i’m gonna snapchat my way through paris

Friends, my love and I are headed to Paris this weekend.

This is h u g e. It has been a top dream of mine for as long as I can remember. It’s been THE European city that I’ve wanted to visit since I was a little girl. I studied French in high school (can’t speak one freaking lick of it now, but, oh well), my mom taught French, and I have always known that I would love the culture, the art, the wine, the literature, the romance, everything about the city. I felt drawn to the city, wanting to be like all of the writers and artists who sat in cafés, sipping coffee and drinking bottles of red wine. Now’s my chance!

After having to cancel one trip four years ago, now, finally, my love and I are headed to the city of lights for a long weekend. So, it’s even more extra special now. As if it could get any more special.

I am so excited that I don’t even believe that it is real.

We’ve got a cozy little Airbnb reserved right in the middle of the 5th Arrondissement (Latin Quarter) and our plan is to wander our way through the city, staying as close to the local experience as we can get. None of that touristy shit (I mean, I am going to go see the Eiffel tower, of course!) the whole time. Just exploring, adventuring, and waiting for the unexpected, little hole-in-the-wall places to pop up. Open to experiencing everything.

So, I thought that, since I haven’t been to Paris, and I haven’t traveled in the past year and a half, I’d celebrate this momentous trip by also having my Snapchat premiere!

Ok, I’ve been on Snapchat for a couple of weeks, but this is gonna be my chance to up my game and really get into it. And to give you a chance to follow me all over the city, on my adventures (and there will be adventures, there are always adventures + stories + mishaps to share) with my love (and my cousin, who lives there!).

So, yeah. I joined Snapchat. And I’m taking it on the road with me. And I’m taking all of you along with me – if you wanna go!

About three weeks ago, it was time. Time to join the millions of others who had come to know + love this little ghost that represents the phenomenon that is Snapchat. To me, the Snapchat ghost and everything Snapchat seemed silly. And to be honest, I thought it was a childish phase.

But, i was so very wrong. Once setting up my account and then stumbling across some friends and some bloggers/creatives who are using Snapchat for their business, I was hooked.

Of course that was not before I had to work through many, many prejudices + preconceived ideas of the whole Snapchat fever. I had to work my way through a whole list of pros +cons. And, you know what?! I found a pro for every pre-determined con that I had!

So, let me just share with you a little of my conversion process:

Snapchat photos + videos disappear! Hence the ghost as a logo.

Con: Now, why would i want an app that documents and then deletes what i’ve documented?! This made no sense to me. I photograph and record things so I can save them.

Pro: However… in a crazy world that stores everything everywhere, especially in “the cloud”, Snapchat gives us a chance to literally live in the present moment. It is like mindful social media in a sense. A testament to living life as it happens and then moving on, moving forward. This is an idea I can get behind. And it’s not easy for me to not have my photos or videos after I send them out there. But, there is something totally freeing about it too. It’s simple and free-spirited.

Snapchat is not pretty.

Con: Well, it’s not. It’s raw and gritty and un-photoshopped or VSCO-cammed. It moment after moment after moment of capturing life as it happens. No editing, no frilly stuff. Except for emojis and symbols and cutsie things.

Pro: It’s not pretty. It’s not edited. It is real life. It doesn’t feel as professional as Instagram now feels. There is no pressure to set up a flatly (and I looooove me some flatlays) or line everything just up right, creating a seamlessly beautiful Instagram grid. Snapchat is street art and graffiti-like, and as I said before, raw + gritty. Instagram is lovely and wonderful, but it is a place to create art. Snapchat is living art. Hell, I snapped myself in my pjs, drinking coffee, blogging this morning. No filters or any shit to make me look better. Just the real me, doing what I do. And, folks, it’s kinda freeing.

Snapchat is just the latest things for teens.

Con: It’s just silly and fluffy and filled with cute little words and pictures and emojis. Teenagers are snapping with each other constantly. Stupid little pictures of nothing important. And it’s just one more thing to get teens all sucked into their phone. Why would I, an adult, need one more thing to make me even the tiniest bit more addicted to my phone?! I’ve got problems enough. So, there’s no need for me to engage in this teen fad.

Pro: Uhhh… it’s not just for teens. Oops. After I set up my account about 3 weeks ago, honestly because of FOMO (fear of missing out), I happened to stumble across some bloggers and creatives (=adults) who use Snapchat for their creative business/travelogue/coaching/work. I was blown away + inspired. Now, I’m not there yet, as I am just figuring out how to add things and just adding tons of random shit. But, at some point, I’d like to shift to include Life Coaching tips and other inspirational fun things. I also am discovering little by little that I’ve got friends that are also on Snapchat, so I get to see even more of their life. And that’s always a win.

What’s the point?

Con: There is no point.

Pro: It’s just freaking in the moment fun.

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So, friends… I’m off. Off to Snapchat my way through Paris! You can follow me on Snapchat by searching for my name –> liz.belovelive or by simply using your camera phone to take a photo of the Snapcode below. Sounds magical, doesn’t it? It works, though! It’ll save save the photo to your camera roll and then you can upload it in the Snapchat app. And, then, provided I figure it all out and have wifi and such, you can go along with me to Paris for the weekend!

If you don’t have Snapchat, or don’t want it, then, of course, I will posting to Instagram during my trip. And, when I get back… oh, there will be Paris posts. Guaranteed.

Wishing you a fabulous weekend, lovely folks.

xoxo. liz.

this is not a sponsored post (but i wish it was. hehe).