Paris

So we went to Paris for a whole week for hubby's 30th birthday.  We went with his dad and step mom.  Paris was great, I loved going but the Parisians seem to have no concept of being baby-friendly. 

Here in America, parents don't think twice about taking our children anywhere.  We know there will be a high chair for us to use in most if not all restaurants and we also know that if a diaper change is needed there will be a changing table in most of the places we go.  So when we got to Paris, I was shocked and amazed that most places didn't have changing tables and high chairs to use.  I think I found 1 changing tables while in Paris and one was nothing more than a converted broom closet with barely enough room to lay the kid down to change her.  Everywhere else only had a WC, where I would stand Zoe up on the toilet and change her diaper (so glad she can stand by herself).  As for high chairs, I only saw them in McDonald's...go figure. 

As anyone who has been to Paris knows, Paris is a walking city.  Meaning that everything is accessible by walking.  You can rent bikes near some metro stations, ride the metro, or take the ferries down the river but essentially you walk everywhere...only Parisians should drive around the city!!!  Most of the places we walked to were stroller friendly but there were times when I thought our little umbrella stroller would not survive the trip.  Also there are a lot of stairs.  Stairs to get to the metro, stairs to get down to the river, stairs to get on the ferry, stairs to go in to buildings...you get the picture.  There are some elevators but they are the size of closest.  The one elevator that we used on a regular basis could fit 3 adults and the baby in her stroller comfortably.  As the mother of a very active 14 month old, I can honestly say that walking around all day with a 14 month old strapped in her stroller makes a very unhappy toddler.  There are parks in Paris to run around in but they are nothing like the grass filled parks that we have here.  They actually remind me of the very prim and proper English gardens where one should stroll along the gravel path and take in the beauty of the manicured gardens.  Grassy areas are fenced off and children play on gravel paths...lovely.  The Luxembourg Gardens are know for being "children friendly" but only if your child is I would say school age.  

My advice for anyone wanting to go to Paris and maybe any other European country, would be to go with your significant other and leave the children at home.  Or if you like me and don't want to leave the children at home wait until they are potty trained and have the ability to understand that hands must be held while walking near busy streets.

All in all, I truly enjoyed my trip to Paris.  Going with Zoe was definitely an adventure that made us happy, frustrated, sad and mad but if I had to do it again I would definitely go with Zoe again.   Will write more about traveling with my little munchkin later...Cheers!!