Love, Paris (January 2015)

Paris is the third and last leg of our Euro Tour. The one and only place Krz wanted to visit and spend time in. Actually, she just wanted to see the Eiffel Tower and Musee D'Orsay, which she actually saw and visited.

Transportation

At first we planned on taking the train from Florence to Paris. This was actually one of the things that we both were looking forward. It was supposed to be an adventure in itself, but since Krz was 6 months pregnant then, we chose to fly instead (just 2 hours instead of 12 hours on the train). I booked the ticket via Expedia to look for cheap plane tickets. Luckily enough, I was able to find one way tickets worth 60 USD for the both of us.

Florence Airport

From the hotel in Florence, we requested for a cab and asked to be brought to Florence Peretola Airport. This is different from saying 'Florence Airport' only as the cab driver might bring you to the nearby Pisa Airport (as what the kind gentleman from the hotel front desk told us). Upon landing in Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, we just followed the crowd to the exit for the train stations. When riding the train, you should be wary of your belongings as a lot of tourists often lose things while on vacation.

There are a lot of choices for train tickets within the city (you can read more about the Paris transport system in TripAdvisor's article about Paris Public Transportation). For this trip, we just chose the most practical - a carnet of tickets. A carnet is a book of ten tickets priced at 13,7 euros, which you can use in the metro and buses. Most of the sites are a couple of minutes away from one another, so it is best to just walk. Paris has an extensive metro system and is tourist friendly, you won't get lost when riding the metro.

Accommodation

The hotel we stayed at was also suggested by Tripadvisor - Hotel Cluny Sorbonne. It is a small hotel located in Paris' Latin Quarter, in  the 5th arrondissement. The hotel is close to a lot of tourist attractions, thus making it practical for us. Notre Dame Cathedral is just 5 minutes away, Rue Mouffetard and Le Pantheon is just a couple of blocks south of the hotel as well. To make it even more convenient, the hotel is located near a metro station.

Attractions Visited

There are a lot of attractions in Paris, most of them have admission fees while others are for free. For those that require a fee to visit, we considered buying the Paris Museum Pass. This allowed us to visit a lot of attractions for free, sometimes it allowed us to bypass the lines at the entrance. Around 60 museums are included in the Museum pass - the Louvre, Arc de Triomphe and a lot more are included in the pass

Krz and I wanted to hear mass, so we went to Notre Dame and checked the schedule for the Sunday mass. What was supposed to be an international mass was actually a mass in local language (French) with English songs. Churchgoers were not allowed to take pictures inside the church while the mass is in session.

Krz and I in front of Notre Dame

As one of the most popular Gothic Architecture in the world, one could not help but notice the grandeur of the church. We were both at awe upon seeing the church in person. Entrance to Notre Dame is Free of charge, but you have to pay around 12-14 euros if you want to visit the crypt and/or climb the towers to see the gargoyles

Notre Dame

We also visited the a bookstore so popular that some of the most famous writers stayed within the walls to start on their works - Shakespeare and Company. Krz was so excited to be there that she asked me to take a picture of her in front of the bookstore - she rarely asks me to take a picture of her alone.

Look at her smile

We also did not miss the chance to take a cruise on the River Seine. It really helped us on our itinerary and make last minute changes.

In front of the Louvre

The next day, we went to the Louvre - one of the things that I really want to visit in Paris. Huge is an understatement to describe the Louvre - we even couldn't decide on how to go about exploring the museum. It's a good thing we have Rick Steve's audio guide to help us walk around. The statue of Venus de Milo, The Winged Victory, Mona Lisa and a lot more helped satisfy our Art Craving.

Mona Lisa

Random Statue

Venus de Milo

Winged Victory

It was a good thing that we visited during the winter - there were not a lot of people visiting the attractions. We didn't have a lot of competition when it comes to viewing the art works. The Louvre was part of the museums included in the Paris Museum Pass mentioned earlier in this post.

Pyramid in front of the Louvre

The next day, we went to the Orsay Museum to view the greatest Impressionist paintings of all time. Taking pictures was not allowed inside the museum, but I was able to steal a picture of the iconic clock on the topmost floor.

Clock of Orsay Museum

 Of course, a visit to Paris is not complete without a picture of the Eiffel Tower. It was really a great site to see. We didn't bother buying tickets and lining up the to go up the tower. Even in winter, the lines going up was meandering under the tower.

Eiffel Tower

#Forever

The next day, we opted to visit Versailles, which was only an hour away from Paris. The ticket to get inside Versailles is also already included in the Paris Museum Pass. We were supposed to book a tour with Fat Tire Bike Tours, but since Krz was pregnant, it was not advisable for her to ride the bike.

The Palace of Versailles was breathtaking to say the least. You can just imagine how hard it was for people living inside the palace to communicate to each other. I actually have no words to describe our visit to Versailles so I will let the pictures tell the story.

It was also in Versailles where we first encountered snow. It was such a great experience that we were running around the palace catching the snow. We were the only ones running about, but we weren't embarrassed at all.

snow flake on my gloves

We were in Paris for a week but it was as if we only scratched the surface and weren't able to visit other attractions such as the Sacre Coeur, Pere Lachaise Cemetary, Opera house, catacombs of Paris and Pompidou center to name a few. We will definitely be back to visit these attractions.

It was not what we initially planned but it was an experience we will never forget. This is the end of our European tour and we will definitely be back for more.

Arc de Triomphe

on top of Arc de Triomphe

Army Museum/Napoleon's Tomb

Aguste Rodin's The Thinker

Can't wait for our next adventure. Till next time!

See you again!

What We Brought: Road Trip to Boracay 2015

Who said that a couple’s vacation travel plans should be put on hold when a baby comes into the picture? This is definitely not the case for our family. At two and a half months old, baby Kristoff made his first land trip to the beach and the experience was not really that hard. One of our philosophy as parents is to “start them young”, so here’s a start of practicing that!

Some people might see this as a wild idea and say that he’s too young to travel or that he would get sick because of the tiresome journey (and I won’t deny that these thoughts have gone through my mind, too), but given a good amount of preparation and precaution beforehand, I know that we will be able to pull through. Of course, now being parents, we won’t risk our child’s health or safety just to prove that it is possible for a baby this young to travel. Who would, anyway?

From Iloilo City to Boracay, it took us a total of 6 hours of travel – approximately 5 and a half hours on the road and 20 minutes on sea). On the road, Kristoff was just asleep most of the time, only waking up for his feedings (which is every 2 hours). The movement of the car on the road made it convenient for us to have him fall asleep easily. On the boat ride, however, he got quite scared because the waves were quite strong during that moment. I just cuddled him closely to re-assure him that everything is alright.

Before the Trip

It was important to us that our pediatrician approves of Kristoff traveling to the beach, just to take extra precautions to avoid unnecessary events to happen. She just advised us to keep baby away from direct sunlight, have him swim before 9am or by late afternoon, and keep Kristoff always hydrated.

To make the whole trip as comfortable as possible for Kristoff, below is a list of things and clothes we brought with us for a 3-day, 2-night hotel stay in Boracay:

On the road/sea:

_Car Seat propped and buckled at the middle-back of the car where it is most safe for baby.

_ Enough bottles pre-filled with water throughout the trip if bottle-feeding. If the actual travel time on land would take 4 hours, expect that the trip would take longer because of the reduced speed of the car and frequent stop-overs for nappy changes. My greatest fear during our road trip was that we run out of bottles (which would then make Kristoff very hungry), so we made sure that we have all his feeding times covered (he feeds every 2 hours) and just prepared one additional bottle, just in case it is needed.

_Baby Milk Container pre-filled with formula milk if bottle-feeding. So that mixing milk to the pre-filled bottle would be easier and less messy than doing it from the can.

_Enough disposable diapers. We changed nappies every feeding, so I brought the same number of diapers as the number of bottles with one extra diaper just in case it is needed.

_Baby Wipes

_Nappy Rash Cream

_Changing Mat

_Onesies/shirts x 2

_Blanket x 2

_Burp Pad x 2
_Pacifier

_Rattle/Toy. This is great to keep baby busy or amused.

_Sun Hat. To protect baby’s face from the sun

_Sunscreen for babies to protect baby’s skin. We had the one from Ocean Potion Babies & Sensitive with SPF 50.

All of these stuff fit in one medium-sized Jansport backpack.

The only challenge that we encountered during our land trip was changing his nappies. Inside a car, there’s really no flat surface where we can lie Kristoff on his back (if you would notice, a car’s back seat is slanted downwards toward the back rest) AND, sadly, changing stations in public toilets are not a norm in the Philippines. So, we had no choice but to change him at the back seat, with my husband supporting baby’s side to ensure that he lies comfortably without squishing his arm.

During our boat ride. Kristoff got scared because of the large waves carrying our boat.

On the Beach

_Long-sleeved Onesie which Kristoff wore for swimming. The long sleeves would minimize his risk getting sunburn on his arms.

­_Waterproof Diapers. Since no swimming briefs fit him yet, we used Eco-diapers instead. You can buy these in SM’s Baby Company in department stores.

_Sunscreen which we re-applied every 2 hours to make sure he had maximum coverage.

_Sun Hat. Kristoff had this on even in the water to protect him from the heat.

_Blanket to keep him warm should a cold wind pass by.

_Towels x 2. One to dry Kristoff once he gets out of the water and one to cover him when he changes to dry clothes.

_Dry clothes x 2. One for changing and one extra.

_Changing Mat. So that we can lie him on a table when changing his clothes.

Kristoff's first time to experience the beach!
He was not wearing a long-sleeved onesie at this time because we just dipped his feet in the water. 

 Others

_Bottle Sterilizer. Ours was the Dr. Brown's Bottle Sterilizer so carrying it was bulky (we put it in one small trolley bag). Next time we travel, we'll try using disposable bottles so that we won't need to bring the sterilizer around.

_Baby Sling. This was much of a help for me, especially when we needed to get to the motor boat from the dock through a plank. It kept my one hand free to grasp the bamboo handle and one hand to support baby’s neck. It was also useful in carrying baby during our long walk along the seashore. 

Carrying Kristoff on a baby sling while he enjoys the sea breeze

In general, Kristoff liked the beach, especially the cool, fresh air that the seashore offered (he instantly fell asleep every time we brought him along for a walk). He also liked the water and he just bothered a little when he felt the sand on his feet. What he did not found pleasure with though at first, is the sound of the waves crashing to the shore. But when we sat on the shore for a little longer (he sat on my lap), he slowly enjoyed the feel of the waves.

We hadn't had the chance to let Kristoff swim in the pool because the water at that time is too cold for him. Perhaps, when he gets a little older and bigger!

This trip to Boracay did not, of course, involve any night life for my husband and I. But, we did had a great time bonding with our little one, allowing him to experience his first time at the beach!

Love, Florence (January 2015)

Florence. The birthplace of Renaissance. From the start of our planning sessions, as an art lover, I have always wanted Krz to visit this astounding city.


Getting Ready

Since Florence is farther north than Rome, and is located in a valley, the temperature here is a bit colder. We prepared for the colder weather by wearing our thicker down jacket on our way to Florence. We also prepared our umbrellas as it was supposed to rain based on the weather forecast.


Transportation

Taking the train to Florence from Rome was more practical and economical for us. Plus, it was a more scenic ride than plane. We acquired tickets online via Trenitalia for the the train from Rome's Termini Station to Santa Maria Novella station in Florence. When purchasing you would need to indicate the Italian name of the city or the station you are coming from and going to, so a little research will do the trick. The train we rode was a Frecciarossa - a high speed train servicing Rome and Florence. The ticket cost us 38 euros each, a bit cheaper than buying onsite (42 euros).

Picture with Frecciarossa

In Florence, automobiles are not allowed within the historic center to preserve all of the structures (Florence' historic center is a UNESCO Heritage site). There is really no need for any public transportation if you are planning to visit the city center as everything is of walking distance from one another. Florence was by far the most pedestrian friendly city I visited.

First selfie in Florence

Accommodations

For our accommodations, I tried looking at one of the popular hostels in Florence. A little bit of research here and there, reading reviews from TripAdvisor and Lonely Planet led me to book our overnight stay at Hostel Archi Rossi. It was quite near the train station so we had no trouble finding it. We were surprised though when upon checking in, the person in the front desk told us that our reservation was for a different hotel - Hotel Cia Mara. Apparently, Hotel Cia Mara was a sister hotel of Archi Rossi and we were automatically bumped into this elegant hotel. We were offered a room at the top floor with a great view of Florence's roof tops.


Attractions Visited

Florence is a museum in itself. We didn't bother to buy tickets for the Uffizi Gallery and the Galleria dell'Academia where Michelangelo's David is housed since we just wanted to walk around and admire Florentine architecture.

There were a lot of free things to do in Florence - churches, open air galleries and piazzas. The dome of Il Duomo, Florence's Cathedral, is impressive and dominates the Florence skyline. There is so much art in the structure, our eyes grew tired just by looking at it.

Il Duomo

In front of the cathedral was the Campanile, built by Giotto. It was an artwork in itself, featuring Gothic style architecture in Florence.

Giotto's Campanile

The third centerpiece in the piazza is the Baptistry. Unfortunately, we were not able to see the grandeur of the building as it was currently being restored and was covered by scaffolding at the time of our visit. We were, however, able to take the picture of the famous door of the Baptistry. The door was part of a competition at the time which was participated by Donatello, Brunelleschi and Ghiberti. The winner of the competition, Ghiberti, depicted the life of Christ in the door as well as other bible scenes.

Ghiberti's Bronze Door of the Baptistry

Before heading to the other attractions, we gathered all our courage and bought Florence's famous gelato. Amidst the cold weather, we did not think twice to eat this treat to complete our Florentine experience. Yes, it was cold. Yes, our hands were freezing, but it was all worth it. Krz had the Vanilla flavor (her favorite) and I tried the Pistachio flavor. We were not disappointed, by far the best gelato I had ever tasted.

Gelato in Florence

By the time we arrived at Chiesa Orsanmichele, our whole body was freezing from eating the gelato. We gladly went inside the church, sat down and enjoyed the warmth it has to offer. Once we stopped shivering, we were at awe of the Gothic feel of the church. Though the church is not really a main tourist attraction, it was well worth the visit to see the beautiful altar inside. Also, it was well worth the visit to see the 14 statues surrounding the church - these statues are just replicas of the original ones found inside the museum of Orsanmichele.

By now it was already mid afternoon and we were on our way to Palazzo Vecchio, the town hall of Florence. It is located at Piazza della Signoria, which was a great place for people watching. A replica of Michelangelo's David is found outside Palazzo Vecchio together with other statues in the open air gallery. The statues were really breathtaking. The sculptures amazingly captured human emotions, thanks to the delicate hands of the sculptors.

A replica of Michelangelo's David

Menelaus and Patroclus

After our fill of people watching, we made it a point to go to the most popular bridge of Florence - Ponte Vecchio - during sunset. It felt as if we were walking on the bridge during the Renaissance. The bridge was still full of people selling jewelries. The history of the bridge dates back to the 13th century where all kinds of items were being sold - fish, meat, and leather. This was later on decreed by the King that only jewels be sold in the bridge to reduce the stench and waste from the shops (History 101, thanks to Rick Steves!).

Ponte Vecchio

Selfie at the bridge

Sunset from Ponte Vecchio

Even though we only stayed for 1 night in Florence, I really loved the feel of the city, it was laid back and relaxing. It was as if I loved the city more than Krz loved it. I made a promise to myself and Krz that we would explore more of Florence in the future.

Love, Vatican (January 2015)

The second leg of our Euro Trip was in Vatican City. The seat of the Catholic Church, it was one of the few places that I really wanted to visit.

Transportation

Based on TripAdvisor, we should first visit the Vatican Museums (where the Sistine Chapel is also housed) in the morning to avoid the crowd. Even though it was winter, there were still a lot of tourists visiting and lining up to get inside the museums. Luckily we were prepared for this. Since the Vatican museums were not included in the Roma Pass, we reserved tickets in advance via their website for a total of 36 euros each with 4 euros for reservation (trust me, 4 euros is worth it). We just need to pick the date and time of our visit.

From our hotel, we walked to Corso Rinascimento just a couple of minutes away and rode bus 81. This bus dropped us near the entrance of the museum. You can also ride bus 492 and 23, depending on which bus comes first. The bus ride was included in the Roma Pass mentioned in my previous post.

Vatican Museum Entrance

Attractions Visited

The museum accommodated a LOT of artifacts and art works from time immemorial - from the papyrus of Alexandria to statues of gods and goddesses of Greece. From the mummies of Ancient Egypt to the paintings of Raphael Santi. It was a huge place, you couldn't finish touring the place within a day. I would suggest that prior to visiting the museum, do a little research on what you want to see and visit so by the time you arrive there, you won't be a lost sheep.

Egyptian Mummy

Moving around the museum wasn't easy, we used Rick Steve's Vatican Museum tour to help us get around and understand the artworks that we see. It also helped us get to where we wanted easily - we were lucky enough that the things we wanted to see was part of the tour. I just downloaded his application to my smartphone and we were good to go.

Tiring. That was the word to describe our visit to the museum. But, when we arrived in the Sistine Chapel, we were left speechless and forgot all about our exhaustion. Based on reviews, once you are inside the chapel, you won't be able to see the floor due to the immense crowd visiting the place Luckily for us, we were able to secure a seat in the side of the chapel. We sat there for quite sometime to marvel at the incredible frescoes painted my Michelangelo. We were fortunate enough to have been blessed and prayed upon by a Vatican priest inside the chapel. We lined up and he prayed for us and for baby Kristoff who was then 6 months old inside the womb. The only sad thing about our visit to the Sistine Chapel is that we weren't able to take pictures since it was not allowed.

Krz outside the Vatican Wall

We then continued on to visit St. Peter's Basilica. The church was HUGE! Although there were lines going in, it didn't take us more than 10 minutes to get inside. Upon entering, you will be overwhelmed by the sheer size of the church. You can spend hours just wandering inside and still would not finish touring the place. There were a lot of things to see inside, but what really captivated us were Michaelangelo's Pieta and St. John Paul II's altar. Entrance to St. Peter's is free of charge. You just need to go through security check before entering the church.

Line to St. Peter's Basilica

Michelangelo's Pieta

Me in front of St. Peter's Basilica

Krz and Baby Kristoff (in her tummy)

While Krz was sitting inside the church and resting, I did not miss the chance to go up the dome of St. Peter's. For only 5 euros, you can go up a total of 300+ steps and for an additional 2 euros, you can take the elevator until the first level and climb a total of 165 steps to the dome to get breathtaking views of the city.

165 Steps to the top

Not for the Claustrophobic

Panoramic View from the dome

There were a lot of highlights for this trip, but the most unforgettable experience we had was seeing Pope Francis up close and personal -  I was even able to touch his hand! Free limited tickets for the Papal Audience could be requested from the Swiss guard at the side of the Vatican City. We were fortunate enough to be provided with the tickets even before the distribution time (every 3pm on Tuesdays is allotted for ticket distribution whiled Wednesdays are dedicated for the Papal Audience).

Pope Francis entering the hall

The following day, we got up early and prepared to go to the Vatican as early as 5am to fall in line. At first we thought it was too early as the Papal audience will not start until 10am. But when we arrived at around 5:30am, there were already a lot of people lining up in front of the security machines. Since it was winter time, the Papal audience was held inside a hall to shelter the Pope and the audience from the winter cold. The temperature recorded by the time we arrived was a staggering 3C, and we had to endure the cold temperature for at least 2 more hours since the gates will not open until 8am. 

When the gates were opened, everyone had to go through a security check before entering. This entailed that you remove your bags and coats when passing through the x-ray machine. The funny thing was, we had to run from the x-ray machine to the hall without our coats on as everyone was running in order to get great seats. Good enough, we were able to get seats by the aisle and I was able to take a selfie with the Pope.

While waiting for the Papal audience to start

Selfie with Pope Francis

The experience was one of a kind. If asked whether I would visit the Vatican again in winter than summer, the answer is yes. I would gladly choose less crowd and chill weather than warm weather with the risk of rubbing faces with fellow tourists.