We're planning on traveling to Europe next year and have been interested in several countries, including England, Ireland, France, and Spain. We decided to look to Rick Steves for good advice, information, and tips on European travel since he seems to be a great expert. He's actually a local guy from Edmonds who has been traveling to Europe the past 30 years and written several books about each country and even has his own TV show about European travel.

This past weekend we went to one of his free travel classes about Paris and the Heart of France at the Edmonds Theater near his travel office. He wasn't actually there, but the guy who presented seemed to be just as knowledgeable. This guy lives in France for 3 months out of the year and has been to multiple places in France with Rick.

The presentation was fast paced and filled with lots of good information and beautiful photos. It lasted two hours and could have lasted several more. He talked in great detail about how he would take a 5 day trip to Paris, and then add a day or two each for Normandy, the Loire Valley, and Burgundy to name a few areas. He also talked in general about traveling to France, money saving tips, and how to get around on the excellent public transit system they have.

Going to this class definitely made us want to visit France even more than before. I'm looking forward to going to another class next weekend about Spain.