And so for our (first) February break, we decided to head to Disneyland Paris – not, you realise, for ourselves but as a treat for Eleanor. At the age of seven, we thought it was time! Eurostar to Lille and then TGV straight to Marne-la-Vallée – Chessy was all very efficient, and gave us a sense being abroad, with changing church architecture and electricity pylon design, along with the most dense Mistletoe populations we have ever seen.

Disneyland was pretty much as expected: brash and busy, albeit perhaps not as rammed as we feared. But still plenty of people there, hence the interminable queues, to get in, to go on the rides, to eat or drink. One has to admire the business model that charges a large sum of money to get into the park, then you spend 80% of your time standing in line…but at least it was calm and sunny, if cold. And the smile on Eleanor’s face made it all worthwhile…

But as everywhere there are nuggets of delight for anyone with an eye to see it. Personally my favourite ride was ‘It’s a Small World’. Notwithstanding the psychedelic/nightmare sight and sound of hundreds of dolls singing, it really chimed with my worldview of harmony and diversity (and couldn’t help but wonder just how much Donald Trump must hate it!).

And while we were queuing for that the pastel shades of the façade made a very pleasing reflected liquid mosaic on the water:

Around the parks, the plantings are generally ecological as well as robust and ornamental, including a good range of early nectar and pollen sources.

And every tree was planted within a rain garden to help it survive and thrive – trees were very much in our minds with our previous month of tree protecting back home, and news of rapidly unfolding events on WhatsApp (this saga will be the subject of a future blog!).

We stayed a short shuttle bus (free) ride from the main resort, in a B&B Hotel (a chain we have always found to be to our liking) on the edge of Magny-le-Hongre, a very pleasant retreat from the razzmatazz of the parks.

It is one of a series of hotels stretching around an inviting greenspace with a large reed-fringed lake at its heart, home to Cormorants, a Kingfisher, Great-crested Grebes and Rose-ringed Parakeets.

But after three nights, it was homeward bound, and an hour exploring the wonders of Marne-la-Vallée – Chessy station. Ultra-modern inside, with interlocking escalators giving an impression of being inside a work by M. C. Escher …

… whereas on the frontage is the retained façade from a previous Brutalist incarnation, now repurposed into homes for House Martins.

Except of course it wasn’t: Wikipedia indicates the TGV station was opened in 1994, concurrent with the theme park. As with all things Disney, all is not what it seems – the edifice is artifice!