The Louvre With Kids

I am not a huge art museum buff so I can hardly expect my kids to be.  My husband has more patience for museums than I do, and my daughter has the patience of a saint in all things.  My son, besides being a restless growing boy, probably gets his interest in art museums from me, but even he knows that when you're in Paris you don't miss the Louvre.

My son was 11 and my daughter was 14 the first time we visited Paris as a family, so we didn't have the concerns one might have visiting the Louvre with younger children such as losing them, tantrums, or touching the exhibits.  But really, I wouldn't worry much about those things even if you are visiting with little ones - the Louvre is loud, so tantrums would go virtually unnoticed.  The galleries and passageways are mostly very large and spacious so there's no worries about bumping into any precious art.

Touring the Louvre on a full stomach is definitely a good idea since there's so much ground to cover, so we grabbed some McDonalds (what? in Paris? that's a crime!) and sat in the Tuileries Garden in front of the museum to eat.  There is a reasonably priced food court inside the Louvre (in the Galerie du Carrousel) if you prefer, but we wanted to enjoy the beautiful garden a bit.

We had previously purchased the Paris Museum Pass (currently 39€ per adult for a 2-day pass) which is exceptionally invaluable for the reason that it permits the holder to skip lines.  The lines for admission to the Louvre can be horrendous, so do consider the pass.  A regular ticket to the Louvre is 11€ per adult, free to all under 18.  (We made sure to get our money's worth for the Museum Pass by later visiting St. Chapelle, the Notre Dame archeological crypt, and the Musée d'Orsay.)

There are several entrances into the Louvre museum:  the main one through the famous glass pyramid (always the most crowded although you can skip the line with a Paris Museum Pass), the Galerie du Carrousel entrance, the Porte des Lions (closed on Fridays), and Passage Richelieu only if you have a pass.  Entering through the Galerie du Carrousel is interesting for kids:

A fantastic exhibit inside the museum for younger people, I think, is the Egyptian collection because the objets d'art are mostly very large, 3D, and include mummies (even a mummified cat), which always fascinate kids.  The Egyptian antiquities are located on the ground floor as well as the 2nd floor (known as the 1st floor in Europe).

Very small children will obviously not enjoy intricate displays in glass enclosures which they are not even tall enough to see, nor will they have too much appreciation for oil paintings and such, but you might engage them with a scavenger hunt - "find all the horses in this room" - or by letting them draw or color things they see (be prepared by bringing drawing paper and crayons).  The Louvre offers a guided treasure hunt tour for families called Paris Muse Clues:  A Family Tour for Young Treasure Hunters, but it's very expensive (290€ for a family of 4 for two hours!)

The Louvre does not prohibit photography so another idea to keep your child interested is to give them the camera to shoot things they like.  You can then look at the photographs later together and perhaps provoke some art discussion.

My kids stopped at several works of art and exclaimed, "Hey!  I think I've seen this one somewhere before!" which can momentarily make a mom real proud until you realize it was probably in a cartoon or video game.

My son thought he'd seen Da Vinci's
La Belle Ferronnière somewhere before.

Seeing the Mona Lisa was a big moment for them, because every child recognizes her.  It's hard to get a good photo because there are always large crowds and because the bullet-proof glass is reflective:

You can't get very close to Mona Lisa.

Be sure you and your family look up once in awhile because the museum ceilings can be exquisite.

All in all I think families with kids of any age have something to enjoy and learn by visiting the Louvre.

Stunning sculpture gallery in the Louvre.

It's important to know that the Louvre is closed on Tuesdays and least crowded on Wednesday and Friday evenings.  Admission is discounted every evening after 6:00 p.m.  The museum is free on the first Sunday of every month and on July 14.

Renting an Apartment in Tarifa, Spain

It's usually my job to research and reserve our vacation hotels and apartments, but since it was my husband's idea to windsurf in Tarifa, Spain, and I wasn't sure exactly where he wanted to be located for this adventure, I left this booking up to him.  And he did a very fine job!  Our large, sunny apartment right on the beach was terrific.

View from our balcony in Tarifa.

An apartment, rather than a hotel, was exactly what we needed in Tarifa because having a kitchen after a tiring day of activity means being able to quietly cook and eat a large pot of spaghetti for dinner on the balcony, instead of heading out again to sit at a restaurant.  The large and always busy Supermercado right in town is convenient for just about everything one needs in Tarifa.

The kitchen in our Tarifa apartment.

Enjoying meals on our balcony.

The teeny bedroom with bunk beds is perfect for the kids, and the separate bedroom for parents is nice.

The living room leads out to the balcony, from which we enjoyed beautiful sunsets every evening.

The apartment units surround a small (unheated) swimming pool with toilet facilities and a well-kept grassy lawn.  The Costa de la Luz beach in front of the complex is sandy and wide; a paved walking promenade heads all the way into the center of town, a little over a mile away.

Notice the washing machine in the kitchen photo?  A washing machine is a necessity when you're spending four days in the sun and sand, but do you know what is an even greater necessity?  Electrical power to operate the washing machine.  Yes, as you travel deeper into southern Mediterranean lands, you do tend to encounter dysfunctional public infrastructure more and more frequently.  In Tarifa it began at sundown, when residents turned on their lights and electric cooking stoves and I turned on the washing machine whilst simultaneously attempting to boil a pot of water.  It was the first night, and as the wash cycle began and the front-loading washer door locked, the power went out for the rest of the night and an entire load of whites sat soaking in its own dirty water for 12 hours.  When power returned  the next morning, the undergarments and t-shirts now in various unattractive shades of gray enlightened us to the wisdom of running the washing machine during daylight hours only.

We paid 105€ per night for our apartment and thought it well worth it.  Hubby had booked it on-line through Costasur.com, a private holiday accommodation rental service with an office in downtown Tarifa.  When we picked up the apartment key there the staff was extremely helpful and spoke English well.  I highly recommend their website and service.  Just be sure to bring a flashlight to their rentals in Tarifa.

Can you see us on our balcony?

Photo Friday: Remembering Christmas in Switzerland

Remembering Christmas in Switzerland last year:

Beautiful hand-painted ornaments in Adelboden.

Snowing on an alpine cabin.

Christmas tree at Maison Cailler chocolate factory in Broc.

Decorations in the medieval town of Gruyères.

Our happy group at Our Chalet in Adelboden.

The Rooster of Barcelos

We put up our Christmas tree last weekend and proudly featured this year's newest ornaments in the front and center.  We collect Christmas ornaments when we travel, something that symbolizes where we visited, so this summer we got a Spanish flamenco dancer and a ceramic Rooster of Barcelos, the symbol of Portugal.

Do you know the legend of the cock of Barcelos?  I wasn't familiar with the story until we traveled to Portugal this summer.  Read it in the photo below.

If your reading glasses aren't within reach, here's the text:

At a banquet given by a rich landowner in Barcelos the silver was stolen and one of the guests was accused of the theft.  He was tried by the court and was found guilty.

In spite of the overwhelming evidence against him he still protested his innocence.  The magistrate granted the man a final chance to prove his case.  Seeing a cock in a basket nearby he said, "If I am innocent the cock will crow."  The cock crowed and the prisoner was allowed to go free.

Photo Friday: Christmas Shopping in Zurich

Remembering the various little street shopping stalls in Zurich last Christmas . . .

Such great memories for these eight girls.

This is my Photo Friday link-up post to DeliciousBaby.com.

The Moment of Delight

The Beautiful Cliffs of Lagos, Portugal

The beaches of Lagos were added to our Portugal trip itinerary the instant I saw them in a photograph on the cover of Frommer's travel guide.  The spectacular volcanic rock formations that dot the water and form caves and grottos along the shore under clear blue skies had me at hello, and after a fun and memorable two days there in July I still wasn't ready for good-bye.

We drove to Lagos by rental car from Tarifa, Spain, via a very scenic route through the Andalusian white hill towns of Vejer and Jerez de la Frontera and a drive by the outskirts of Seville.  By late afternoon we dropped our bags at our hotel in Lagos, then hopped back into the car to check out the beaches a few blocks away.  We eagerly pulled into the first dusty road beach turnoff we found, parked the car, and ran towards the cliff to see the view.  And the view was a gay, nude beach.  Oops!  Shoo, shoo, everybody back in the car.  (Avoid this faux pas with your children by checking AlgarveUncovered.com before you go.)

Sooo . . . a little farther down the road we pulled over again, and walked out to the rocky precipice to view a magnificent sight of craggy outcroppings, sandy beach, cloudless skies, and clear blue Atlantic Ocean.

The 124 miles of coastline in the western Algarve region of Portugal are known to be some of the most beautiful in the world.  I won't disagree.

We were most excited to take a boat ride into the grottos and around the coastline the next day.  There are several locations along the beach where one can catch a grotto boat and the companies' prices and tours are competitive, so we just followed this barely comprehensible sign:

It's supposed to say, "Trip to the grottos."

We walked down into an enchanting cove at Ponta da Piedade (Point of Piety) to board a 4-seater powerboat for 10€ per person.  The tour was one of our favorite activities on our trip and we considered it very inexpensive for what we got.

I love this photo so much I wanted to use it as our Christmas
card, but decided the life vests looked too dorky.

The boat ride was about 40 minutes long and the driver cruised all up and down the shoreline, pointing out incredibly magnificent formations and entering lots of caves.

After the boat ride we walked around a bit to explore the rocky headland of Ponta da Piedade, which protrudes south from Lagos.  Its sheltered coves, colorful cliffs, and rock pools of aquamarine waters are dramatically beautiful.  This beauty must have something to do with why it's called Point of Piety and why this monument is displayed on the bluff:

There is a little tourist train available for about 2.50€ per person that circles around from the Lagos marina to Ponta da Piedade.  It's good for a ride to the beach from downtown.

The difficult decision we had to make next that morning was which gorgeous beach to spend the rest of the day relaxing on.  We finally agreed on Praia da Dona Ana (Dona Ana Beach) and think it was a fabulous choice, don't you?

Dona Ana Beach in Lagos, Portugal