DisneyLand Paris, London, Stonehenge

Lisa and I left on our first daddy-daughter trip on the Monday evening flight out of Detroit at 6:30, overnight to Paris, landing around 8 the next morning.

By Michael

We landed at Charles de Gaulle around 8 in the morning and took a taxi into the city, to the Art Hotel Paris Eiffel on Boulevard de Grenelle, a short walk from the Tower. Lisa was at her window seat as we crossed into France.

We got to the hotel late morning, dropped our bags and waited around before we could check in at 2. We had a 4:30 ticket for the Tower, so once we were settled we walked down toward the river, past a carousel where Lisa rode one of the horses.

We spent the rest of the afternoon around the base of the Tower and up top, Lisa at the telescope on the observation deck. Down by the water under one of the bridges we stopped at a railing covered in padlocks and made faces at each other for the camera.

A little before 7 we boarded a Seine river cruise at the foot of the Tower and went past the Musée d'Orsay, the Louvre and Notre-Dame and back, the evening light going gold.

After the cruise we stayed around the Tower until dark, then walked back to the hotel. From our room we watched the Tower light up and sparkle across the sky.

By Michael

Lisa still had the stuffed fox from the day before. We headed back out for a second day at the resort, this time mostly in Walt Disney Studios Park.

We queued past the Gusteau's sign for Ratatouille and walked through Toy Story Playland, where I posed against the parachute mural while Lisa took the picture. We rode the Tower of Terror together and kept the ride photo, then walked down Hollywood Boulevard for a few pictures, Lisa in front of the backlot buildings and the two of us for a selfie by the gate.

In the evening we made our way back toward Disneyland Park, and Lisa reached up to touch hands with the Minnie Mouse statue near the entrance. As the light went gold we walked past the Mickey-ears water tower and out under the big arch. We made a last stop in Disney Village before heading back to the hotel.

By Michael

We started the day at the Arc de Triomphe, climbing the spiral stairs to the top for the view down the avenues to the Eiffel Tower. Lisa and I took turns with selfies up there before heading back down.

From the Arc we caught the open-top bus. It took us past Trocadéro, where we stopped for a crepe and got a clear look at the Eiffel Tower from across the river, then on past Les Invalides with its gold dome, the Pont Alexandre III, and the Grand Palais, ending at the Place de la Concorde with its fountains and the obelisk.

In the afternoon we walked up toward Montmartre, past the Moulin Rouge, and stopped for lunch near Pigalle. Lisa found a fountain to stand by while she finished her drink. Then we caught the bus again, and Lisa put her feet up for the ride, with a stop at Notre-Dame on the way back.

We got back to the Art Hotel by early evening. From near the hotel you could still see the Eiffel Tower over the rooftops. Lisa's stuffed animals were waiting for her on the bed.

By Michael

We started at the Cité des Sciences at La Villette in the morning, then rode the metro down to the Aquarium de Paris, tucked underneath the Trocadéro. We were there for most of the day, working our way through tank after tank of fish, sharks and coral.

Lisa had her iPad and took a huge number of her own photos: a shark gliding past the glass, clownfish in the anemones, a starfish in the touch pool. Outside there is a koi pond, and she leaned over the edge to reach for the fish. Near the end we stopped to watch a diver in a mermaid costume swim through one of the big tanks in front of a crowd.

We came out at the Trocadéro, had a hot dog by the fountains with the Eiffel Tower across the river, then walked over and stood underneath the tower itself and in the Champ de Mars.

In the evening we went on to the Jardin des Tuileries, where Lisa rode one of the small rides at the fair set up in the garden. We walked past the arcades on the Rue de Rivoli and crossed the Place de la Concorde before heading back to the hotel.

By Michael

Lisa and I took the Metro, lines 8 then 4, to the Gare du Nord for the 11:10 Eurostar, then went under the Channel to London St Pancras, arriving at 12:30. A napkin from the onboard cafe joked that calories do not count when you cross time zones.

We rode the number 73 bus to the Comfort Inn on Buckingham Palace Road, where we had a room for two nights.

The afternoon started at Westminster Abbey. We walked up Whitehall to the Horse Guards, where mounted sentries stood in the gateway and Lisa had her picture taken with one. We stopped for a quick McDonald's lunch, thumbs up all around, before walking on to Big Ben in a steady rain, where we took selfie after selfie under the clock tower.

We followed the Thames past Tower Bridge and into the Tower of London, still in the rain, and Lisa tried on a knight's helmet and cape in the gift shop.

In the evening we did Shrek's Adventure next to the London Eye, then rode the capsule up over the city with a clear view of the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben below us. We found a Subway for dinner and walked back to the hotel, where Lisa showed off her Paddington Bear before falling asleep holding him.

By Michael

The tour was called the Stonehenge Exclusive Private Viewing with Lacock and Bath. The coach left Victoria at 10:20 and headed west, past Harrods and out of London.

Our first stop was Lacock, a village dating back to the Saxon era. Many of its buildings were once part of a large monastic estate and now belong to the National Trust, and it has been used as a filming location for Pride and Prejudice and the first Harry Potter movie. Lisa and I walked the village streets, then had lunch in the National Trust tearoom, a cheese and pickle sandwich for me and a cheese sandwich for Lisa.

Then Bath, the UNESCO World Heritage city known for its Georgian architecture. We had a panoramic drive through the streets, past the Abbey, before going into the Roman Baths, the best-preserved Roman spa in the world, where more than a million litres of hot spring water still rise every day. We looked down into the Great Bath itself, its water green, walked through the museum of coins and pottery dug up on the site, and found an old carved stone face on display. Lisa read by the water for a while before we left.

Dinner was at the Stonehenge Inn and Carvery in Durrington. Then on to Stonehenge. After the site closed to the public, our small group walked past the rope line and right up to the stones, close enough to touch them. We stayed among them until it grew dark.