We spent some 3 months in Paris. We had a wonderful time. Often when we go somewhere especially if it is for a long time we ask- Could we live here? In all our travels the answer is no. Too hot, too cold, too far from family, not enough of the activities we like, and the list goes on and on. We could live in Israel, Santa Cruz, Chapel Hill, and maybe some other places and we can now add Paris. What an exciting city. Everyday there is something new to do. Yes the weather can be too cold, yes it is too far from our children but it’s Paris. Every day we had these wonderful adventures, every day we walked mile upon mile through the streets, every day we had the difficult decision to make on what type of wonderful food we would eat for our main meal, every day we NEEDED to walk to justify the awesome pasties and scrumptious bread that we HAD to have, every day some local Parisian showed us a random act of kindness, every day we marveled at how they keep the city so clean and how the locals respect their city.

Most of you know we don’t drink alcohol. For once in my recent life I wish I did. Walking along the Christmas Faire on Champs-Élysées, bundled up because it is 30 degrees and feels colder and you see many stands selling hot wine or hot cider (cider here has alcohol, apple juice not). Or going to dinner with our new good French friends and seeing how they enjoy their wine with the meal.

Paris is just an easy city to get around. We learned to walk really fast. We learned that if there was an opening when you walk you better take it because otherwise you will get pushed behind. The aggressive walking is the expected norm like aggressive driving is the norm in Israel. We learned to spot the tourists as they were the ones looking you in the eye and smiling. We learned that it’s true you MUST greet the shop keeper when you enter with Bonjour Monsieur/Madam or they would not be helpful but if you did the correct greeting all was right with the world, it’s like a password to enter the circle of trust.

We went to the American Church in Paris several times. Once for a Thanksgiving potluck dinner, once for a fun filled tour and then a Christmas musical program. The people there are very warm and welcoming. The members are mainly American and maybe their French families but they were also many other nationalities. The music was fine and the spirit was great. Followed by a late night walk along the Seine all bundled up because it was so very cold.

Christmas in Paris is a very special time of the year. It’s really cold. Everyone is bundled up but that doesn’t stop people from being on the street at all hours. In mid-November after a huge art show was taken down hundreds of little kiosk shops started being erected on both sides of Champs-Élysées. In a short while a Christmas village started to take shape. Many of the shops sold food to eat there or for gifts. Dried meats and sausages, cheeses of all types, chocolates. Gifts that are French made and some imported. Hot wine, hot cider, hot apple juice and hot cocoa. Scarves and hats and gloves. A wonderful exciting place to do your Christmas shopping.

The idea of our becoming nomads started when I met an American, Paul, in Chendu who shared the travels he and his wife had been taking for several years. I followed it by asking some French people I met if we could rent a furnished apartment in Paris for what we paid in the States and they said absolutely yes. I shared the idea with Missy and she was all for it. It took us a little less than two years to downsize and simplify our lives to the point where we could leave on our journey. We have now been traveling for nearly five months. We are very pleased that so far we have easily stayed within our budget including all our flights. For our flights we have found Google flights the best way to find low cost airfares.

We saw many wonderful sites, we ate wonderful and exciting food every day, we had a great introduction to art, we felt comfortable in Paris. It was great. But what we will take away that we will cherish forever are the people we met there. The generosity of our landlord/friends.

We are now in El Salvador with Kris, Susy, and the grandkids in their new house in the hills of San Salvador . We have some things to do in California soon then several months in Georgia to regroup for our next trip in September.  We plan to go to Indonesia and SE Asia for an extended period of time. As we have said before we plan on living\traveling this way until we decide to stop. For now we are healthy and excited to see what is over the next hill.

Photos:

1-Entrance to the Metro Station near Louvre

2,3 and 4 -Hand pulled noodles :), meats and cheese offerings at the Christmas village

5 and 6 – Tin Tin exhibit and one of the rooms at the elegant Fontainebleau

7, 8 and 9 – Ferrous wheel, Choir at American Church and Louvre pyramids at night

10.11 and 12 – Christmas displays at Les Halles shopping mall, along Champs-Élysées.and at Lafayette Gallery

13 and 14 – our last evening walk along the Seine river and photo of the entry to our unforgettable flat.