Where to go from here?

Since starting this little journal a few months ago Betty and I have accomplished acquiring our passports, buying our plane tickets, renting an apartment in Paris, having frank and candid discussions about what we want to see and do while we're in Paris, learning about the assorted scams and research, research, research.

So, I feel like I'm prepared for our anniversary celebration in Paris, the only problem now is where to go from here.

Admittedly, when I started this blog/journal thing, I thought I would be sharing tips and advice for the first time traveler and I'm sure a first time traveler that stumbles across this blog/journal thing will find a few tips and a smidgen of advice.  I've learned it really isn't that difficult to plan a visit to another country; with the magic of the internet it also isn't difficult to research your destination and and plan activities.  You can even purchase transportation tickets, museum passes or opera tickets online and have them mailed to your home before you leave.  The research can, and does, become addicting.  And now I find I must curb this new addiction.

I have realized not everyone wants to hear about my upcoming trip.  They are not concerned with learning about Parisians and the cultural differences between us.  The possibility also exists that I will begin taking away the excitement of discovering Paris firsthand.

There are many, many topics concerning Paris I could write about, the different arrondissements and the unique and quirky neighborhoods within each one.  The flea markets, antique shops and bountiful shopping opportunities.  The varied museums, many of which focus on a particular artist, style or time period.  I'm sure foodies would enjoy reading about the different restos, bistros, cafés and who could forget the sweets shops.

It's one thing to write about all of this and an entirely different thing to experience it firsthand.  I plan on doing both however, how can I possibly discuss the merits of mussels at Léon de Bruxelles or the relaxing walk through the grounds of the Rodin Museum while admiring his sculptures.  So, as you can see, I am left with the question, where do I go from here?

The answer?  I'm going to change my focus a tad.  When I started this journal/blog thing I had no idea what I was doing, I still don't.  So, I'm going to take the time to learn more about blogging, how to read the stats.  Currently I know I have one follower (thank you Deborah H. from Australia), I also have 312 page views but, how many of these views are people versus web crawlers?

I need to learn this stuff.  One thing I have learned is I follow a lot of other blogs, mainly ones that are focused on Paris, and it is difficult to keep up with them all, I'm sure others are experiencing the same.  To help organize and track when there are new posts I discovered Bloglovin a site designed to keep you informed when your favorite blogs post something new.

I have also discovered gadgets, one of which is a countdown clock I have placed on my blog to countdown the days until we leave for Paris.  So, off I go to do more research and hopefully make this blog/journal thing a little better. The page layout may change, I have considered doing a series of posts on where I live, treating my home town and the surrounding area as traveler might, as a practice/warm-up for when we are in Paris.  One thing that will not change is the focus of this blog and that is our upcoming 30th anniversary celebration in Paris, France.

See you next time.

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