Continued from London Day 4.

Woke up early, got all packed and ready to leave right before 7am. Let’s do this. I think at this stage of our life traveling with 3 kids, we need roughly one hour to get all things ready to get out the door. We thought we could get away with only 30min, but the kids woke up early so we all woke up early. I guess that worked out well.

That little sign that says Goodwin’s Court is the tiny alley where our airbnb is located. It’s a quaint little alley that a lot of tour groups drop by and talk about it. They’ve talked about how the alley inspired some alley in Harry Potter etc. etc. I don’t know if any of it is true, but there are always people everyday coming by to take photos of it.

Still early, London is still empty.

Down the tube we go.

We got on the escalator, and I asked CL to step another step forward so I could have more room for my big backpack…she wouldn’t move. So I ended up going around her and standing below her. Turns out she was really scared of this long escalator.

Quietly freaking out.

This way to the Eurostar.

We got here early enough to sit down and get some breakfast before we get on the train.

Not really any cold brews here in Europe. I guess expressos will be my go to then.

This girl loves butter.

Alright, it’s time to go through security and get on the Eurostar.

Look! Carbon fiber bins!!! Why? No reason. I did have a little bit of a trough time through security with my Swiss army knife, to my surprise. Well, they looked at it and since it doesn’t have a locking blade, it’s ok to go through.

Now we wait in a very crowded departure hall. There’s another train to departs before us, so the moment those people get out of their seats, it’s a mad dash for us with standing room only to find a seat.

Mission accomplished!

Alright, time to get on.

Let’s do this!

Got this and some sandwiches at a shop at the train station.

Not particularly fast right now.

I thought I’d make use of this time for some blogging, but apparently the wifi on the Eurostar is as worthless as the wifi in our airbnb in London. Time for plan B, take a nap instead.

I fell asleep and slept through the whole time we were in the chunnel. Now we are in France.

Hey kids, we are in Paris now! I think it’s been 16 years since I’ve was here last.

Down we go to the Metro. But wait, the kids needs to use the restrooms. While some of the kids use the restrooms, PL is standing guard over all of our luggage.

And while that’s happening, I’m here at the ticket counter buying our metro cards. Sucks that we can’t just tap in and tap out with our credit cards like so many places now.

Line for toilet, and not only that, one euro each to get in.

This is the run down unkempt Paris metro that I remember.

Got in at Gare du Nord, getting off at Les Halles.

Les Halles has changed a lot since I was last here. They’ve demolished the whole complex and now have built an underground mall…

Just getting above ground, Eglise Saint Eustache. Still looks exactly the same as 16 years ago. I guess some things don’t change as quickly.

It’s sunny and warm here in Paris. It still looks like the Paris that I remember, which is to say, lovely. I really enjoyed the city last time I was here.

It’s Sunday and there’s a farmers market of some sort going on. They are just about to close shop.

Found our airbnb.

The outside facade looks relatiely new, but the staircase inside shows the true age of the build, the bones are really old.

We’ve got the penthouse unit and it’s broken up into two floors. There’s one lower bedroom by the entrance and the rest of the unit is above those stairs to the right. This is what $1,538 a night gets you in Paris a very short walk to Les Halles station.

This is pretty cool.

I got this to eat on the train ride, but I napped instead. I guess it’s a good time to eat it now.

At first, it was stressful because our wifi wouldn’t work. Fuck, this is even worse than London. Then the staff informed me that I should try connecting to one of the other units in the building since they are all run by the same airbnb company. Cool, that solves the issue and it’s fast!! I’m happy not have to take hours and hours just to upload the photos.

Alright, we are going to chill for just a little bit, then we need to go out to see two very important things today this afternoon.

View of Eglise Saint Eutache from our windows. Reminds me of our hotel in Barcelona where we had a view of a church.

Really cool unit, but I can see us running our heads into these slanted walls. Oh yeah, the staff also informed us that the TV isn’t working and they are working on fixing it…

One of the kids rooms.

We shall have breakfast on that little terrace.

Me and RL’s room.

And…the scary steps down into the bathroom in our room. RL is really worried that one of us will trip on the stairs going to use the restroom in the middle of the night. I guess that’s a legit worry.

Down the stairs.

Bottom bedroom with ensuite bathroom. This will make a good home base for us for the next 6 nights.

Alright, time to head out. It’s a little bit after 2pm, and we’ve got two sights to see before the end of the day that’s time sensitive.

Cool, a little convenience store right around the corner. This will be useful.

Low rider LR Sport. They are still taking down the farmers market.

Gonna catch the metro for a few stops.

We are here, close to the Latin quarters. For some reason, I”ve always thought Latin Quarters would look different than this…I don’t know where I get that idea, but I just did. I just thought it would have smaller and more narrow streets. Maybe that’s the case when we go a few more streets over…

Turned the corner and our destination is in sight, The Pantheon.

Toot!

It’s hot here in Paris. We are very aware of walking on the side with the shade.

What’s this super long line for?

Oh, it’s just for ice cream…

It’s a seriously long line…really, can it really be that good to wait in this stupid long line?

A little behind the Pantheon is Eglise Sait Etienne du Mont, which we’ll be visiting right after the Pantheon.

Oh look, you can see the Eiffel Tower from here.

Line was short, I had pre-brought the tickets to come in.

It’s certainly impressive inside. PL certainly looks impressed in this photo.

Foucault pendulum is still here swinging away. I wonder who is responsible for setting it up daily and how do you make sure that it swings straight when you first set it off?

RL and her tile pictures.

Continued at Paris Day 1 Part 2.