Two weeks in France have come and gone. I enjoyed every single last second of it. I felt very at home there; the walking, the biking, the baking, the weather, the individuality in people’s dress, the incredible gardens and flowers everywhere. I felt so incredibly lucky to spend two weeks there, so appreciative and so alive.

We also saw lots of old stones:

Which works on a person’s perspective. I’m not religious, and don’t go to church, but the size, beauty and age of these amazing buildings really gets to you. Standing inside an enormous church, ruin around it, that was built in the 9th century makes you feel very small in the scheme of things. I thought so often about all the lives that had passed through these buildings; the sorrows and joys people had brought with them to these places, now long gone and forgotten, and I know that my life in the grand scheme of things is just a blink of an eye. I experienced that kind of happiness that teeters on the edge of overwhelming tears for most of the trip, because I could see in these ancient stones how fleeting it all really is. Note to self: don’t sweat the small stuff!


It has been almost exactly 15 years since I met this guy in a cafe in Dahab Egypt, both of us with backpacks and me with only $5.00 left in my pocket. I took a huge leap of faith then and accepted his invitation to travel overland to China. I know now, once again, that traveling with him is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. It still is all these years later.