Lindt Bear Goes to Paris

Definition of Extreme Blogging [ik-streem blawg-ing]: invited to participate in the launch of the Lindt Teddy Bear, an exclusive holiday product making its debut in Australia this year, the Associate Woman decides to take the little bear on a three-week overseas vacation to France and London. Below are photos chronicling most of the trip beginning of November 2011.

Welcome to Paris! I had to move a few buttery crumbs to show off this beautiful plate. Bear hadn't come out of the suitcase yet and we were just too interested stuffing our faces to care.

Bear braves the winds to go on the Bateaux-Mouches tour of the Seine, - flowing through the heart and soul of Paris. Behind Bear you can just about make out that big cheesy tourist trap.

A now squashed bear gets to Hard Rock Cafe, Paris to feed a very expensive pin collecting hobby (I'm glad the children avoided those pins of the groupie pulling her pants off). After Hard Rock we head to the Musee Grevin, a wax museum right next door where we I take a photo with Monica Belluci, before we rush back for emergency toileting. All the while, Bear maintains this very suspicious almost sinister smile.

Bear plays in the playground in front of  L'eglise de St Eustache - which is a convenient landmark between our apartment and the fabulous Rue Montorgueil a street which features some of the best meat and fish markets, and pastry shops. The fact that it's a mere 2 minute walk from here only serves to increase this feeling I'm going to explode whilst I shuffle back and forth in the frigid playground. 

Bear is satisfied after a very delicious 'medium-rare' hamburger and waits in front of my wife Emmeline at Amelie's Cafe, Cafe des 2 Moulins in Montmartre - the cafe unfortunately  pushes the Audrey Tautou angle just a little harder than they should. But then, so do we.

Can you see how exhausted Bear is? We're at some random bistro at Forum Les Halles after a hard core shopping  spree for Manteaux & Vests at Desigual. Some of us exit with some really swanky stuff. Others in the group, well ... let's just say I had to settle for El Cheapo H&M!

Bear had to consider people wanting less cream and more 'Asiatique' tastes.  Thankfully, the meal turned out to be quite satisfying, and given there were no Parisites in the restaurant - we got a breath of fresh air without seasoning our food with secondary smoke.

We went to the Louvre, saw the Mona Lisa and decided to decapitate Bear for Halloween.  The children have been eating so much by now they leave the decapitated chocolate on the counter top. I end up gobbling it up. The fruit in the background was left untouched a few more days.

The squashed Bear re-surfaces, succumbs and goes up the Eiffel Tower - bypassing an expensive tour with cheap online tickets - and walks back down, with no major muscle pain.

All Bear knew about mysterious monoliths was of Stonehenge. Some research through Fodors leads us to Brittany, walking through the 'top 10 must see' Carnac Stones.  Apparently there are more than 3,000 stones (we didn't count that all ourselves) spread across several kilometers. The real unexplained phenomenon is how - by this time in our trip - I got my wife to take over photographing macro shots of a small bit of chocolate. Think she could post on my blog too?

Chateau Du Clos Luce and the Parc Leonardo Da Vinci is where the Master spent his remaining days after being chased out of Italy. This is bear in front of Leonardo's deathbed. I'm thinking that smile seems a little inappropriate at this time.

Bear in front of a replica Mona Lisa - get one at the souvenir shop on the way out! Use it to fan away cigarette smoke! Leonardo would be proud.

Parc Leonardo Da Vinci - was full of the Master's inventions and the kids absolutely loved it. I  particularly liked the large translucent paintings hanging up in the garden allowing natural light to filter through them. AND I further liked that my wife is still taking pictures of Bear for Lindt me. 

While someone was in Perth, Bear visits her castle in Windsor! For those of you who are not in the know ... standing in front of Windsor means we're no longer in France.

London was very kind to us. There were many days of sunshine, and it never rained even if it did eventually get cloudy. On our very last day there, we brought bear to the Natural History Museum Ice Rink.right after the time we spent at the brilliant Science Museum (a slight cut above Scitech and all free). The kids loved skating outdoors -  it was a far cry from the yobbos hooning the rink at Cockburn. Bear can smile again ... people are speaking something we all recognise! 

Sadly, I was not able to return in time or get enough motivation to go online and coordinate the generous giveaway Lindt wanted me to do for them. Maybe next time. For more information on Lindt, please see Lindt Australia's FaceBook Page.

Links

• Win a Lindt Bear Christmas Hamper at Fat Mum Slim
• Start a New Christmas Tradition with Lindt Teddy Bear at Seven Cherubs
• Eat Chocolate and Still Lose Weight at Diminishing Lucy
• Lindt Chocolate, Christmas Bears and Little People at Everything is Edible 

Colin
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