Le Tour de France

Last Sunday night the Brits took over the Champs Élysées. We were all there to watch Chris Froome win the Tour de France and it was amazing. It was the first time our family has been in the right place at the right time to watch any stage of the Tour and even though we knew it would be crazy we couldn't pass up the opportunity to experience this iconic French event. We arrived three hours before the riders were due to enter Paris, which was just in time to watch the caravan of promotional floats pass through, but not in time to get close enough for any good photos of it! After walking down the Champs for a while and soaking up the carnival atmosphere, we settled on a spot to watch the race where the crowd wasn't too deep and it wasn't long before the girls were able to wiggle to the front of the barrier and get a great view. They held their spot reasonably patiently for an hour while there was nothing to see and we kept track of the race from the big screen outside the Louis Vuitton building.

As the riders approached Paris and passed the Eiffel Tower, the excitement started to build, a flypast heralded their arrival on the Champs Élysées and then the race was on. The peloton passed by in a blur, riding so fast over the cobbles it took your breath away. 30 seconds and they were gone and if we had been watching any other stage of the race, that would have been it. Luckily for us, in celebration of the 100th Tour de France the race finished this year with ten laps of the Champs Élysées instead of just one, so we held our ground for another hour and watched the race go by nine more times hardly believing our eyes when for the last few laps, in order to pick up speed and avoid the cobbles, every rider in the pack came tearing down the gutter at over 40mph!

Even though cycling is one of those sports that you can definitely see better on TV, nothing beats the experience of watching the incredible speed and skill of the riders as they race past, even if it's so fast your eyes can't keep them in focus, let alone your camera! There was an exciting finish as all the British supporters screamed ourselves hoarse in the hopes of seeing a British winner of the Stage as well as the Tour, but sadly sprinter Mark Cavendish was just beaten on the line. It was a proud moment though to be present on a beautiful summer's night to watch a British rider climb to the top of the podium and hear the National Anthem on the Champs Élysées!

It was an experience not to be missed and well worth all the waiting, walking and the late night.

Congratulations Chris Froome and Team Sky - the first Stage next year starts in Yorkshire!

Our Bastille Day

Do you want to see some photos of the Bastille Day Fireworks at the Eiffel Tower? I have a few!


It doesn't get dark here until 11pm at the moment though so we had to find something else to fill the rest of the day. After having had the peace of our country breakfast shattered by the sound of the French Air Force jets flying over on their way to the parade at the Champs Elysées, I walked down to our Sunday market to buy fruit, cheese and bread. Essential ingredients for a French picnic.


I had wanted to go to the Bastille Day picnic beside the canal at Versailles, ever since I read this post when we first moved to France two years ago. This 14th July looked set to be one of the hottest days of the year so even though Keith was away on a work trip, I decided we couldn't miss the opportunity to participate in a celebration so close to home.



After enjoying our food there was time to relax in the much sought after shady spots under the trees. Florence also took the opportunity insisted on going for her first ever pony ride. There are no good photos of that as it was beyond me to manage a three year old, a grumpy pony and a camera (mums and dads get to lead the ponies themselves, so French!) but you can see evidence of this event on Instagram.


The picnic was a very relaxed event. Locals, dressed in white, and tourists just out enjoying the Sunday sunshine.


I think the Palace of Versailles is best enjoyed from the back garden! We don't go often enough, but I never get over how easy it is to drive into the park through the back gate and enjoy this view for free.


We went to see the fireworks with friends from the girls' school. After dinner at their apartment we left our two toddlers with the babysitter and set out to find the best place to watch the fireworks that wouldn't be too crowded or too noisy. My girls have an unreasonable fear of firework noise, but they still wanted to see the show!



Having walked from one end of the 16th arrondissement to the other we finally settled on the Place de Mexico which is one of those spots in Paris that offers up an unexpected view of the Eiffel Tower and it turned out to be the perfect choice.


We arrived with an hour to go before the fireworks started and bagged a spot at the side of the street and I got my camera out to practice my night time exposures. By the time the fireworks started the whole road was packed.

Not long after we arrived another photographer came and started setting up his tripod right next to us ready to take some serious firework pictures. We started chatting and found out he was also American and that after having scouted out shooting locations on the Champs de Mars and Trocadero, which were apparently way too crowded, he had settled on the exact same spot we had found! It was a great experience to be shooting the same scene right next to someone who really knows what they are doing and Albert was very generous with his tips and advice. You can see his amazing photograph from the night here.

So, after all that waiting here are my fireworks photos. This tutorial was a big help in ensuring I succeeded in getting some good hand held shots. Enjoy and Happy Bastille Day! Which, by the way, only Anglophones say. For the French, the day is La Fête Nationale or Le quatorze juillet.

Two Years

Two years ago last week, we came to Paris for our 'look see'. To look for a house to rent and to see what the school we had chosen and the new life we had committed to from the other side of the world would be like. We ended up choosing the very first house we were shown, although not before viewing quite a few more in ever decreasing states of repair! I wish I could say that I remember this rhododendron bush from that first visit. It must have been in full bloom, but I do know that we would have passed it as soon as we walked through the gates to explore this house's amazing garden.


This year it was at its most spectacular as we hosted a farewell party for three of the closest friends we have made in the past two years. The high price we pay for this expat life that we are so fortunate to live is the sad goodbyes we have to say every year as families are relocated somewhere else in the world.


I have found it much harder to deal with the farewells this year, partly I think, because after two years we have got to know the people who are leaving so much better and also because as each of the friends we are close to moves onto different and far flung parts of the world, I am realizing that it could be a very long time before we are able to see them all again in person. I am learning from experience, that it is even hard to keep in contact through emails and phone calls with all the friends we have around the world, so that is why I am so happy that two years ago I also started this blog. It is a way for me to remember the wonderful experiences we have had as well as sharing bits of our lives with everyone we know. Together with Instagram (you can follow me @growingberries) and Facebook there is a chance I will be able to keep all these wonderful people in my life.


We were originally moved to France for just two years, but I am pleased to say that we are now staying on for another year. We're not ready to go. We still haven't hung all our pictures, some of our belongings haven't made it out of the moving boxes and there is still so much to see and do in Paris. Not to mention Keith's work which of course is what really keeps us here, not luck or my desire to stay put. I've decided to start taking more photographs of this house I love so that when we finally do have to leave I will have created a portrait of it. So, from now on, every week or so I will share a little detail. Remind me if I forget!

A special day

It's Keith's 40th birthday today! He decided to mark this milestone in more energetic style than I did mine by spending the last year training for the Paris Marathon. To prepare for his first ever marathon, he's been out running in rain, sunshine and snow all over the world; Paris, Edinburgh, Singapore, Sydney, wherever his business travels have taken him. Miraculously he managed to avoid a nasty stomach bug that had the rest of the family in bed for a week and the day of the marathon, April 7th, dawned bright and sunny although still freezing cold.

Of course, the girls and I wanted to go and support him. We followed his progress at home for the first hour (there's and app for that!) and then set out on our own marathon journey to the Trocadero where we hoped we'd get a good view. Knowing there would be nowhere to park, we made our way into Paris by train and metro; the first time I've attempted to take Florence on the stroller un-friendly metro since we moved to France.

She was so excited to be on a train for the first time that she behaved impeccably and we made it safely through the crowds (and a few fast finishers who were already on their way home!) and made it to the Eiffel Tower just in time to see Keith run past.









Quick family photo mid-race.


Whilst Keith carried on running through the Bois de Boulogne, we refueled with crêpes and candy floss before hiking across the 16th to wait at the finish line on Avenue Foch.


We were in the perfect position to see him cross the line 5 hours and 27 minutes after his start and we were all so proud and excited to see him finish his first marathon.


Receiving a hard earned finishers medal.
Happy Birthday Keith!
We love you!

I had this post all ready to go before the horrific events in Boston made the finish line of a Marathon somewhere you would not want to take your kids. Our experience of watching the Paris Marathon was such a happy family occasion, it is heartbreaking to know how tragically it ended for the people watching the finish of the Boston Marathon on Monday. Our deepest sympathies are with all those affected and best wishes for a safe and successful race to everyone running in the London Marathon this Sunday.