Shop 'til you drop and Disneyland

 We woke up on Tuesday morning to bright sunshine and temperatures in the high 20s. It was glorious. Our apartment was situated right at the entrance to a large shopping centre, Val d'Europe as well as the designer outlet, Vallee Village. Once we were up and about we started our day with another visit to the creperie for breakfast.

Legs out in the sun
Shoes - Dr Martens, Skirt - Zara, Top - ?, Bag - Michael Kors, Hat - Max Mara Weekend

Recognising us from the night before, we were given a warm welcome and a nice outdoor seat to watch the world go by over our pancakes. We decided to start with Vallee Village. 

It was huge, and very hot so we agreed to only visit a select few shops, before retreating to the air conditioned Val d'Europe. Prada, YSL, Gucci, Longchamp they, and many others were all here so we took our time, mostly fondling expensive handbags. A favourite hobby of mine. Eventually I settled on a beautiful treat for myself from Balenciaga. It'll appear in a later blog post.

Happy in a Macaron shop face

We finished up with drinks and macarons at Laduree before heading off to the main shopping centre. 

Grateful of the cool, we wandered the shops, although I wasn't buying anything else after my big treat, and finished off with dinner at Hippopotamus. We'd had a fabulous day, and walked until our legs were numb. 

The next day, we were up bright and early. We were heading to Disneyland. It's the only day while we were away that was grey and wet. Whilst I could have happily done without the wet, I was grateful that it was cooler than the day before. 

Little miss was incredibly excited as we walked through the gates of Disney. Everything very pink and magical and (rather irritating) music being piped out across every area of the park. We started off on Main Street, and it wasn't long before we had to invest in umbrellas and Disneyland Paris plastic ponchos. People were lining the streets as a parade was about to come through and there was a general air of excitement amongst everyone. 

What did surprise me, perhaps more than it should, was the amount of people who visit Disneyland without children. For me personally, it's something we did for little Miss, knowing the enjoyment that she would get from it. It seems a lot of adults get a lot of enjoyment from it too. Much of Main Street is lined with shops, all selling lots of Disney merchandise. Little Miss was thrilled to find a Dalmation from one of her favourite films 101 Dalmations, and of course I had to buy her an obligatory hoodie. I didn't buy anything for me to wear, because I knew I probably wouldn't, but I did of course buy a magnet for my fridge, a new coffee cup and a pen! Typical Mum gifts! 

We found a cafe and enjoyed Mickey Mouse shaped sandwiches and donuts, and much needed cups of coffee before venturing onwards to the magical castle and the park beyond. 

Seeing the castle is an experience, it's beautiful, and very very busy. Walking through it, we were faced with all of the rides. We started queueing. Little Miss tends to be more about the seeing than the rides, so we did go on a few of them, the beautiful Carousel, It's a small world (which is bonkers and not to be missed), Alice's tea cups and the Alice in Wonderland maze. 

Then we headed through to Discoveryland, which is more space age and techy. It's where the Star Wars themed rides are. We started with a trip to Star Traders, where I was able to grab a fab Star Wars T-shirt for the chap, and then went on a rocket ship ride. 

It was starting to get cold, and late. We walked back to Fantasyland, where another parade was about to start. Little Miss was thrilled to see Moana and Stitch. More of her favourite characters. 

The crowds started to get more focussed as they sought out spaces to watch the big parade in the evening, but we were all starting to get tired. We agreed to deposit grandma in a cafe and, now that the rain had passed, little Miss and I wandered back to the castle to get better photos and had one last go on the tea cups. Then we set off, jumping in a taxi to our apartment just outside the park. 

We were exhausted, but what an amazing day we had all had. 

Scarborough to Serris Via London and Paris

 Last Sunday morning we packed up the car and headed down to York. The chap had already been over on Saturday to pick up Jerry the Hamster, but we still needed to drop Thelma off and catch our train from York to London. The first leg of our journey. We were breaking the journey up with an overnight stay in London, and in hindsight, Eurostar isn't the best option when you're starting off as far North as we are. It's a bit of an epic train journey. 

The week before we were heading down I read some updated reviews on the hotel we had booked and discovered that the family rooms (me, little Miss and Mum travelling) tended to be in the basement. As someone with a touch of claustrophobia and a fear of being below ground, I changed our booking to a lovely looking hotel right near Kings Cross and St. Pancras stations. 

The California Hotel near King's Cross

You can imagine how I felt when we checked in at The California hotel, and were assigned a basement room. Given it was for one night only, I told myself it would be fine, especially as the room itself was clean and comfortable. We headed out to explore the area and find somewhere to eat. 

Reception and the Bar at the California Hotel

Wandering around Euston road, pointing out the British library to little Miss and marvelling at how full the pubs were on a Sunday early evening, we eventually settled on Pizza express. 

The British Library

None of us were really in the mood for a meal as such, so we ordered a pizza and a selection of side dishes to share, before taking a wander around the roads of London. It was so relaxed and felt a million miles away from the City of London that I'm so used to visiting for work. 

We wandered around crescents, and absorbed the atmosphere. It really was a nicer side of London than I'm used to. Then, it was back to the hotel for a drink in the bar before retiring for the night. The next day would be a busy one. 

Exploring the Crescents of London - Shoes - Adidas, Dress - River Island, Bag - Michael Kors, Hat - Max Mara Weekend

Cafes still bustling on a Sunday evening

Monday, we were up early and my experience of sleeping in a basement room had been exactly as I had expected. Unsettled. I was tired, and glad to get out into the air and head for St. Pancras, a short 5 minute stroll away. Even though I've seen the station many times, I've never really taken much notice of the beautiful hotel that sits above it. It's like something out of Harry Potter. 

St Pancras Hotel

We grabbed a coffee and a croissant and checked in for our train to Paris. The journey was comfortable and enjoyable and the further south we went the more the sun showed its face. Once we alighted at Paris Gare du Nord, it was blazing! This is my third time visiting Paris, and I have never felt it as hot as this before, but then again I've never been in August. 

Beautiful buildings in Paris

After grabbing a snack, and taking in the hustle and bustle of Paris, we dragged our cases a few blocks to the RER station, to get our train(s). I'd booked us an apartment in Serris, a town outside of Paris but close to Disneyland, since that was one of the main reasons for our holiday. Once inside the RER station I was puzzled. I spent 20 minutes trying to figure out how to buy a ticket from the machine, before admitting defeat and asking at the information kiosk. Thank heaven, the guy working there was incredibly helpful and was able to help me buy my tickets and direct me on the two trains I would need to get me out to Serris. 

I have often heard how Parisians stay thin because of the amount of walking they have to do. Once I had to find my way around these stations and trains with luggage and a child, I understood what they meant. Over an hour later, a group of hot sweaty messes got off the train in Serris, and started our walk to the apartment. My poor old luggage case decided it had enough, and the wheel started to disintegrate with each step. 

The view from the apartment

Place Du Toscane

We were so grateful to check in to our gorgeous apartment. We opened the large French windows overlooking the Place Du Toscane, grabbed some groceries from Auchan and enjoyed a cup of tea while we watched the hustle and bustle on the square below. 

Blurry photos in the Place Du Toscane before bed time

Luckily for little Miss, who's favourite thing to eat is pancakes, we were right above a French creperie. We popped down for crepes for supper, before retiring to our comfortable beds for a well earned sleep after our travel adventures.