Paris Off the Beaten Path : Quiet Spots in the Middle of the City

Paris is one of those cities that everyone has on their bucket lists, but what makes a trip to Paris truly memorable is taking in the city like the Parisians do.  That means venturing off of the beaten tourist path and seeing places in the city that the tourists might not know about, making them the perfect quiet spots to enjoy the French capital and see Paris through the eyes of the Parisians.  I love finding spots on each trip to Paris that might not be in a tourist guide or a map of popular destinations.  The best spots in Paris are sometimes not even that far from major tourist spots, but it's peeking around corners and behind famous buildings that lay some of the best places in Paris to enjoy a quiet afternoon, perhaps eating a fresh baguette or a box of macarons and watching the world go by.

Square Jean XXIII
Right behind Notre Dame sits a fantastic little park that is always empty.  I've been all times of year from the quiet Winter months to the busy Summer months and for some reason, hardly anyone ventures to the back of the famous Cathedral, meaning it's the perfect spot to take in a peaceful afternoon.  This little square is landscaped beautifully all times of the year and the back views of Notre Dame are perhaps even more breathtaking than the front where the massive crowds of tourists flood.  My favorite thing to do is to grab a freshly baked croissant and a glass bottle of Orangina from Maison Martin on the Île Saint-Louis, find a bench in Square Jean XXIII and then just watch as Paris buzzes around me.

Le Jardin du Luxembourg

I only recently found the Luxembourg Gardens on my last trip to Paris last Summer, but I know this spot will become a regular for return trips.  Not only are the gardens breathtaking, filled with flowers and ponds, but the Palais du Luxembourg is a gorgeous architectural treat as well.  Perhaps the best thing about the Luxembourg gardens though, is that it's not a major tourist attraction (yet).  It's mostly filled with locals doing yoga or reading a book on a warm Summer afternoon.  For a spot in the middle of the Left Bank that's untouched by tourists, this is your spot.

Jardin des Tuileries

While floods of tourists will be at the Louvre as well as the large open squares that border it, if you walk just a bit further towards Musée de l'Orangerie, the Tuileries can be a surprisingly quiet escape.  The South West corner of the park is lined with trees and small paths and a surprising amount of peace can be found so close to the crowds near the Louvre.  I love to grab a box of macarons just up the street at Ladurée on Rue St. Honoré, find a chair in the Tuileries and pull out a good book.  This area can be a great escape from the heat in the Summer months as well, with lots of shade and nice breezes off of the large ponds throughout the park.

Grand Canal de Versailles

Though this spot isn't in Paris proper, I always suggest travelers make the trip out to Versailles while in the city.  It's a quick 30 minute train ride to the famous palace and it's definitely worth the trip to take in the Palace and grounds.  However, it can get quite crowded here as well, so when you want to find some peace and quiet at Versailles, rent one of the small paddle boats on the Grand Canal and spend the afternoon floating on the water.  Not only is it peaceful, it's a scenic adventure too with swans and great views of the Palace gardens and grounds.  It's always worth getting away from the massive crowds you can encounter at the Palace and this is the perfect spot to get away.

Photo Credit : Nick Nieto

Road Trips

Hi Route Bliss readers!  I’m Casey from True Colours and I’m so excited to be here guest posting today.  I’ve been a fan of Christina’s for a while now and her passion for the open road and seeing what’s out in front of us is totally inspiring.  I do a lot of traveling and over the years, one of my favorite thing about spots around the world have been driving through the countries, experiencing more than just the cities.  So here in no particular order are some of my favorite road trips that I’ve experienced, near and far!

Being based in Oregon, there is so much see in the Pacific North West, that often a road trip is the best way to take in the gorgeous scenary that my home has to offer.  A few months ago my husband and I made the 3 hour drive from Portland to EasternWashington State, a drive full of rolling hills and wind farms, mountain forests and road-side streams.  The drive is breath-taking and totally unique to this part of the world. 

Where to stay when you arrive: Desert Wind Winery

Don’t miss: the scenic drive through the Columbia River Gorge as you make your way East.

A couple years ago our Thanksgiving plans opened up a few weeks before the holiday and not wanting to waste a holiday weekend, we booked tickets for Iceland, a place that had been at the top of our list for a while.  We hopped on a flight to Reykjavik and embraced four days in this gorgeous country.  We spent one whole day driving around the Icelandic countryside with a guide, which gave us the option to stop at spots along the way that the normal tours don’t cover.  We watched the sun rise over Thingvelir (where the first Viking parliament began), stopped to nuzzle Icelandic horses and took in the sunset over the ocean and Southern beaches.  It’s still a day I remember with magical memories.

Tip to hiring a guide: Spend the extra money to hire a personal guide.  They will offer a more private experience and have some great knowledge of fantastic spots.

Don’t miss: Thingvelir and Gulfoss

For Memorial Day last year, my husband and I spent the long weekend road tripping through New England.  We based ourselves in Boston and spent one day driving North to Maine and another day driving South through Cape Cod and Rhode Island.  The scenery is gorgeous here and totally worth the adventure, but add in lighthouses galore, lobster rolls and scenic cliffs, this is a road trip not to miss in your life.

Planning tip: Plan out a directional itinerary and know where you want to stop, but leave room for unintentional stops as well.

Don’t Miss: Newport, Rhode Island – this town was by far our favorite!

Last November, we spent time exploring the UK and Ireland.  In Scotland, we based ourselves in Edinburgh and rented a car to make the drive up the coast to lovely little St. Andrews.  It was such a wonderful experience and besides the experience of driving on the “wrong” side of the road, we took in gorgeous Scottish countryside and stopped in little charming towns along the way. 

Where to stay: Don’t miss the experience of staying in the Hotel Missoni in Edinburgh.  It’s the perfect jumping off point and a fantastic experience!

Don’t miss: Sticky toffee pudding in a Scottish pub!

Along with Scotland, we also road tripped through Northern Ireland, renting a car in Belfast and driving North along the coast.  We stopped in towns like Bushmills (famous for their whiskey) and had one of the best meals of our travels, explored the Giant’s Causeway and walked through ruined castles along the cliffs.  Driving through miles and miles of green fields and sheep roaming along, you realize “this is Ireland.”

Driving tip: Research the speed zones before you get in the car when driving abroad.  Ireland doesn’t post their speeds, you just have to know them.

Don’t miss: The tiny town of Bushmills (eat at the Bushmills Inn) and the views on the Giant’s Causeway.

Travel Lessons

Hi Endlessly Beloved readers!  I’m Casey from True Colours, a travel blog that features my globe-trotting adventures while my husband takes gorgeous photos and I fill in the blanks with words.  I'm so excited to be guest posting here today!  

I do a lot of traveling, both for work and for pleasure, and in my travels, I've realized over the years that the world has a unique way of teaching us, feeding us lessons with each new place we see.  Over my years of traveling, I've been taught lesson after lesson with each new place I experience, but perhaps some of the most important lessons are those that you realize over time, after you've had months or years to relive a trip in your mind and really realize what you might have taken away from it.  So today, these are some of the best lessons I've learned from my travels over the years and ones that I try to hold with me for each new trip on the horizon!

When you travel, you give up control.  You give up control of the weather, of airplanes being on time, of hotels being what you thought they would be.  Traveling can be brutal sometimes and it's those times that you really do need to be prepared for anything, even if that means you're not prepared at all for what comes and you just have to take it in stride.  Often times, you're left sleeping on airport floors or rerouting a trip that didn't go according to plan, but in those times, you learn very well how to prepare yourself in the future and using that as a lesson in itself.

So many times while traveling, many people are trying to cram so many things into a specific place, trying to hit every museum, every new restaurant, every activity.  It can be so draining to travel that way and you don't really even get to enjoy the place.  For me, I travel the way I live, if I want to go into a museum, I'll go.  But if I don't, I don't worry about it.  For me, wandering through Central Park with my husband or hitting our favorite restaurant (even though there might be 5 million others to try) are more important to me than making sure I see everything.  

Sometimes it's the smaller things you see in a place, the way you feel just wandering around that makes more of an imprint on you than being a typical "tourist."

This is an important lesson to learn early on when traveling.  I'm the type of traveler that likes a nice hotel, that likes to sleep in, and that likes to have an itinerary for each day of where we're headed.  For me, that's what works best.  For others though, the complete opposite might be true.  Before you travel with other people or even listen to others' travel advice before a trip, realize that not everyone travels the same.  What might be important to you, might be worthless to someone else.  Figure out what works best for you and don't worry about what other people will think.

So often when traveling, it's the things you see in the most random places that end up being the most memorable.  Like when you're lost in Marrakech and wander upon a gorgeous spice market or end up using your French in Paris because you can't find your hotel without it.  It's those times when you really embrace the unexpected things that come up along the way that you will remember more than other moments.  Embrace what's around you, take it all in.

A really important lesson I've learned over the years, and perhaps one of the most important, is that you aren't going to love every place you see.  For me, I don't love Italy and while most people do, I often get strange comments or looks when I say that.  But that's just me.  I happen to love Paris, but many people do not.  Traveling is about finding those places you love and being ok with the ones you don't.  But on the same hand, the places you don't end up loving, often they are the ones that follow you and you think about often afterwards.  Each place you see and experience will stay with you, whether it ends up that you love it or not.

Chasing Happy Guest Post

Hi Chasing Happy readers!  I'm so excited to be guest posting here today!  I’m Casey from True Colours, a travel blog that encompasses my passion for seeing the world and documenting my trips and tips for everyone with a little wanderlust in their hearts!  I do a lot of traveling, both for work and for pleasure, and in my travels, I've realized over the years that the world has a unique way of inspiring us.  For me, there is nothing that makes me happier or inspires me more than setting foot on a plane headed somewhere foreign, somewhere to intoxicate my senses, somewhere to pull me in with color and with beauty.  Being an Interior Designer by trade, I'm always open to new inspirations, new things to catch my attention and my travels have kept me inspired and feeling full of imagination over the years.  

So the next time you're looking for inspiration, for something to spur on your creativity, travel can offer each of us so much. From the spice markets of Marrakech to the old world buildings of Paris to the busy and rushed streets of London, the world is full of inspiration.  I've come up with a few different ways to spur on your creativity when you need it next, with inspiration from the world around us.  You don't even need to jump on a plane to experience it, although if you're like me, that would be my first choice!

1.  There is constantly inspiration around us but we often don't see it because we are so busy rushing around.  Color in our world is something that can be incredibly inspiring, taking in colors of buildings, colors of nature, it's really all around us all the time.  Whether you're taking in the orange brick of London buildings or a beautiful flowering tree in your backyard, color can inspire us tremendously if we only take the time to look for it.

2.  Our senses have a way of opening up our imaginations, whether you're walking through a spice market in Marrakech or smelling a fresh baked loaf of bread.  Let your senses open on on their own to the world around us and let your senses guide you.

3.  As humans, we tend to get in our bubbles and forget the world around us but as soon as you are able to open your mind and really see the world we live in, a whole new world of possibilities are open to us.  Whether that means listening to a different view point or wandering the streets of a new country, understanding how other people live and opening your mind to things you might not understand can be incredibly freeing and inspirational.

4.  Sometimes in order to really see what's in front of us, we need to take a step back and see the bigger picture.  Often times when we're looking for inspiration, we're too close to it to really see it.  When you step back, take in the larger picture around you, that's often times where inspiration will take over.  Whether that means you take in the views of Oahu from the top of a cliff or simply take a step back from a project you've been working on, often times it's when you take a step back you'll really see what you need.

5.  At the end of the day, no matter where you search for inspiration and no matter what your imagination is craving, it's the moment when you can really imagine the possibilities when you know you've found inspiration.  Our world is a blank canvas to draw from and when we can really draw our energy and our inspiration from the planet we call home, we'll be able to imagine an entire new world of possibilities. 

Defining Moments around the World

Hi! I'm so excited to be guest posting on Found Love. Now What? today!  I've been an avid reader of Belinda's blog since the beginning and had the lovely chance to meet up with her in Dublin a couple weeks ago.  I felt like we could sit and talk for hours and I've added Wales to my long list of travel destinations in the coming years after seeing her gorgeous pictures of the area.

Anyways, I’m Casey from True Colours, a travel blog that encompasses my passion for seeing the world and documenting my trips and tips for everyone with a little wanderlust in their hearts!  I do a lot of traveling, both for work and for pleasure, and throughout each trip, I always come out the other end with a lesson, with something that stopped me in my tracks and taught me something important.  I've had some pretty defining moments around the world, moments that changed the course of my life, moments that took my breath away, and moments that changed me within my soul.  Travel has a way of teaching us in ways that perhaps nothing else can; it makes us look at our world and find within us the strength to find our own place within it. 

I've had the pleasure and opportunity to see many different places in the world and each of the places I've traveled has brought with it lessons, moments and memories.  Though a few destinations have stood out among the rest for various reasons, whether it be lessons I've learned, places I've fallen in love with, or locations that pull from my heritage, each of them has defined me in ways that sometimes I don't even realize until after I'm home.  Each of these places has defined me in different ways but at the end of the day, it has been the culmination of my travels that has shaped me into who I am and I know that as I continue to travel, our beautiful world will only continue to shape and change me and I look forward to that.

I spent a couple years living in Hawaii for work and during that time my husband, Nick, stayed at our home in Portland for a number of reasons.  Long story short, we did long distance for a while and it was a very trying time.  While Hawaii wasn't for me in the end, it is still a place that holds great meaning for me because it was my time there that gave me the much needed perspective I had been missing previously.  I woke up to this view everyday living there and while I was often in awe of the beauty of "Paradise," Hawaii showed me definitively that the life I wanted wasn't on the Islands, it was at home with my husband, in a place with rain and gray clouds.  And even though Hawaii might be paradise to some, I realized that it wasn't mine.

During my time in Hawaii, I was making regular trips to Seoul, South Korea for work.  My time in Seoul was eye opening and touched me deeply.  I fell in love with Korea, with traveling, with different cultures.  It was my time in Seoul that defined the traveler I have become.  Seoul was the first international destination I had traveled to since moving back to the States when I was 12 from the Middle East (more on that here if you're interested) and it was in Seoul that I spent a good deal of time soul-searching (pun intended).  The South Korean capital helped me find myself again and it was there that my whole life changed direction.

I just recently returned from Ireland in the last couple weeks and to say that Ireland was a defining place for me would be an understatement.  I'm very Irish, with close family still living there and my whole life I've heard stories about the country.  To see it finally with my own eyes, to breathe it in, to find myself in love with it changed me.  I saw my heritage, I felt it and I felt right at home, as cliche as that sounds.  Ireland for me was a new love, a place I always held within me but now it's really there, now it's in my soul.

After growing up in the Middle East, I desperately missed the Arab culture when we returned to the States.  It was my first trip back to a Muslim country when I visited Morocco a couple years ago that I felt a deep reminiscence for my Arab roots.  But perhaps the most defining moment for me in Morocco was having my hands done in Henna.  The woman that did it for me did one hand in the traditional Saudi designs and the other in the traditional Moroccan themes, which for me was such a beautiful reminder of who I am, a mix of cultures, a mix of countries, a mix of places all over the world.

And this list wouldn't be complete without my time in Paris as some of the most defining moments I've had while traveling.  If you follow my blog at all, you know I adore Paris.  The City of Lights for me is a place that I just "fit," that inspires me, that is my home away from home.  I try to make it to Paris at least once a year, but perhaps in all the trips there, the most defining was my first trip back as an adult with my husband on our honeymoon.  I watched him fall as in love with Paris as I did and together, we've found a place that will always be "our place."  

Traveling is a way to not only expand our horizons but a way to help our lives progress.  For me, I've experienced these and so many more moments around the world that have shaped the path of my life, that have shown me incredible experiences and in the end, have defined for me how small our world really is and that we really are all the same, searching for our place in this beautiful world we call home.

Child of the World

Hi Tiny Toes and Tuk Tuk readers! I’m Casey from True Colours, a travel blog that encompasses my passion for seeing the world and documenting my trips and travel tips for everyone with a little wanderlust in their hearts!  I do a lot of traveling, both for work and for pleasure but it was my childhood overseas that installed my passion for travel in my heart.  I'm so excited to be guest posting here today as this is a topic that Erika knows about well.

I grew up as an expat kid in the Middle East and as a Third Culture Kid, I spent many years trying to figure out my place in the world.  I have written a few different posts about my experiences as a TCK on my blog if you're interested, but my goal when writing about my experiences is always to take down the veil on expat kids, to help others understand what we go through, to help parents raise Third Culture Kids and for the TCK's themselves to know that while the road isn't easy, it's beyond extraordinary.  

As Erika knows, raising a Third Culture Kid can be difficult.  I myself, lived through it.  I spent a good 10 years of my life through my teenage years searching the world for a place to call home, and even while I had a steady suburban American home as a teenager, something was constantly missing.  No one around me understood what I felt, that I had lost a piece of me when we returned to the States, that the typical American life wasn't what I wanted or needed.  It was those years searching for what "home" truly meant to me that propelled me forward to take charge of how I wanted to live my life after college.  It was those years that I realized that I didn't want my adult life to be narrowed down by the typical standards of American society.  I wanted to travel again, I wanted to spend time around the world, I wanted to place myself as a child of the world, with no particular country or allegiance, but a person working to see new places and experience life in so many different cultures.

Now, when I look back, I see how much my expat years and my background as a Third Culture Kid have shaped me.  I am American, but I'm also a little bit Arab, along with a little bit French, a little bit English and all those other cultures that have shaped over the years.  Each place I visit, each country that calls my name, becomes a part of me now.  And in the end, I've realized that being a Third Culture Kid isn't a burden, it's a blessing.  I hold on to places more than those that aren't TCK's because I've learned over the years that places can really shape you, they can hold you when nothing else can and places can make a real mark upon your soul.  For me, I've had life changing experiences around the globe, moments when I take in a place and realize that it's because of my background, it's because of the years and years of searching for my place in the world, that now I can take it all in, now I can appreciate each place and hold it within me.  I've found after years of searching that one place to call home for me is not enough and at the end of the day, I'd most certainly rather be a child of the world, seeing new places and finding a little bit of home in each of them.

What I’ve Learned from Travel this Year

Hi Living in Another Language readers!  I'm so excited to be guest posting here today!  I’m Casey from True Colours, a travel blog that encompasses my passion for seeing the world and documenting my trips and tips for everyone with a little wanderlust in their hearts!  I do a lot of traveling, both for work and for pleasure, and throughout each trip, I always come out the other end with a lesson, with something that stopped me in my tracks and taught me something important.  Sometimes those things are as small as learning something new about a country, or finding a new lovely spot close to home.  Other times though, the lessons are larger, the feelings deeper and I come away from my travels changed from how I started.  Travel has a way of teaching us in ways that perhaps nothing else can; it makes us look at our world and ask the tough questions as we wander through it.  Travel for me always teaches a lesson, no matter how far you go or what the destination may be, it’s the lessons from my travels that keep me coming back for more.

This year alone, my travels have taken me near and far, changed me, opened my eyes and challenged me in ways that previous travels had not.  So today, these are the most important lessons I’ve learned from my travels this past year.  Some of the destinations near, some of them far away, but in each place, a new lesson was learned and something new inside of me awakened.

ITALY

This past March, my husband and I went on a family trip with my in-laws through France and Italy.  Among other lessons, one of the most important I took away from this trip was that it’s okay to not like a destination.  I’ve been through Italy twice now, and have traveled through Rome, Milan and Verona and while I know there is so much more to Italy than those 3 cities, I can’t say that I love Italy.  I’ve realized this year, that that is totally ok.  We all have places that we like and dislike and there is nothing wrong with voicing our opinions.  I happen to adore Paris, but I know many people don’t, so when you find a place you don’t really love, know that that is all part of the journey and that travel doesn’t always necessarily mean falling in love with your destination.

NICE, FRANCE

On that same trip in March, I also realized the power of taking in a place on your own.  I was surrounded by people the whole trip and by the time we arrived in Nice, our final destination, I needed some time with France just on my own.  France is my favorite country in the world for numerous different reasons, but I realized during that trip that I hadn’t appreciated being there because we were so busy showing family around and moving from monument to monument.  I wasn’t enjoying “my France,” and it suddenly hit me in Nice, that all I wanted to do was spend an afternoon wandering around Nice on my own, taking it all in and enjoying the moment.  After all, what is travel without the ability to take a moment out of time and space and just take in your surroundings?

NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND

In May of this past year, my husband and I took took a long weekend and drove through New England, from Maine down through Rhode Island.  I had our itinerary planned with the stops we wanted to make, places we wanted to see along the way and the places I thought, from research, we’d love.  Turns out, the place that stole our heart and we loved the most was little Newport, Rhode Island, a stop we weren’t even sure we should make.  The lesson we learned was that some of the places you encounter might not be planned, but they will make an impact.  Travel is all about impact, it’s all about finding those gems in the world that you fall in love with and Newport for me, was just that place.  Sometimes you’ll happen across a place that really will take your breath away.

PARIS

While I love Paris dearly and I try to make yearly trips to the City of Light, I took my first solo trip there this past Summer.  Technically it was a work trip, but even so, I spent days wandering around London and Paris without my husband and realized that no place really is the same without the person you love.  Nick and I have a deep love affair with Paris, and it’s sort of “our city.”  So being there without him (even though this wasn’t my first time traveling internationally alone), just felt wrong.  I realized there that no matter where you are in the world, it really does matter who is beside you.  Personally, Nick is my favorite travel companion and I’d rather travel with him than by myself.  This particular trip taught me a very valuable lesson for the future, travel is just travel unless you make it special, and for me, special is being with my husband.

NAPA

In October, Nick and I ventured down to Napa for the weekend.  Coming from Oregon, it was a quick trip and we had planned to celebrate my birthday while there as well.  But Friday afternoon about 2 hours prior to leaving, I was so worn down from a crazy few weeks that I almost canceled our trip to spend the weekend recuperating in my own bed.  In the end, Nick talked me in to going and I’m so glad for it.  The Napa area was stunning and there were so many moments during our time there that I looked around me and wondered how I could ever give this up.  Travel is exhausting, life is exhausting, but when you make the time and the effort to travel, you realize that the world is a truly beautiful place and seeing those gorgeous destinations (and the not so gorgeous ones), it is always worth the effort you put in. 

Travel is one lesson after another and personally, I hope I never stop learning from my adventures.  The world has a way of showing us what really matters and with each trip, with each adventure that comes, I know I’ll walk away a better person than before.  I hope  you’ll head over and follow along on my next adventures on True Colours!  I’ve got some great ones on the horizon!  

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Hi Living in Another Language readers!  I'm Casey and I blog over at True Colours, documenting my love of travel and all things Paris.  My husband, Nick and I do a lot of traveling for work and for fun and while I'm writing about our adventures, he's documenting them with gorgeous photos, many of which I share on the blog.

I'm so excited to be here today guest posting for Amanda, whose blog I recently found and have fallen in love with.  So thanks for having me!

I've traveled to a lot of places and many have touched me deeply, but perhaps one place very close to home for Amanda that's been a big part of my life is South Korea.  I work for a company that has an office in Seoul and I've visited many times for work.  In that time, I fell in love with the Korean people, with the lovely city of Seoul and the gorgeous landscape that South Korea offers.

For me, Korea was a place of self discovery.  I happened to travel there numerous times while in my early twenties, a time when I happened to be in a long distance relationship (with Nick who became my husband), and at a time in my life when many things were in flux.  Korea taught me so many things and my time there will always be a treasured memory, but perhaps the most important thing it showed me during my time there was love.  I was welcomed so lovingly into the Korean culture, treated with so much respect and felt totally comfortable and safe.

I've said before that Seoul helped heal my soul, pun intended, in a time when I needed it most and Korea for me was and is a place of deep connection, a country that is beautiful inside and out.  So today, since this is so appropriate here on Living in Another Language, is my ode to Korea, a place that changed me and helped me find myself along my journey around our world.

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