Trip of a Lifetime

 There is absolutely no way that I can sum up my mom and my AMAZING trip to Paris in a blog post, but I will try to hit on the highlights. This trip was three years in the making, and it lived up to everything we dreamed about. I am incredibly lucky to have spent this special week with my mom.

The adventure started out with fireworks when we were able to upgrade to First Class for our plane ride to Paris. My mom had looked into it before, but the price was astronomical. When we asked about it during check-in, it was a fraction of the cost, and we could not hand over the credit card fast enough to secure our seats!

I told Mom during the flight that I would be perfectly happy just flying around for a week because our seats were that spectacular. Between a four course dinner complete with endless wine refills to sleeping in a completely flat bed once the seat was reclined down, we were completely spoiled. It will be hard to fly any other way ever again! :)

We easily arrived at our hotel, and it was Parisian perfection. All the rooms were small, and our luggage was an obstacle to maneuvering, but all the details were beautiful and the staff could not have been more helpful.

We grabbed a quick nap to adjust to the time change and headed out to our first dinner in France.

Mom and I did not set an alarm that night and both slept until noon the following day! We met our Rick Steves tour group later and explored our local neighborhood, enjoyed a bus ride of Paris, and got to know each other over dinner. There were 24 Americans in the group, and we were the only southerners. 

I was able to spend my 38th birthday in Paris this year, and on Monday we had a walking tour of the historic heart of the city. It was a rainy day, but we took in a lot of gorgeous places. Probably the most breathtaking thing we saw during the entire trip was the exquisite Sainte-Chapelle with its beautiful stained glass windows. 

A downpour ended our tour early, but the weather improved for dinner that night. We grabbed some pictures at the Eiffel Tower to remember this dreamy birthday!

We found the Bistro Saint Dominique near our hotel for a delicious meal, including escargot. The tables in Paris are so close that you are practically eating with the company next to you, and we quickly made friends with a mother/daughter duo from Australia. We enjoyed sharing stories about home and discussing our Paris trip. 

The next day in Paris proved to be my favorite tour of the trip: Montmarte. We had a local guide that described all the history of the famous artists that started in the neighborhood, including Van Gogh and Picasso.

I am sure it comes as no surprise that shopping was the highlight of traveling 3,000+ miles to Paris. Mom and I acted like euros were Monopoly money and splurged on some goodies from France. :)

The day wrapped up with a group dinner and a night cruise on the Seine River.

Day 4 proved to be our most exhausting day as we toured the Marais District and a guided tour of the Louve. It was a lot of walking, but it was worth every step.

I had to snap a picture of the Mona Lisa for the kids. I heard it was very small and unimpressive in person, and in my opinion, that was true. There were so many more stunning pieces of art that did not require standing in line for 30 minutes to see!

We found a local pizza place for an early dinner and were in bed by 5:30! We slept FOURTEEN hours after this busy day!

Paris threw us a curve ball on Day 5 with our reservation to Versailles. There was a transportation strike in Paris, so the metro was affected. The palace opted to stay closed until later in the afternoon, so we did not have the time to wait around for the opportunity to visit. We did have a lovely tour of the city from a local guide and a yummy crepe for lunch. At this point Mom and I felt comfortable with exploring the city on our own, and we spent the afternoon on Rue Cler shopping, eating, and taking in all that Paris has to offer.

Our final day on the tour kept us busy with visits to both the Orsay Museum and the Orangerie Museum. The weather finally warmed up, and the sun came out. It was a spectacular finish to Paris.

We took the scenic route home from the museums and felt very proud that we could trek around the city on our own!

Wow! What a special and unforgettable trip with my mom. These are memories that will last forever, and I am so thankful for this time with my favorite person in Paris.