Compared to my travel stats for 2013 and 2014, this year seems sedentary, with only two continents and eight countries visited. The beginning of 2015 was spent in Texas taking care of my health. And at the end of March, I moved to Paris. Looking back, I can’t believe how much my life has evolved in a mere 365 days.
For the first time in recent memory, I felt perfectly satisfied simply being still. There was no inner voice pushing me to move. I loved having a routine and slipping into the same bed most nights. Despite my contentment, I traveled extensively throughout France. During my multiple campaigns with Atout France {Fall for France/Top French Cities, France Wine Travels, 24 Hours in Paris} and personal trips, I managed to visit ten French Regions: Lower Normandy, Midi-Pyrénées, Brittany, Poitou-Charentes, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, Rhône-Alpes, Burgundy, Alsace, Champagne-Ardenne, and Île-de-France.
I’ve come to realize that quality is far more important than quantity, whether that be shoes, people, or travel. In 2015, I only visited two new countries and marked four items off my to-do list. I’m just fine with that, because the bulk of my travel time was invested in the places that I love most–France, Austria, and Texas.
I’d love it you’d follow along on Instagram {Leah Travels}. My 2016 is already shaping up to be an exciting year.
Mountains
“May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds.” –Edward Abbey
❤️ #VisitAustria #MyAustria #LoveTirol #Austria #AlpsArchitecture
“We shape our buildings; thereafter they shape us.”―Winston Churchill
French blue. #France #VikingCruises #Rhone
#Germany #vikingcruisesFlowers
“A garden to walk in and immensity to dream in–what more could he ask? A few flowers at his feet and above him the stars.”―Victor Hugo
Sunrise and Sunset
“Lost, yesterday, somewhere between sunrise and sunset, two golden hours, each set with sixty diamond minutes. No reward is offered for they are gone forever”–Horace Mann
#Nice #France #TravelFrance #TopFrenchCities #TravelNicePortraits
“Slow down, take time, allow yourself to be wildly diverted from your plan. People are the soul of the place; don’t forget to meet them and enjoy their company as you explore a place.”―David duChemin
Trees
“The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way. Some see nature all ridicule and deformity… and some scarce see nature at all. But to the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself.”―William Blake
Black and White
“To see in color is a delight for the eye, but to see in black and white is a delight for the soul.”–Andri Cauldwell
❤️ #Paris #France #jesuisparis #prayforparis
#Paris #France #parisjetaime #parisperfect #eiffeltowerBooze
“I feel sorry for people who don’t drink. When they wake up in the morning, that’s as good as they’re going to feel all day.”–Dean Martin
#FranceWineTravels #CognacTravels #Cognac #France #visitfrance
#parisperfect #Paris #France #eiffeltower #parisjetaimeWater
“Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world’s great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs. I am haunted by waters.”–Norman Maclean
It's back to Paris I go.
#Amsterdam #Netherlands #vikingcruisesStreet
“There’s something about arriving in new cities, wandering empty streets with no destination. I will never lose the love for the arriving, but I’m born to leave.”―Charlotte Eriksson
Moi
“She was free in her wildness. She was a wanderess, a drop of free water. She belonged to no man and to no city”―Roman Payne
: @artnoshootMadame Eiffel
“I look to the right as I cross the bridge and smile to see the tip of the Eiffel Tower soaring over rooftops in the distance on the other side of the river. I’ve seen it in photographs a thousand times, but seeing it in person for the first time reminds me that I’m really, truly here, thousands of miles away, across an ocean from home.”–Kristin Harmel
#Paris #France #parisjetaime #eiffeltowerThe post My Travel Year in Instagram Photos for 2015 appeared first on Leah Travels.