by Anne Swardson | Oct 11, 2022 | Paris, Trains, Travel
First of two parts Paris train stations and I have never gotten along. Years ago, for instance, I was leaving on a ski vacation with my kids, then little, and my parents, then healthy. For some unaccountable reason, I decided we should take the Métro to the gare where... 
by Anne Swardson | Sep 28, 2022 | Uncategorized
We had walked by it many times, and the hidden treasures inside had always intrigued us, especially since they were stored in what looked to be a dilapidated old armory. The building, in fact, was on the site of a fortified wall that had ringed Paris in 1841, under... 
by Anne Swardson | Sep 12, 2022 | France, Paris, Walking, World War II
The joy of my return to Paris after two months away began with a movie on the airplane. “Diplomatie,” a 2014 Franco-German production, is set on the night of August 24, 1944. Nazi General Dietrich von Choltitz, recently arrived as governor of occupied Paris, is under... 
by Anne Swardson | Aug 12, 2022 | France, Paris
Originally published in Something Is Going to Happen, the blog of Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine. My short story, “Uncaged,” will appear in the magazine next week. My husband and I have lived in three neighborhoods since we moved to Paris 26 years ago.... 
by Anne Swardson | Jun 21, 2022 | Switzerland, Travel, Walking
Like many Americans who are long-timers in France, I’m often asked what led me to choose a life overseas. There are many reasons. But the origin story begins on an Alpine peak in Switzerland. I spent my high-school junior year in Leysin, a village in the...