2016...what will you bring???

I haven’t done New Year’s Resolutions for a long time. I used to do complex Projects, but as I get older I realise a few simple goals are all you need. Nothing to stress you, but things to push you a little out of your comfort zone and enough to think about so you feel some sort of achievement.

Whenever I think of New Year’s Resolution, I think of this Ab Fab moment:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-itpSwRrcMw

I've been reading M Train by the beautiful Patti Smith and here is a quote:

"The transformation of the heart is a wondrous thing, no matter how you land there."

So this brings me to my first goal for 2016 - to be freer with my love and let my poor wounded heart be transformed. It may appear to some I am a heart on my sleeve, oversharing kind of girl (and I am) but I do keep my most personal stuff very close to my heart and self. I will probably continue to do so in terms of sharing (no one needs to know everything!) but I will prise the steely walls around my heart open a little more, to let love in...in whatever shape or form it comes in. This of course brings more opportunity for it to be wounded - and it probably will - but it also allows for more beauty, and this is what I need for it's transformation. In my experience some amounts of beauty and love can often make up for large amounts of pain and suffering. So thank you Patti for your words and also to my lovely friend Jayne, who has been pruiking the phrase, I Love You, No Big Deal...although as I tell her, it is a big deal!

My second goal goes hand in hand with the first - continue on my online journey looking for love. This whole online thing was an unexpected development late in 2015 and to be honest I don't expect to find true love there, but it helps me understand myself more, hones in on what I am looking for, and gives me the opportunity to mingle and feel more comfortable with those I do not know. For an introvert this is a big deal and will assist me not to screw up if I actually do meet The One! My first piece of work towards this is to tidy up my online profiles, thanks to suggestions and realities given to me by three very special friends. You know who you are!

My third goal is  - to travel more - smaller trips, discover outside my little world, have adventures, catch a train somewhere new or to Sydney to escape in the big city, drive to the country, stay somewhere overnight, or have weekends away, or just a day out. I'm looking for willing participants, so don't be afraid to put your hand up!

My fourth goal is - to see more live music - when I couldn't flesh out a top ten for 2015 I realised how shameful my viewing of live music was, this needs major adjusting in 2016. Again, I am after willing participants.

My fifth and final goal is - to keep hold of my clarity and mojo - I lost it a few times in 2014/2015, I did find it but it phased in and out until later in 2015. This was terribly disconcerting for me, depression and anxiety took hold in quite a severe way. I managed to shake it and feel pretty darn good most of the time at present, which is all any of us can ask. But I need to up my tools for doing this better. There are a whole range of things I already do but probably need to add to to feel better and keep tabs on myself: exercise more, spend time near the water, read more, meditate morning and night, write more, share my feelings with people who understand and make me feel loved, don't be so hard on myself, tell others when I am feeling low, and simply challenge myself to grow into a better person.

On top of these 5 goals, I will continue with Project 42, Project Read, and Project declutter as they are all now part of my life, and important tools for help me achieve these five goals.

I look forward to 2016, it's challenges, and adventures. Time with friends and family, love, fun, escapades, and farnarkling. I already have booking to see David Sedaris; Hoodoo Gurus, Violent Femmes, Died Pretty, Sunnyboys, & Rat Cat; and Madonna coming up in the first quarter of the year. 

I have a very good feeling about this year my friends and I wish you all love, peace, happiness, and health.

MELBOURNE

I’m trying something different for my Melbourne trip, breaking the trip up into subjects, rather than a diarised version. I’ll start with travelling to Melbourne and why I love it and then post other pieces on favourite spots, exhibitions, King Kong, food, shopping and so forth...

I left Newcastle on a warm, sunny morning and arrived in a bitterly cold Melbourne. But it was August after all. It had been some 2.5 years since my last visit and I realised why I felt so excited to be back in my favourite Australian City. I feel so at home in Melbourne, a friend recently said to me she always thought I would move there. True, I have considered it many times, but where would I go for my holidays? 

 

 

I love the European feel of Melbourne, its late starts, its cafes and fabulous food culture, its many museums, the weather, and the ease of which you can manoeuvre around the city. But mostly I love its laneways and outstanding architecture. I could walk this city for days and still uncover hidden delights.

 

 

I never tire of the trip from Tullamarine to the City, I love the sense of excitement and the mystery of what kind of day the city has in store. This trip was no different, I waited for my luggage and joined the line for the Sky Bus which seemed longer than usual. No fear, the line moved quickly and I had barely put the change from the ticket back in my wallet and I was stepping on to the shuttle to Spencer Street Station.

The 20 minute ride into the city disembarks at Spencer Street Station and you then wait a little longer for a mini bus to deliver you to your hotel doorstop. Awesome service, by the time I arrived at my hotel, light rain had disappeared but the chill in the air remained. I rang the agent to meet me at the private apartment I had secured on Collins Street, very near to Elizabeth Street. I have a few hotels I prefer to stay at in Melbourne, but the ravages of time have gotten to them and prices were seemingly up. This lovely apartment was a better deal than a hotel anyway. I hoped it was all it looked like online.

The building was a chameleon, part actual hotel, part apartment. Known as The Plum but decorated as The Mark and The Mart...go figure. My apartment was on the 13^th floor, but in the usual style of high rise buildings, the elevator went to 14 and you walked down two small flights to the 13^th floor. The apartment was a large room – quite massive actually – with a balcony overlooking many buildings and view to Flinders station. The room had a Queen sized bed, two large leather sofas, a small table and chairs and a full kitchen. There was a chest of drawers, tele and DVD player, large wardrobe and a second long room with laundry and bathroom. It was very modern and perfect for a few people, spacious for me!

 

 

 Yes, I was holidaying by myself! I often go to Melbourne with friends or my sister, but I love to wander and take photos of buildings and the lanes and see where the day takes me. I find even the most enthusiastic companion will tire after a few hours. And seeing as it was so long since my last visit, I needed to see the city entirely on my own terms. I was in Melbourne to see some exhibitions and King Kong the musical and also meet for the first time a twitter friend, but I would have plenty of time to just absorb all that I love.

 Here are a few shots on dusk and at night. 

 

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!

Before starting afresh in 2013 it's good to review the year that has now gone.

 

2012 was a really interesting year for me - so much brilliance and so much ordinary.

 

So in no particular order, but let's get the bad out the way first::

 

What pissed me off : My Body

Which failed me at the very worst time, the lead up to my holiday! Yep, the triple comedy that was a crook foot, followed by second degree burns, and then a knee injury. I'm done telling the story, if you don't know...well, you're probably very lucky! I shall now endeavour to resolve the flab that came with all the resting!

 

Honourable mentions go to Telstra ( need I say more!?! ); 50 Shades of everything ( misogynistic, poorly written, sad and obviously written by a virgin or someone who has only ever had bad sex!!! ); Newcastle Council ( you know, the ones who killed our beloved trees ); People who can't use social networking (mostly Facebook) properly ( get a dictionary for starters...I could go on...I won't... ) ; and Work ( well, I feel I have done some of my best work this year, yet things didn't quite go according to plan, but you can't keep a good Capricorn down for long!!! )

 

Live Performance of the Year: Tex Perkins singing at RocKwiz Live

Tex Perkins singing Iggy Pop's The Passenger...the coolest thing I have ever seen and sooo S/Texy...oh my!

 

Shout outs to Hall and Oates, Icehouse (finally!!), and the 80s show at Lizottes.

 

Book of the Year: Life by Keith Richards AND A Moveable Feast by Hemingway

I loved Life so much I haven't actually finished it, I like to savour the good ones, and reading A Moveable Feast in Paris no less AND bought at Shakespeare and Company shot it straight into my top 5 books of all time.

 

I mostly read travel guides on France and Italy, but the few books I did read were outstanding. Haruki Murakami's Norwegian Wood was stunning; The Hobbit was outstanding, and Jeff Apter's biog of Marc Hunter was an eye opener.

 

Album of the Year: Tom Waits, Bad as me

I have no words to express how much I love Tom...and that's before he starts singing, sometimes I think I love the idea of him more than his music, but oh I love his music and this album was his best in years...and yes it came out late 2011, but it was what I played over and over at the beginning of 2012.

 

Runner up was Jack White's Blunderbass but I just got the new Dylan and after one listen this might go to no 2!

 

Other honourable mentions, Patti Smith's Banga, Wrecking Ball by Bruce Springsteen, both Martha and Rufus Wainwright, and I also listened to Adele a lot in the beginning of the year!

 

However the album most played would be 101 hits of the 70s - this was outstanding!!!

 

Also discovery of the year, BB Brunes - cool French Band and my Paris radio station that I can stream over the net.

 

TV show of the year : Mad Men...hands down!

Oh Don Draper, I finally discovered you and overdosed on S1-4 in one sitting, saw most of S5 on the plane.

 

Besides the brilliant attention to detail and the fabulous clothes that Joan wears, wonderfully layered characters, and well written storylines, I love the relationship between Don and Peggy - when she leaves in season 5 and he holds her hand just a little bit too long, my heart was breaking...

 

Other favs - and this was a great year for tele - are in no particular order, The Walking Dead (so much more than Zombies), Breaking Bad (it's as badass as you can get, but superb), Dexter (the first year I felt uncomfortable watching, because I suspect things will not end well for our anti-hero, now that's stunning storytelling), Parks and Recreation (Fabulous ensemble cast, but Nick Offerman's Ron Swanson and Rob Lowe's idiot must be two of the funniest characters on TV), Portlandia (dumpster diving, unicorns, Aimee Mann, Hippy Bookshops and Agent Copper as The Mayor...oh and that's before 'Put a bird on it'), Moone Boy (Fabulous soundtrack including Sultans of Ping theme song, great characters, digs at Bono and The Hoff, perfect lead and Chris O'Dowd), Hit and Miss (Chloe Sevigny as a transexual assassin who discovers she has a son...say no more), Sons of Anarchy (it's trashy, but hypnotic), Gossip girl (I have no shame in saying how much I love this show and Chuck Bass!), Once upon a time (clever, mystifying and Robert Carlyle steals and chews every scene as the creepy yet sexy Rumpelstiltskin), and Smash (Broadway, Marilyn, great cast including Debra Messing, Angelica Huston and the gorgeous Jack Davenport)...I was at home a lot saving for my trip!

 

Movie of the year: Hugo, closely followed by Moonrise Kingdom

I adore Scorsese and I adore silent film, how can this beautiful film not by my no 1? Moonrise Kingdom was another great film with another quirky ensemble by Wes Anderson. It was funny and cute (in a good way), but as always the attention to detail in set design and script are what makes Anderson one of the best.

 

Other films I loved were The Avengers (Joss, you did good!), The Hobbit (a little blown out in parts, but still close to perfection), The Sapphires (great Australian film with humour and music, yet an underlying strength with history and drama), Hysteria (sooo funny and clever), This must be the place (very odd, but nuanced performance by Sean Penn as an aging goth rocker tracking down the Nazi who ill-treated his father in WWII), Rum Diaries (very suave, Depp as I prefer him), Marley (the most balanced doco yet on Bob, great music of course), The Artist (Oscar winning film of the year and utterly charming) and Where do we go now (Nadine Labaki's follow up to Caramel, a dramedy set in Lebanon). Add in the Italian and Silent Film festivals and it was a good year at the cinemas.

 

Quote of the year: I'm Chuck Bass

As spoken by said character...a lot, but mostly as quoted by the writers of Gossip Girl when asked the best line they wrote...yep, "I'm Chuck Bass" well played GG writers, well played!!!

 

The above also wins vacuousness of the year, lol!!!

 

Other things that made me smile ear to ear and pretty much made my year

TWITTER - oh my, so much distraction, so much fabulousness, so many outstanding people

FRIENDS - this was definitely the year of the friend, all my wonderful 'old' friends, and all my new friends who I have met IRL thru twitter - lucky and blessed I am!!!

NEW HAIRDRESSER - finally!!!!

BEATLES BOXSET IN VINYL- Wow, just wow, so much perfection, I have no words

 

OH YEAH AND THEN THERE WAS MY EUROPEAN VACATION which contained so much awesomeness I need a whole other blog to write about it, hang on...I already have...check out my archives!!!!

 

And NO, I cannot pick ONE favourite place or thing....I loved it all!!!!!

 

And finally, I turned 42 in 2012, and as Hitchhikers fans know Douglas Adams ( or rather Deep Thought in the book ) wrote that 42 is the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything.

 

So, do I have the answers...ummm, not really!

 

However, I have more clarity and understanding of my own life than I ever had, quite possibly this will continue as I turn 43, 44 etc etc...or at least I hope so!

 

But maybe DA is right, this is the first time I felt like I get what I am about...and let's face it, only I can really get myself, so that has to be some kind of answer.

 

2012 may have presented me with some dead ends and annoyances, but it also presented me with some of the most marvelous moments I have ever experienced and this is what will lead me into 2013.

 

And it makes me want to experience even more, so rather than have New Year's Resolutions, which let's face it are usually screwed within a week of making them, I have a list of 42 things I want to do while I am 42 and I hope you will all join me for the ride that will be 2013...my best year ever??????

 

1. Finish sorting my holiday photos

2. Reorganize my study - this may take me all year

3. Have one night a week where I turn off all electronics and read

4. Walk more and explore my own surroundings...there is so much I haven't seen in Newcastle, Lake Macquarie and other areas nearby

5. Read more of my own books. I tend to purchase these, but they get pushed aside for books I bring home from work

6. More live music - the very poor list above is very abnormal for me. I'm open to pretty much anything, though snooty about venues!

7. Learn to cook 5 basic, healthy meals I can whip up easily

8. Don't let the things that usually bother me, irritate me too much

9. Go on a picnic, cannot remember the last one I had

10. Learn Yoga

11. Music: Join an appropriate choir or musical group and practice my instruments more often

12. Care less what people think of me...I got better at this in 2012, but still have a long way to go

13. Write more, post on my blog more regularly

14. Whip my little backyard back into shape

15. Spend more time outdoors and less time indoors

16. Go to Hunter Valley Gardens...never been...really!!!

17. Mini breaks to my favourite places - Melbourne (not been since 2011!!), The Blue Mountains, Mid North Coast, and try new ones

18. Pamper myself more including have regular soaks in the tub

19. Eat and drink out more

20. Get through my list of local restaurants and cafes

21. Go to more films at Film Society than 2012

22. Wash my car more often

23. Spend more time with my niece and nephew

24. Learn chess

25. Paint more

26. Go to the farmers markets regularly

27. Really listen to music...eg in the dark with a glass of something something...no distractions

28. Entertain more

29. Rearrange, redecorate and spruce up my place

30. Say no or at least I'll need to get back to you on that one to the people I always say yes to that usually let me down

31. Have fun and laugh more at work

32. Live up to my Librarian of Leisure handle

33. Go to lots of fun social events

34. Make sure those that mean the most to me know that they do

35. Go swimming

36. Take time to do nothing and daydream more often

37. Reinstate Sunday culture afternoons at galleries, museums, and secondhand bookstores

38. Finish knitting the scarf I started 3 winters ago

39. Go on more dates...might need help with this one...anyone, anybody!?!

40. Trust my instincts more

41. Have more fun

42. Surprise myself

 

So, thank you to everyone who joined me on my 2012 journey. Your friendship, company, love and support helped me through the bad times and made the good times even more enjoyable.

 

Here's to a wonderful 2013, may all your dreams and wishes come true and I hope you will join me in completing my 42 things :)

 

Below is a gorgeous quote I found and used last year from one of my favourite authors, Neil Gaiman...it's timeless...

 

 

Last Five Days

We pick up transmission on the Saturday morning after our Big Night Out to The Moulin Rouge.

After a late night/early morning a leisurely start is important. Our plans for the day were to check out a free exhibition at Hotel de Ville. So after a sleep in we headed to the train station and boarded Marie Antoinette's Chamber! Have I told you some of the trains on 'our' line are decorated with scenes from Versailles. This particular train in on the Versailles line and it is loads of fun to chance upon these carriages. So sitting in the Chambers, feeling rather weary, a cheery but slightly smelly old French man boarded at the first stop armed with his rather loud accordion and started playing old French tunes. The look on Amanda's face was priceless, I laughed all the way to our stop, was so incredibly clichéd...and funny.

We got off at Notre Dame and headed to the Latin Quarter for lunch, it was a cold day so we went for traditional French Cuisine.  From the 15 Euro menu, I had a Ham and Cheese Crepe, Beef Bourguignon and Crème Brulee. All were exceptional, and it was lovely and warm inside the cute little cafe with photos of Jacques Brel and Charles Aznavour on the wall. These little cafes and restaurants do not rush you through your meal and out the door despite how busy they are. It is a long, relaxed sitting, which I love. Although on days where you just want to eat and run, it feels overstretched, lol!

We set off towards the Notre Dame, and walked around it through to a cute little park. It really is a magnificent structure from every angle and was great to photograph on this very overcast and cold day. We moved to the area of the island behind it and walked around the cute little cobbled streets, following our instincts to the Hotel de Ville. There was a longish line into the exhibition and it was not moving at all, as we were deciding whether to wait in line on this bitterly cold day it started to rain. Decision made, we continued on to the large department store nearby. And so did just about everyone else on the streets, we shopped for a while, but it was hot, muggy, and crowded inside.

 

 

 

We left in search of The George Pompidou Centre, a large modern building that houses a whole range of galleries. It was getting late in the afternoon, so we were not going into the galleries, I just wanted to check out the building. Was hard to photograph as it was so large and so piecey in the way it was constructed, there was a line up to go inside so we moved on. To the side of the building was this amazing fountain with modern structures within, it is called the Stravinsky Fountain and some of the fountains within it are musical in appearance and sound.

 

Tired and cold we walked back to the Notre Dame, did a bit of shopping and then headed back to our little area and bought up a stash of food for dinner. I bought sausages from the meat guy, all sorts - fresh and BBQd. Some salad and potatoes from this amazing shop full of an array of fresh and interesting dishes. Fresh strawberries and raspberries and cakes. The fruit were amazing looking and even better in taste, especially the raspberries. In fact, easily the nicest I have ever tasted. The patisserie was the best we had seen, an unfortunate find really, too much amazing not to come back!

Up early Sunday to board our bus trip to Champagne Country and it was frigid, daylight savings had ended also, so we were concerned to get the time right and made our way to the collection point near The Louvre. We drove for a few hours before arriving at Reims. First stop was Mumms Champagne House. We toured  their cellars and learnt about how they made their Champagne from a very serious and staid gentleman. It was kinda like being in school, no one was really game to ask any questions. However the House was rich in history and of course supply the podium Champagne to our beloved F1 winners. The tour ended with a tasting, not a bad way to spend a Sunday morning.

 

From there we headed to the centre of Reims to the gorgeous old gothic cathedral there. Quite remarkable, it is where the Kings of France were crowned. So many statues carved into its exterior and gargoyles around it, there is much to look at. We arrived just before lunch and spent some time admiring it before it got too cold to stay outside. We went to a lovely little pub nearby, with wood fires burning it was the perfect place to take refuge. I had Salmon and veges followed by a Creme Brulee.

Afterwards we did a bit of shopping and headed back to the bus for Moet and Chandon. We arrived and immediately felt a sense of excitement and class. The buildings were old, immaculate and amazing, after an initial mix up we were taken on a tour by an employee. She was young and very French...in that classy, well put together, smart, witty way. We toured the Champagne House, then down into the cellars ending with a wine tasting. It was very much the same tour as we had at Mumms, but our guide explained processes in a clearer more concise way and with great wit, yet also the respect the classic brand deserved. The tasting was exquisite, and after a further look around and a shop we headed back to the bus for Paris.

 

 

 

By the time we got back to our apartment it was early evening and we were hungry. Only a couple of cafes open, we were too tired to stay. It seemed that most places close early or possibly do not open on a Sunday evening...the only takeaway option was MacDonalds...we went in for a Royale with Cheese (been busting to order one since Pulp Fiction!). The place was packed, we got our takeaway and went home very tired.

After such a big day, we had a late start, it was cold and raining on and off. We walked to the Eiffel Tower and crossed The Seine to The Trocadero. his is an area with gardens, huge fountain, esplanade and on top of the hll the Palais de Chaillot. The Palais de Chaillot is a large palace with two arced sections with culptures and a terrace in between. We walked up to the palace, wandered round, it was cold. You get a fabulous view down the esplanade and fountain to he Eiffel Tower, so we took photos and made our way back down to the tower.

The line up to go up the tower seemed long, but it was moving solidly and the ain was holding off, so jumped on the end and waited. It took roughly 40mins to et to the lifts, which didn't seem that long at all. There was much to look at as ou can imagine. The lift to the 2nd floor was quick, but for me still scary as you ould see down and out of it. I say could as I had my eyes firmly shut! The 2nd loor has 2 floors, a higher, but small one and the one directly under with more pace and more comfortable for people scared of heights...like me. I felt ok up here, but still couldn't go too close to the edges, so my photos are few. Amanda ctually zoomed in on our apartment balcony. After a while we headed back home through the gardens behind the tower and via the fresh food street for supplies for dinner.

 

 

 

Tuesday we tackled Musee D'Orsay, I say tackled as we lined up for around 90mins in the cold to get in. Both starting to feel fluey and tired I was worried it would be an awful experience, but oh no. It was moving and overwhelming in the very best way. More magnificence in one building than anything I had ever seen. Firstly, there is the building itself, a reworked abandoned railway station. Levels have been built on the sides of the station which leaves a lovely open space in the middle. Then glass work, clocks, and windows out into Paris make it worth price of admission and the lining up before the art is even factored in. No photos allowed (though I snuck some out some windows), but I will add some images from the Internet.

The first floor is filled with statues, bronzes, marbles and with the open structure and a stunning gilded clock at the far end, it took my breathe away. Off each side were rooms with art, mostly paintings, but some photography, decorative art and furnishings. The art on display has been selected well, is French and mostly from the late 1800s to the early 1900s, and when you see all that belonged to that era your mind is completely blown.

Most of the art is on the 1st, 3rd and 5th floors, with mezzanines in between. The 5th floor is dedicated to Impressionism and Post-Impressionism paintings. By the time we finished the 3rd floor we were so overwhelmed we had to sit down. The Van Gogh room had me close to tears, two paintings in particular - Starry Night Over the Rhone and The Church at Auvers - beyond perfection. Also Cezanne's Apples and Oranges.

After the rest we continued to the top floor, nothing prepares you for this experience. Huge rooms filled with hundreds of Impressionism and Post- Impressionism paintings. The windows overlook The Seine and you can even look through one of the beautiful clocks. This was the busiest section of the museum and you could see why. More beauty than one can bear...my goodness. It really was one of the most inspiring and wonderful experiences of my trip. I was in heaven looking at all these glorious pieces. A lot of them were like old friends, having looked at them in books and so forth and some were completely new.

We finished off our trip with a special exhibit of fashion in the Impressionism period. The paintings were exhibited along with costumes featured in them from that period in time. This was also amazing, how they tracked down the clothing I have no idea, but it was fascinating.
 
After some museum shopping...the best kind of shopping...we headed for a late late lunch at the Notre Dame Cafe. I revisited the Quiche Lorraine and it was as soft and lovely as the first time almost 2 weeks earlier. We then walked to the Hotel De Ville for the Hollywood and Paris exhibit. (Hotel De Ville was the backdrop to Doisneau's The Kiss.) The line was not that long, but they were only letting a handful of people in at a time, so we waited in the cold yet again. We had heard such horror stories about lining up, I suppose we were lucky only to experience them this one day. Finally we got in, and it was good but probably not worth the hour or so wait. Lots of illustrations, stills, clips and costumes from movies such as Hugo, Midnight in Paris, Funny Face, Charade, An American in Paris, Marie Antoinette etc. The exhibit was very cramped, which made the slow line movement understandable. But it was nice to see all the same.

 

 

Next we went back to Shakespeare and Company Bookstore and it was much quieter this time, though still plenty of people within. We made our way upstairs and saw a few of the beds they allow writers stay in, very cramped but rather romantic, nice views out to the Notre Dame too. You were not allowed to take photos inside, but I did sneak a few!

From there, we did some more shopping and headed to a French restaurant in the Latin Quarter we loved so much, our last meal in Paris central. I indulged in the famous oysters, so divine and large. Then for mains, steak, french dipping sauces, chips and salad, followed by Creme Brulee.

 

 

 

And so to our last day in paradise...the sun even came out. We had a leisurely morning and I started to pack! Amanda did a last minute dash back into the city to offload some cash at Tiffany. I sat near the balcony and wrote some blog articles, ate cheese and fruit, and daydreamed. Around lunch I headed to the local markets to offload my cash on jewellery (not quite Tiffany, but more to my styling), handbags, scarves and such, and then had to rejig my suitcase. Amanda was back and we went for a last visit to the fresh foods and collected a small baked Ham with baked potatoes for lunch...and cakes...all divine of course. We then cleaned the apartment, had a last look around. We had dinner at a little Italian restaurant across the road. We had walked past it every day and it looked cute, Amanda had found out online it was four star. So a nice place to end our stay and pay homage to where our trip begun...Italy. We both had Bruschetta, then Veal, mine was with Ham, Gorgonzola and tomato based suace with loads of the tiniest but sweetest green beans I had ever seen or tasted. A lovely wine to go with and then back to our beautiful apartment for cake from the patisserie!

This was the final post about our day to day adventures in Paris, but I doubt it will be the final post about Paris or the holiday, much more to share there. I am finishing this after being home for a fortnight, and reliving these five days seems sooo long ago. I miss Paris desperately and wish I was back and in fact spent that first week home in some kind of jetlag and sinus/headcold funk. Thanks for joining us on our wonderful journey to Italy and Paris. Everyone keeps asking me what my favourite part was, that is really hard to answer. In short, Paris of course, how could it not be, but that would mean excluding 2/3's of the trip. It was all truly wonderful...just thinking about where to next :)