It’s been a while…and I missed you and this space <3
We are home. And as Dorothy said so well, there is no place like it.
Russ and I took a mutual bucket list trip to France and while I shared some daily photo dumps on social media, this is the place where I will process the journey with you <3
Right now I am trying to decide how I want to approach this. I am pretty sure you do not want to see all the photos…I just did a rough count and it looks like a little over 1,600.
I need to weed through those and the pages of notes I would jot down and figure out the best way to take you with us, without losing you along the way.
For today we will just start with our why’s. Russ and I both have been interested in visiting the sites for the D Day landings. We were married on June 6th and to be honest, were basically ignorant of a lot of the story.
As time has passed, we realized why our parents kept pointing out that we had selected a rather historic day to exchange our vows. After listening to various guides who evidently learned far more about our country’s involvement than we did in school, we understand why this mattered so much to the generation before us.
I also have dreamed of visiting France and, particularly Paris, since I studied under my most favorite teacher for four years of French. Her instruction always included more than speaking and writing the language. She taught us about culture and history and landmarks.
It was very moving to me to actually be in those places I had learned about and to feel what it was like to be there. It was even more precious to me to be able to do this with Russ.
I realize I could try with all my heart to share every single fact and piece of information I learned, but that would be something you could do on your own. Instead I hope to share from a personal perspective some of our encounters and impressions and treasures stored on this adventure.
For today, I will leave you with one of my favorite moments.
I wanted to see Le Jardin de Tuileries. It is the oldest gardens in Paris and while there was much Olympic leftover mess around it, we found a quiet bench and sat together for a while. It was a favorite for me.
I took out my small notebook and jotted down thoughts from the previous day. Russ scrolled through photos of family and would show me different ones.
It was just a park like any park, except it wasn’t. We sat like we belonged there on a bench in this famous park and just did the most ordinary things and it holds an extraordinary place in my heart.
And now when I hear about the Tuileries gardens, I have a real connection. That is what I love about travel. We gain tangible elements of sight and sound as we enter into a place we have heard about, but never been to visit.
I hope you will enjoy the tour with me, vicariously, this week. Believe me. I took you with us. Many times I would jot down a note or snap a photo thinking of sharing with you. So make sure you wear comfortable shoes and bring rain gear and I will….
See you tomorrow <3