Planning for Paris....Returning To The City Of Light In 2016

It's been 5 years since I went to Paris for the first time.  Having never gone before and since I was going to be solo, I went with a tour group. Traveling with 40 other people was great for a first time destination.  I got to see all the major sights.  It would have been hard to plan all that on my own.  Traveling with a tour is pretty much stress free.  You just pretty much show up at the airport and just sit back and enjoy!

This time however I am really going to live out my dream.  I finally made my decision to go this year after meeting a women from France that now lives in Kentucky at a Holiday Market the week before Thanksgiving.  Talking to her just got me so excited about going back that I decided I'm done TALKING about going back and actually doing it!! This  time I am going to do all the planning on my own. This makes me a little nervous. Mostly because of the language barrier.  I do know basic phrases though and hope to learn more.   I will not be going solo, I will be going with my cousins wife. I am so excited that she is going with me. I will be doing most of the research and we will be getting together to discuss details.  I want to make this a great trip for her and want to make sure she gets to check off her list of things she would like to see while there.

So far I've been checking out airfares (wow! Expensive) and since I am leaning towards renting an apartment vs going the hotel route, I've been checking out various apartment rental agencies.  I have traveled before using VRBO and AirBNB for rentals and have been very satisfied with the process.  Anyway, there are so many choices out there it's overwhelming.  I am thinking I'd like to stay in the 5th or 6th arrondissement so we are pretty central to all the main things. Being this is the first time doing this on our own I have about a million concerns such as, what kind of transportation should we take to get from CDG airport to to the city, train, taxi, or hire a service?  I guess it's mostly the fear of the unknown.

So now that the holidays are over, it is time to start the planning process. First thing to figure out is a date, then a place to stay, then the rest will come later.  A million decisions to be made.  I'm open to any and all advice.  I'd love to hear any Paris experiences or suggestions. I'm going to be documenting the planning process all the way through.  My goal is to help make it easier on those that really have dreamed about going to Paris, but are afraid to plan a trip on their own.

Oh and by the way, Thank you to my new French friend for giving me the push to finally make this happen!! Merci!

A Parents Guide To YALLfest

If you are not familiar with YALLfest you are probably asking yourself

What is YALLfest?

YALLfest 2014 and Blue Bicycle Books

YALLfest is one of-if not the largest young adult book events in the country.  It takes place in Charleston South Carolina every November.  It is put on by a fabulous little bookstore on King Street called Blue Bicycle Books.  Last year, there were approximately 60 authors that took part.  There are book signings, panel discussions and other fun events crammed into a two day event.  YALLfest is THE place to be if you are a book nerd or generally consider yourself a fan of the YA genre. Last year there were literally thousands of book nerds that attended. It is honestly something to see!

I just happen to have a 16 year old book nerd living under my roof. My daughter read about 130 books last year alone so I think she qualifies for the queen of book nerds if there is such a title. She LOVES books and I guess when other girls her age obsess over clothes and boys, she spends all her money on books.  This is not a bad thing. In fact, being a reader myself, I love the fact that my child spends all her free time reading. There are worse things she can be doing.

So, getting back to YALLfest. Coming from Wisconsin we decided to fly to Charleston because of time restraints.  The only problem with that was we were carrying about 50 hardcover books with us to be signed by various authors.  Yes you heard me FIFTY books!  Because of weight restrictions we divided those books up into 2 of our large size suitcases.  Thank goodness we were not gone for a week since we had little room left for clothes. By the way, did you ever try lifting a suitcase containing 30 hardcover books? I said a little prayer of thanks to the people who came up with the wheels on the bottom of the suitcase! I think the shuttle driver at the airport threw his back out lifting those suitcases.

This brings me to my first piece of guidance for the YALLfest parent.....you are there for 3 reasons

1) To transport books back and forth that have been signed or need to be signed to your hotel/vehicle/vacation rental. Some people do not do this. They just wheel their large suitcases with them all day from event to event. This is not such a bad idea since your suitcase can make an excellent place to sit when you back needs a rest from all that standing in line.

2)  Be a body to stand in line for your child as they go from book signing to book signing. While they are standing in line at one signing, you are instructed to stand in line at another signing or to get wristbands for a big named author signing or panel discussion.

3) To bring food to your child as they stand in line.  There will be no time for an actual meal during the day. You either have to have a food runner (said parent) or go without food all day. Side note:  Charleston has the most excellent food! Especially little hole-in-the-wall bakeries!!!!

Believe me this 2 day event is not for the faint of heart. It is brutal, exhausting, and worth every minute of it!

My daughter Megan and her friend Grace waiting in line for a book signing

If as a parent you think you will have time to fit in a little sightseeing or shopping, you might have some time. We arrived in Charleston late Thursday night and I had most of the day on Friday, and although there are events going on Friday, I was free to explore on my own.  I could not be in such a beautiful city such as Charleston and not see things.  Saturday morning I went to the farmers market and made some purchases, but by around 10:00 I joined the ranks of parents as official line standees.

Even I got to meet my favorite YA author Rainbow Rowell

The last piece of advice I have is to either stay at a hotel downtown, or find an awesome vacation rental if you are traveling from out of town. You can do this through VRBO.com or airbnb.  We found a cute little 1 bedroom villa through VRBO right off of King Street. It was perfect!  It was an easy walk from all the events which basically all take place on or around King Street. I walked back and forth during the day all weekend exchanging books, dropping off purchases and just to use the restroom and have a 5 minute rest.

YALLfest has become so popular that they added another event for the west coast appropriately titled YALLwest for this year.

The best part...sharing fun times with your daughter

This years YALLfest takes place in Charleston November 13th and 14th. Follow YALLfest on Facebook for all the latest info plus see pictures from last years event.  I hope to see you there!  One last piece of advice, have fun, after all you are sharing something fun to do with your book nerd! Oh and make sure and wear comfy shoes!!!!

Meeting some of Megan's favorite authors