Bonjour France Again!

July 19th--Leaving Amsterdam was a little more hectic than our usual experiences. There were 12 people who had to get all their suitcases packed and ready to go while cleaing up the apartment. We luckily got it all done in plenty of time to get to the train station. The Jaye's rented a car to drive to Paris. They are going to do some day trips outside of Paris before coming to the apartment on Wednesday. The rest of us traveled via the fast train to Paris. Mike, Lisa, Gabe, the kids and I all left the apartment a little after 11:00 to get on the tram to take us to the train station. Our train left Amsterdam at 12:26 and the best part was we were all sitting in First Class. The kids enjoyed watching Cars, coloring, eating, and playing the Leapsters. We also had free WiFi on board so we were able to surf the net. We were served lunch in First Class, but it was raw fish (not sushi). We all quickly passed on that and picked around at the remainder food available. It was unbelievable how fast the train moved. It was fairly normal from Amsterdam to Brussels, but once we left Brussels it was moving so fast, it almost made some of us motion sick. We got from Brussels to Paris in an hour, arriving at 4:30. Upon arriving in Paris, we gathered all our luggage, 4 kids and a stroller. We quickly found the Metro station and proceeded to buy our tickets. The metro station was not kid/luggage friendly. You had to go through a gate turnstile that opened and closed after each person went through...and it did not give you much time to pass through. The area was unattended and there was no disabled/wheelchair access. There was a luggage chute to push the luggage through, but our bags were too big. We did finally push the kids through the luggage chute though. We then proceeded to go through with our bags. Mike got our first bag and himself through and then the door closed on him. So I was on the other side with the other bags, plus the 2 bags I was carrying. Luckily a local man used his ticket to get Mike's other bag through and then helped me get through. Of course Lisa and Gabe were trying to get through with a stroller and their suitcase. It was quite an ordeal and absolutely the worst metro entrance that we have encountered anywhere. Once inside, we had to navigate stairs with no escalators or elevators. I don't know how a disabled person would ride the Paris metro. We finally made it through and arrived at our apartment a little after 5:00. We were greeted by Jean, the owner of the apartment. He and his wife and their children live in the apartment when it is not being rented out. So, it's another place that feels like a home; plus there are a lot of toys for the kids to play with. After getting settled in, we left the apartment to get something to eat. Since we had tired kids, we decided on a pizza restaurant close by. Chance was so funny though. He got really upset when we got to the restaurant because he actually thought we were going to Disneyland and didn't understand that that wasn't until tomorrow. He finally calmed down and we all enjoyed pizza. The best part of the apartment is our view. We have a direct shot of the Eiffel Tower. It was very impressive, but even more so when it lit up tonight. Wow!