Paris. Kyle and I have both been there separately, but never together. It's one of those places that truly lives up to every single bit of hyperbole that's ever been said about it. It's just that magical. Just that breathtaking. Just that romantic.
Travel is something that has really been on our minds a lot lately. I've talked about it a lot here as well. We're both craving it and it really is the thing that we want to save for at this point in our lives. We're not ready to think about buying a house or having kids for a long while, so right now, saving up for travel is taking top priority. We've talked a lot about what kind of travelling we want to do once we're able to go on a big trip, and Paris is always at the top of our list. Both of our favorite trips together have been ones where we stayed in one place. We don't want to be constantly on the go and on the move so that before we know it, our trip is over and we find we've raced through a bunch of places but only have snippets of memories from each.
We want to rent an apartment and spend an entire month in Paris. Explore everywhere we possibly can in the city, take some little day trips, and be able to enjoy days of doing absolutely nothing but lying in a park and reading, or staring at the sky. We want to experience Paris as it's happening around us, not just whiz through it, feeling like we have to cram as much as possible into five days, and feeling guilty for taking any downtime.
We don't have any money saved for this yet, because, honestly, we haven't really been able to save money since we returned from overseas, had a wedding, and got settled into a new place and new jobs. But we're starting now :) We're going to keep our eye on flights over the next six months or so, and if a crazy deal comes along, we're just going to book, and figure out the rest later.
Here are some beautiful images of Paris that just take my breath away. Four out of the ten photos are by the incredibly talented Montreal-based photographer, Irene Suchocki. I discovered her beautiful photography through her Etsy shop a while back, when I was looking for prints for my frame wall in the fall. I have the hot air balloon photo that you see below hanging in my living room. I couldn't help but choose several of her images to share here!
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three. By the incredible Robert Doisneau. 1944.
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five. this is a painting, by the way.
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seven. Another image by Robert Doisneau. 1947.
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nine.
This is actually my own photo that I took in Paris in 2008. It pales in comparison with the rest in this post, but it really has always been one of my favorite photos I've ever taken. On this bright, sunny, August day, torrential rain suddenly poured from the sky, amidst sunbeams and a whole lot of people who hadn't thought to bring umbrellas. It created some beautiful imagery that I was lucky enough to be there to capture.
The funny thing about Paris is that even though I wasn't there with Kyle, so many of my memories of being there trigger memories of him. And vice versa. We were both there in 2008, within three months of each other. I went with my dad and Kyle went as part of his four-month-long backpacking trip across Asia and Europe. We both thought of each other the entire time we were there. When I think about my time in Paris, I think about some really awesome time spent with my dad, the overwhelming, and never-ceasing beauty of the city, and Kyle. He was present in everything. He says I was for him, too. I remember considering leaving a little note or message or sign for him somewhere where it could stay hidden for the three months until he arrived, and then go tell him where to look. I didn't. I wish I had!
We want to make these Paris memories of each other take on a whole new life. Fingers crossed! Does anyone else have a dream trip they hope to take at some point in the future? I would love to hear! Dreams of travel make me happy like nothing else.
Now we're off to DC to spend a few days with my brother, who's visiting us from Toronto! A little trip, but a trip nonetheless :)
