Sitting behind Île de la Cité, Ile Saint Louis in Paris’ 4th arrondissement has plenty of its own things to offer. While it may not be home to Notre Dame, it’s a lovely place in itself and can boasts some unique views of the city. I actually had one of my life’s wildest adventures here, […]

Paris’ 6th arrondissement is a special little corner of the city. Yes, it does have a touristy side (hi, Les Deux Magots and Café de Flore), but it’s also just the classic Paris you envision when you think of the city. Picture-perfect buildings, florists with flowers spilling onto the sidewalks, grandeur and art somehow seamlessly […]

If you love France or are planning a trip, download one of my FREE travel guides! As a Francophile, I have a few quirks. Namely, I (usually) detest mustard, can’t stand mayonnaise, and don’t drink. I’ve basically hit the pillars of French cuisine…but I guess a girl knows what she likes. However, I do have […]

Download the Free Provence Travel Guide This Provence trip was unexpected and one of the best things I’ve ever done. It was a post-quarantine, early pandemic adventure and the perfect way to say goodbye to a place that I love. However, I hope to go back! And I will update this post when I do. […]

After we had peeled away from Horseshoe Bend (literally peeled, it was so hot our clothes stuck to us as soon as we stepped out of Fitz), we tapped our next destination into the GPS. The sun was bright, the sky was clear, and I already had a short list on what to do in […]

As Thanksgiving 2021 rolled around, I found myself in facing the same conundrum as all the other years: Do I go home? Truthfully, it’s no conundrum at all. My answer is always no if it will take me longer than half a day to get back to California. Boston, then Paris, and now Birmingham all […]

Shoppe Birmingham might be my favorite place in the whole city. Yes, me, a fresh Southern transplant of barely two months, already proclaiming her favorite place. But I can’t help it. It is a flower lover’s dream—and it takes me to Paris in a good way. Amy and I went early—early as in 8:30am. An […]

Having spent four years in New England (and plenty more in San Francisco), I have come to adore apple picking as the canary that announces fall’s official arrival. So, as soon as the first day of fall came and went (without pomp, but with a lot of heat), I began my search for apple orchards […]

I rolled into the Leaf and Petal parking lot—and by rolled, I mean I frantically turned the wheel and pressed in the clutch and prayed I wouldn’t hit the cars next to me—turned off Fitz (my car), and got out, only to be met with the wet humidity I now find characteristic to Alabama. It […]

The air was cold as I stepped outside my apartment, cardigan on, foolishly wearing my new ballet flats I was breaking in. It was time to take them on a trip to the Birmingham Botanical Gardens, Alabama—not to be confused with Birmingham, UK, which often comes up. I always take the same approach to shoes, […]