Paris is still beautiful in the November rain

After more than two years of not leaving the country, I finally went away for the weekend and hopped on a flight to Paris.

Even though I was so excited for the mini-break, I was also naturally a little bit nervous and felt as if I had never travelled before.

The packing took about three evenings to finish, and I was convinced I’d forget something and I was in a panic over how the airport would be! Cork airport was absolutely fine. We sailed through.

The airport in Paris was another story altogether and we were lucky we had given ourselves three hours to get through it.

We just about made the flight back. I must say though it all felt very safe with everybody wearing their masks at both airports, on the flights and everywhere we went in Paris including the Metro.

Now I was in absolute tizzy packing the week beforehand because at the start of the week the forecast looked bright and cold which I can totally handle but it in fact turned out to be cold and wet! The worst kind of weather and impossible to pack for especially if you are me and do not possess a practical coat.

You can be damn sure I was cursing the large amount of faux fur and wool coats in my wardrobe when what I really needed was a cosy water resistant puffa coat with a hood.

In the end I ended up bringing my beige wool coat with contrasting green sleeves, a selection of hats and my trusty brolly which is an absolute pain to carry around and I usually leave it in every restaurant I visit.

My current umbrella is leopard print which I obviously love so I’ve been making every effort to not lose this one. The trip has also made me determined to buy a sensible coat once and for all and be done with it.

I never do too much shopping when I go on holiday but I can never resist popping into a vintage shop and Paris is an amazing spot for vintage. I will say though that it does err on the smaller side which narrowed down my options quite a bit but I did make it home with a top and a dress and a cool leopard print rain hat which I wore for the rest of the trip and looked every bit the tourist while wearing it! If I couldn’t have the practical coat then I at least had the practical rain hat.

We also had a little peek in a few of the designer shops because when in Paris and all that. I have to say the Christmas decorations on the outside of these shops were absolutely breath taking and if you find yourself in Paris please go to Louis Vuitton and just stand outside and marvel at what they’ve done.

I also may have treated myself to a little something in Balmain with the help of some Christmas money from my parents. It’s something I had my eye on for a while and I definitely think it’s a good investment that I’ll get a lot of wear out of. It’s a canvas crossbody tote with beautiful tan leather details and is the perfect size for carrying around every day so I’m looking forward to wearing that.

Needless to say the weekend also included drinking champagne and eating copious amounts of delicious food but I’m sure you already knew that would be a given! I definitely feel the end of November is a lovely time to go away and now I’m back and ready to get on with working round the clock coming up to Christmas!