Chilly view of Eiffel Tower

On a very crisp Saturday morning recently, we got up at 7am and raced down to the Trocadero plaza to pose for our Christmas photo. There is a narrow time window early in the morning when there is enough light to take a picture but before the flood of tour buses arrive.

With a shutterbug friend manning the camera, we tried to pretend that we weren't tired and freezing. Halfway into the photo shoot we got swarmed by that Paris street staple, the obnoxious trinket salesguys.

The blinking statue mongers must have hoped we would pay them to leave us alone but we refused on principle. Thus the last few shots were something of a cat and mouse game - with cranky, cold kids, lurking vendors and the odd tourist standing transfixed gawking at the Eiffel Tower all conspiring to try to ruin our perfect Kodak moment.