Spring Break: French Cathedrals

We began our long road trip on the morning of Friday, April 6th.  The next 10 days we would be traveling in the van with our three boys, Oma and Aunt Andrea.  We loaded up the van and were on our way by 9:30 AM...not a bad start time when you have that many people traveling along.

After driving 7 hours we made our first stop in Reims, France.  You can bet the boys were ready to run around and get some wiggles out after such a long drive but instead we hopped on a train from our hotel and headed to the center of town to catch a peek at the Cathedral.  Construction started in 1211 AD and this church was the site of 26 coronations of French Kings and Queens.  I love Gothic architecture so this church was well worth the stop!

With so many people in the car this roof top carrier was a life-saver!

Guess who was super excited about the train ride?  No matter how tired and grumpy Julian could have been after sitting in the car all day, as soon as we told him we were going for a train ride he got all happy and excited:)

The boys getting a bit of energy out on the steps of the Cathedral.  At least they weren't running inside the church!

The rose window inside the church...my little camera does not do this justice

I loved this peaceful candle-lit altar 

Our little family outside the church

After a good nights sleep we headed off to Chartres, about 2 1/2 hours away.  We had heard there was an English tour guide that has been showing Chartres Cathedral to tourists for the last 50 years.  He gives a 75 minute tour and explains the history and the meaning behind each of the beautiful stained glass windows.  Because the boys don't do so well with tours I opted to hit the playground with a picnic lunch while Hyrum, Oma and Andrea went for the tour.  After we met back together again it turns out the guide wasn't doing tours that day so they just wandered around the church.  It was a bummer that we missed out on this tour but it was still a Cathedral worth seeing.  Hyrum and I walked around the Cathedral while Oma and Andrea took a turn with the kids.  Man, it was nice to have even a 30 minute break from the crazy kids:)

Chartres Cathedral

One of the decorated portals into the church

The windows are truly amazing

Andrea and Oma with the Cathedral in the background

When we were done in Chartres we packed back into the van and headed to Mount St. Michel, about 3 1/2 hours away...but we'll save that for another post:)