Mandy's Visit

It is no question that visits from family members are the absolute best! I've been so fortunate to have Mandy visit once a year since moving to Europe in 2007. In addition to three family trips, she's come three additional times where the two of us have traveled to Poland, Spain and this time, we met in Paris before spending a week in the Netherlands. We have traveled to Paris together a few times before, but as it's been several years for Mandy, she was eager to return. I am so blessed to have a sister that loves to travel and is able to get away!

The end of September is a great time for travel as the weather usually hasn't taken a drastic turn yet and everything still looks beautiful. We were blessed with beautiful weather in Paris with only intermittent rain. Our first night, we walked from our hotel near the Bastille to the Isle de Cite and Latin Quarter. We were able to see all the beautiful and iconic Paris landmarks lit up in their nighttime glory.

Notre Dame Cathedral

Mandy pointing to the Eiffel Tower from the Pont d'Arts

Posing on the Pont d'Arts

The next day, we began by visiting the captivating Musee de l'Orangerie, an art gallery of impressionist paintings. It is most famous for being the permanent home of eight Water Lilies murals by Monet. Afterward, we toured through the Tuileries garden to Rue de Rivoli and our favorite Parisian Tea Room, Angelina's. This is always a must-visit on any trip to Paris as the African hot dark chocolate is indescribably delicious.

Tuileries Garden

Angelina's Tea Room

Angelina's Tea Room

Tuileries Garden

After another stroll through the Tuilieries garden and Lourve, we walked along the grand Avenue de l'Opera to the Galeries Lafayette department store. The domed-center is truly an incredible site and we enjoyed perusing the famous labels while making our way to the top floor cafeteria and rooftop views of the city. 

Shopping on Avenue de l'Opera 

Galeries Lafayette

Rooftop View from Galeries Lafayette

Afterward, we spent the late afternoon walking around St. Germain and visited the beautiful Luxembourg Garden. That night, we enjoyed dinner at the festive and kitschy restaurant, Le Temple.

Jardin du Luxembourg

Le Temple Restaurant

On Sunday morning, we trekked to the northern part of the city to visit the antique flea market of St. Ouen. We first perused the ethnic goods stands with beautiful silk scarves from India, leather handbags from Morocco and a plethora of cheap shoes. We eventually made our way to the antique stalls where we searched for little treasures. Mandy found a great vintage jacket. We enjoyed a lovely lunch, complete with entertainment, at over-the-top Chez Louisette. Located in the heart of the antique market and only open two days a week, I'm so glad we were able to experience this jewel of a restaurant with traditional French singers. We walked from the St. Ouen area to Montmartre where we saw the Sacre Coeur and explored the lively Place du Tertre, filled with artists and sidewalk cafes.

Sunday lunch at Chez Louisette

Shopping at St. Ouen antique flea market

Sacre Coeur Cathedral

It was a fast and frenzied trip to Paris, but we still managed to hit the highlights, while enjoying time to breathe in the city and explore the side streets. Back in the Netherlands, we spent the week visiting places Mandy had not been to previously. First on the list was a trip to Aachen to visit the Dom, enjoy a German lunch and see the nearby Dreilandenpunt. Yes, this has become a must-see for all my visitors, because there aren't too many places you can say you've stood in three countries at once.

Aachen Markt

Dreilandenpunt

Another day we went to Maastricht where we explored the city on both sides of the river, visited many of the lovely shops, had a great lunch at the V&D La Place, followed by a delicious sidewalk waffle. That same day, we trekked to the American Cemetery in Margraten, which is always a humbling site.

Maastricht Cathedral Bookstore

American Cemetery in Margraten

Another day trip was spent in the quaint German town of Monschau. I had only visited here once before and had forgotten how adorable this town was with its numerous half-timbered buildings lining the bubbling creek. We enjoyed a lovely day visiting the glassworks factory, wandering through the town, browsing through the many shops, having lunch and discovering the greatest waffle ever made. Quite a successful day!

Monschau, Germany

Monschau, Germany

Monschau, Germany

I loved having Mandy here to experience some of my daily life activities, including bike rides to the Sittard square, attending the Thursday morning market and even coming to a Bunco night with me. She was great about enjoying down-time and one afternoon we enjoyed a lovely picnic in the orchard with goodies we picked up at the market.

Rose beer on the Sittard Markt

Loaded up with goods from the market

Picnic in the orchard

We spent a lovely day walking around the countryside near Schinnen, a particularly beautiful part of the Limburg area, due to the rolling hills. It was the perfect day to enjoy the countryside

A countryside walk near Sweikhuizen

Making friends on the walk

A countryside walk near Sweikhuizen

Making friends on the walk

And of course no visit to this area would be complete with a visit to the famous Pannekoekenbakker in Thorn. 

Filled up on pancakes and feeling good

Thorn, NL

It was the perfect 9 days of sight-seeing balanced with lots of relaxation and downtime simply enjoying the laid-back Dutch daily living. I'm so glad I was able to have Mandy here to experience a week in my world and will miss these European sister trips immensely. Hopefully we can make them happen again someday down the road. Until then, I look forward to lots of Stateside sister trips in the near future. Thanks again for a great trip, Mandy!

Enjoying our final dinner in Sittard