Paris Writing Adventures I focuses introduces you to a writer's Paris, exploring neighborhoods that inspired the Lost Generation and France's most famous authors and artists. You will use what you see and experience, along with innovative exercises from Leilani, to open the floodgates of your own creativity. Paris Writing Adventures II is for writers who also want to explore the artistic side of Paris in more depth and use visual art and other experiences in Paris to prompt writing in ekphrastic poems, stories, travel pieces, or memoirs. Each day begins with a guided tour to one of Paris' amazing museums, where we will focus on no more than five special pieces in the collection. Then, you'll have time to continue your exploration of the museum or gallery on your own and to use one of the focus pieces--or something else that grabs you--as inspiration for a piece of writing. In the evening, we'll join up for a "salon style" workshop in one of Leilani's favorite Marais apartments.
This tour is foodie friendly! Parisian cuisine will be highlighted in your included lunches and dinners. From neighborhood bistros where you can imagine Inspector Maigret, having an evening Calvados to notable, Michelin-starred restaurants where the atmosphere is glamorous and the service impeccable! You can sample the subtle flavors of roasted French chicken, enjoy a hearty and tasty beef bourguignon and tasty, or opt for something more adventurous like escargot! Most lunches and dinners, along with table wines, are included in your fee. For breakfast, you may wish to venture to a cafe near your hotel or apartment or stay in and enjoy the hotel breakfast buffet which at minimum usually provides excellent coffee, tea, fresh orange juice, and fabulous Paris pastries. Many also include a selection of meats and cheeses, boiled eggs, and fruit. For a special breakfast treat on your free day, you may wish to allow some extra morning time to wonder to L'Hotel at 13 rue des Beaux-Arts in the 6th, the now-luxurious hotel in which Oscar Wilde died and Jim Morrison also stayed. It's ample, fancy buffet is delicious. And, as Wilde did, bring your diary so you have "something interesting to read."
Taste the Paris jazz scene, a cultural and artistic essential in Paris, often symbolizing freedom, sophistication, and cosmopolitanism. Since the 1920s, when American jazz musicians like Sidney Bechet and American expatriates found a welcoming audience in the city, jazz became intertwined with Parisian nightlife, especially in areas like Saint-Germain-des-Prés where you'll still find grooving musicians and singers doing their thing most nights of the week. And, as Americans we can be proud of the role played in the origins of jazz in Paris. In WWI, African-American soldiers, then stationed in France with the US army, came together to play ragtime and jazz in the city's music halls. Facing segregation at home, performers such as Ella Fitzgerald, Josephine Baker, and Louis Armstrong found the music venues of Paris more welcoming. Soon, the French musical masters were hooked and Parisian and American jazz became intertwined. What is not included in your PWA Tour: airfare, hotel, incidentals.