Build up to Christmas 1986

Shawni's excitement in this photograph in front of the Christmas windows at Printemps in Paris is too gorgeous to see. She loved these Zapf dolls that were featured in a kitchen setting. I loved them even more.

My letter sharing all the Christmas travels and news, shows how delighted we were to take the kids into Paris to show them the lights and displays, Shawni 'was hysterical with excitement, 'ooh, look at the lights''.  

The Enchanted Forest behind the Eiffel Tower had 600 lit trees and a little train took us around the displays of life-size cartoon characters, snowmen and polar bears. They loved the carousel rides. We also took in the Nativity Play in front of Notre Dame. What a wonderful outing and how privileged I feel looking back that we got to do this. I still feel like using the superlatives I used in the letter.

Paris is spectacular.

I mention the 8 of us. Hans, Flora and their boys were staying with us in Paris before we all went across to the UK for Christmas with Henk and Janet and her parents at Marlow-on-Thames.

Flash forward to March 2013.

I took Barry to Paris for a day en route to our cooking adventure in Morocco. We walked all day, from one favourite haunt to the next, still window shopping, a visual feast and in between great coffee and croissants, croque madames and salad et al. We finished off the day watching the sunset at the Eiffel Tower and quietly for the light show.

Such a joy.
My 30 something self with her baby in 1986 and a few decades later with her adult son.

A day in Paris with Barry.