Bonjour a Paris!

On the 19th of April, S and I landed at Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris. We had decided after our first Europe trip last year to return to Paris - to live here for three months. I have to admit, I felt a bit conflicted about this decision. On one hand, it is something that I have always wanted to do. On the other, a part of me was eager to start working full-time, to be living in Perth, to not be scrimping and saving anymore.

Now that I am here, I am SO glad we made this decision. Living in a city for an extended period of time is (obviously) so different to visiting it for a number of days. We are able to see and experience so much more, as well as get a real 'feel' for the city. We are staying in an apartment on the rue Saint Honore, right by the Louvre and the Jardin des Tuileries - one of my favourite places in Paris. We are also super close to another of my newly favourite places, the Jardin du Palais Royal. We are able to walk down along the Seine, stopping to look at the wares of the covered booksellers, and end up at Notre Dame. Or go the other, through the Tuileries, and go past the Grand Palais and hit up the Champs Elysees. We are discovering the best places (for us) to eat, drink and shop. We are taking French classes, and more and more things and starting to make sense - sometimes we are even able to short and simple conversations in French!

While I am developing my own personal style more and more - Paris street style is always inspiring! - I haven't gone crazy with the shopping. I have managed to save quite a bit, which I intend on using a lot of on the June sales. And although it sounds quite cheesy, I think that S and I have even grown a bit as a couple. Which is always a nice thing. I have been thinking more and more about my future and have made a decisions that I really hope I can stick to. Living in Paris really seems to clear your mind, haha.

Anyway, stay tuned for more updates on my life in Paris.

C xx

The courtyard of our Parisian apartment.

Catch-Ups

So, I thought I should fill in the six-month gap of my blog. S and I arrived home in Perth in mid-ish December. S only stayed for a few days before heading north to our hometown so that he could spend Christmas with his family. I stayed in Perth with my family. January was spent in Kalbarri with my parents, helping them pack up their house. Last year my dad had a pretty serious boat accident and I think because of that (plus a few other reasons) my parents decided to move to South Australia where they own a house. It was fun, but a little bit sad at the same time. I LOVE Kalbarri and have never seen the other house. Plus, it is now a lot harder to see the - about 5ish hours by plane from Perth. Although we haven't been spending much time in Perth.

While our Europe trip was coming to an end, S and I came to a decision. We decided to delay 'real life'- work for me and a dip ed for him - for a little bit longer. From the end of January til mid April, we have been back in our hometown working. During this time, we went through the edges of two cyclones, I showed my old host-sister and brother from Sweden around Perth and I had my graduation ceremony from university.

And now, we are back in Paris. We decided to come back to Europe for three months but instead of travelling around, just stay in the one spot. We rented an apartment in the heart of Paris and have been taking French classes and living the bohemian lifestyle. It has been absolutely amazing so far. The weather hasn't been perfect (quite cold and rainy for the most part) but that doesn't even matter. At times I still can't even believe that we are here. We are unfortunately past the halfway mark and I REALLY don't want to go back to Australia just yet. I wish that we had decided to live here for a year but that just isn't a viable option for us at the moment.

I have to admit, I am a little worried that we are going to take our time here for granted and miss out on stuff - like today, for example. I have been lounging around our apartment, reading and relaxing. But I feel like I should be out there, EXPERIENCING stuff. Hopefully the blog will help force me out the house, so that I have experiences and stories to record.

Anyway, here are a few pictures from my six-month gap:











C xx

Starting Over

The longer you leave something, the harder and harder it is. Returning a phone call. Responding to a message on Facebook. Replying to an email. Getting back into the blogging world after a LOT of time off. The more time that passes, the greater the pressure that builds. I haven't blogged for about six months. Half a year. A lifetime for a six-month old, and for the blogosphere as well. But here I am, back into it. Hopefully for good this time. During my absence, I have thought about writing post after post - about what's going on in my life, my experiences, my thoughts, my outfits ... but just never seemed able to make that final jump. The aforesaid pressure as well as feelings of inadequacy when my words and photos don't turn out the way I want them to or imagine them in my mind. However, I am not going to let fear and insecurity and time stop me any more. So take note: this is me turning over a new leaf. C xx