French Journal Day 133 (Travel Diary Day 213) Our first 3 days in Paris are shaping up to be more action-packed than the entire 6 weeks we’ve spent in Burgundy. It’s been a time of both tranquility and productivity here but not much in the way of adventure. After getting acquainted with our neighbourhood on […]

French Journal Day 132 (Travel Diary Day 212) This morning we saw Jess for the final time. As usual, she didn’t recognise us. We felt a strange mix of emotions as we said goodbye. On the one hand, we were relieved not to have to go back to the home she stayed in. The staff […]

French Journal Day 131 (Travel Diary Day 211) “Di sana!” replied the driver, pointing into a dusty abyss. “Di mana?” I asked again. I could barely see 10 metres ahead – the chance of spying Bromo, the volcano, was slim. Dozens of people either side of us fizzed past on motorbikes, faces covered, skidding left […]

French Journal Day 129 (Travel Diary Day 209) I’m enchanted by French cafés. As a proud coffee addict, I like to enjoy my fix in comfortable surroundings. When I find a coffee shop I like, I tend to frequent it often. Every café we’ve visited here has had a cozy charm, without the flash furnishings […]

French Journal Day 128 (Travel Diary Day 208) I’ve been staring my computer screen for an hour in the vein hope of writing something interesting. Usually the words flow out of my mind and onto the screen without too much energy. This, I imagine, is a sign that we need to inject more adventure into […]

French Journal Day 125 (Travel Diary Day 205) The 18 foot steel gates were open – a sight I never thought I’d see. Rolling gently up the gravel path, we pulled over long before we reached the chateau. Somehow it didn’t seem right to enter the ancient grounds with Lucien’s car. We got out and […]

French Journal Day 121 (Travel Diary Day 201) I was on the 3rd floor when the front door rang yesterday afternoon. Rachel was elsewhere but didn’t hear it. A small monitor on the wall of the room I was in flickered on. It was showing me the view of the street from the front door. […]

French Journal Day 117 (Travel Diary Day 197) Rachel and I slowly made our way from the village boulangerie back home this evening. We were empty-handed – the old woman who runs it closes early if she’s out of bread. We greeted a crazy-eyed lady who lives nearby. Squeaky, the friendly stray cat we feed […]

French Journal Day 113 (Travel Diary Day 193) Today marks the end of my daily travel journal and HDR photo. I’ll still have a travel journal. I plan for it to be a big part of our lives as we continue our journey. I’m taking a step back from writing it every day, however. I […]

French Journal Day 112 (Travel Diary Day 192) Through sleet and snow, we carved our path north to Paris this morning. This time we were headed to the airport to bid farewell to Rachel’s mother . At one of the toll roads we were pulled over by the police. When they saw the right-hand-side drive […]