Springtime in Paris--and now back to work! Roxanne Rustand

My husband and I got to travel quite a lot before he retired--he earned trips through his job, and we got to go to places I never dreamed I would see. For the final trip, he chose to let our daughter Emily go in his place, knowing the two of us would love going to Paris together.

Here are some photos of just several small parts of Monet's Gardens, in Giverny.  A riot of color, everywhere--planted by Monet for inspiration for his paintings.  Click on the photos to enlarge them--especially to see the detail on the ceilings!!





I was honestly a bit nervous before leaving...I'd always heard that Americans aren't liked there, that the people could be unfriendly in general, and that the language could be quite a barrier.

Boy, was I wrong.

Just as everywhere else we've ever gone, the people were delightful--friendly, helpful, charming--and all but one Uber driver and a delightful restaurant owner spoke excellent English, and even then we got along fine.  Emily and I had a wonderful time.

I'd love to share all 1000+ photos with you --LOL!  But, in the interest of space and common sense, I'll share just a few, and will put more up on my Facebook page later this week.

This is a ceiling in Opera Garnier--where all the fashionable, wealthy folks went to be seen in their finery. It's hard to imagine that they came even close to competing with the gorgeous decor!

If you are ever planning a trip to Paris, I would love to share our fourteen-day itinerary with you, with recommendations about our favorites on what you should definitely try to see!

 All of this dazzling beauty--not to mention the Louvre, Versailles, Veaux le Compte and so many other fascinating places--were great research for the novella I am writing for our Sweet Romance Reads annual anthology, Sweet Christmas Kisses, that will be available this fall.

 Here is my daughter Emily--on our third day at the Louvre. We did our best but still didn't see it all. My poor old feet were tired!



Something completely new to me--did you know that Marie Antoinette built a complete little rural village at Versaille--though she never slept there, and no one else did, either.  She built it as her own little Disneyland--so she could go for strolls and imagine her life when she was young. Here is just once of the charming buildings



Between this village and her 150 new ball gowns every year, not to mention all of the other extravagances at Versaille no wonder the peasants revolted!

I can't wait to get back to writing my sweet romance novella for the anthology, about two people who just might find love in The City of Light!

Roxanne Rustand