We'll always have Paris

I've just returned from a wonderful holiday in Paris with the boyfriend - our first proper holiday in many years. We rented an appartment in the Latin Quarter, bought fresh croissants for breakfast daily, climbed the Eiffel Tower, saw the Louvre and generally had all sorts of little adventures. As we had no internet access in Paris I couldn't blog from there. Consequently I have many stories to tell, but I don't know where to start, so I think I'll just drop them into the blog as and when they crystallize into appropriately sized little tales. Watch out for them - a sort of "narrative confetti".

Returning to mundane English life has been surprisingly difficult. On Monday morning I found myself craving a chocolat chaud, but I didn't just want a hot, sweet drink. I wanted to walk into a cafe and sit down at a table, have a waiter wish me good morning, take my order and bring my drink. I wanted to sit and watch interesting things happen outside as I enjoyed my hot chocolate. Somehow waiting in line at my local Starbuck's wouldn't have cut it. By Monday evening I started to wonder what to get for dinner, having been used to the boyfriend popping out to get fresh veggies, cheese and fish most evenings from the market outside our holiday flat, or to us stolling round the corner to a little bistro for a meal. Then I realised that we had to get in the car and drive to Sainsbury's. To add insult to injury, Sainsbury's was full of drunken teenagers because of the school Easter holidays. This didn't improve my mood. Some of them were singing "Vindaloo".

Now it's Friday and things are almost feeling as if I've never been away. The challenge, of course, is to maintain some of the relaxed, cheerful holiday escapism in everyday life. So next time I absent-mindedly say "merci beaucoup" to a cashier in a shop, I'll allow myself a wry smile and a momentary dream of Paris... and start to plan my next trip.