Christmas markets, castle tours, and 25 strangers who became my people — the trip that finally answered whether I was too old, too anxious, or just right for this.

Between packing cubes and panic spirals, getting ready for my first-ever group tour meant facing a fear I'd been avoiding my whole adult life — with a little help from pumpkin spice lattes and my therapist.

A lunch-break Google search, one heartbreaking price tag, and a flight booked on pure credit card points and gut instinct — how one impulsive search turned into a plan for a French Christmas.