Nice, France
Posted on July 7, 2023 • 3 minutes • 539 words
True to myself, I woke up in a new city and I was ready to go explore! I have traveled with kids a lot and have created the rule of thumb…whatever you have planned, divide by 2. The ‘plan’ was to hike up to a fort with some views, walk to our cousins’ (Mark and Shayna) place, tram to their new place, swing by the market for street food, go to a water fountain, stroll the streets of old town and maybe a quick dip in the sea before dinner.
We started off strong! We hiked up to the Albon Fort, took in the views and walked to Mark and Shayna’s rental. The fort was a trek straight up, but the views were amazing and the fort was cool, although you couldn’t go in. We did get to show the kids a very old fashion toilet, but sadly forgot to take a photo of it. Sam offered to climb up it to check it out though. We are definitely a family that loves forts/castles/etc.
On the way walking to the tram, we found a park. Kids wanted to go and why not? They had a blast and we chilled in the shade.
Tram to the place Mark and Shayna are in the process of buying. No cliche photo with the ‘Vendu’ sign, but we took a photo of them anyways.
After seeing the new place from the outside, found sandwiches that we took to a park…and guess what? Kids played some more.
Walked along Ave Garibaldi and the esplanade and to a giant water fountain area that Shayna had found previously…and kids played in the water for a bit. It was huge; probably bigger than a football/futbol field and there were easily over 100 kids running around playing. Bonus of this place…water fountain had bubbly and still water options. Amazing! Yes, that’s Max just laying on the water shooting out of the ground for minutes.
We had clearly hit our limit, but we weren’t close to being home. A little stroll through the old town (shorter than planned, but I’ll take what I can get) and then to the bus back home for a charcuterie dinner on the patio with the kids playing in the courtyard again.
It was a great day. Hot, but the parks helped with that; kids soaked their hats and we filled our water bottles. And the best thing about the parks…bathrooms!!! It’s a constant struggle on finding bathroom when needed. Traveling with a husband (usually not the culprit) and 3 kids, multiply that by 5.
Moral of the story: When traveling with kids, it really has to be for you AND them. The parks boosted kid moral and watching them play with kids who don’t speak the same language always makes me so happy. And what’s the rush? There really was no reason to say no to “Mom! A park! Can we go?!” So new family rule: if not in a hurry and you see a park with shade…stop and play/rest.
Dan mapped our route and estimated 8 miles of walking. Add to that the running around the parks and the ups and downs on Nice, no wonder the kids (us too) were spent.
