Romance in France - Blog Hop!

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Paris is probably the widely thought city for love and romance.  The architecture, the history, the passion, the coffee and pastries...I could write a whole dissertation on the pastries alone!  I’ve been to Paris three times and lived there for four months in 2004 and I’ve set two of my books in this amazing city.

Yet, my very first visit to the city was under less than desirable circumstances.  My boyfriend and I flew there eighteen days after September 11^th, 2001, and needless to say it was a very stressful visit.  If I hadn’t paid months in advance for the trip I might have canceled, but we went and I still remember sitting under the Eiffel Tower with military men with machine guns walking around.  Every trash can in the city had been sealed off, we were told, because of bomb threats so trash was everywhere in the streets.

Paris in October is cold.  And once I walked down the Champs-Élysées bundled up while snow blanketed the city.  I was almost the only person out that day as it snowed heavily.  It was amazing to feel like I was all alone in such a city.

During the time I lived there in 2004, my boyfriend (same man) and I traveled to Giverny, to see Monet’s house.  I recommend taking the trip to Giverny in Spring, because the train trip from Paris is on one of those trains that still has vinyl on the seats.  In spring, it won’t be so hot for your thigh skin to melt into it, saving you a little discomfort.  When you get to the city where the train stops, named Vernon, you will realize that Giverny is about three miles away, and to preserve the historical importance of Monet’s house, you will be told the best way to get there is bike riding. 

Let me assure you, even if your ass is not prepared for a three mile bike ride, the countryside is mainly level and there is a marked path to follow.  Just as soon as you get through the city of Vernon, that is, and the traffic.  Once you get to the house and fall in love with the flowers (again, Springtime is best for optimal enjoyment of the flower gardens and numerous bees), you’ll notice that there is a parking lot full of cars and you start to wonder where the hell did they come from because by now your tail bone is sore as hell! 

The bridge of the famous lily pond is breathtaking.  You know the one I’m talking about.  It’s the most romantic place on earth to stand on, hold the hand of your loved one, and blink like crazy as about a hundred pictures are all snapped at once because you two make such a lovely picture.

As you walk through the house and take the tour, you will slowly come to realize that at the end of the day you now have to bike ride the three miles back.  And if you fail to make the last train back to Paris, you’ll have to find a room somewhere, so I hope you can speak French.  And also, by the end of the day, you’ll discover most of the restaurants are closed, so McDonalds it is.

Paris itself is smorgasbord of sensation.  At least, it is unless you’re planning to live there.  Then it’s like any other city with the hustle and bustle, expect don’t expect elevators in any historic building (which is basically all of them), and you end up renting an apartment on the sixth floor.  Have you ever wondered how French people can eat all that bread and all those pastries and stay thin?  Because they live six flights up a spiral staircase. 

In my novel, True to Her Heart, the hotel that Molly stays in was real.  It was under renovation, smelled with paint fumes, and the elevator was out of order. I like to write as much real life situations into my stories as possible.  The window she looks out and spies on Shane was real.  The trips she took and the places she saw were the same journeys I took. 

I have incredible memories of Paris, of France, and of Europe in general.  My seven year old is looking forward to when he can travel up the Eiffel Tower.  But first, our next family vacation will be to Japan where we plan on hiking up Mt. Fuji to see the daybreak over the clouds.
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