Retreating

I don't know if it's because I've read Eat, Pray, Love recently, or just because I've always loved travelling, but I've been looking at trips that I wouldn't have previously taken.

I seem to be hitting some kind of strange, quarter life crisis thing - and it's bugging me. A friend and I were discussing it this evening; she wonders sometimes if she's too young for a serious relationship, and I wonder two things. One is why I'm not progressing faster in my work; I want so badly to be successful at my job, and have that responsibility - I know people my age in better places (then again, there are some in less successful places and I know I really shouldn't compare). The second is I wonder if this is the right thing for me to be doing. It sounds so deep and a little bit insane - I'm not unhappy, but nor is it my dream. Part of me just wants to pull a Liz Gilbert and go and 'find myself' for a few months.

Even if that isn't going to happen any time soon (I'm far too responsible and boring to leave work and do something so spontaneous), it will begin this year with an independent trip to learn something, about somewhere and explore. I'll be going to the south of France to study (more on that later), but I can't help but already look into the potential next trip - somewhere that's more of a detox, a retreat from general life, ideally for 2 weeks or more...

Almost Parisienne

I may have mentioned previously that Paris is probably my favourite place in the world. I am already so excited about a trip that my mum and I are taking in November for my birthday. We started planning it over the weekend, and just booked our hotel, so that it's firmly in the diary and we can start deciding what to do while we are there. I can't believe it's only the start of this year and I am thinking so far ahead, but it's so important to have things to look forward to!

It's been far too long since I was in Paris, and I'm so pleased that by the time we go I'll have already been to Nice on my French language course (more on this later) so I can get some more practise later in the year. I think it takes less time to get to Paris than it does to get to the north of England on the Eurostar - another reason I love living here.

Now I have 4 days in Paris to plan before Christmas and I'm starting right now! I dug these out from my book collection to get me started.

Parisian Chic is primarily a fashion book which I think is spot on and very entertaining. I've taken a lot of tips from this over the few years I have had it - I do really like the French style. There's also a great section on the city itself, as well as a 'Secret Paris' chapter which I haven't explored yet.

My Little Paris is a great book full of inspiration and things to do, from exploring secret Parisian outlet stores, to having your lingerie delivered (perhaps not such a good one for a long weekend trip!). Either way its a great read, and a list I'm going to make sure I complete in the years to come.

When Triné and I went to Paris a few years ago, we had the most amazing time. We invested in Moleskine city notebooks; such a great idea to document all the wonderful places we found along the way. I can't wait to venture back to some of these places, and add to my collection of things I have discovered to do and see. My mum and I have a plan to each surprise one another with a restaurant while we are there and I think that these will go a long way in finding some wonderful venues.

2014 in Review

I have planned to document some detail behind the aims of this year and this journey and I will do shortly. First though I think it’s important to reflect back on last year, as this will help me understand why I am doing this now and more particularly, what I will change and do differently.

For a few years I’ve been trying on and off to eat healthily, exercise etc. And this year I will try again, except I’ll be engaging my mind and so I think that this will make all the difference. I found this great list of 2014 review questions that I’ve been working my way through, and I’m going to share the most relevant ones here now. I believe it will put me in the right mindset to live the best 2015.

What was your favourite place that you visited in 2014?
I went to Hong Kong with my parents this year for the first time. First time to Asia, or anywhere East of the Middle East. It was a brilliant trip because I understood a new culture, got to understand the city, and went into our office to suss out any future opportunities there! A place perhaps I wouldn’t live and work, but one I’d definitely go back to.

How did your overall outlook on life evolve?
I’m not sure of my full answer to this - I don’t know quite what happened, but I do know that something did in order to make me feel so strongly about my choices and happiness this year. Certainly nothing bad - but I think the culmination of my busy, on the move life gave me the opportunity to start taking important things into consideration and realising that there is more to life to explore.

What experience would you love to do all over again?
Probably moving away with work - I’ve ‘moved away’ so many times, but this time - to a tiny island, was a huge change and I loved every minute of it! It was a tough decision whether or not to come back in September but I think I made the right choice. I think some things are only meant to last a certain amount of time, but it was 6 months I’ll never forget.

What was your most common mental state this year?
This is a tough one and I’d have to pick 2. One is confused - about my job, my future, my path, where I should live and work, what role I needed to pick last September, leaving my friends, relationships (although I don’t think that’s the right word). I was in control of all these things but it was just such a busy, rushed and confusing time. The second one though is probably grateful - for the fact thatI had all these choices! Not once did I feel alone, isolated or worried about what I would do. I also got to see a lot of friends I hadn’t seen in a long time last year, and make some wonderful new ones.

What was the most important lesson you learnt in 2014?
I did a couple of stupid things this year, made some silly decisions and didn’t always show the best side of myself. That’s not to say I regretted it at the time or even now, but it makes me think how I really should behave, and more than that - respect myself, and only do what makes me fully happy.