PARIS INWARD: Who We Are
Paris Inward: two people, one magical dream...
We’re Johnny & Heidi
Writers, educators, & travelers. We’ve come to understand the importance of self-reflection, the meaning of exploration, and the significance of the journey.
Paris Inward is an invitation to intentional, sensorial, exploration of the self through meaningful experiences at home and abroad—and through a lens connected to the City of Light.
Curated, introspective experiences are designed for you to enter into a world of art, literature, and beauty, and to emerge with a greater sense of the joy of being: immersive living.
Our retreats promote a cultivated, intrinsic, approach to self-reflection and personal achievement, emphasizing the value of writing one’s story through immersive living.
Paris Inward is our passion and we’re always adding new and exciting experiences and themed retreats.
We are so grateful, four years in, for the travelers we’ve met, the connections we’ve made, and the moments that continue to inspire us to lean into living a dream.
Thank you for making Paris Inward part of your world.
With gratitude,
Johnny & Heidi
Heidi Thomas
Bonjour! I am an experienced educator of 25+ years, teaching both French and English. I am also a self-published author, a travel writer, a travel advisor, yogi, and a mom. I have extensive experience leading both student and adult tours. My own international travel obsession really started when I decided to fulfill a dream to study in Florence, Montpellier, and Quebec City, ALL BY MYSELF.
In summer of 2022, I spent my time living in the South of France, truly uncovering what I am made of as a solo woman traveler. I am, perhaps, most passionate about solo women travel. This passion stems from finally coming face to face with my own fear and anxiety through travel. I want to gift you this experience to live out a dream…to show you that Paris, and all travel, IS accessible.
I am one hundred percent invested in using travel, especially to Paris, as a way to go inward. As your guide, my hope is to connect my own personal travel journey with your journey, to share moments of our own DÉRIVE, nurturing a sense of spontaneity that is guided by the landscape and architecture. After all, I’m a small town girl at heart with big international dreams.
Johnny Mabold
I am in LOVE with Paris! As a French teacher and francophile, I feel at home in France—especially in the City of Light. In addition to being an educator, I am an artist, a travel writer, and a poet. In 2022, I published Jostled Soul, a very special collection of poems. My next project is a compilation of introspective prompts for travelers visiting Paris; I have thoughtfully curated a preview of experiential prompts for the Paris Inward retreat!
I am a slow traveler. I like to look around, and to engage all my senses. As your guide, you’ll notice that sometimes I may ask you to see without opening your eyes. To sit and be still. To listen. My hope is that you are as connected to Paris as Paris is connected to you.
I am excited to be your guide and delighted to facilitate a series of workshops that are deeply rooted in meaning. Every year, in my travels to France, I fall more and more in LOVE with Paris—only to discover another layer of myself. As travel writer Ella Maillart wrote, “only the inward journey is real.” It’s time to explore what that means.
Let’s talk about a Paris Inward retreat!
Virtual Office Hours
By Appointment
Email
parisinward@gmail.com