French Girl in Seattle: The beginnings Happy Birthday, French Girl in Seattle! You have just turned 7. You were born in Paris, during a very cold winter when snow fell – and stuck – in the French capital’s streets, making sightseeing challenging and time spent indoors irresistible. You started as a blog meant to help…
“To awaken quite alone in a strange town is one of the pleasantest sensations in the world.” Freya Stark, Explorer and Travel Writer. Agreed, Freya. I love exploring new towns, big or small. I love traveling alone too. Wait. Alone? If I am fine traveling by myself, I still like to be in good company. I…
It’s all Rick Steves‘ fault. Or should I say: It all happened thanks to Rick Steves? On Saturday morning, I headed to Edmonds, WA, where I had reservations for a two-hour talk by Rick. Edmonds is his hometown, and the world headquarters of fast growing Rick Steves Europe. Rick has always lived and worked…
Versailles. Gold. So much gold. And carp. Voracious carp, intent on sharing your picnic lunch as you sit by the Grand Canal. These are my memories of Versailles the magical place I visited as a child with my family and Parisian relatives. As I recall, I was not that fascinated with the grandiose castle, the…
“This town of churches and dreams; this town I thought I would lose myself in, with its backward ways and winding roads leading to nowhere; but, I found myself instead.” -Magic in the Backyard (excerpt from American Honey, by Kelly Elmore) What does a big-city-loving-French-Girl do, when she can’t be in a big city? She…
Life is good in the Perigord. You will often hear visitors refer to this region as le Périgord (the name of the old French province,) or la Dordogne (the name of the administrative division it belongs to.) Either way, it is a popular area in the summer. Over 2.5 million tourists descend upon Sarlat and local towns every year.…