4 Days in France during the Heat Wave

In our excitement to leave Orlando's scorching heat for the summer and head to Europe the last thing we thought we were going to have to contend with was the hottest heat wave France has seen in decades. We however were sure that Orlando theme parks had prepared us for just how hot France was. After all, nothing can compete with Orlando summers (something I have been screaming ever since we moved there years ago).

Getting to Paris was easy enough - I say this but the constant reminder of all the times our bags have been lost was sitting in the back of my mind slowly pecking away at my

sanity. We had a direct flight and knowing our first leg of the trip was Disneyland Paris (don't call us Disney Adults we are merely Disney enthusiasts) we made sure our backpacks had two days of Disney Park clothing so we would not be left high and dry if our baggage decided to go on it's own little adventure.

Lucky for us the travel gods were on our side and our flight was simple, getting our bags was easy, converting money was quick - please always go to your bank in advance and have them convert money it's not only simpler it more often than not gives you the best conversion rate -, and finding a ride share/taxi was not anxiety inducing. As long as you can ignore the many many people telling you the wrong way to go and just pay attention to the signs. However, what we were not prepared for is just how expensive it is to take a taxi from the Paris Airport to Disneyland Paris. We were barely off the plane and a hundred dollars was just flying out of our pockets. With the train line we needed under construction we were left little choice in how we were to get to our hotel on property at Disneyland Paris and well I had overpacked once again leaving us with far too much luggage for alternatives.

I will say this; Disneyland Paris does not play with it's theming in it's resorts - okay I can only speak for the Disneyland Hotel and New York Hotel but our two stays were brilliantly themed and kept the Disney feel the whole way through. While I loved the theming of the this years stay at the New York Hotel with it's nods to New York and the Marvel Universe complete with superhero meet and greets and comic book art work, Hayden preferred last years stay at the Disneyland Hotel as he is partial to the elegance and romantic vibes but more on that later.

One of my favorite perks to stay on site in Disneyland Paris is that the tickets are included in your hotel stay. So when we booked the 11th-13th we received park tickets for all three days. So getting in late on the 11th we were still able to enjoy a few short hours in the park before heading to be for a long park day in the morning. Also the resorts are full of little extras. At the New York Hotel they had a superhero

meet and great where depending on time you could meet with an array of Marvel superheroes. Spiderman was putting in work since his latest movie had just dropped in theaters so he spend most of his time interacting with guest and promoting his new specialty drinks at the Skyline Lounge. I did not have a chance to spend time in there but from the outside it was gorgeous and Hayden has a review of Bleecker Street Bistro on our Fav Foods section (Spoilers: It was sooooo good).

On our second day we splurged for the premiere pass and honestly it was worth every penny. Where lightening lanes and fast passes get you closer to the front of the line the Premier Passes get you to the front of most of the rides. You only can use your pass once per ride per day but if you plan you day mildly well you can accomplish riding all the rides - even with all the new rides at Adventure World. While it doesn't work on every ride it does work for nearly all the rides that are prone to having long wait times so it's does speed up your day quite a bit. Which was a blessing because by the time we took a break for lunch at Restaurant Agrabah Cafe in Disneyland Park we had finished half of Adventure World (Frozen included) and were ready for some food and some air conditioning.

I truly believed that the heat wave in France was not going to do me in. I thought people were exaggerating and I would be laughing in the face of the French heat wave. Boy was I wrong. With little shade in the parks and no breeze in sight I was more than feeling the heat. But we didn't let it get us down. We took a break midday to spend sometime in the hotel to get something to eat, shop and cool down before we went back and finished the evening.

Shopping in the parks is intense. I say this as an avid Disney shopper. What is found at one park may not be available at the other nor will it be guaranteed available in Disney Village (the shopping and food area between the Disneyland Resorts and the parks) so make sure if you see something you just have to have that you don't pass on it. I will forever be thinking about the gorgeous World of Frozen loungefly as well as the Anna and Elsa hair ribbons but I was not about to walk all the way to the back of the parks again as my 22,000 step feet just would not have survived. The Disney Village has one LARGE World of Disney store right outside the parks close to the train station and then several small boutiques and a Lego Store on the walkway to the resort area. As some of the store were under construction there was scaffolding and some workers lining the walkway but the line of speakers against the construction wall blasting Disney pop helped mask the construction noise perhaps too well. This area is also the perfect place to grab your Starbucks or to snag a quick bite outside of theme park food.

Once we made our way back into the parks - with the sun slowly making it's way towards the horizon and the temperature pretending to drop little by little I was able to check off another Disneyland Paris item off my bucket list - Having Champagne on Main Street (and then again in Adventure World in front of the Tower of Terror.) This was only made more magical due to the solar eclipse. Not only did people gather to spend time watching the eclipse together but we even caught some of the cast members trying to conduct some fun science experiments with paper and shadows. Honestly for a brief moment it felt like everyone was just enjoying each other and all the heat and waiting in lines melted away as we all donned our eclipse glasses and watched as the shadows danced across the buildings. it was truly a one of a kind experience.

With the sun setting we decided to watch the new(ish) night show in Adventure World while eating the messiest hotdogs with the oddest toppings I have ever ingested. I was starving and was willing to give them a try - they weren't half bad. The show was a mix of music, lights, water projections and elaborate drones. It featured Disney favorites that are usually forgotten in both English and French. With so much space around the pond in the Frozen area it's easy to find a semi decent spot but I would recommend the small splurge for reserved seating it's worth it.

When the parks close in Disneyland Paris (and it's still sweltering for some reason) they close. No more shopping, no walking around, or one last ride. It's time to go. Which was okay for me as I still was not adjusted to the time change, my feet were aching and we still have another day and a walk back to the hotel. I swear it seemed closer earlier in the day.

The next morning I would like to tell you we got up and we rope dropped again but we were slow going and after we finished packing up all our souvenirs - don't judge me lol. We dropped our luggage at the front and went into the parks for a few more rides and yes you guessed it... more souvenirs. It seemed even hotter than the day before and after just a couple short hours we decided to head back to the hotel and get ready for our day in Paris.

We grabbed lunch at Bleecker Street (again see Hayden's review) when I looked at our hotel reservation To my surprise I had booked a room on the forth floor of a hotel with no elevator and even more devastating - NO Air Conditioning.... it was time to rethink our plan for the next two days in Paris.

Last year we stayed in the beautiful Hotel Duminy - Vendôme and with a little luck, and a great cancelation policy at our former hotel, we were off to a familiar location that had both elevators and amazing air conditioning. One very expensive hour long taxi ride later we checked into our hotel and honestly took a nap. Hayden would later go out and walk around a bit and come back telling the tales of the heat that left me nervous about venturing out. Once the sun had set, and my shower taken, we decided to go walk the city. Paris is always beautiful and the streets are becoming more and more familiar each time we return. It's like coming home. I've heard tale of rude French people and how much they dislike Americans but this hasn't been my experience. I have always been met with a smile and a helping attitude. After a quick walk around and a realization that we were still very very tired we decided to head back so we could hit the ground running the next day. We ordered in Thai food (I can't remember the place but 10/10) and fell asleep quickly.

Finally, I was able to pull myself together and we left the very cold room. Boy was it worth it. We walked about a mile to the National Gallery to spend some time in the Oval Reading room. It was here that I not only found books that will be integral to my thesis but I was able to read some snippets from some classics in it's original French. Realizing that maybe I've learned more French than I give myself credit for - as long as I don't have to speak it because I've been told by more than one person my pronunciation is not so good.

As we wondered the streets we found ourselves in the midst of a festival. Filled with food booths and (for lack of a better word) rickety old rides and a giant ferris wheel. I tried and failed to convince Hayden to go on a ride or enter a funhouse but it was not something he was up for at the time. So we went in search of one of the restaurants on Hayden's ever growing list instead.

Dining in Paris is an experience. First, sitting outside on the street in the middle of a heat wave takes people watching to a whole new level. I'm convinced when people are hot and the days are long it can play tricks on you and people don't act like they usually would. Again see Hayden's review for the full play by play. The food was amazing and the entertainment (the passersby) were phenomenal (I can hear Hayden doing a French wrestling chant as I typed that). Since the next day was a city holiday we decided to head back to the festival and then call it a night as we had an early train in the morning. It was the perfect slow couple of days in Paris allowing the city to tell you what to do. We have done most of the touristy things before so this was a nice change.

I will say things move slower as the temperatures rise in Europe. Many stores were closed due to heat and people were generally quieter and stuck to themselves. This is not the usual situation we have found in Paris but it was nice to experience it in a different climate. I keep telling Hayden we need to come back to Paris when it's isn't snowing or in the middle of a heat wave. One of these days we can wander around in comfortable weather and have the full Paris experience.