BozAround: travel en famille

PLANNING YOUR SUMMER holiday right now? If you need inspiration seek out Vanessa Boz’s new travel blog, BozAround, an inspiring and informative family travel sourcebook.

French-born Vanessa (pictured below with her son Marcelo as a baby) has had plenty of travel experience. In her dayjobs as co-creator of the Bubble children’s design trade shows in New York and London, and as the London-based correspondent of the superchic French tome, MilK magazine, Vanessa spends her time travelling between the three hippest cities in the world. She has lived in all three cities, travels regularly for work and fun, and spends her summers in Cesme, Turkey, with her Turkish husband and father of her two children, Marcelo and Amalya. She is now a children’s brand advisor.

Here she shares her thoughts on life in London, NYC, and Paris.

LittleBig: Most of us dream of living in Paris, NYC and London in our lifetimes. How did it happen for you?

VB: Luckily, quite naturally. I was born in France and we lived in Paris with my family during my teenage years and until I was a student. But I am the type who can’t stand still…so I wanted to fly with my own wings when I was in my 20s, and I moved to NYC. I got a job on Wall Street first, which was quite an experience for five years. Then I quit and moved to fashion. I thought I would stay for only a year or two, but New York really sucks you in. So I stayed for 10 years, got married at the Town Hall in downtown Manhattan, and had my son in the Village. We’re always joking that he’s the only American in the family, and our only real tie to New York. But after he was born, I started longing for Europe, being back closer to our roots. London felt like a natural move after New York. Keeping the cosmopolitan way of living that we loved so much in NY, but greener, calmer.

LittleBig: How do you feel about each city now?

VB: When I arrived in London, I thought to myself: my soul is in NY, my heart is in Paris and my body is now in London. I think it’s still true. London makes me feel very balanced.

LB: Which is the most family friendly do you think?

VB: London is amazingly child-friendly. I’m an urban girl. Apart from several years when I lived by the beach in Algeria, I have always been in big cities. So for me, seeing green and trees and ducks so easily is a wonderful thing. You don’t find that in New York or Paris, unless you’re right by Central Park or the Luxembourg garden. We’re lucky to live near two parks in London - I cross Primrose Hill every morning when I take my son to school, and it feels so…refreshing for both of us. Also, I was amazed the first time I arrived in London with my Bugaboo, that you do not need to fold it to fit into a black cab. Just this made me feel welcome. All that said, New York is much better than anyone thinks for children. It does have a lot to offer families.

LB: What are your favourite shopping family addresses in

a) Paris? Does ice cream fit in the shopping section? If so, Berthillon ice cream on Ile St louis. Also, Zef is such a beautiful brand for children, you can’t really find it outside Paris. So I love to go to their store in St Germain des Pres or in the Marais.
b) NYC? I like Yoya a lot, in the Meatpacking District. Also Makie in Soho is such a beautiful store for children clothes, from a Japanese designer who lives in New York.
c) London? I am a big fan of Couverture in Notting Hill. There’s always something interesting for everyone in the family, including my husband.

LB: And your favourite, secret must-visit places for the family in

a) Paris? A donkey trip inside the Jardin des Tuileries. Then move on to the Jeu de Paumes for an art exhibition.
b) NYC? It’s a day trip, 1h30 north of Manhattan. Storm King Art Center, a very large sculpture park in a beautiful setting in the Catskills region, is perfect to spend the day with the family wandering around.
c) London? Going from Regent’s Park to Maida Vale by boat on the canals. You catch the boat right after the bridge inside London Zoo, near the giraffe section.

LB: What’s the best travel-related thing you’ve bought for your kids?

VB: Hmmm… the Like a Bike was a really good investment which will go from my son to my daughter without a problem.

LB: What essentials for your kids do you travel with?

VB: My son never leaves home without his Zid Zid Kid airplane backpack and his little tiger Samsonite suitcase. [Both pictured top]. It’s kind of a ritual when we start packing, to fill them with dinosaurs and the Around the World with Mouk book [pictured right].

LB Where do you hope to travel to in 2010?

VB: I’ve always dreamed of taking a real six months sabbatical with my family. I hope that it will be in 2010. It just sounds right to do it now that our baby girl will shortly turn one, and before our son starts real school. New Zealand, Australia and South East Asia. The four of us backpacking. Sort of!

*http://bozaround.com Contact Vanessa at vanessaboz@mac.com