Yesterday on the plane, #1BigBrother was a bit upset when that pesky “Captain” kept interrupting the sound on his show.

“Why do they always have to talk about safety?” he blurted out for everyone on the plane to hear.

I fully expected everyone to awake at 4am, ready to party thanks to East Coast hours… but the travel gods came through with the kids sleeping a full 13 hours and only showing signs of life around 9:30 am Paris time.

Last night Amir and I snagged some milk and bread on the way home. Breakfast this morning was easy – toast with your choice of strawberry preserves, Nutella or soft cheese. And coffee, lots of coffee.

We’d planned to go to the Palais de Garnier first thing, but our unanticipated late start cut the morning short. With lunch reservations at noon, we decided to take a slow walk up Rue Blanche towards our lunch destination, Pink Mamma.

Ale, our au pair, cheated and went to Paris ahead of us back in March. *But* she’d meant to visit one of the world’s most beautiful Starbucks but had the first ever Google Maps fail which took her to the wrong spot. So of course, we had to correct the missed moment.

After caffeine for the adults and fruit smoothies for the kids, we were powered up for our walk to Pink Mamma, the Instagramable eclectic Italian spot with a glass roof and miss-matched picture frames.

Two of our best friends from residency, Lety and Peter, happen to also be in Paris after attending a wedding. We didn’t plan to overlap – just a happy accident. What does it say about our schedules that it was easier to get all 10 of us together for lunch abroad than back home?

We ordered the famous truffle pasta, spaghetti a la scampi, burrata with tomato sauce and pizza for the kids. Everything was excellent. Oh, plus a few cocktails.

After Pink Mamma we walked to towards the Basilica of Sacré Coeur de Montmartre, a Catholic Church built in the late 19th century, so relatively old by European standards. They chose the spot in Montmartre due to its elevation and breathtaking views of the city below. The site is accessible to all – strollers, wheelchairs and pedestrians thanks to the Faniculare Montmartre, an inclined transport system originally built in 1900, that takes you to the top. Of course there’s always the old fashioned way to the top. And for Peter, next to those 911 staircase climbs, he opted to go by foot – and beat us there.

The climb was worth it – even for Peter. While a bit crowded, the view gave back in spades. Love locks on the fences surrounded the perimeter, and a popsicle vendor made even our youngest travelers happy.

Right where the Faniculare drops off, there’s an authentic two-story carousel. The ride was a bit short in this mom’s opinion, but the kids loved every minute.

Despite pure exhaustion, #1BigBrother insisted we ride the train. If it hadn’t been for our trip to Florence last year where we rode all the things, I may have objected saying it was too touristy.

We parted ways with our friends at the train – everyone exhausted and looking for different things. We may reconnect tomorrow for a picnic in the park. Lots of room for the kids to run around, and for parents to enjoy catching up in a far away place.

Some odds & ends below…

~Steph

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by TeamLouka (@teamlouka)