Well, when last I wrote I was still in Nairobi and savoring the last of my African adventure before the painstaking 21 hours of travel home. But I made it and while that feels like just yesterday I'm actually gearing up for another jaunt across the Atlantic.
Last fall I was planning to go to Cuba until health crises intervened and I stayed home for the best for myself and my princess cat. The timing just wasn't right. But that left me with an American Airlines ticket burning a hole in my pocket. So I started poking around and found that I could get to Paris for pretty much just the change fee to change the itinerary. So I did. I quickly snatched up a nice hotel in the first arrondissement near the Louvre and all the plans started to fall into place. I'm timing this trip with the massive museum exhibitions for Vermeer, Rodin, Valentin du Boulogne and the Leiden collection. All told I have 9 exhibitions I'm aiming to get to, plus a bunch of foodie tours, wine tasting and cooking classes. I'm hoping that this 6 day escape is enough to tide me over through the summer and my next bigger trip to Italy in the fall.
It's been almost 7 years since I've been to Paris, yet it all feels familiar and I see a lot of it in my head. Navigation should be rote by now. I know where I'm going and how things work. It'll be nice to see it again and spend some time soaking it all in.
Today I packed (going carry on only again...there's just no other way!) and got my purse in order, although there wasn't much to that since I've just gotten back from a long weekend in L.A. two weeks ago; it was just a matter of refreshing the clothes. Credit cards and banks have been notified and all my confirmations, vouchers and tickets are printed. Just five days of work and a long weekend before I go. Wheeeee!
