flier miles at any one airline
• 7 countries
• 5 flights longer than 10 hours
• 4 continents
• For hubby, add on an additional 32 hours 10 minutes spread over 6 flights for business travel.

We did all this without the kids missing any school for travel.

Wow. If you had predicted this three years ago, I would have laughed in your face. Earlier this week, I was chatting with a nomadic family about their flight from England to Rio de Janeiro. When they said it took 14 hours, I actually said, "14 hours? That's not bad." My brain now thinks that 14 hours is no big deal.

Back in Penang, I'd spend my days while the kids were at school exploring the island and getting deliberately lost in George Town so that I could stumble across its many wonders. On weekends, we'd play on the beach, hike through the jungle, or camp out on Penang Hill. There are many perks to living in a tourist hotzone.

So, where did we go on all those airplane flights?

Enjoy the hikes around Uluru (Ayers Rock) in the early morning on hot, January days.

Australia

We kicked off the year in Australia. We strolled along Bondi Beach on New Year's Day and watched from afar as the water was cleared after a shark sighting. A glow-in-the-dark puppet show entertained the kids at the Sydney Opera House. We snorkeled at the Great Barrier Reef and wilted in the 114°F (46°C) heat at Ayers Rock. Kangaroo Island off the southern coast of Australia proved to be a great place to relax and unwind after our hectic itinerary.

Despite how incredible this trip was, my children really missed being with their grandparents and cousins at Christmas. This has been mentioned repeatedly throughout the year during honest, heartfelt moments.

The PETRONAS Towers

Kuala Lumpur

It wasn't always overseas travel that called to us. We took a roadtrip to Kuala Lumpur one long weekend. After learning my lesson from a previous trip when we couldn't get into the Petrosains Discovery Centre due to crowds, I reserved tickets a few weeks in advance to make sure we'd gain admission this time to the very hands-on science museum. We enjoyed our hotel room with a view of the Petronas Towers, the tallest twin towers in the world, and a kid-free outing at the Sky Bar. Kidzania was the highlight of the trip for my younger kids because they loved playing pretend and trying the various jobs from DJ to chocolatier. We stocked up on plenty of American processed foods at Ampang Grocers and made sure to visit La Mexicana, a truly authentic Mexican restaurant.

Water for Elephants in Chiang Mai, Thailand

Chiang Mai, Thailand

Easter found us in Chiang Mai, Thailand. We played in waterfalls, visited the Long Neck people and other tribes, strolled through temples, squeezed into tuktuks, and did a little drifter kart racing and paint ball target practice, too. As a family, we took a Thai cooking class where my boys surprised me with their culinary skill. For me, the highlight of the trip was a day spent at Elephant Nature Park where I got to feed elephants and bathe them in the river.

Jumping for joy at the Eiffel Tower.

Paris

Paris was an eagerly anticipated trip. We were headed to Texas for the summer school holiday but took a week-long stopover in the City of Light. Everyone seemed to be brimming with suggestions about where to go. We went deep underground to see decorative skeletons in Les Catacombes and climbed high above the city at both the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame. The kids gave a thumbs up to the classics at the Louvre and a thumbs down to modern art at the Pompidou. My son still exclaims, "Some pictures were nothing but white paint on a canvas!" One gustatory delight after another crossed our lips from macarons to baguettes smeared with Brie to McDonald's on the Champ Élysées. Versailles dazzled us and gave us a taste of idealized country life at The Queen's Hamlet. A day spent at Parc de la Villette allowed the kids to just run free and have fun. Best of all, we completed our goal of visiting a Disney park at each of its worldwide locations when we added Disneyland Paris to the list that already had Florida, California, Hong Kong, and Tokyo on it.

My daughter has been dreaming about her first visit to the American Girl Doll Store and Café.

Texas

Fathers' Day was busy for us. We had breakfast in Paris and a late lunch in Houston, Texas with both my dad and father-in-law before making the 3 hour drive to our home in Austin. The kids absolutely loved being in the Lone Star State, seeing their friends, and celebrating the Fourth of July with their cousins. We tried some new adventures like indoor skydiving as well as old favorites like visiting the Kemah Boardwalk and multiple museums in Waco, Austin, and Houston. My oldest boy spent a week at Boy Scout Camp in the Lost Pines along Lake Bastrop and talked to his friends about middle school in Texas compared to where we are now. He came away concluding that Texas kids have more social pressure.





Mid-Autumn Lantern Festival at Singapore's Gardens by the Bay

Singapore

Cheap airfare and a long weekend lured us away to Singapore just in time for the Mid-Autumn Festival. Our kids asked to go to the Science Centre where we met up with some Texas friends, and we also explored Gardens by the Bay for the first time. The new S.E.A. Aquarium awed us with the Guinness Book of World Record Largest Aquarium Tank. Dining on Chili Crab at Jumbo Seafood and Tex-Mex food at Café Iguana have become a Singapore trip tradition.

The Great Wall stretches as far as the eye can see.

China

China is in the same time zone as Malaysia, so we had no issues with jet lag. In a departure from our usual method of independent travel, we hired a private tour company. It was wonderful to be freed from worrying about logistics so that I could just enjoy myself. The Forbidden City was large and imposing while the Great Wall turned out to be great fun since we took a cable car up and a toboggan down. Seeing all the Terracotta Warriors standing at attention at the massive archeological dig site was impressive.

Woman with Tibetan Prayer Wheel at the Yak Butter market stall in Lhasa.

Tibet

Tibet was a last minute addition to our China trip and highly recommended by a friend with kids. I flew in over the Himalayas with vague notions of Shangri-La and Dalai Lama quotes floating through my brain, and I exited with a richer understanding of life there. The conflict between Chinese rule and a longing for a free Tibet was an undercurrent that ran throughout our travels. Tibetans clearly still cherish the current Dalai Lama who has been living in exile in India since 1959. Hubby and I took turns visiting palaces, temples and monasteries while the other parent cared for the kids who had been rendered lethargic by altitude sickness.

New Zealand The United States (again)

Hubby and I had long planned on heading to New Zealand for the Christmas break, but the kids had other ideas. They have never really forgiven us for keeping them away from Texas family and traditions last year. I'd try to tempt them with visions of glowworm caves and glacier hikes, and they would counter with "Grandma, Grandpa, Lolo and Lola." So one day, I just looked at hubby and said, "New Zealand will always be there. Let's give the kids what they want."

In a few days, we'll head off on the last part of our 128 hours 55 minutes of flight time in one year travel binge. On Christmas Day, we'll be seated around the table at hubby's aunt's house surrounded by both of our families. Both hubby's and my parents get along fabulously and celebrate this day together so we don't have to choose.

We've offered our kids the world, and what they want most is home.


This post is part of Travel Photo Thursday on Budget Travelers Sandbox, "Oh the Places I've Been" on The Tablescaper, and "Share Your Best" on Two Kids and a Map and Mommy Travels. Please check them out for more around-the-world travel inspiration.

McDonald's and Cyborgs on the Champs Élysées

Did you know that the opening round of the classic sci-fi Man versus Machine battle scenario has already occurred in the real world? And that it happened at, of all places, the McDonald's on Paris's famed Avenue des Champs Élysées? Call it "Terminator 5: I'll be Back... and I Want Fries with That."

Let me start at the beginning.

When my family was in Paris last summer, we did the quintessential tourist experience of taking a stroll along what's been called "one of the most expensive strips of real estate in the world." After being accustomed to dodging cars and having to walk single file along Penang's narrow streets, it was a joy to safely saunter 5-people-across down the wide sidewalks lining the boulevard.

Our first photo stop was the Arc de Triomphe. After having climbed the tower at Notre Dame that morning and taking the stairs up the Eiffel Tower the previous day, we had absolutely zero interest in attacking the 284 steps to the top of the Arc.



Yes, I am standing smack dab in the middle of the Champs Élysées taking a photo.

We also headed over to Ladurée, the luxe bakery where the now trendy macaron was first invented back in 1930. As it was getting late in the day, the line was not too bad. I hear that it sometimes stretches out the door and on to the sidewalk.

Ladurée's Macarons: Feather light meringue shells with a smooth and rich buttercream filling

We had a chance to squeeze in a little window shopping for automobiles, too.

Concept car at Renault
In the future, rear row passengers do not get seat backs.

All that walking around and staring at macarons makes a family hungry. Where to eat? Perhaps down a side street at Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée for haute couture dining starting at US$108 for an entree? With the youngsters? I don't think so. We wanted some cheap eats on the Champs Élysées. Since the kids had been good about seeing all the bucket list sights on Mom and Dad's list, we thought we'd go somewhere that they'd enjoy. As long as it had a pastry case, I was sure I'd be satisfied, too.

Cheesecake
Vanilla-rum cakelets covered with a delicious caramelized crust for US$1.40 each
Choice of tartlets: Lemon or Milk chocolate and hazelnuts for US$3.50 each

Oh yeah, this place would suit us just fine. What's this classy cafe called? Here's a picture to help you find it... you know, in case if you don't understand French.

The Golden Ivory Arches

If you want to be like the French, call it "McDo." (If you want to be like the Australians, call it "Macca's.") When we walked up to it and asked the kids if they wanted to eat here, they were practically jumping with joy. We'd been feeding them Steak au Poivre and Croque Monsieurs all week, poor them. With all our international travels, they always like to find a little gastronomical refuge at a McDonald's. Hubby liked that the entire dinner bill came out to US$46 for the five of us, even after I included an order for six more macarons.

Menu board at McDo.

Do some people watching along the Champs Élysées from the 2nd floor of McDo.

One of our favorite aspects of the restaurant experience was the Easy Order computer stations. Located just in front of the counters, they were a welcome respite from our sometimes unsuccessful attempts to order food in French. (We didn't realize that the mystery French word of a brasserie's veal dish translated into "kidneys" until after the dish was set down on the table.) After swiping a credit card, we used the touch screen menu to place our order in English. My teen who always belatedly realizes he doesn't know how to indicate "no cheese" in foreign languages was glad to see that he could customize his Big Mac. Not wanting to be left out of making extra selections, my younger son customized his drink as "Without Ice." Other visitors were intrigued enough by the computers that total strangers were taking photos of our screens. A receipt with an order number printed out, and all we needed to do was wait for our number to be called at the Pick Up counter.

The Easy Order computers lived up to their name.

How was the food? I'm going to have to give it a thumbs up. It wasn't the best food I had in Paris of course, but it's coming out on top for the family's worldwide McDonald's survey. The kids got their usual chicken nuggets and burgers, but hubby and I ordered the exclusively French items. My Salade Poulet Moutarde (Salad with Chicken and Mustard Sauce) was composed of fresh greens, crispy chicken, croutons, diced tomatoes, and fried onions topped with a creamy mustard vinaigrette. I thought that the slivers of tasty beets added a pleasant dimension to the meal and were something unlikely to be found in a mass market salad in America. Overall, it's one of the best fast food salads I've had anywhere. However, this judgement may be clouded by my unsatisfied, constant craving for convenient salad in Penang. Hubby munched on a Casse Croute Poulet Curry (Chicken Curry Sandwich). Breaded chicken, potato cakes, lettuce and curry sauce were layered inside a baguette.

French McDo's Big Mac, Chicken Salad with Mustard Sauce, Curry Chicken Sandwich and Happy Meal

What about the Cyborg attack?  The cyborg came out on the losing end. I'm glad that the McDo's employees didn't mind me taking all these photographs. Steve Mann, a University of Toronto professor, was not quite as lucky. He also decided to take his kids to the Champs Élysées McDo back in July 2012. What sets Steve apart from the average person is that he has EyeTap Glasses, a wearable computer, surgically attached to his skull. It's kind of like if he had Google Glasses but couldn't take them off without special tools, so he has to wear them 24/7. Some people have classified him as a cyborg — part man, part machine. Apparently, the McDo employees had a BIG problem with being photographed and video recorded by his device. Despite a doctor's note and documentation stating that he could not remove the glasses, they tried to rip it off his head and literally tossed him out on the street. The incident has been called "the world's first cybernetic hate crime."

Who knew so much excitement has happened on the Champ Élysées?

  

This post is part of Travel Photo Thursday on Budget Travelers Sandbox. Check it out for more around-the-world travel inspiration.

Seeking The Statue of Liberty in Paris

Everyone knows that when you head to New York City, the Statue of Liberty is high on the list of popular sights to see. How about when you head to Paris? That's what we did when visiting the  Île-de-France last June.

A little background history

France has been wrapped up in the United States of America's history since the USA took its first baby steps to becoming a free nation. In an effort to stick it to the British, the King of France helped to fund the American Revolutionary War and sent his soldiers over to fight under George Washington. The United States won their freedom, and France was left with a debt that's the equivalent of 13 billion U.S. dollars in today's money.  The French citizens were deeply displeased with spending money on a foreign war while their own people went hungry. It was a major cause of their own push to end sovereign rule, otherwise known as the French Revolution. Isn't it ironic (a la Alanis Morissette)?

Fast forward to America's 100th birthday when France proposed a gift as a symbol of the friendship between the two nations. Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi was tasked with designing the privately funded sculpture that was to be in the classical tradition of the Colossus of Rhodes. It's official name is Liberty Enlightening the World. Gustave Eiffel of Eiffel Tower fame designed the inner metal skeleton that supports the outer copper plates. For a few weeks in 1884, the 46-meter-high statue towered over Paris as the workmen did the final assembly. It was taken apart, shipped overseas, and finally inaugurated at the entrance of New York Harbor on October 28, 1886. On its pedestal, it reaches 93 meters up into the sky. Over the years, the statue morphed from being a tribute to America's independence and France's friendship to a powerful symbol of emigrants' hope for a better life in the New World.

The copper statue was brown when it was erected. Over thirty years, the copper oxidized and turned green. Have you ever used ketchup to clean a penny? My kids have wondered how much ketchup it would take to restore the Statue of Liberty to its original copper brown color.

Senate building at Luxembourg Garden.
(Psst... this is NOT the Statue of Liberty.)

Searching Luxembourg Gardens

On our first day in Paris, we searched Luxembourg Gardens for one of the Statue of Liberty replicas. Numerous guidebooks and blogs mentioned it, but I never bothered to find out exactly where it was. We found a bunch of other statues and stopped for a while to play with the sailboats in the pond. We walked all over the place (which is in itself quite an enjoyable way to pass the time). We asked other people if they knew where La Liberté was. Someone pointed us in the general direction of the tennis courts. We never found it. Jetlag overcame us, and we gave up.

On Île aux Cygnes by the Pont de Grenelle

Sneaking up from Behind

We finally caught sight of another Statue of Liberty replica while on the Eiffel Tower. You can see her from the back, standing 11.5 meters tall on the Île aux Cygnes next to the Pont de Grenelle. Frankly, she's kind of small when you're looking at her from that high up.

Her tablet has two dates. One is "IV JUILLET 1776" (July 4, 1776). It refers to the date America's Declaration of Independence was signed, and it is on the tablet of the New York City statue, too. The other date is "XIV JUILLET 1789" (July 14, 1789) which marks the storming of the Bastille during the French Revolution.

My family later tried to get a closer look at this replica by taking the Bateaux-Mouches Seine River cruise. However, a sign on the ticket window dashed our hopes by announcing it did NOT go by the Statue of Liberty. I guess we weren't the only hopeful tourists wishing to get a better look. Oh well.

The Flame of Liberty at the Place de l'Alma

Do you have a light?

While walking from the Eiffel Tower to the boat cruise, we stumbled across the Flame of Liberty at the Place de l'Alma. It is a gold-leaf and copper, actual size replica of the torch from the New York Statue of Liberty intended as a symbol of Franco-American friendship. Dedicated in 1989, it became a makeshift memorial to Princess Diana who died in 1997 in the nearby tunnel beneath the Pont de l'Alma. When I look at the picture above, I wonder what the lady in front of the statue is thinking.

 

La Liberté at the Musée d'Orsay

A Work of Art

We finally found a Statue of Liberty that we could see up close at the Musée d'Orsay. She is the best know work of sculptor Bartholdi, so it's only natural to examine it in an art museum setting.

Here's the surprising thing... (which I only figured out as I was researching this post)

This is the same statue that we were looking for in Luxembourg Gardens! No wonder we never found it there. When it was standing outside in the gardens for 115 years, La Liberté was subjected to pollution, weathering, and vandalism. In an effort to preserve the statue, it was removed from Luxembourg Gardens in December 2011, restored, and introduced at the Musée d'Orsay in July 2012.

Some sources say that this 3 meter tall bronze statue was the original model for the bigger version in New York City. Other sources say it is a study done after the New York one was put in its final place. Bartholdi offered it to Paris' Luxembourg Museum, and it was displayed in the garden because the museum interior was out of room.

If you find one still standing in Luxembourg Gardens, it is newly cast from a mold made of Bartholdi's original in the Musée d'Orsay. It's a replica of a replica. Got all that?



Liberty Arcade at Disneyland Paris

Disneyfied

Disney Imagineers always goes the extra mile in creating an authentic setting. What better way to connect Disneyland Paris to Main Street U.S.A. than an exhibition on the Statue of Liberty? The large sign evokes the excitement of the day when France's gift to the American people was inaugurated in New York Harbor.

See the sights and hear the sounds on that exciting day

Step inside the darkened alcove to experience the tableaux of the celebration. From the viewpoint of a boat in the Harbor, watch fireworks explode over the statue and hear the excited murmurings of the people around you.

It really is a Small World after all.

Our last sighting of the Statue of Liberty in Paris was on the It's a Small World ride. I've always considered it a symbol of America, but after our trip to Paris, I realized that the French embrace it as part of their country, too.


This post is part of Travel Photo Thursday on Budget Travelers Sandbox and "On the Places I've Been" on The Tablescaper. Check them out for more around-the-world travel inspiration.

Kids and Nintendos at The Louvre

The Louvre (You probably figured this out on your own.)

"Mom, we're going too fast," my son said as he hung back with his eyes lingering on the painting before him.

I couldn't believe my ears. Had some art-loving, fairy changeling switched places with my kids? All three of them? How else could I explain the vast difference at the Louvre versus the other art museums we'd visited in Paris? At the other places, they seemed oblivious to the masterpieces on the walls and more interested in playing the annoying game, "Squash a Sibling." In the Louvre, they stood quietly engrossed in the works of art surrounding them and were reluctant to move on to the next room.

"Honey," I said gently, "Remember the guide book said it would take nine months to look at everything at the Louvre? We don't have nine months." And I tugged him into the next gallery.

So, what was the magical element that caused this transformation? A Nintendo 3DS XL. Yes, I let my kids stroll through one of the greatest art museums in the world with a Nintendo DS firmly gripped in their hands. But it wasn't just any ordinary Nintendo. This one doesn't play MarioKart, Minecraft or any other games. It's loaded with commentaries on approximately 700 pieces in the Louvre and acts as the official audio/videoguide for the museum. Costing just  €3 (US$3.95) for people under 18 years old, it was cheap enough for me to rent one for each kid and completely worth the price. 

Learning about the Winged Victory

The Nintendo hangs from a handy neckstrap, so they did not need to worry about dropping it. In fact, the attendant was quite insistent that the kids keep the strap on at all times. The headset fit comfortably over their ears, and we were ready to go.

The guide offers a choice of doing the Masterpieces Tour, roaming the museum, or asking it to take you directly to one of the popular pieces at the Louvre.  An "Egypt for All the Family" tour with multimedia games is being developed that aims to be both humorous and informative.

The Nintendo has a built-in GPS. This enormous set of buildings is exactly the type of place where one could easily get lost wandering through all three wings and four levels. Knowing exactly where we were was wonderful. Beacons are posted around the museum's interior; hence, we did not need to worry about poor satellite reception inside the stone walls. The device also gave us the locations of food outlets in the Louvre and their hours of operation.

As we'd enter each room, the Nintendo would highlight a few key pieces on the map, drawing the kids towards artwork they may have not otherwise noticed. If you're on the Masterpieces Tour, it shows you the route and doesn't start playing the commentary until you reach the right area, even if you wander off for a bit. It also operates like a traditional electronic guide where you can type in the ID number on the work's plaque in order to find the particular commentary of a piece that catches your eye. Keep in mind, though, that with a collection of over 35,000 items, not every single piece has an accompanying explanation. This was a bit of a disappointment for the kids, but as I pointed out, we only had a few hours. As it stands, it would take over 35 hours to listen to what's already been recorded.

No blog post about taking kids to the Louvre would be complete without a photo in front of the Mona Lisa.

The kids could visually explore the artwork on-screen, too. Sometimes, the Nintendo displayed related or influential pieces in regards to one we were viewing. They could see Winged Victory of Samothrace in 3D, no special glasses needed, from the back without a pesky wall getting in the way. My boys also liked zooming in on sections of the high definition images, especially ones that were hard to see from our vantage point of standing on the floor. "Look mom," said my 10-year-old, "even the frame has pictures painted on it," while showing me an area he had focused in on way at the top of an immense work. They could zoom up on the details of the mountains gracing the background of the Mona Lisa, unhampered by the crowd around it, the railing or the bulletproof glass protecting it. It was like practically touching the painting with their noses.The one downside is that I had to keep reminding the kids to actually look at the real piece in front of them, not just the image on their screen. Otherwise, they may as well be sitting at a computer in some place much, much cheaper than Paris.

My mom forgot to take a photo of me in front of the real Mona Lisa, so I had to settle for posing in front of a sign.

Our time at the Louvre exceeded my wildest expectations. After earlier museum visits during our week in Paris, I had set the bar rather low by this point, merely praying that we'd be able to escape without, for example, accidentally causing the Venus de Milo  to be headless in addition to armless.

The moments when my kids would come over to me to quietly share some new insight were a dream come true.

"Mom, this room was painted by the same guy who did the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles," whispered my girl, instructing me to take a picture of the Galerie d'Apollon. Then, my younger son came over and said the same thing.

Studying how the  Louvre's Galerie d'Apollon  resembles the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles

My heart loved hearing this. I smiled hearing it again weeks later as my girl showed her grandmother our vacation photos and whenever she tells people about our visit to the Louvre.

Isn't that what we hope for both ourselves and our kids when we visit some place? That something captures our senses and makes an indelible mark on our minds that we long to share with others.

After we'd seen all the Masterpieces, my younger boy wanted to take a look at The Cheat with the Ace of Diamonds. He'd heard his dad talking about it and seen it on the iPhone app we'd downloaded. He entered the title into the Nintendo, and a map came up showing him how to lead the family there. Good thing because I seriously think that we'd been completely lost if it'd been up to me to find it!  Also, my analysis of the painting would have been, "I think that guy with the Ace of Diamonds is cheating." I am clever that way. The Nintendo, on the other hand, went into much more detail.



Listening to commentary on The Cheat with the Ace of Diamonds

The device may look like a toy, but it's an upper level textbook in disguise. The audioguides are actually intended for adults. The excellent commentaries are by the Louvre's curators, lecturers and other experts. It's full of concepts that kids may not comprehend, but they still walked away learning so much more about art appreciation than I had expected.

By the time we were deep into the museum, I wished I had rented a Nintendo for myself. Even though our Rick Steves guidebook had tons of info on the artwork, I didn't really like having to glance back and forth between the book and piece. Listening to an audio commentary while looking at the art would have been better. When I got them for the kids, I was simply hoping to buy myself some extra time before they started asking to leave. Now, I felt like they were getting more out of the museum visit than I was.

I highly recommend the Nintendo guides for both adults and children. If you want to learn more about the Nintendo 3DS at the Louvre, watch this video by Nintendo Life (and marvel at how uncrowded the galleries are) or take a look at the Louvre's audioguide information page.

Details on the Nintendo 3DS XL guide:

• These customized Nintendos do not take game cartridges  and cannot be used outside of the Louvre. There is no worry that your kids are surreptitiously playing a game with it.
• First, pay for the guide at one of the ticket counters, ticket machines, or at the entrance to each of the 3 wings. Get a coupon from the machine.
• Exchange the coupon for a Nintendo at the Audioguide counters located at The Group Reception area, under the pyramid or at the top of one of the escalators leading to the 3 wings.
• You must leave a form of ID (passport, drivers license, etc.) as a deposit to guarantee return of the Nintendo.
• You must rent the entire device. You cannot use your own personal Nintendo for the tours.
• Available languages are French, English, Spanish, German, Italian, Japanese and Korean.
• Full Price €5; Under 18 years €3

Bonus: Read about a restored copy of the Mona Lisa that was supposedly painted by an artist sitting next to da Vinci as he created the original. The interactive feature reveals what the masterpiece looks like centuries ago.

This post is part of Travel Photo Thursday on Budget Travelers Sandbox and Friday Daydreamin' at R We There Yet Mom? Check them out for more around-the-world travel inspiration.

A Laugh about Paris Signs

Paris is an exciting place full of bucket list sights to see. Just make sure you keep your eye on the road or else you may end up going in Seine. (Sorry for the pun. I couldn't help myself).

Look! It's the Eiffel Tower!... aaaaaahhhhh.... SPLASH


When you're busy checking Notre Dame off your list, you must absolutely, under no circumstances, wear a hat.

No hats. Seriously. Yes, that counts, too. Take that hat off!


I can't think of something witty to say for the doctored Not Enter/ Wrong Way sign below. It just makes me smile. (But I assure you, something incredibly funny will come to me in the middle of the night.)

Caption contest! Leave your submission in the comments.


This post is part of "Travel Photo Monday" on Travel Photo Discovery. Check it out for more armchair travels.

The Empire of Death

The air around me smelled dank and musty. In the dimly lit tunnel hewn in the limestone, hubby walked with a slight stoop to avoid hitting his head while the kids scampered ahead only to be called back whenever they escaped our view around a turn. Puddles and slick stone floors kept me on my toes as I drew my jacket around me as protection from the chill. Twenty meters (60 feet) above us, the morning sun shone brightly on the bustling streets of Paris' Montparnasse district. But we were far below ground, making our way through the Catacombs that are the final resting place of the bones of 6 million people, more than twice as many as the number living and breathing in Paris today.

A massive web of old limestone quarries spreads out beneath the south side of central Paris. The Romans were the first to excavate the stone to build the ancient city of Lutetia. Mining continued over the centuries, providing the material for Notre Dame, the Louvre, and other Paris buildings. After a while, some tunnels were abandoned and lay empty. Sections began to collapse starting in 1774 and as recently as 1961, engulfing houses, neighborhoods and people.

By the late 18th century, Paris faced a public health problem caused by the high number of burials within the city limits. These stretched as far back as the Merovingian era, over 1,200 years ago. Those who could not afford a proper church burial were put in mass burial sites, their identities forever lost. As the bodies decayed, the putrefied remains seeped into the groundwater which was the source for the city's wells and drinking water. Someone eventually wised up and decreed that all the cemeteries within the city were to be closed and the contents transferred elsewhere.

In an Aha moment, the Police Lieutenant General, Alexandre Lenoir, recommended that the bodies be moved to the abandoned quarries beneath the city.  The tunnels were blessed, and for two years starting in 1786, the skeletal remains were loaded onto horse-drawn wagons at night, covered in black cloth, and escorted to their new resting place by priests singing the burial service. Cemetery items such as urns, crosses, and other memorabilia were also moved into the tunnels.

In 1810, the Inspector General of Quarries decided to make the ossuary into a proper mausoleum and directed the decorative arrangement of bones that began drawing visitors from the very beginning. Napoleon III thought this would be a great father-son outing in 1860.

Carving of the Quartier de Cazerne

As for us, we arrived right at opening time on a summer Sunday morning to wait in line for an hour while they slowly let people into the tunnels. Only 200 people are allowed inside at a time. A tight spiral staircase led us 130 steps beneath the surface, and we strolled through empty tunnels at first that seemed a bit of a let down. At least the slow rate at which they let visitors enter kept the passageways from becoming crowded. We eventually came across centuries-old carvings made by the original miners. The Quartier de Cazerne was created as a tribute to diggers from this district who died while working in the quarries.

Stop! This is the Empire of Death!

Finally, we reached the burial sites. Passing through a doorway topped with a sign warning us to Arrête! C'est ici l'empire de la Mort ("Stop! This is the Empire of Death!"), we continued undeterred to see what lay ahead. The tunnels snaked around, back and forth, leading us through the world of the long dead. I expected it to feel rather macabre, but it wasn't as spooky as I expected. Perhaps it is because I knew that most of these people had died natural deaths way back when short life expectancy was the norm. I think the atmosphere would be quiet different if these were victims of genocide or other brutalities. Knowing that it took centuries for this number of bodies to accumulate gave me solace.

Decorative skeletal facades

Barrel shaped arrangement in the Crypt of the Passion

These weren't just random piles of bones. Skulls and long bones were artistically arranged in facades lining both sides of the tunnels. The remaining bones were piled in a heap 10 feet deep behind them.  No attempt was made to keep a body's skeleton together, probably because they'd been laid to rest collectively in mass burial pits in the first place.



A tidy wall of bones hides the piles behind it.


 Markers identified from which cemetery the remains originated.

Bones of the old St. Laurent cemetery deposited in 1848 in the west ossuary and transferred in 1859.

The mood in the cavern was solemn as befits any burial ground. Carved messages gave me pause and made me think of how fleeting life can be but how death is just a part of the cycle. At least, I think that's what I was supposed to be thinking about. I don't know a lick of French, so I could possibly be totally inventing the meanings. Another sign read "Happy is he who is forever faced with the hour of death and prepares himself for the end every day." That makes me think of the "Now I lay me down to sleep..." prayer with its "... and if I die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take" provision.

This reminds me that a) everything in life is fleeting; and b) I should learn French.

After walking about 2 kilometers (the ossuary encompasses 780 meters of it) over the course of an hour, we emerged from the tunnels by climbing up 83 steps. Blinking in the bright sun, we rejoined the busy world of the living.

IF YOU GO:

• Tickets are 8 Euro; Children under 13 years are free. Not included in the Paris Museum Pass.
• Open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., except Mondays and public holidays. Last admission at 4 p.m.
• Be prepared to wait in line. Arrive no later than 2:30 p.m. or risk not getting in.
• Flash photography is not allowed.
• No toilet or cloakroom facilities are located in the Catacombs.
• Bring a light jacket as the temperature is 14°C (57°F).
• The Catacombs are not accessible to people with reduced mobility.
• If you or your kids are easily spooked, skip this attraction.
• Entrance is directly across the street from the Denfert-Rochereau Métro stop near the traffic circle with the lion statue in the middle
• Exit is at 36 Rue Rémy Demoncel. The closest Métro stops are Alésia and Mouton Duvernet. 
• See the Catacombs website for more information.

Related Posts:
Love Locks Bridge
Parc de la Villette: A Kids' Paradise in Paris
La Géode as big as the Ritz


This post is part of "Travel Photo Thursday" on Budget Travelers Sandbox, "Oh the Places I've Been" on The Tablescaper and on Pret-a-Vivre. Check them out for more around-the-world travel inspiration.

Animal Sightings in Paris

I put in a lot of effort in preparing my children for Paris. They perused Lonely Planet's book Not-for-Parents: Paris (Everything You Ever Wanted to Know) which my daughter loved so much she insisted we bring it everywhere so she could share key parts aloud at the appropriate location mentioned. My son's 7th grade class serendipitously read A Tale of Two Cities. My other boy went through the Louvre Museum app (any excuse to get on the iPhone) to pick out his must-see list. I truly wanted them to be in total awe of all the wonderful sights of PARIS, the legendary City of Light that people travel from all over the world to see.

Yes, they saw all the iconic parts but, being kids, their eyes took in other things, too, like insects, birds, and cats. So, here are a few photographs inspired by my childrens' demands of "Mom, take a picture of that." They are a little part of Paris that the postcards don't usually show.

A butterfly with transparent wings in the Cité des Enfants greenhouse

 

 

Leaf-cutter ants at the Cité des Enfants

 

 

 

My girl spotted this snail on the manicured shrubs outside Versaille

 

 

 

A swan graces the Petit Trianon garden at Versailles

 

 

A cat peeking out of a bistro



Even ducks enjoy the Louvre

Whereas it was the young'ns who pointed out most of these animals, I have to give credit to dear hubby for spotting this goat taking care of the grass in the middle of the very urban, crowded-with-people Tuileries Garden. I fully suspect he intends to jettison the lawn mower when we return to Texas and set us up with a lawn goat instead.




A tethered goat "mows" the sloped lawn at the Tuileries Garden

This post is part of Pret-a-Vivre and "Travel Photo Thursday" on Budget Travelers Sandbox. Check it out for more around-the-world travel inspiration.