Looking Forward to France -- Suggestions Welcomed

Summer is speeding toward us.  For me, that means soon heading off to France for a month or so.  This week will begin a frantic week of list-making as I start packing now and getting all my house ducks in a row.  As I look forward to France, I’d love to have your suggestions for two things.

First, tell me what you want to see pictures of.  Each year I pick one or two themes for my photographs, e.g., dogs or blue shutters.  What would you like to see in France?  Someone has already suggested road signs.  What’s your desire?

Second, what kind of stories do you want?  Do you want to hear about the museums outside of Paris (still not sure if I’ll spend any time there)?  Do you want to hear about the food, or the transportation, or habits of the natives?  What makes you curious?

Just tell me in the comments box what intrigues you about that country and I’ll see if I can offer it to you next month.  Meanwhile, I’ll leave you with a travel story from August 2009 that I was reminded of as I spent Monday chasing down quilt barns.

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Joys of Flying Solo

When women friends (never men) hear that I like to travel alone, these situations are exactly what they worry about when they cluck “How brave” or “Isn’t it dangerous to do that? -- as if I were backpacking through Zimbabwe instead of simply riding Britain’s National Rail line or driving to Tennessee for a couple of days to wander through Iris City Gardens or walking the 10 kilometer path from Oberwolfach to Wolfach in Germany or strolling down Lower Broadway in Nashville at 2 a.m., taking pictures of the crowds and the neon and ducking into the clubs hoping to hear Music City’s next big star. Right after those responses comes the predictable, “Aren’t you lonely doing that?” But I’m up for hitting the road alone at the drop of a hat.  (Continue reading)