For my first weekend in France, I was lucky enough to be taken to Normandy, a region north west of Paris. I stayed in a beautiful and traditional-style of house for this area (the grandparent’s home of the lovely people I have been staying with in Paris). Upon arriving, we had clementine juice and macarons in the Saturday afternoon sunshine and a beautiful dinner of fish, tomato/mozzarella/fresh herb salad, followed by a display of real-deal French cheeses and gâteaux from a local patisserie. The follow morning, we woke to a Sunday morning brunch spread of fresh croissants, baskets of fresh fruit and mugs of fresh espresso on the patio. While I struggled to follow the table conversation, the gorgeous river view before us and the glorious morning sunshine was a beautiful distraction from my lacking language repertoire.

After packing up our overnight bags in the car, we drove to Honfleur (famous for its picturesque port lined with a strip of slate-covered houses and colourful cafes below) to lunch and wander the local shops.

We then drove to Deauville, a very exclusive beach-side town where the richest Parisians live, holiday, or permanently holiday. It was a perfect day for a beach stroll, and a glorious way to finish off a pretty perfect weekend.

A visual synopsis of my day wandering the Champs-Élysées, Islands and Rue des Francs Bourgeois / Places des Vosges of the Marais District.

This morning I fly to Prague for a little adventure before I return to France on Saturday, fly down to Montpellier and officially ‘move in’ to my new home and French life.

À bientôt xx

If a picture tells a thousand words, then prepare yourself for a visal thesis documenting the springtime colours of Monet’s Garden.

I dedicate these photos to Maman, always the avid gardener… you would fall in love with this place xx.

It’s all well and good to announce a six month sojourn in France running wild, barefoot and free, but practically it is a little bit embarrasing and undignified having no choice but to wander barefoot on the streets of Paris when your left Havaiana snaps.

The nearest store in sight was Quicksilver, so a pair of Roxy replacements it had to be. Does anyone want to send me some new Havaianas in exchange for Macarons? Because frankly, my feet are just not as happy.

What a beginning. As a dear friend wisely reminded me: The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, or a fully functioning plane engine.

After arriving at the airport on Tuesday morning, sharing a final CIBO (significant event) saying very emotional goodbyes to my family and dearest man, sobbing uncontrollably all the way though border security, boarding the plane and being taxied out to the runway, full of butterflies and less than a minute from take-off, it was a devastating buzzkill to hear the plane engines turn off and the captain announce that we would need to return to the terminal for ‘quick maintenance’ to the malfunctioning right engine.

This ‘quick’ 20 minute delay turned into 1 hour, 3 hours, the decision to disembark passengers off the plane and be showered with fancy food (we’re talking pizza deliveries, wine and Maggie Beer ice-cream) and free range of the book shop (I helped myself to 2 novels, along with Vogue Living, Madison and Marie Claire among others) until an anticipated 7.30pm departure. During this time I made friends with a Danish girl and lady from the UK, lent my laptop to a Russian man and got to personally chat with the plane captain. After a further delay to an anticipated 8.30pm departure, at 9.30pm it was not a surprise to hear that the flight would be completely cancelled and rescheduled for the following morning.

Just for the record, considering my track record with delayed flights (refer to London’s snowstorm last December) I wouldn’t recommend that anyone travel overseas with me.

After wishing all day for ‘one more hug’, it was a little surreal to collect my luggage and return home to spend one more precious night with loved ones before doing it all over again. I questioned my emotional capacity to go through goodbyes again, but it was a lot easier the second time.

As I type these words now, I am am safe, sitting in bed at 5.30am on Friday morning, with the balcony windows wide open and the crisp morning air filling the room. I can see chimney pots and river Seine below. Hello Paris.

After kicking the jetlag yesterday, today will be my first day exploring. My plans for the day? To roam the Jardin du Luxembourg, return to Ladurée for exquisite macaroons on the Avenue des Champs-Élysées and enjoy a picnic on the Seine riverbank tonight with the lovely friends I am staying with. Bliss!

Things have been very busy and artful behind the scenes at Emma Kate Creative.

A new creative venture has involved collaborating with the lovely Julie Parker from Beautiful You in the publication of our first e-book. This is going to be the first of a number of e-books Julie and I will publish, bringing to life areas we are both passionate about, including self esteem, body image, life inspirations and helping you be the best person you can be.

The ‘Be Yourself, Be Beautiful’ E-book has given me the joy of ink-stained hands and hours tucked away in my little studio (or afternoon sunshine when the weather was nicer) illustrating imagery to pair with 30 inspirational quotes written by Julie, a counsellor, life coach and positive self esteem activist, to inspire you to love and honour the most important person in your life… You.

Each page is lovingly illustrated in bright colours and can be easily printed, laminated and even framed. Your favourite quotes will be a gorgeous addition to your vision board, desk or special space. This is going to be an e-book you will likely want to print and keep forever.

The ‘Be Yourself. Be Beautiful’ E-Book is available online for $15.95.

See below for a sneak peek of the pretty pages inside.

You can purchase the E-book here.

xx

There’s an irony to the night before a beggining of something great.

Everything is planned to the finest detail, and yet there is so much ahead that cannot be planned for, anticipated or even imagined. All that is left is time, until a leap into the unknown is made.

I don’t know what lies ahead, but i’m so excited to find out. Join me here as my story about living in the south of France unravels.

Em x

‘…That is why we need to travel. If we don’t offer ourselves to the unknown, our senses dull. Our world becomes small and we lost sense of our wonder. Our eyes don’t lift to the horizon; our ears don’t hear the sound around us. The edge is off our experience and we pass our days in a routine that is both comfotable and limiting. We wake up one day and we find that we have lost our dreams in order to protect our days. Don’t let yourself become of these people. The fear of the unknown and the lure of the comfortable will conspire to keep you from taking the chances the traveler has to take. But if you take them, you will never regret your choice.’

- KENT NERBURN, LETTERS TO MY SON