Leaving Paris

Hi Everyone,

Well for me, in a way, the summer holiday is over. I started somewhat early, in June, when I came back to Paris for almost two months, and it has been wonderful, seeing friends, having my kids here, doing fun things, and travelling to Italy. And the lazy summer days end all too quickly. For the first time ever, many of my kids used Paris as a base this summer, and travelled from there to other places (Holland, Germany, etc.), and some stayed in Paris longer than others, and we all went on holiday in Italy together, at a hotel, and on a boat, on our  annual boat vacation with the 5 youngest  kids. Each one brings a friend or significant other on the boat trip, but their friends stay at the house too. And it’s lively and busy while they’re here. All together, they stayed with me in Paris longer than any other summer, and some were with me for the entire month, which was great, and now I’m sad that it’s over.

It was a chilly June and July in Paris this year, which wasn’t so bad, though I didn’t get to wear my really summer stuff, and wore a lot of wool jackets and sweaters instead!!!!!!! I saw a lot of my friends, and enjoyed the time with my kids. And our trip to Italy was terrific, to Positano, Capri, Porto Ercole, and the fabulous day in Rome I told you about recently. We had great meals and conversations, played Scrabble, and relaxed with each other, spent time with each other and separately with our own friends.

Somehow, I am never ready to leave Paris. I love my home in San Francisco, and will be happy with another 2 or 3 weeks with my kids, each one for a few days here and there. But Paris is just a hard city to leave. It’s almost deserted in August, since restaurants and businesses close for the month, and the city is nearly empty. People take holiday either in July or August, and have a full month off. The whole country goes on vacation in summer in France.

When I go back to San Francisco, I will be curating an art show for a gallery (and owners) I love, which will be a lot of fun. Seeing lawyers, accountants, and catching up on work. It won’t feel like summer anymore when I go back, and SF is always cold. So I’m having a bit of nostalgia as I pack up in Paris, with the ‘spoils’ of summer, some things I bought to take back, mostly gifts for other people. I’m lucky I had the time off, the long visit with my children, the travel, and the time in Paris. But I’m sad to leave anyway. I wish the vacation were just starting and not ending, and it will be September before you know it. But my summer is about to end now. I hope the rest of your summer is fun!!!

Love, Danielle