I've have travelled to many places around the world, spent a lot of time in countries other than my own and I believe travelling deepens a person's understanding of the world around them, of people and themselves. It gives one a better sense of who they are in the overall scheme of things in this vast planet of ours and, let me speak plainly, it's simply enjoyable.
I was talking with my partner recently, the person I've travelled with for all of my adult life, and we were discussing our many trips overseas and those taken domestically, trying to pinpoint our favourite one; not his or mine individually, but the trip we both agreed was the most favoured; We came up with a trip to France, Italy, Austria and Switzerland we took in the late-2000's.
My guy had surprised me with the trip for my birthday, a milestone birthday, although he gave me the gift months ahead when my birthday actually was so that we'd have time to plan the trip and be on it, in Paris as that's where I wanted to be, for the actual day of my birthday.
After he gave me the gift we set to organizing the trip together which would last a total of just under five weeks. Travelling to Europe from where we live takes a long time so we had to make the trip an extended one to get value from the cost of the flights. Bringing the trip together, working out what we would do and where, what we wanted to see, was so much fun and it worked nicely that we were able to balance it between common interests and those we have individually.
We were in Paris for my birthday and had a beautiful day together; it was really quite special for me and to spend it in that place with that man made it the best birthday I've had. We're balanced when we travel and have things planned but also ensure we have ample time to add things in, or just do nothing, and the plan for my birthday was the latter.
We walked all day, wandering familiar and favourite places - this was not our first trip to Paris - and new ones; we walked narrow cobbled streets, wide boulevards, along the Seine, through parks and gardens and past historic monuments and buildings. We ate baguettes and drank coffee in the Tuileries Garden and talked about what we saw, reminisced about our other visits there and life itself. It was relaxing and so beautiful.
On the way back to the apartment we purchased some lovely foods which we would serve as my birthday dinner and a small, but incredibly beautiful, cake for my birthday cake - I got to choose it - and it was so decadent and lovely. My partner had brought a candle all the way from home for the occasion and it was all just so simple and beautiful.
We sat on the balcony of our apartment in the 8th arrondissement, known as Élysée as it surrounds the Avenue des Champs-Elysèes, which afforded us a beautiful view as the sun set and the lights of Paris began to sparkle and add a new dimension to the city that sunlight doesn't capture. We lingered enjoying the moment and each other and later we went for a walk and yet later...none of your business.
We did so many things on that trip and in each of the the countries we went we found so much of value and created memories we treasure to this day.
I could write post after post about the trips we have taken together and the countries we've been to but I don't really want to I suppose; they're private to us, memories I want to keep close to my heart as special to he and I alone, but now and then I also feel like sharing as I have done today; it is a nice way to reminisce about the trips as I write and this one was most definitely our mutual favourite.