travel – Julia's Journey in Paris

A Taste of Culinary Innovation in France: Sirha Lyon 2025

This past week I had the chance to travel to Lyon, France, for an exciting 5 days at a food service and hospitality trade show called Sirha Lyon. Alongside three of my colleagues, we spent our days running a 65m2 booth that was brought to life by 5 of our organization’s partners.

Like any trade show, the 5 days were certainly exhausting – the loud expo halls, constant conversations, and being on your feet all day definitely contributed to that. Still, I was having the time of my life! As Communications Coordinator at Worldchefs, I was able to interact with our partners, tasked with creating content that would appeal to both the partners themselves and our audience of chefs and hospitality professionals.

Worldchefs is a federation of chef associations around the world, kind of like the UN of chefs 🙂 We have educational initiatives, networking events, and competitions (that we host or endorse) with the aim of elevating the standards of global cuisines.

Responsible for Worldchefs’ communications channels, which includes social media platforms, the challenge always remains that it is hard to showcase food and chefs from around the world while spending each day in our office in central Paris. You have to interact at distance with chefs in the Americas, Africa, Asia, Europe, etc.- to hopefully receive content to edit or share. Going to Lyon where I’d have 5 days of access to chefs and industry experts, I knew my mission – film and photograph everything. I prepared every creative idea I could think of before going to ensure that I could maximize this opportunity to get content.

Sirha Lyon was the largest tradeshow I’ve ever been to – it had 7 halls that welcomed over 257,000 people over the course of the event. In each hall, there was a different theme, such as kitchen equipment, confectionery, wine & spirits, and more. We were located in the food hall, meaning our stand was frequented by lots of hungry visitors.

Sirha Lyon is also the home of Bocuse d’Or, one of the most prestigious culinary competitions in the world. I was luckily able to receive a media pass for the entirety of Sirha Lyon, meaning I could get up close at the competitions, in the private media section. This was super helpful because I could interview competitors, speak with judges and coaches, and have ‘exclusive’ content that ended up doing really well on social media!

Despite the huge number of attendees at Sirha Lyon, I found that almost 100% of the conversations were in French, as the majority of attendees seemed to come from some part of France. This was great, because I was able to practice French for several days! Working for an international organization, sometimes there are days where I don’t need to use French, so it was nice to have a bit of practice.

Overall, my first work trip in France was a great success – I met many new people, had a great time working on the communications, and even got to explore a bit of Lyon! I’m already looking forward to the next time I’ll get to travel for work.

Stay tuned for next week’s article 🙂

25 things to do in Paris

Recently, a few people have reached out to ask for my recommendations when they are coming to visit Paris. With 2.5 years under my belt of living here, I definitely have some favorite things to see and do.

In honor of turning 25 yesterday, here are my top 25 recommended things to do during your visit to Paris:

During All Seasons –

Atelier des Lumières: This is one of my favorite ‘museums’ in Paris. They have various artists in different seasons that will be displayed in this big room on the walls, floors and ceilings. It’s encaptivating, with music playing around you and the art filling the space and moving across the room. You can easily sit there for an hour or two, mesmerized by the work or even people-watching.
Le Louvre at night: I recently went to the Louvre on a Friday evening (18h30) and it was so much fun. The Louvre is much quieter at night and there were even moments where I was alone in different rooms! It was so cool and made exploring this endless museum all the more exciting.
Speakeasies: Paris has so many hidden bars and speakeasies. While I certainly have not been to them all, two of my favorites are Lavomatic and Candelaria.
Galeries Lafayette rooftop: This is an expensive department store in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. While shopping here is not on my list of affordable activities, going on the rooftop is free and certainly worth the visit!
Brocantes: Paris has so many brocantes, or flea markets, all over the city. Even when not buying or searching for something specific, just browsing through the markets can be such a fun way to spend a few hours while here. The application vide-greniers has a list of upcoming markets or a simple Google search would provide options, too.
Thrift shopping: Especially for younger people, thrift shopping is a great way to find new, affordable clothing items. Le Marais district in Paris has several thrift stores, and sometimes you’ll even find designer pieces!
Luxembourg Gardens / Rue Mouffetard: In the 5th arrondissement you can explore the Luxembourg Gardens (jardin du luxembourg) and even picnic in nice weather. About a 10-minute walk away is one of my favorite streets in Paris, rue Mouffetard, a cute street on a hill filled with places to eat crêpes.
Performances: I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention all of the opportunities there are to see live performances in Paris. The art scene is so vibrant in Paris between the more well-known performances like the Opera to all of the small theatres and venues you can attend for the performing arts. A definite must-do!
Sacre Coeur: This basilica sits on top of the Montmartre hill in Paris in the 18th arrondissement. Climbing up to the top of the hill, not only does Sacre Coeur offer one of the best panoramic views of Paris, but it’s another beautiful church to see on the inside. For 7 euros, you can also climb around 300 steps inside Sacre Coeur to see the view from the very top!
Bateaux Mouches: While in Paris, I would absolutely recommend taking a boat tour of the city, especially at night. This is certainly one of the most touristy things to do in Paris, but worth it to have a different perspective and views from the water.
Eiffel Tower twinkling: The tower twinkles each night starting when it gets dark – every hour on the hour until five past (ex. 21h00 to 21h05)! I believe it stops around midnight. I’ll never get sick of this!
Cabaret in Pigalle: The Pigalle area in the 18th arrondissement of Paris is known for cabarets, particularly the Moulin Rouge. It certainly is a pricey activity, but it’s a show people come to see from across the globe and would definitely make for a fun night out.
Notre Dame: I am so excited to do this. Notre Dame caught fire in 2019 and has just reopened this past week to the public. Tickets are hard to come by, but I’m hoping in the early new year I’ll be able to go!

Seasonal activities-

Summer:

Picnic on champ de mars (behind the Eiffel Tower)
Wine on les quais de la Seine (the platforms along the Seine river)
Musée Rodin – a beautiful museum with a park outside
Parc Monceau – one of the most beautiful parks in Paris!
Parc des Buttes Chaumont – another huge park to visit or picnic at
People watching on a terrace along Canal Saint-Martin – join the Parisian locals along Canal Saint-Martin in spring and summer
Versailles – I’d recommend visiting the Palace of Versailles in the spring or summer because in addition the palace itself, the gardens are so beautiful!
Paris Longchamp – Each spring, the Paris Hippodrome has horse races, on the course called Paris Longchamp. People go to place bets on the horses, and you can find 15 euro tickets to go and watch.

Winter:

Galeries Lafayette glasswalk – Every winter holiday season, the Galeries Lafayette puts up a giant Christmas tree, with a glasswalk out to the tree on an upper level. If you sign up a few days in advance or wait in line on the day of, you can see the tree up close (as long as your not scared of heights!)
Refuge des Fondus or make your own – When in France you have to try cheese, and in the winter having fondu is one of my favorite activities to do with friends. My favorite restaurant for this is Le Refuge des Fondus, a place in the 18th arrondissement. Otherwise, when my mom came to visit we made fondu from home which was also not too hard and very fun.
Lumières en Seine – Just outside of Paris in Saint-Cloud, there is a Christmas light walk that really gets you in the holiday spirit. A great place for photos, I really have enjoyed doing this in the past.
Tuileries Fête Foraine – In the Tuileries garden (jardin des tuileries) there is a festival that happens from November to January each year, filled with rides, food and shopping vendors. While some people avoid this festival due to the crowds, if you find the right times to go it can be a great activity. It’s a great place to try French classic winter foods (raclette, tartiflette, croziflette, aligot, etc.) and of course, the hot wine (vin chaud).

Those are my top 25 – If you’re coming to Paris, let me know if you do any of these recommendations!

Until next week 🙂

Celebrating Love this October: A French Bachelorette Party & Wedding

Summer 2016 feels like just yesterday – the distinct memory of sitting on the beach with my mom wishing I had a French friend to talk with, to practice my (very poor at the time) French language abilities.

Not even a month later, starting junior year of high school, I found myself in study hall each day wondering why this girl was always looking at my French homework. We didn’t speak, but to my luck, this seemingly strange girl joined Dance Club, where I learned that she was French.

We quickly became friends, and from that point on, Marie and I spent every day in study hall together, helping each other with language homework, taking way too many selfies, and exchanging about our cultures. It was one of my favorite periods of the day.

Little did I know, 8 years later, I’d be living in France and going to Marie’s Bachelorette Party and wedding…

EVJF: The French Bachelorette Party

In France, the Bachelorette party is called an EVJF, enterrement de vie de jeune fille, or the ‘burial of the life of the young girl’. A little morbid, no?

What I’ve been told is that Bachelorette parties in general are not super common in France, but that due to the power of social media and the ‘Americanization’ of the concept in France, they are becoming increasingly popular.

Marie had a Bachelorette exactly like I’d imagine they are in the US. Seven other girls and myself traveled to a town called La Baule to surprise Marie with a weekend filled with activities.

During the 2 days there, we went horseback riding on the beach, tried pole dancing, went to the spa, and ate a lot of good food. It was truly such a fun weekend and it was nice to see all the girls 2 weeks before the wedding. Full French immersion, too!

Wedding Weekend

First, let me just say, since this wedding I’m now convinced that when I get married one day it will be French style.

This was my first wedding, and therefore first French wedding, and wow- it was so fun. My day started at 6:30 am with the unlucky spot of first to have my hair done. By 7:30 am I was ready for the wedding, but the festivities didn’t really begin until 1 pm. Around 1:30 the girls who attended the Bachelorette went to Marie’s room for the dress reveal, and of course we all started crying. She was beautiful!

We had the church at 2-4 pm and then what they call vin d’honneur, ‘wine of honor’, which is a reception time between the church and the wedding dinner. Marie really had the best taste, as the food was mini desserts for the first few hours – my dream! Servers would approach with eclairs and cakes, and then as soon as you look the other direction another server was there to fill your other hand. And it was only 6 pm!

After that, we had a cocktail time, with drinks and salty foods. This lasted from 6:45-8:45 pm, when we eventually sat for dinner. Marie’s family are hospitality professionals, with a Michelin-starred restaurant, so you can only imagine how elevated the food selection was throughout the entire day. Dinner was no different. We had steak and potatoes, with their selected wine pairing and a dessert buffet to conclude the meal around midnight. The dancing began a little after midnight… shocking for my American mind.

It was so special seeing the opening of the ‘bal du mariage’ (dancing), where Marie and her now husband Clément danced to choreography I had done for them. They looked amazing!

Then we danced the night (or morning?) away. It was truly an unforgettable weekend celebrating love!

Congrats Marie & Clément!