If someone had told me that I would one day collaborate with the fantastic teams at Vélib, Paris’s pioneering bike share program that launched in 2007, I would have laughed incredulously. Seven years later, I not only consider myself a rather avid Vélib cyclist but a part of their expanding presence.
While their first book offered detailed itineraries for discovering the city entirely by bike (more on that here), the second was meant to be a mini guide for local Parisians. The message is simple: disconnect from your digital appendages, think beyond the confines of your familiar quartier and experience the breadth of options the city has to offer, in everything from dining to nightlife and well-being. And in a surprising twist of events, I was asked to write the introduction to the new book – ‘Paris a l’air libre’ – which is composed of 50 recommendations and favorite addresses (I helped on this too!).
Having lived in Paris for several years before ever being able to fathom documenting my experiences online and relying entirely on my husband’s sense of the city, I know that the quickest way to feel more grounded and less lost in a new place is to immerse…
