Wow. I feel like there really can be no introduction to a trip so epic. Where did this whole crazy thing start? It might have been when I started taking French at Montessori, or when I started taking French at Laurel, or even in the Galapagos Islands, where we developed a taste for adventure vacations.



There was really no one moment when we decided to go to France, I think. I just remember all these books about walking in France coming in the mail, and Dad and I starting to talk about a hiking trip, and then one day it was just decided: we were going hiking in France. More books came, more maps arrived, and it was decided we were backpacking, carrying everything we needed for two weeks on our backs. It was pretty much a given that there would be no reservations anywhere: that's just how my Dad works, most of the time. Hey, whatever. It's an adventure, right?