Mais oui, mes amies.

After thinking long and long about whether or not to even take the smallest of Odysseys this summer, and if I did, where would I go, I decided that life is indeed too short, with too many places left undiscovered. So, after considering a repeat trip to England, I hit up my fiend Suzanne over in the Netherlands and asked her what she thought about seeing Strawberry Fields with me this summer, while using Amsterdam as a “home base.”

She said that was fine, and then, almost as an aside, said, “Maybe we could take the Thalys high-speed train to Paris, too.”

Hmmm…

So, after a few moments of consideration: Let me take you down, ‘cuz I’m going to…Paris.

The last time I saw Paris (enough with the song quotes, promise) was in 1976. I remember going to the Louvre, shopping up and down the Champs-Élysées, eating at a restaurant called the Hippopotamus, seeing (but not climbing) the Eiffel Tower, visiting Notre Dame Cathedral, and getting all sticky munching on watermelon sold by a street vendor. I recall nothing about where I stayed. Isn’t that sad?

Well, that won’t be the case this time. Suzi and I scored a great little flat on AirBNB, for a super price — much less than what we would’ve paid for a week of hotel rooms. *fist pull*

While plans are still loosey-goosey, we’re looking at day trips to Normandy and Versailles, and lots of side trips to off-the-beaten-path cafes, neighborhoods, and old artist haunts, as well as hitting the major tourist stops. It’ll be a very busy week. And fun. I think the Thriller would approve.

I will endeavor to lose 20 lbs. so I can gain it all back in seven days.

Vive la France! Vive la norriture!