Bonjour

As I set up this blog, it doesn't seem real that in just a few days I'll be posting from my own flat in Paris! For a whole month, GuidedParis.com will be based on the Rue du Croissant (seriously) in the 2nd Arrondissement - about a 10 minute walk from the Louvre museum, close to the Paris Opera House. Finding a furnished apartment was an adventure itself. But I think (make that hope) that I found a good place to call home for the month I'll be living in my favorite city in the world!

So I leave for Paris on Wednesday, October 29 and I return to Florida the night before Thanksgiving, on Wednesday, November 26.

While I'm there, I'll be taking intensive French classes at the Alliance Francais. One of the reasons I really wanted to do this was for the language training. They say being immersed in the culture of a place is the best way to learn... we shall see! When I'm not in class I'll be spending every waking moment soaking up as much of the city as I can. And taking weekend trips - London anyone?! ;-)

Sadly I won't be here for the election. However, I will be voting early tomorrow (every vote counts!) and I made sure that my studio has, a) high speed internet; and b) cable tv w/international channels (i.e. CNN International) so I can watch as the results come in and IM with people throughout the evening!

Speaking of keeping in touch.... anyone have Skype? I got a new netbook (the Asus Eee 900HA - a darling baby laptop) that has a built in web cam, microphone and Skype but I don't know anybody else who has it to do a test run with!

Of course I have not packed yet... afterall, I still have two days before I leave for a month - ha! But seriously, I better get off the computer (some things never change) and get started.

For those of you who know me and how much I love all things Paris, I'm sure you can appreciate just how excited I am about this amazing opportunity. As cliche as it sounds, this really is a dream come true for me. And I'm so looking forward to sharing the experience with everyone on this blog. I plan on posting daily and I hope I'll hear from many of you while I'm on my Parisian adventure.

My next post will be later in the week (Thursday, October 30) once I've arrived in Paris. I'll be spending that first day/night at a hotel around the corner from my apartment as it won't be ready for me to occupy until Friday. But I of course made sure the hotel has high speed internet as well, so I can blog. What did we ever do before the Internet?!?!?

Off to pack now....

Au Revoir
~Gina