How NOT to get stressed with a day of Eurostar...

The usual morning-of-travel flurry - ramming everything in my car, last minute packing and literally just throwing anything and everything I can into my suitcases. Yes, if you haven't worked it out by now, I have two suitcases. I pick up my wheely-suitcase and omit a sigh, as it is heaps lighter than the holdall case. As the wheely one is easier to pull around, that's the one that ideally should be the heaviest as it requires minimum pick-up. But all that requires planning and planning when it comes down to packing is not something I tend to do...

I have to say I'm pretty chuffed with my attempt to load my car up - it is all very neat and tidy, everything I'm leaving in England is neatly jigsawed into my car boot, and my suitcases fit on the back seat. My petrol is saying empty and I'm already 10 minutes late leaving as it is, so decide my car has been loyal in the past so a quick journey 10 minutes through and out of town won't hurt... Well that was mistaken. Fortunately i'd hit country terrain and was 5 minutes from my destination when suddenly it lost all strength as if I was in a too-high gear or the terrain was slippy... it rapidly slowed down and stopped perfectly near a drive entrance - so still reasonably loyal not to just breakdown on the dual carriageway or something! Anyway, help came very quickly to hand in the form of a Landrover and a can of ancient petrol (i.e. my Dad), and we made it back to the workshop to park my car and load up his land-life-saver. Now 20 minutes later than planned, we headed off for London with my suitcases in the boot and Louboutins on the back seat.

As we hit London, we got stuck behind every overly-cautious and goddamn-slow driver there probably could have been in London, along side all the buses and vans heading to Wembley full of footie-fans. I remained calm though, because despite the fact I didn't want to get overly stressed out and have to pay for another train journey, it wasn't as if I particularly wanted to leave the life of friends, freedom, cheap and cheery shops and BlackBerry emails and return to the life of the unloved-mother... By the time I'd arrived we were definitely past check-in time, and a small part of me just hoped I could beg my way through onto the train. It turns out the train time was 20 minutes earlier as I'd thought, so as I arrived into St Pancras, the train was seconds away from leaving. Still not stressed out though, I left my bags by a pillar, still clutching onto the parcel-paper brown Louboutin bag (I had no time to wrap each shoe up in clothes in my suitcase) and made my way to a small group of Eurostar staff and asked where the ticket booths were. The one guy there gave me a huge Christmassy-smile and asked if I wanted to print off my tickets, so I calmly explained without an ounce of remorse that I'd just missed my train so would need to buy a new ticket. He then asked for my tickets and said those amazing words that makes you feel like Madonna: 'let me see what I can do.' He took me over to an empty check-in booth - so no queuing, and then managed to fit me onto the next train (leaving in an hour), free of charge. OMG. Thank you Mr. A. Morris. You are my Lucky Star today! So I went straight through to passport control and luggage - none of which was checked (three golden lemons at the slot machines!) and in the lounge area plenty of seats, so I calmly loitered around, having a last Nero's session of the month and visiting WHSmiths, and calmly boarded the train half an hour later where I was the first one on so had all the choice of luggage space... It was pretty perfect. So I actually really do have Eurostar to thank for my non-stressful travel day!

At the other end it was just as stress-free, the metro's were working, no one tried to mug me and I didn't run my suitcase wheels through any piss-puddles.

To be honest I'm not ecstatic to be back, but then again I have 40 days (and 40 nights) until I'm back home for good. I should take a leaf out of Moses' Survival Guide perhaps... We'll manage. After all, what could possibly go wrong in 40 days?

Not dancing the Jailhouse Rock just yet...

Today we succeeded in getting to the Arc de Triomphe without being fined, scammed or almost-arrested. Pretty good going I'd say! Took Rosie up the Arc de Triomphe without first telling her of the 284 steps to the top resulting in a near cardiac-arrest. We survived! Both of us were grateful for not bringing coats because the weather was ridiculously hot. It was SUCH a sunny day so we walked down the Champs-Elysees and down Rue Rivoli (you can't see Paris on the metro!), visiting the Marc Jacobs store and heading towards Chatelet. We then spent the afternoon debating on whether a zebra or giraffe would make a good pet after reading an article about a pet tiger. Perhaps Rosie should stick with gerbils and slightly smaller furry things... And for once it isn't me with the crazy and spontaneous ideas! 

 

  

We are now attempting packing and all is not going so well... I think this is where a Tardis comes in use for the both of us. Her suitcase took 20 minutes just to get it shut, and I live in fear of my suitcase zips snapping at the seams halfway through customs at Eurostar. But even if I result in having to run through Gare du Nord and spend a 2-hour stuffy train journey wearing half my clothes including several knitted jumpers and my lace-ups strapped round my neck like ice skates, I couldn't be more excited to go home.

A Series of Unfortunate Events

This morning we visited the Sacre-Coeur. Just when we thought we were safe from scammers due to arriving early-morning, we were bombarded by a hoard of Senegalese with threads. Being morning hours and trying to start early on the jackpots, I was charged 5€ for my thread bracelet and Rosie was charged 10€ from a sexual predator. However, we were clever and planned ahead, so I got away with 0.90€ for mine, and Rosie gave in to her creep and gave 2€. Fortunately they didn't hassle us further and we got away safely!

 

But that was not all over in terms of harassment and sticky situations...

When we arrived later at Bastille for an afternoon session round the Marais, we were ambushed at the station by a hoard of police officers. Well, train officers. Knowing full well we had reduced tariff tickets as we came to the top of the escalators - unable to turn back - we mentally made lists of all the excuses and reasons we could use or how to avoid the officers. Running away? Swinging a rope from the roof structures and escaping Indiana Jones-style? Or perhaps sliding back down the rails of the escalator... breaking into a run and sliding underneath their legs and out the other side Antonio Banderas style?! Each step bringing us closer and closer to the officers, and the moment we turned in panic they moved nearer. Great. Fan-bloody-tastic.

They were checking everyone's tickets and rail cards... I had some old adult-fare tickets, but when he scanned them he said they were used up. And then the moment we were dreading. After hearing/reading stories of being fined, we were convinced it'd be 80€ or something crazy. Turned out it was 40€. Each.

You'd think they'd have something better to do than scam au-pairs and students out of hard-earned money! Maybe make a start on the scammers using string as their lethal weapon of choice, or the not-to-be-fooled 'gold' rings... but no. Let's pick on happy people who still think Paris is the romantic city and that life can turn out good.

We grudgingly paid our fines, during which I considered bartering the 'gold' ring in return for freedom. Too bad our brainwave came a tad too late, but it could have worked. Maybe. All I know now is we're stuck with a brass ring and minus 40 euros in our wallets. Each. To brighten the mood and our raging sense of injustice in the burrows and mazes of the Come On Eileen Vintage Shop, we speculated further catastrophes and unfortunate events which could make our day worse. Walking into another barrage of officers at the next metro to be slapped with another set of fines? Running over a child on the school run? Crashing the car? William returning home for a 'surprise' visit?

 

 Underground in Come On Eileen

Fortunately we made it through the day unscathed by further bad karma and doom, aided by the fact we lowered risk rate by confining ourselves in Rosie's room with well-padded mattresses and cushions and a non-traumatising film. Our day was brightened by our good finds in Coiffure - another vintage shop we discovered on our Tuesday rounds - and we bought a life-time supply of knitted jumpers.

Any more scams out there? I think we're both ready to fight anyone off after the lessons and life skills we've learnt and survived this week!

A Small Price for Stupidity

Haha Rosie and I have finally realised that we were actually and officially scammed after our Eiffel Tower expedition.  

Beware the Paris Ring Scam. Yes, it sounds ridiculous, and the most unbelievable 'scam' you could ever be fooled by, but people can hand over 20€ for this! Fortunately for us we only gave the scam-lady 1.50€ after Rosie said 'if we give her money will she go away?'. 

So here's what happens. And after reading about it online, it is IDENTICAL in all parts of Paris. So identical, it's pretty scary how we were completely fooled by it.

"Excusez-moi, vous avez laissé votre bague ici." She showed us a large gold wedding ring.
"What? No, it is not ours."
"Mais oui, c'est à vous."
"Mais non. I have no ring."
"Mais oui, it is your ring. Well, if it is not then have it. It will bring you good luck."
She handed us the ring. Apparently gold with karat marks. "Um, no. It is not mine."
"I cannot wear it. I can't wear jewellery," she said. "You take it for happiness and luck." She turned and walked away.
"Well, OK. Merci." We turned and walked away.
She turns again. "Ah, s'il vous plait. I am hungry. Just a little money for a coke?"
We finally give her a small bit of change.
"No, that is not enough. Just a little more. I gave you the ring."
"Well, OK, here is one euro but nothing more." And  we walk away.

Rosie considered the idea we'd been scammed... I thought she was just being generous until I finally decided to google it and there's heaps of info and posts about it! Whilst it's a good story to pass on and laugh about, I'm pretty glad we only paid 1.50€ for the brass ring and also knowledge and insight for next time! And of course we've kept it - we want the crappy memento! 

Tomorrow we plan to willfully be scammed by the String-men Scammers of the Sacre-Coeur. All part of the experience!   

Paddling towards the deep end of au-pairing

So today Rosie finally got to see the genuine 'joys' of au-pairing. The day where I'm expected to be in two or more places at once, and cater for the girls' individual demands. Whoop! It is a very staggered day where you can't actually sit down and get anything useful or important done because you have to be back on your feet in twenty minutes again. We went to the dentist, we walked the dog, we bought meat for lunch, we did a school run, we went to ice-skating via tennis... And we filled our spare moments catching up on all-important 90210 and Gossip Girl episodes.

In many of our car journeys today (a total of 12 car journeys and comprising a bum-numbing 230 minutes) we concluded that brothers were far more entertaining than sisters as we swapped childhood stories of black eyes to tumbling into the dishwasher, going down the stairs on trays/in duvets/in boxes - and thinking it was a good idea - to using double beds as crash mats and safety landings... and questionable scooter practise mats(!?) and getting very over-excited with Harry Potter and cereal box computer games. I've been crying with laughter on many occasions today!

This evening after ice skating Rosie finally saw the warts and all of caring for childern-that-aren't-yours. I drove Marie (a menace today!) and Elisa home after ice skating and OH-MY-GOD it was stressful and tiresome. They have this nauseating 'laugh' which is more like a litter of pigs being dragged to the abattoir by their tails from the back of the truck, but sounding rather more enthusiastic. In other words, it is the most high-pitched DEAFENING noise I've ever been forced to sit in front of in a small Renault Clio with no emergency exit. Au-pairing is not for the faint-hearted.

Tea was my fabulous Shepherd's Pie. Rosie said it was the best one she'd ever had - and not in a cheesy 'gee that was awesome' way. I feel honoured. :)

Vintage Shopping in Paris

There are such amazing opportunities in Paris to pick up the best bargains from the smallest of shops! The majority of boutique, boho and vintage shops are situated around Le Marais and Bastille, and have an enormous range of clothes, handbags and price tags with there being more vintage couture / designer clothing here than anywhere else.

 

First stop was Come On Eileen, and by far the best! It was an adorable shop, small on the outside and on first impressions inside, yet crammed with vintage designer such as Chanel and Lanvin and other high-quality but less impressively labeled clothing. In the middle of the lace tops, sequinned jackets, sixties shift dresses and 80s rock and punk gear is an opening down into an underground Aladdin's Cave which is the real treasure trove. 


Rosie bought a gorgeous knitted batwing cardi for 30€, and I found such an elegant Givenchy jacket reduced from 195€ to 129€.

 

Come On Eileen, 16 Rue des Taillandiers, 75011 Paris

Across Bastille square (with 'The July Column') begins The Marais area, and our next shop was Sissi's Corner, which was more of a classy second-hand boutique also with designer labels at affordable prices. I picked up a very stylish John Galliano jacket in white for 200€ which was pretty impressive with a gorgeous applique design, and also tried on a camel-coloured Ralph Lauren cashmere for 20€. 

Sissi's Corner, 20 rue des Tournelles, 75004 Paris

Culotte, 7 Rue Malher, 75004. Metro: Saint-Paul

Culotte was another of my favourites - a combination of Aspire (a small chain in England) and random Kitsch jewellery - necklaces with stars, arrows, spoons, birds, tea cups, sunglasses or bows, and other items of funky jewellery and vintage beads. It was a really adorable shop and made you want to buy everything! Most of the necklaces were an average of 16€, but they were really cute and fantastic for presents. 

 

Coiffeur 32 Rue de Rosiers, 75004. Metro: Saint-Paul

Coiffeur - This little boutique was crammed with racks of vintage sweaters, fur coats and denim-wear. The floor is lined (orderly!) with shoes and there is lots of emphasis on old French army and navy gear. Dresses are located in the middle, and more purses and shoes can be found in the back.  Don't forget to check the windows and corners for hidden gems.

Next on the list was Free 'P' Star, a veritable gem of Marais vintage shopping. Not for the claustrophobic, the boutique is cluttered with a broad selection of good pieces. And the prices make this fashionable hideaway more than worth the trek. While the shop might not be as organized as some other vintage spots, Free 'P' Star makes up for it in classic Parisian charm.

 

A treasure trove of vintage blazers, fur or leather coats and printed blouses down a nausea and vertigo-inducing spiral staircase. From 70s dresses to denim waistcoats, 80s t-shirts, chunky knits and a tangled mountain of leather belts and bags, you're guaranteed to stumble across a second-hand fashion jewel on any visit. It is wall to wall, crammed with vintage (and at least on the day I was there, vintage shoppers, including one blondie who stated: 'so really it's Soho but more French.' Yes darling).

Free 'P' Star, 8 Rue Sainte-Croix-de-la-Bretonnerie, 75004. Metro: Hotel de Ville

Le Verger du Prince, 33 Rue de Sicile, 75004. Metro: Saint-Paul

 

Vintage Paris Bar / Frip'irium, 3 Rue de Verrerie, 75004

And the (second-) best for last! Rag and Vertiges, situated in Chatelet has absurdly low prices - my fur coat cost 50€ and I bought a gorgeous Zara-styled blazer with elbow-pads today for 20€. Bargain bargain bargain! The racks here are rammed full of coats, jackets, and everything ordered, with silk scarves in one place and leather bags and satchels in other etc. I bought Rosie's bag from here for her Christmas present, and she's been telling me how many compliments she's been getting for it! There's nothing like a little Paris Vintage! :)  

  

 Rag and Vertiges, 83 Rue Saint Martin, 75004

We'll be re-visiting a handful of these again this week I hope - such an amazing time and an adventure through the rustic, cobbled streets of Paris. 

Trekking up Mount... Eiffel?!

If all days were as easy as today, then this au-pairing would be the easiest ever! Crazy Mother Caroline and Juliette are in Paris for the week, so it's just me, Margot and Marie and Rosie! And everyone knows that two kids are better than three. So we got to school on time of course, and this evening the school run was stress-free, and we were actually early for tennis and all the traffic lights seemed to be green for once! :O

  

Today I took Rosie up the Eiffel Tower, and just upon arrival we were already amazed at how long the queue was for the lift up, but no queue at all for the stairs. Not that we had to make a decision at all, because part of going up and seeing the Eiffel Tower is about walking up the hundreds of stairs!! It was fun, tiring, and very hot. Rosie appears to have brought sweltering sunshine with her, and boy-oh-boy it was hot today! We then walked back up the Champs Elysees and checked out the H&M flagship store and Louis Vuitton (of course).

 

  

Food shopping this afternoon was successful and quick, although that wasn't too surprising with the small amount of money we had to spend... Juliette remains in Paris for the week, Margot doesn't have school tomorrow and Marie doesn't have school on Thursday, and I have no answers to any of the 'why's'. But we won't be babysitting in the daytime... it just means we'll be getting back to congealed pasta, melted butter and mess.

First Full Day Out and About!

Woke up to a bombsite in the kitchen, so after getting things straight and ordered I woke up Rosie and we prepared for a day out. Our only 'full' day in Paris without chores and children, so making the most of it. We got off the metro at Opera, and walked down to Place Vendome stopping off at the Chanel store, The Ritz hotel, Hotel Westin and visiting Place Concorde briefly and bumping into some models preparing for a photo shoot involving sticks of candy floss. All the norm in Paris!

We then went back to Place Vendome and into the very trendy Hotel Vendome to collect my Granny and Aunt and have another photo session at the uber-chic restaurant and my living-room-to-be. I LOVE IT. And they also had fashion books on America Fashion and Chanel. I'd better start a collection. We then walked round to Angelina's - famous for it's hot chocolate - and had the most delicious hot chocolate served in dainty jugs. Angelina's is so exquisite, and being next to Hotel Meurice it has similar decor - an elegant and classic interior with gold edged mirrors and furniture. Rosie and I then wandered down to Ile Saint Louis, and after seeing a 3-mile queue for Sainte-Chapelle we headed straight down to Notre Dame and toured round the inside. 

  

We arrived back at home late afternoon, as all the shops had closed and we've done so much already this weekend! So we chilled with our laptops and films, and Rosie finally met Crazy Caroline and the girls altogether. Our mission for tomorrow afternoon is the family food shopping on a 50€ note which should be interesting. Perhaps Rosie can be my calculator to make sure we don't go over the amount!

A Day Out in Style

My whole week just did a total u-turn! Well, my annoncement from yesterday is that William has FINALLY gone off on his ski trip. I cannot believe I'm actually pleased to have crazy Caroline back in residence full-time, but William was starting to get really demanding and IN THE WAY, and seriously I was thinking of packing my bags. But obviously he was the first one to do that, so my bags remain un-packed. Which is just as well! 

This morning I missioned it over to Place Vendome - one of my favourite areas of Paris purely because it is the area of all designer shops including Chanel's flagship store, Dior, Prada and my darling Marc Jacobs, as well as many of the Grand Hotels of Paris, such as The Ritz (Kate Moss stayed there last week) and Le Meurice. Where Angelina Jolie stays on her visits to Paris. Love love love! My Granny and Aunt are staying at No. 1 Place Vendome, at Hotel Vendome. I felt like a celebrity walking in - they were all expecting me, and greeted me with caring smiles (I don't care how much they are paid to smile!) and immediately took me up to the restaurant. And OMG. The restaurant area is my future living room. Seriously. WOWZA. Pictures pictures pictures! We were the only ones there which made it even more exclusive! And they had the best bookcase EVER with rows of fashin books. Dior, Tom Ford, Fashion History...

 

  

 

 

Then we took a trip down to Musee Rodin, which I actually really enjoyed! There were several sculptures I loved, and I also discovered that a gorgeous framed photo/poster I have in my room is of a Rodin Sculpture. So it was amazing. And Jen kept asking me LOVELY questions about it if i could have any sculpture, which one would I have, and when I'm rich where would I live in Paris (definitely Place Vendome - above Chanel! - or at least in the square). Good questions, good questions. :D


Then in afternoon I made my way over to Gare Du Nord to meet Rosie! Finally!! :) We made it home, she met Thelma and BONDED WITH THE DOG (No no no - it may actually start to come near me again!) and then we headed back out for une nuit à Paris. 


We arrived at the Institut du Monde Arabe for my Uncle's art exhibition which was very successful, and managed to persuade a security guard for a trip up to the rooftop to see the Parisian Skyline. Welcome to Paris, Rosie! :) 

 

  

Hotel de Paris!

Well, after a varying week between non-productive and slow to crazy and everything happening at once, today I'd set aside to transform the spare room slash storage room on the top floor (the girls' floor!) into a chic Parisian chambre for Rosie to stay. Cracking the knuckles and after some 'before' photos, I spent the day transferring unwanted storage from the top floor to the storage room in the basement, changing the bed three times (the colours didn't match!) and hoovering, dusting and de-spidering the room (the latter more beneficial to me).

So, the moment you've all been waiting for - I hope you love before and after photos just as much as I do! And once again: THANK GOD IT'S FRIDAY. Another week bites the dust.

And after...

Flying by 'like a G6'... or just another ordinary week.

This week is surprisingly flying by! Today is Crazy Caroline's birthday, and big celebrations are happening. It’s pretty weird how this family goes over the top for a birthday, but also how it’s all done very last minute! Sabine asked me to do some shopping this afternoon and made the mistake of giving me an empty cheque with no idea of a limit. What CAN’T you buy for a party? She even sent me to Monoprix, which has CHOICES - unlike Ed’s which has the bare minimal. So we now have a kitchen stocked up with enough to last until next Bastille Day, so hopefully it’ll be a blast! This morning I walked down to the shops for a dose of vitamin C in the form of Tropicana, and had 3 individual guys come up and talk to me. Talk about embarrassing! I had to check I’d remembered to put on trousers (check) and that I didn’t have ‘desperado’ across my forehead (check). Just cringey. Particularly when they realise I’m a foreigner I’m instantly conversation-worthy. NO NO NO!

I’m actually glad the party is more of an aperitif/buffet style as this morning William informed me I was taking Juliette to a tournament this evening and had to wait for her (on Tuesday I returned and went back to collect them again later), WHILST making a big meal for Caroline's birthday celebration. Sorry, how? Unless he was planning on eating at 11pm it was a pretty tall order for tennis tournament chauffeuring and a meal for 8+ people for one person to do! Ok. Well to be honest I was pretty mad about it. Mad as in… frustrating and raging. Butttt it’s all sorted now. Hat’s off to the chef. ;)

Other than the fact that next on my designer list is some Miu Miu boots (Margot got a miu miu bag for her birthday, alongside the pink limo - which actually looked monstrous - and a hotel stay in Paris) and a plan to learn future and conditional perfect tenses in the car later during the tournament, I’m just waiting for Rosie to SAVE me from drowning in a swarm of French creeps (we’ll be armed and dangerous for the Sacre Coeur)! ONE MORE DAY and then I can laugh, bitch and rant 24/7 with Rosie. I'm sure we are all pleased to know for the sake of her safety that the town has spent (probably) hundreds putting up new bollards around the town, around every zebra crossing. So that you KNOW it’s a crossing. This wouldn’t be a big deal in England, but places like Paris are COVERED in zebra crossings and with two at either end of every crossing, it looks rather like a life-sized game of dominos. It wouldn’t surprise me if it was made known that there were more zebra crossings in Paris than any other road markings. 

My Granny and Aunt are also coming out to Paris tomorrow, and SO-JEALOUS-AM-I, because they're staying in a very exquisite hotel opposite the flagship Chanel Store of Paris. Sorry but total ENVY. I'll be camping out at the hotel for the day until Rosie arrives so be prepared!

I'd just like to also add, that today I almost got stuck in a car park again. WHAT IS IT WITH CAR PARKS AND ME??? So I guess you could say i was actually stuck - I had to reverse back into the parking spaces because I couldn't get past the gate. They have a vendetta against me. First Coventry and now Paris? The barrier wouldn't accept my ticket, even though I was entitled to free parking and had got the ticket scanned at the tills. Eventually I managed to track down a delivery man ho helped me out. Even as i was first entering the barriers I was anxious - once in you can never get out!