VHR Travel

Paris: Where Every Girl's Dream Becomes Reality ✨🇫🇷
Today I’m sharing MY Dream Day! 💫

🎨 I chose Claude Monet’s House & Gardens in Giverny, and it was the "Best Day EVER! I fell in love with Monet over 25 years ago when I visited my Aunt Debbie KeePel and Uncle Ken Kappel during Thanksgiving. My aunt took us to The Art Institute of Chicago, and discovered Monet! So yea, we bought a poster of “Bridge over a Pond of Water Lilies.” We framed it, and guess what? It’s STILL hanging in my living room! 🖼️💚

🌺 On our last day in France, we spent MOST of the day in Monet’s gardens. Like… so much time that we didn’t even have time (or the desire!) to stand in line to see his house. His garden was his art, his studio, his SOUL. I felt like I was walking through his paintings. I was floating in a dream! 🎨🌿

📸 Thank goodness film is a thing of the past I took over 100 photos! Flowers and gardens are my jam, and being in a hot spring day in Giverny? Pure magic. Sometimes I forgot there were other people on the paths… and sometimes I just wanted to burst out singing to share my joy with everyone! 🎶✨

The gardens were layered, the blooms and greenery worked together perfectly, and the water even kept his bamboo forest on its own little island. 🌊🌳

💆‍♀️ I reminded myself to “Breathe, Relax, Slow Down” This was not a tourist moment. Instead, I felt like Monet’s guest, visiting his living artwork where nature became art and a man found his muse. 🌸🎨

PRO TIP from a Colorado girl who’s been there: "Be prepared" is my motto!
✅ Walk the gardens FIRST → see his house → walk the gardens AGAIN
✅ Bring small, wrapped snacks (protein bars, nuts, candy) + resealable water bottles
✅ Benches are scattered throughout the gardens.
✅ Hire a driver if staying in Paris! Zaki Hajji was AMAZING, he added extra stops & gave great restaurant tips!

🌟Best service EVER! 🌟

Paris: Where Every Girl's Dream Becomes Reality ✨🇫🇷
Today we're featuring Mary Pester's Dream Day! 💫

My sister Mary's pick was the Musée du Louvre 🖼️✨ I honestly had no idea how much she loved art, history, and hearing the stories behind each painting and museum masterpiece. I should have, she's the more studious one!

We toured with The Tour Guy, and our guide, Flor, made the experience unforgettable. Not only was her love of art contagious, but she was also an incredible storyteller! She made the paintings feel alive and added historical background that made them interesting and thought-provoking, not just pretty. 🎨📚

MY HIGHLIGHT? Watching Mary walk through the Louvre! She's so like our father, moving slowly, listening intently, and lingering at each work of art, taking it all in. AND when we reached the Mona Lisa room, she was moved to tears and went back to the rope at least three times just to see her from different angles. 👀🖌️

For Mary Peaster, da Vinci captured an emotion, a moment, and an experience that left her speechless. All she knew was that she wanted to bring it home and spend hours gazing at that one piece of art.

By the end of our tour, and even after exploring a few more rooms, Mary declared she wanted to come back for three weeks and have a guide like Flor lead her through every gallery, sharing the stories and messages behind the art and the times it was created. 💕🏛️

PRO TIP: "Be prepared" when facing a long afternoon, is this Colorado girl's motto! Bring small, wrapped snacks (protein bars, nuts, candy) and small resealable plastic water bottles. Eat away from the artwork (under the Pyramid, in the Tuileries Gardens, or on benches in the long halls). Visit late on Wednesdays and Fridays when the Louvre is open until 9pm as it will be less crowded! ⏰💧🎨