On Sunday we Ubered over to lower Manhattan and started off at the charging bull in the financial district.
Tourists rub this enlarged appendage for good luck in the stock market.
Then we visited Trinity Church and found the Hamiltons’ grave sites!
Then we walked over to the National Museum of the American Indian.
the beautiful rotunda
Clarissa found all sorts of displays that matched the cards on her treasure hunt
Abe fell in love with the work of Oscar Howe. I loved what I saw but rushed through the exhibit trying to keep up with Ammon.
After the museum we headed over to Battery Park.
We got a kick out of how similar the carousel in Battery Park is to the CoC temple in Missouri!
I told the kids we have ancestors who came over in the potato famine.
Magical carousel.
The kids really liked the carousel, especially Ammon and Clarissa:
Then we headed over the 9/11 memorials. We saw the fountains, the Oculus, and ate lunch at Oculus. We had dessert at Eataly.
Lydia remembered reading a book about this heroic fireman who kept a bandana in his pocket.
The Oculus.
Eataly.
Then we headed over to the 9/11 museum.
We spent hours in this museum and could have used at least another. The exhibits are incredibly well done.
Then we headed to our hotel to grab our bags. It was windy waiting for the airport shuttle so the kids huddled together.
Then it was time to fly home! Tom and Suzanne went out of their way to park our car in a spot very close to the airport exit. Since it was almost midnight when we arrived, we were very grateful for the shorter walk.
This was one of our favorite trips of all time. What a great day to conclude it!
On our last day in Paris we checked out of our hotel, the Hotel Saint-Germain. We walked to the Museum of Natural History and ate one last breakfast at a boulangerie with some outdoor seating en route.
We arrived at the Jardin des Plants, one of the strong settings in one of my favorite novels, All the Light We Cannot See. This was a trip loosely based around the book because in St. Malo we were constantly talking about that novel too. But it was so fun to walk through the Jardin des Plants and arrive at the hall of mineralogy! That is a major part of the novel, and Mary said it was her favorite place of the entire trip.
Our kids playing in the jardin des plantes
Then we toured the onsite enormous greenhouse:
Afterward we walked to the Seine, stopped at a playground, and then bought gifts for friends at the bookseller stalls along the river.
We were decision-fatigued from all of the restaurant choices and made a bad choice for lunch. But it was nice to get out of the heat, and the kids tried their first escargot. Mary refused.
After we got one last ice cream.
Then we caught a taxi to the airport. In the car, people did created dances inspired by different (often every-day) activities:
When we arrived we realized we had left the laptop bag at the hotel! Luckily we were early enough that Abe had time to go back, grab the bag, and come back in time to get the flight. Some angel attendant helped me get everyone and everything else checked in the meantime.
The kids were exhausted when we landed in New York. The whole airtrain-to-shuttle-to-hotel route was way too much to ask on top of their initial level of fatigue, but they made it through (with Ammon and Clarissa sobbing almost the whole time).
They slept through the entire night and so did almost all of the rest of us. That was amazing because it was our first night back in the States!
On Friday we got in our car and drove from Basel to Paris. We loved that there were no signs on the French highways except for the artistic posters announcing each town, but in that visually decluttered environment it was hard for us to figure out where to pull off for food. We ended up making a long detour that seemed to take us to the middle of nowhere but dropped us off across the highway from a fast food and gas center. Abe and Mary walked across the bridge and picked up some food for us, and then we continued on to the airport to return our rental car.
After dropping off our car we taxied to Paris to our hotel, which I had booked in a more central location than last time. We dropped off our stuff and headed out to the Luxembourg Gardens which were relatively close.
It was really hot so we got the kids ice cream and water.
At the gardens.
The kids spent an hour playing with boats.
Lydia’s boat kept getting stuck in the middle of the fountain.
Here are a bunch of videos about the mini-sailboat fun everyone had:
Afterward the kids played in a playground and I eavesdropped on the Italian tourists behind me. One of the reasons I love Europe is because I get to practice different languages at the same time. I would love, love, love to spend enough time there to finally get fluent in at least one of them someday.
Then we walked to dinner. We ate crepes just as good as the ones in Brittany, although I think St. Malo restaurants have better ambience. At least they are more shady and less crowded than Paris (and I happened to sweat a lot less there).
Veggie crepe.
Then we walked home and went to bed. Our hotel could only put three people in a room at a time so we split up for the night.
Today was my FAVORITE day of the whole entire trip. I absolutely loved Germany, and spending a day there with Anthony, Malika and their kids was the greatest. No amount of blog raving will do the day justice–it included delicious food, a great museum/furniture store, fun for the kids in the form of an incredible slide, and a swim in the Rhine!!! That could not be topped.
The fabulously comfortable chair Malika told us about.
pretending to have a board meeting.
The slide! The kids and dads went down a lot.
We pretended to have a board meeting in one of their innovative conference sofas
After the Vitra design stop, went to a giant slide. The kids went nuts for it, especially Ammon and Clarissa. Clarissa was scared at first and hilariously screamed the whole way down. This video is of her second way down (she’s on Abe’s lap):
The kids also played a little at a playground in Vitra.
Then we drove to a nearby German town for lunch and cake. Afterward we took a short walk on a nearby hill leading to a forest and then picked flowers at a nearby flower-field that sold pick-your-own flowers.
There were wild blackberries and raspberries all around. We also bought fresh produce including blackberries and raspberries on our way out.
picking raspberries by the road.
wonderful fountain.
on our after lunch walk.
picking gladiolas to bring home.
Malika arranging flowers.
Malika’s arrangement matches her dad’s artwork on the walls.
Then Malika and I took the bus down to where people get into the river. It was the highlight of the whole trip for me. The weather was absolutely perfect. I love being in natural water, and that I was in the Rhine made it all the more exciting. Also I enjoy talking with Malika so much. She is so intelligent and wise, and I learn so much from her. It was just the greatest float!
On the bank of the Rhine before walking in to float in it!
At home Abe and Anthony were playing games with the kids and eating pizza. After our swim we had some pizza and then I took pictures of some of the books on their bookshelf so I could remember to check them out when we got home. I also took pictures of Anthony and Malika’s books.
The kids made grape juice from their vines.
Tasting the juice.
Our kids adored Emile and Amalia, and they could not stop talking about them for the rest of the trip. I loved seeing the circle of friendship continue. This was the true highlight of the trip for me–the best day in a series of truly incredible days!
This is Abe interjecting here. Tonight after the kids went down, Anthony and I went on a run at night through the forest. We stayed on the wider paths and the moon was nearly full, so lighting worked out even though it was night. It felt like old times as we used to run together. We talked and got caught up on life. After running we went back to his place and sat on the porch and talked all about life, facing death, religion, my spiritual journey, Anthony’s journey in Switzerland and his trying to decide if he wants to make more friends and more. It was a solid heart-to-heart and it left me loving him even more than before (if that’s possible). Anthony is such a good dude, and I can’t believe I’ve had the gift of having his close friendship since first grade. My time with him tonight was super special and a highlight of the trip for me.
As Lily loves windows, here is her beloved window view in the Swiss Airbnb. We stayed in Basel just a block away from Anthony and Malika.
And here is the front door. Isn’t it cute?
Anthony and Malika were the most incredible hosts. They fed us a wonderful breakfast before we headed out for the day.
Our first activity was at the paper museum, but we needed to cross the Rhine to get there.
We saw a lot of people floating down the Rhine. Lily especially was excited at the idea, and it gave her an idea for the next day.
We found this incredible model of Basel for blind people. Their are braille labels and buildings so blind people can get a sense of the city and what is where. In All the Light You Cannot See, Marie Laure’s father makes her a models of the cities they live in to help her navigate the cities. It was awesome to see a real one of those.
The paper museum was a blast. Gutenberg invented the printing press near Basel, so not only was Basel one of the first big printing cities, but it also was big into paper production once demand went up from the printing press. It was amazing to see how some of the machines worked in the olden days.
All of the kids got to make their own paper from old jeans. We learned later that in the early days of European paper, paper was made from old clothes and rope. They would be put in rotting cellars until they got damp, rotten and even moldy. As the cloth started to decompose, it would break up and be great for making pulp for the paper.
We also go to use a real quill pen!
When we were finished inside the museum, all the kids and me did some marbling.
In order from left to right and top to bottom: Lydia, Mary, Clarissa, Ammon
Switzerland has these awesome small public pools all around that people can just dip in as they are going about their day. It was so fun, and refreshing as the weather was quite hot!
This was such interesting fountain they took us to. Apparently this is from a famous artist who made art out of junk.
I believe the same artist also made this sculpture. Anthony said that public urination is a problem in Basel and the inside of this sculpture often smells like pee. To our surprise we also found what appeared to be human poop in there. Yeah, that is a small problem. Basel overall was very clean, but Anthony said that the rest of Switzerland views Basel as the dirtiest city.
Anthony also said that every February, Basil has a massive carnival and people start drinking and partying at 4:00 AM. I’m sure that adds to the problems of people needing places to pee. So the city put up make-shift potties, even branding them with images of carnival goers to suggest their extra importance during carnival.
Apparently, needing places to urinate was also an ancient problem, and around Basil there are ancient public bathrooms.
apparently, these mailboxes were made famous by a novel. I’m not sure which one….
As we were walking Lily and the kids interacted with what Lily said was the cutest dog she had ever seen. Mary got some sweet licks from that adorable dog.
It’s a Sptiz Pomeranian that the owner bought at an Italian farm
We then spent time around Basel’s main ancient church building.
We crossed back over the Rhine and went back to Anthony and Malika’s place where they fed us the most delicious pasta with mushroom sauce.
Afterwards the kids all played in the yard while Lily and I relaxed in the yard.
I also played in the sandbox with Ammon which was really fun. We made pastries out of sand.
I can’t remember why Clarissa was so sad. She probably didn’t want to go when it was time.
After leaving Anthony’s we went to a nearby park for the kids to play at before bed-time. We had lots of fun with their swing.
We are so grateful to Anthony and Malika who fed us, showed us around, and gave all of us such great company with their family. We loved this day. It was one of our favorites of the whole trip!
We said goodbye to the beautiful chateau we had been staying at. Actually, the part we stayed in was originally a stable, but it had been remodeled to be a beautiful living space. Lily was particularly in love with the place (especially her window view) and she took these pictures to help her remember a place so special to her.
We then left to Chambord. On the way, we captured this picture and video of the sunflowers that we’d seen so much in the Loire valley.
Also, we stopped at a boulangerie for lunch. It was delicious!
I absolutely loved Chombord. The castle was so quirky. It was originally built in a swamp by Francis I, the same king who invited Leonardo da Vinci to live in France as his guest. The castle features a lot of influence from Leonardo and some people speculate he helped design it. The most obvious example of this is the double-helix staircase in the middle of the castles. Leonardo was obsessed with spirals and he thought that on some level they were a source of life. Also the entire part of the chateau around the staircase is made to look a bit like a machine or invention, which seems to nod to da Vinci.
But the thing that was most interesting to me is that the palace was never used much even though it is the largest in Loire valley (I think around 380 rooms). Francis 1 built it in the marsh because it is a good hunting area and he loved to hunt. But he was always traveling around and only stayed in it 4 times before he died. Later, it was gifted to an exiled Polish king who lived there 8 years and then up and left it with not regret because he did not like it there. Other people lived there too, but a common complaint was the mosquitos in the summer and the fierce winters. So it was only used sporadically and when Versailles was built, it no longer was as interesting to people and it went into decline until it was later restored. Also, because different people took interest in it at different times, it has different phases and styles built into it over time. It’s a bit wonky and Frankensteinish in my opinion, and I love it!
It’s a fascinating chateau. Here are some pictures!
Theater stageThis was the queen’s bedroom. If I remember correctly, she thought it was cold and draft and never liked the place.
Double-helix staircase.
We also visited this room and learned about how during World War II, France used Chambord as a staging and distribution center for relocating famous art so it would be protected from the Nazis. The Mona Lisa also has spent some time here.
Amazing gardens, but honestly we are garden snobs after Villandry. We were really hot too and so we didn’t walk through the gardens.
Then Lydia found a sweatshirt in the gift shop! She has persistently been seeking out a sweatshirt throughout the trip. She looked in multiple gift shops in St. Malo to no avail. And then she found the perfect pink sweatshirt at Chambord. It was so important to her and we were all so happy for her. Yay Lydia!
Also, Lily and the kids have been really great about writing post cards. Chambord had a mail box, so they all wrote and mailed more post cards.
After Chambord, we jumped in the car to drive to Switzerland to stay with our friends Anthony and Malika.
Ammon and Clarissa were tuckered after all the walking at Chambord. Because my back was still hurting from carrying Clarissaa too much earlier in the trip, I made her walk the whole way.
Lydia and Mary still had energy though 🙂
Around 7:00 we stopped in Dole for some food. We struggled to find a place to eat until we stumbled upon downtown and found a really good restaurant. Downtown Dole was so charming.
While eating, we heard music and wandered over to the street entertainers putting on a show for a crowd. We watched for a bit and enjoyed the view of the basilica before returning to our car.
The drive to Switzerland felt long, and I was tired, but I really enjoyed listening to the Sam Harris and All-in podcasts. I enjoyed even more talking about current events and the economy with the family. We pulled in around midnight and Anthony was so nice to wait for us. He had just gotten home from the United States with his family the day before! He had also helped line up our Airbnb for which we were grateful. I slept at his place after helping to get the kids down since there weren’t enough beds in the Airbnb.
So, Lily is ever the undaunted adventurer. Even though she caught what I had and was now in the throws of sickness herself, she has felt so alive in Europe and wanted the full itinerary. And so, we did A TON today.
“…at age 65 Leonardo accepted the invitation of the young King Francis I to enter his service in France. At the end of 1516 he left Italy forever, together with Melzi, his most devoted pupil. Leonardo spent the last three years of his life in the small residence of Cloux (later called Clos-Lucé), near the king’s summer palace at Amboise on the Loire. He proudly bore the title Premier peintre, architecte et méchanicien du Roi (“First painter, architect, and engineer to the King”).”
We first started in the gardens. It was neat to see da Vinci was interested in botany. They also had a lot of models of his inventions around the gardens so that was also fun.
We then toured da Vinci’s home:
After touring his home, we went to the exhibit about all his various inventions. I was interested to learn that a lot of his inventions were for militaristic purposes. For example, he invented a machine gun and an armored tank. He also made designs for a parachute, an automobile, bicycle, and a device for humans to fly. I don’t know how many of his inventions were ultimately used or made, but it was all very fascinating.
After leaving da Vinci’s retirement estate, we went to the Château de Chenonceau. It is one of the most famous Chateaus in the Loire valley because of how early it was originally built, how beautiful it is, and also because of the people who lived there. Henry II gave it to Diane, his mistress, so she could live there. When Henry II died, his wife, Catherine de Medici, kicked Diane out and took over the palace.
Here are some pictures of our visit:
Henry famously had this emblem of H & C in Diana’s bedroom. The Cs are designed to actually reflect a “D” for Diana.
This long hallway reminded us of the hall of mirrors in Versailles. This is the hallway over the water, but it reminded us of the hall of mirrors because it is a long hallway with many exterior windows to catch the breeze.
Lily really liked this inscription from one of the royal guards
Such a stunning Chateau!
We adored walking through the forrests as we took the scenic route back to our car.
Afterwards, we went to one more Chateau: Villandry. It is famous for its gardens. And deservedly so!! It is a top 3 highlight for my entire trip. We were blown away by the magnificence of these incredible gardens. Here are the pictures:
Aerial photo of the gardens
grape trellises
There was even a maze built from shrubs!
Herb garden
Beauty looking over beauty:
After being stunned by the gardens at Villandry, we went to a mushroom cave. I was soooo fascinated. First of all, the cave was created several hundred years ago from people quarrying limestone for the various chateaus and structures in the surrounding areas. Later on, the quarry was repurposed as a mushroom cave because of its stable temperatures. We learned all about the science of growing mushrooms. Shitake mushrooms only grow on oak bark, so they have to mix oak bark into the soil mixture (which I think might include manure) so those mushrooms will grow. Today the cave is not up to full production like it used to be, but it still makes a lot of mushrooms and serves them in various forms in their gift shop and also at their restaurant which we were able to eat at.
The mushroom dishes were divine!
Back at our chateau, our host gave us fresh eggs from their chickens. What a treat! We had them for breakfast the next day.
Today was one of my favorite days of the whole trip. Not only was I feeling better from my sickness, but the things we saw were all highlights for me. I’m so grateful for Lily who is the most amazing trip planner. By being linked to the ultimate adventurer, I find myself having the most amazing experiences. I love you babe!
We started the day by riding the glass elevator again and waiting in a very long line to see Chinon Castle. There was a medieval fair going on in the castle which made it a more popular destination than normal. It is the castle where Joan of Arc first met the Dauphin and got his permission to lead an army to free France.
There were incredible views from the castle tower. Inside the castle there were many galleries exploring medieval life in the media. We bought Ammon and Clarissa some medieval apparel which they enjoyed for the rest of the day.
After the castle, we headed over to Chateau D’Usse, which is the Sleeping Beauty Castle. Inside they have rooms that tell the Sleeping Beauty story, which the kids enjoyed. They also have rooms that show how occupants of the Chateau lived during its glory days.
We loved the cedars of Lebanon.
Abe loves walls with stuff growing on them.
After the chateau we went back to our Airbnb to relax during the heat of the day. I was reading a guidebook to the Loire Valley and discovered that there were mushroom caves nearby. They closed within the hour, but if we hurried we could make it and see if they would take us in the restaurant.
They were completely booked for the restaurant, but they did reserve a table for us for the next day. We spent the next two and a half hours wandering around the mushroom town and then back in Chinon trying to find a restaurant that wasn’t “complet.” The kids were crying so we got them ice cream to tide them over until we could find something open. (Even the grocery stores were all closed.)
Finally we discovered a fast food place that was open. By that point it was past 9pm and everyone was also tired. When the food finally arrived the kids were too tired to eat.
As of the previous night, I was starting to feel really sick. Still, I rallied because I didn’t want us to miss the medieval market in Chinon, just ten minutes from our chateaux where we were staying. The town is incredible. It is an ancient town with some buildings almost 1,000 years old.
The people of Chinon seem to really appreciate their roots. There were a lot of people dressed up for this medieval market.
This is a peanut machine. I have no idea what it was, but I thought it looked really neat and old.
Here is a video of us walking around the market:
We also saw some awesome musicians and belly dancers:
We also got crepes for the kids.
It was so fun to walk around the market. One thing I noticed was how many people were in deep conversations. No one, not one person that I remember was on their phone. Just people talking, and being a community and enjoying each other. I’m sure some of the people were tourists, but Chinon is not a huge tourist destination, so I think a lot of it was just the local culture and people I was appreciating. The vibe of socializing and community was wonderful even if our family was just observing.
After the market, we went home and I rested in bed and blogged. I really felt quite sick. I think Lily spent time in and near the pool while the kids got their much coveted screen time (as they have not used them much at all this trip except for plain rides). Also, Lily did a ton of laundry which was a huge gift as people were starting to run out of things.
On Friday we woke up, packed up our things and spent one last morning in St. Malo. We picked up some pastries and sandwiches from the bakery by the city gates, and we brought them to the beach. Ammon, Mary and Clarissa all ate their food quickly so they could spend time playing in the sand. The tide came up so quickly that within an hour their sand castle was washed away and the water was lapping at the brick ramp at the base of the city walls!
Meanwhile Lydia and Abe were hunting in St. Malo for a sweatshirt, which they were unable to find. When the tide came fully up, we walked back to the car and started the drive to Chinon.
We had never seen fields upon fields of sunflowers before, and it was incredible to see how many sunflowers are grown in the Loire valley.
We were absolutely delighted by our Airbnb in Chinon, although we didn’t take pictures of it that day. After settling in we took a brief dip in the pool and relaxed after the drive.
Then we drove to dinner. We went to a pop-up restaurant recommended by our Airbnb host. The ambience was fantastic, but everyone was still hungry because the plates were so teeny tiny.
After these appetizers we drove to Chinon and found a pizza place on the town square. My four cheese pizza was one of my favorite things I ate the entire trip. It had a local chèvre, reblochon, mozzarella, and some type of green or blue cheese. So yummy.
Abe was starting to get sick, so after we went home and headed straight to bed. Clarissa claimed the princess bed and Lydia as her bed buddy, while Clarissa and Ammon shared the adorable upstairs bedroom down the hall from ours.
