Gare de L'est Main Concourse |
Need a vacay? Hey, me too! If only to please my
significant other who says I spend too much time tapping the keys and talking
to "others" on TW and FB! (Really??? I do that? Time flies
when you are having fun!)
This fall, he and I are going to...drum roll
here...England. And our current argument...um, discussion...is about
length of stay. Eight days? Ten? Fifteen?
I often vote for as long as I can get him to
agree to the budget (a term I use too loosely which is why we have our
discussions). Our longest vacay recently was a glorious 18 days in eastern
France covering the American battlefields of WORLD WAR ONE. But I can get him
to agree to 14 days and 10 often!
What do we do? And why do we stay so
long?
First, very important here, we skip
all hotels. Why? Too expensive AND they never let you in until 3 in the
afternoon and by that time, you are ready to skin the receptionist because you
are so jet lagged.
http://amzn.to/1dWojVz |
We rent an apartment. With washer and
dryer so you can take a smaller suitcase. And a dishwasher. No, not hubby. A
mechanical dishwasher. BUT we have also found that in Europe, people tend
to sleep very close together. Single beds or double are the norm. You wince? We
do, too. Ergo, hunt for that rental that sports a queen or, if you really need
it (and we do), a king. Tough to find but they are there, trust me.
I
s an apartment really that much more
affordable? It is. Just think. You have your coffee and breakfast in house. You
have a refrigerator so you can, if you wish, pack a lunch. We don't but it is
an option, especially if you have food sensitivities or allergies and must do
this for health.
How do we plan? We decide before we go
exactly what we plan to see. In order. Then we figure out if there is a Metro
card (Visite, in Paris, London GO in London) and the right
time period we need to purchase! We are also good to ourselves and KNOW that
the first day we're there, we are good for the move in, breakfast at a local
cafe, a nap and a glorious dinner. No touring. THEN, the next day we begin.
Our WORLD WAR ONE trip began in
Paris where we went to Les Invalides, where they have the most marvelous
collection of items for display for the world wars. We did the Musee
D"Orsay, walked along the Seine, and drank champagne till we couldn't any
longer...at least, not that day.
What did I get from this trip that took us to
Compiegne where the Armistice was signed in 1918 and to Verdun where the most
costly battles were fought and to a wonderful museum in Meaux devoted entirely
to the La Grande Guerre?
I got HEROIC MEASURES,
written under my other name. This novel is about thousands of American women
whom you've never heard of or eve thought about...I bet. American nurses
who volunteered to go to France to nurse Doughboys in 1917 were paid HALF
what an Army private was paid and had no rank. NONE. I could go on, but
hope instead you will read my novel about these truly heroic Americans.
********
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Allromanceebooks.com : https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-heroicmeasures-1310153-162.html
Wild Rose Press: http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=209&products_id=5334
********
Last fall, we went to Paris again and this
time our agenda was to trace the history of France by visiting a few
significant places in and around Paris—and to do so by taking only the Metro or
the train! We stayed for 15 days and let me just say, that it was
marvelous. We walked at least 3-4 miles a day, because you leave the train
station, by golly, you are hoofing it to the site you wish to see. BUT armed
with good walking shoes and our umbrellas, we did it. And then—yes, you guessed
it—we dined. And I must confess, we drank well, too. Because well, it is France
you must taste the local produce, right???
What did I get out of that visit?
Well, I got marvelous backgrounds for my "Cerise went to Paris" Blogs
on my own blog here: http://cerisedeland.blogspot.com
And I have wonderful info for my next few Regencies as Cerise! Do read THE INCOMPARABLES, 6 HEROES OF WATERLOO AND THE 6 LADIES THEY ADORE
BY 6 INCOMPARABLE REGENCY AUTHORS for 99 cents out now! The 6 are:
Sabrina York, Dominique Eastwick, Suzi Love, Suzanna Medeiros, Lynne Connolly
and me!
And the material I researched appears
in my entry in that box set, INTERLUDE WITH A BARON, Regency Romp #4...and
in the soon to be released #3 in that series, MASQUERADE WITH A MARQUESS!
Keep traveling and keep reading!
1 comment:
Greatt post thanks
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