Paris: Find Your Connection (A smashing story of love, a bridge, and a boat)

Expedia has a series of short videos about how travel bloggers have “found their” meaningful travel moments. One of my favourites features Trish Friesen (aka TripStyler) talking about how an early travel experience to Mexico shaped her view of travel — and of life. This got me thinking about the key moments in my own travel experience. Over the last five years, travel has become a fundamental part of who I am — as a writer, yes, but also as a person.

My “find yours” destination would have to be Paris. It’s the place my husband I return to again and again. It’s where we got engaged. It’s where we went on our honeymoon. I’ve written about Paris for iloho and for The Globe and Mail.

More specifically, my “find yours” place, the place that means more to me than any other travel destination, is the Pont des Arts. This was where my not-yet husband surprised me with a tiny lock he’d purchased at a local market, so we could join the tradition of lovers marking the permanence of their love by securing a lock to the bridge and throwing the keys into the river — something we’d seen on many trips, including our first, to Prague, years before. It’s where we returned a year later to mark our engagement with another lock, this time engraved with words that captured how we felt about the new journey we were embarking on together. And a year after that, it’s where we returned again to look for our lock, only to find the entire panel we’d secured it to had been removed. We thought perhaps our connection to the bridge was gone, though we consoled ourselves knowing our keys were still at the bottom of the Seine. And later that trip, we found the bridge still had a hold on us when the Batobus we were riding crashed right into it — quite a feat given the flat-calm waters and utterly straight path the Batobus takes along the river. Youch — that left quite a bruise.

If I were to have a “find yours” video, it would surely be the story of that bridge, and how it has featured in my life. What did I find, exactly? I found connection. First, of course, with my husband — and then, quite literally, with the bridge itself. It’s a special place. A place to which we will certainly return.

And really, isn’t finding connections what travel is all about? With a place, with the people who live there, with the people who travel with you — connections make travel (and life) richer and more meaningful.

Ah, it’s surely time to return to Paris soon. I wonder what the Pont des Arts has in store for us next…

 

New project: Ageless Living Magazine

agelessI’m excited to announce that starting with the September issue, I’ll be taking on the role of Editor at Ageless Living Magazine while current Editor Liberty Craig steps away to welcome her new baby. It’s a great magazine produced right here in BC, and I’m thrilled to join the team to bring the latest information about living an ageless life to readers both in print and online. You can find the current issue and the archive of back issues at AgelessLivingMagazine.ca.

My book: The Hands-On Guide to Surviving Adult Children Living at Home

There's been The Hands-On Guide to Surviving Adult Children Living at Home by Christina Newberrysome media attention recently for my book, The Hands-On Guide to Surviving Adult Children Living at Home, so I thought I would provide some information here. It's packed with great information for families with adult children living at home or planning to move home. It's available in an eBook format that you can read on your computer, iPad, or other device at www.adultchildrenlivingathome.com (where you can also find a great blog with loads of free information and resources). If you prefer a book that you can put on your bookshelf, you can buy a copy  here.

 

Here's all the key info:

The Hands-On Guide to Surviving Adult Children Living at Home by Christina Newberry

Second Edition published June 2012 by Nuru Guides
Available at www.adultchildrenlivingathome.com

Comes with a downloadable family contract template and budget calculator.

Articles, articles, articles

Apparently I’ve been a bit of a slouch lately when it comes to blog posting, at least here. I’ve been much better about posting on my other blog at Adult Children Living at Home. But I haven’t been a slouch about writing! Here’s a list of some of my recent articles, if you want to find out what I’ve been up to!

Plus, new stock photography is up at Dreamstime.

For more regular updates, you can always follow me on Twitter.

Four new articles: Food on the Brain

I’ve had several new articles published recently (and they all seem to be about food!), so here they all are in one post:

HealthCastle.com: Flex Your Diet Options with Non-Meat Protein

HealthCastle.com: Tapas Time! Add Some Sunshine to Winter Meals With Spanish Cooking

HealthCastle.com: Top 4 Meatless Dishes Where You Won’t Miss the Meat

iloho.com: Great Food, Local Style – Who Knows What Treasures You’ll Find?

A freelance travel & lifestyle writer/editor