Chapter 5 - How it all began...

Paris. The first time I came here was for a wedding. This is why I have come again. A lot has happened in between...

My parents are francophiles, and their enthusiasm for this country, language, and culture influenced every aspect of my childhood. My summers were spent on the Cote d'Azur, my weekends in French classes, and vacations otherwise with the French club of Rockland and Bergen County.

When it came time for college I had only one place in mind: The American University of Paris. I spent four long and event-filled years there, from Bush's inauguration to September 11, from the war on Al-Qaeda to the war in Iraq, I watched this all from French shores.

I left Paris, and then I returned, and then I left again only to return shortly thereafter. I can never stay far from this city for too long.

This last time that I have come is the time I'm trying to make a change in my life. I've chosen this place because it's near to and far from the things that are important to me. It helps move things into perspective whilst also bringing them closer into my reach.

I have no reason to love this city as much as I do. It has brought as much heartache as smiles, tears as laughs, good dreams and nightmares.

But that does not change the fact that I keep coming back for more.