A Little Paradise in France

We always enjoy traveling to France and on this visit we found a little piece of paradise. We may have found the area we hope to call home…more on that later. This is just an overview on an extraordinary trip. Still pinching myself. We arrived on a cold, snowy morning. Stepping out of the airport with our driver we could see our breath…the last time was years ago in Switzerland. The weather got our attention and made for a longer than usual drive into Paris. We had a great conversation with our bilingual driver, this made time fly by.

We had early check in at the hotel (YAY) and after depositing our bags, headed out for brunch and a long walk through the Tuileries Garden in the snow. It was magical. Daffodils and crocuses were covered in snow and the blooming magnolia trees looked out of place. It reminded me of growing up in the midwest when a freak snowstorm would cover the flowers and blooming trees. By the next day, the snow had melted and the sun was out. Although very cold, the weather was glorious. Seriously, having the opportunity to visit France twice in five months, the weather was not a concern.

In October, I visited the YSL Musée and wrote about it for The Good Life France Magazine. The Musée invited me back to see the new additions and extended the invitation to hubby as well. It was brilliant. With over 34,703 items, you could revisit on a quarterly basis. Ray enjoyed it as much as I did. I’ll be sharing more about the Musée later.

 

 

Goosebump alert…we visited the Coco Chanel Suite at the Ritz Paris! This was an amazing experience and I will forever be grateful. Don’t want to share too much as an article will be forthcoming.

This three room suite is to die for. Understated elegance, so Chanel.

After visiting the suite, we were escorted downstairs to the Salon Proust for tea. This is not your average tea. It consists of several courses and it is all SWEETS! I was in heaven, hubby was in shock.

Word to the wise—don’t eat before tea at the Ritz. We had a light lunch and ended up with two takeaway boxes of sweets. They were packaged so beautifully. The kind folks at the Ritz presented me with a gorgeous goodie bag after visiting Suite 202. I had to take a photo.

From Paris, we took the TGV to Montpellier to attend a seminar and visit the area.  There is so much history (as in all of France), we fell in love with the region of Occitanie.

I could have spent weeks exploring.

Château d’Eau was built in 1753 and is part of a gorgeous pedestrian promenade.

This triumphal arch was built in 1691. The age is staggering.

We visited Béziers, Pézenas, Marseillan and Sète before heading back to Paris. I am smitten with the ‘other South of France’. So is Ray. You have a bustling city, medieval village, beach town and the ‘Venice of France’ all within close proximity.

 

 

We could live here. Easily.

In Marseillan, home to Noily Prat Vermouth, we had drinks with a Lord and his Lady. It was unexpected and they were delightful.

 

We could live here. Easily.

Dodging strikes, we made it back to Paris for a few more days. While it didn’t snow, we experienced rain, wind, and glorious sunshine. Many of you know we brought my son’s ashes to “his happy place”. He loved France, well…almost everything about it. I’m so thankful we were able to do this for him.

 

 

While bittersweet, I know he is jumping for joy in Heaven.

Thank you for visiting!