Paris, France

One of my closest friends Katie, whom I met on my first solo trip, met one of her boyfriends while in Paris in the most basic way.

Katie usually had a few hours off during her work week to just enjoy her time in the most romantic city in the world. As it was her second week in Paris and she did not know anyone in the city yet (she would not discover the expat Aussie hangout until week 4), she would go out to explore on her own.

On one of those days, she went to the Louvre. Anyone who has been to Paris knows that the walk from  Louvre to Champs Elysees has a lovely park by the name of Tuileries Garden which is frequented by tourists and older seniors playing chess. As she had some time left before she had to get back to work, she decided to sit on a bench to relax and people watch. Well it did not take long before a young man sat beside her.

Siena Paris, France

After a quick misunderstanding on the part of Katie who did not speak French and the young man who goes by Henri with perfect english but with a thick french accent, they struck up a conversation. And at the end, they scheduled a date to go to the local Market.

The second date was very Parisian and romantic. It took place in the local market and ended up with Katie acquiring very beautiful shoes at the end of the day which does sound a bit like a Catherine Deneuve film. The romance unfortunately did not last long as Katie was going to continue to travel Europe. While the love affair was brief, it was a romantic start and under different circumstances, may have lead to a “Happily every after”. If you are single, do not become cynical as even in today’s world. you can find romance and it does not necessarily have to be in the most romantic city in the world!