LESSON # 2: NOBODY IS WATCHING. REALLY.

I love fashion yet I don't consider myself fashionable. I keep up with trends, collections and designers, yet I rarely splurge on anywhere else than H&M. But on this trip I vowed I would not look like a tourist, and would make my best attempt to actually blend in with Parisians. Every night I would lay out different outfits to choose from, and on every outing would note other women's appearance with special attention on their clothes, le 'no make-up' look, hairdos and accessories. Every day I would take one final proud glance at my effort on the lift's mirror, before I stepped out and about the streets of Paris...only to realize nobody was actually watching. In fashion capital of the world (and Couture Week!) I was one more fish in a vast sea of aspiring fashionistas. Not that my choices had gone terribly wrong, sure I got a few glances here and there, but everyone was too busy just minding their own business, I wasn't doing this for me, I was doing this for people I didn't even know, and frankly, I was just trying too hard. 

Realizing this however did not upset me. Bizarrely, it gave me a strange sense of liberation. Nobody was watching. I could literally have hit the streets of Paris in my PJ's and no one would've probably noticed!

This feeling quickly spread from the fashion aspect to my general behaviour in private and public. On days I was the happiest, I almost felt like skipping instead of walking, until one day I did, (followed by my astonished and more than encouraging four-year old) Guess what? Nobody stared. If I walked into a store and one of my fave tunes was playing, I would sing along to it very loudly I must admit, and guess what? Nobody cared! I would even practice my more than rusty french, asked for directions, ordered at cafes and restos, thanked people, and even held brief conversations here and there, and guess what? nobody stopped me mid-sentence to correct me, if anything they praised my accent and appreciated my effort.

I think you get it by now. It is bizarrely liberating to, for once, do what you feel like doing, walk, dance, sing, jump, skip, without thinking everyone, or anyone for that matter, is watching or actually cares!

I recommend you try it for once and I promise you'll feel relieved, happier, younger, energized, revitalized ... you'll feel free!