Rhianna Likes // Singing through the streets of Paris

As Lola shared her tales of Berlin last week while I was away, it's only fitting that I tell you all about my love of France & Paris this week!

I have been over to France a fair few times... The first a camping trip with the family in the beautiful Vendee on the Coast when I was 13, with just a day trip to Paris - I fell in love with the city in that instant. A few months later I went to Paris again with school and the enchanting Mont St Micheal (a dreamy little village out on an island off of the coast of Normandy, that spirals up around the hill towards a magnificent monastry)... A few years later I returned to a little village in Brittany to complete work experience in a primary school, teaching some very sweet little ones English. The fourth trip was my last holiday with my Mum and Sister before I moved to London, we spent a very glamorous week in Paris, visiting the sites, drinking champagne and shopping in Prada... for socks.

My favourite visit was not long after that trip. I returned with my friends Alix and Rose to stay with Alix's family - as a true Parisian Alix showed us all the parts of the city you miss as a tourist, a true insight into Paris life, we went to cool bars and clubs, shopped in secret vintage treasure troves, rode on the back of scooters (the scariest and most exhilerating moment of my life in equal measures) - and sang through the streets of Paris at 3am, at the top of our lungs (I'd love to tell you we were singing something incredibly cool, but we were singing Kate Nash's Foundations... "You said I must eat so many lemons...") - we only saw the Eiffel Tower once in the rear window of a taxi on the way to a party... The best way to see Paris.

My latest visit - away with the family again was to the little rural town of Vic-Sur-Aisne, it really was beautiful - there was a certain charm to the way everything seemed delapidated, the buildings around town had broken shutters, peeling paint, signs of aging yet nearly every window was adorned with boxes overspilling with beautiful flowers... It was all very authentic and completely unspoiled by tourism.

We spent the holiday meandering around the nearest towns and cities. Visiting Cathedrals (in Soissons and Reims, I'm a sucker for gothic architecture, stained glass and religious art!) and Castles (Pierrefonds the stunning castle - were BBC's Merlin is filmed, surrounded by the most picturesque town I've ever seen, with old fashioned ice-cream parlours, antique stuffed junk shops and broken down old fairground rides...) - a tour round the Tattinger Champagne cellars (build on the grounds of an abbey destroyed in the french revolution... they keep their 'best vintage' in the ruins of an underground chapel.) - oh and a very breif visit to Paris... I also stocked up on some treats and goodies for Twee Towers (that you might have seenhere)

Just a few holiday snaps for you:

Much love.

Rhi x