"April in Paris (2004)" a Paris Travel Page by aflaneur

I've had the privilege of traveling to Paris several times over the last couple of years, and decided it was time to take the whole family. Packed them up (ages 6/6/8/15) along with a lot of black-on-black-on-black clothes (for that non-specific Parisian look) and rented an apartment in the 5th Arrondissement just off Place St. Michel. This was our base of operations, from which we led the kids on daily walks and Metro rides to the exotic and sometime simply monumental areas of our favorite city. Mastered the Metro, the pleasantries of meeting and greeting people, and the ins and outs of restaurant menus. It was a wonderful trip.

Your quintessential introduction to the city was from our lunch table at Atlitude 95 one-third of the way up the Eiffel Tower, where the kids looked out across the city they come to know over 10 days. Touristy, sure, but one hell of a big picture primer. Over the ensuing days they did all the basics. They climbed the almost 300 steps to the top of the Arc de Triomph, walked the length of the Champs d'Elysee, played with boats at the Tuillieries and Luxembourg Gardens, criss-crossed the Seine a million times, ascended Sacre Coeur, chased pigeons in Place des Vosges, walked the Louvre, loved the impressionists at d'Orsay, decided that whatever it is it is art at Pompidou (althought the 6 year olds agreed that they could figure prominently in the modern art world with their collection currently affixed with magnets to our refrigerator), boated the Seine from the Eiffel Tower to Notre Dame, successfully avoided the minefields of dogs turds, started each day with a fresh croissant and hot chocolate, ended each day with a Nutella crepe, spotted gargoyles at Notre Dame, ate raspberry macaroons at Laduree, took the TGV to Switzerland and back to see the Alps, sent postcards to their friends, and in every way lived life large in the greatest city on the planet.

Paris restaurants were uniformly wonderful experiences for the kids, who were welcomed everywhere. They knew to chirp "Bonjour, Madam (or Monsieur)" or "Bon Soir," and piped in with "Merci" at every opportunity, and always left with "Au Revoir, Madam (or Monsieur)." These few words and acts ensured that they got the smiles and kind words and acts in return, and they loved the bistros, brasseries, boulangeries, patisseries, street carts, kiosks, and restaurants of Paris. The big victory: They didn't even mention the word "McDonald's." As parents, we couldn't be more pleased.