Easter egg hunt at the chateau

Usually the Easter Sunday, this year a week in advance, the egg hunt is organized every year at the
Chateau de Gillevoisin. A beautiful castle in the countryside, one hour from Paris, where during the week there functions a school for teenagers and children with disabilities, a restaurant open for lunch and a farm.

Regardless of the weather the children always have a blast. There is restauration on premises, meaning some type of food - sandwiches, grilled sausages, crepes, popcorn and drinks; there are poney and donkey rides, minigolf and lots of games set up for the little ones. And of course, the egg hunt where you search for plastic eggs to fill a basket which you exchange, once full, for a bag of candy!
PS -We loved that one. The petite princesse won the bag and we, the terrible grownups ate almost all of it....

Here are some pics:

I LOVE sheep.

Donkey, enough said.

Some huge rabbits. There were also hamsters, cobais, parroquees and other birds, and turtles!

Happy Easter for those celebrating now. 

We are waiting for the Orthodox one in one month. We'll be going to RO for that one so I'll post on a slightly different tradition soon.

Winter resort in Swiss, Gstaad

So we've been skiing! How exciting does that sound, I skied for the third time in my life.
I never took classes, nor had a professional teach me. I did however have some great friends (mersi Bugarschi!) when I was a teenager and our first ski trip was at Straja (Romania), back when this was not a really touristically developeded resort - so fresh and wild and amazing. We fell, and got up, and got our heads kicked by the pulling wheel, and eventually got to ski through the small forest at the bottom of our cottage. Such amazing times....

Next was Colorado in th US and now Swiss - Egly, Wispile, Gstaad (skiing resorts).
We didn't stay in Gstaad, but at the wonderful challet of our relatives in a nearby resort.

Here we are in the streets of Gstaad, music everywhere, food and sun and ... an expensive resort, nice nonetheless.

 Music everywhere

 Cheese making, the famous Swiss cheese, not bad :)

 Bell making! Never saw this before, they are actually made out of dirt!

 Beautiful chalets, all wooden cottages, nicely decorated some with quotes, lines, some painted and ornated

And people watching....

 Dog watching...check the one in the bag

 Musical horns! these are actual instruments. They even played in the street, it was quite cool.
Think Swiss mountains, countryside and cattle...

 Of course, carriages,

 And rabbits why not,

 And the snow! All is beautiful when the sun is shining, and it was :)

 More rabbits there below

 Iceskating

 A restaurant up on the mountain, we climbed with the cabin and had lunch, awesome setting:

 My view from the telecabin going up

 And we went on a carriage ride too! Beautiful mountain scenery, a pair of beautiful horses and beautiful people who made our trip such a delight :)

Winter is almost over here back in France. Still chilly, but the trees have started to bloom. 

We are waiting for the sun  :)

Travelling in and from Paris

With everyone planning their vacations (or almost, we are having a hard time deciding where to go this year....on a budget), how about some good info from the 

Secrets of Paris  

Low-Cost TGV Trains to Southern France

They’re fast, they’re cheap, they’re hot pink and baby blue, and they’re called OUIGO (pronounced “we go”). What’s NOT to love about this new low-cost TGV train service? Some people consider it an inconvenience,  the trains don’t actually leave from Paris, but from the Marne La Vallée TGV station 45 minutes from Paris on the RER. So you can hang at Disneyland Paris before or after your trip south to Marseille, Montpellier, Lyon, Avignon, Nîmes, Aix-en-Provence and Valence. This new service starts on April 1st with promotional fares starting at €10 (€5 for kids). Again, what’s not to love?!  Okay, there’s a catch: one “carry-on” size baggage and handbag are free. Actual suitcases are €5 each if you pay when you get your ticket. If you just show up with it the cost is €40 on the train. If you want your own electric socket, it’s €2. http://ouigo.voyages-sncf.com

 

Spotting Fake Taxis

Aside from trying to maintain order on the streets and sidewalks of the most famous avenue in the world, the Prefecture de Police de Paris is also trying to help tourists avoid getting ripped off by fake taxis. They’re usually hovering around airports and train stations, but I’ve had clients taken for a ride by a fake one outside the Eiffel Tower (in the taxi stand!). There are two big tip-offs: real taxi drivers don’t walk up to you asking if you need a taxi (quite the opposite, hardy har har), and there is ALWAYS a meter in legitimate taxis (usually in the spot low on the dashboard below the radio). Of course, there should also be a little TAXI sign on the roof and the meter should be ON (unless you called a taxi to come get you, it should have €2.50 on the display when you get in). There will be a sticker on the passenger window with the driver’s permit number, handy to write down in case you have any problems (or accidentally leave something in the car). The minimum rate is €6.60, even if the meter shows less, and if you have a fourth passenger or more than one suitcase they will add €3 and €1 per bag, respectively, to the final price. You can read more about taxis on Secrets of Paris.

Private Car Service

How about Club Chauffeur (iPhone only); a very nice little ride across town last week in a spacious minivan with bottled water, magazines, and a driver who already knows where you are going. These services require you to sign up with your credit card and then when you order the car with your smartphone you’re given a rate and it’s already pre-paid when the car arrives (and in Paris the taxis still don’ take credit cards, so this is nice). Bonus: they text you on arrival so you don’t have to stand on the street waiting. Note that there’s a minimum of €15-€20 depending on time of day/night, so you may want to only use this for longer trips across town.

AutoLib

Another option is to drive yourself to where you need to be with AutoLib’, the city’s car-sharing service (like the Vélib’, without messing up your hair). There are a few thousand of the electric (and automatic) Blue Cars around Paris and the immediate suburbs that can be accessed with daily, weekly, monthly or annual passes. Read about my own experience on the Secrets of Paris.    

Upcoming Paris Events  Don’t forget to check the Secrets of Paris Calendar, updated regularly with the latest events around town. There’s a lot happening over the next few weeks, including a Paris nightlife festival, an eco-living fair for the green at heart, the international tattoo art festival, a tzigaine (gypsy) market, the Art Paris Art Fair, the European Independent Film Festival, a street art exposition, a French Cancan show *not* at the Moulin Rouge, a creepy new exposition at the Musée d’Orsay, a dueling drummer comedy show, etc.

Have a great day!