A Long-Form Reflection
Travel has a way of rearranging the furniture of one’s inner life. You leave home with a familiar layout in mind — responsibilities, routines, the rhythms of your neighbourhood — and somewhere between takeoff and landing, the arrangement shifts. Not dramatically, but enough that when you return, nothing sits quite where you left it.
I’ve just returned from two exceptional weeks in London, Amsterdam, and Paris — three cities that don’t merely occupy place on a map, but each in their own way, challenge, expand, and inspire what a city should be. I’ve wandered their streets many times before, yet this trip felt different. Deeper. More revealing. A gentle nudge that perhaps my life, too, could use a rearranging.
What follows isn’t a travelogue so much as a meditation — on architecture, on urbanity, on the pleasure of wandering, on the delight of human-scale living, and on that familiar tug that tells you where you truly feel at home.
London: The Adopted Home
London always feels less like a destination and more like a reconnection — the city equivalent of sinking into a favourite chair.
My days began the way they always do there: a simple breakfast, coffee in hand, and a check-in with emails before heading out for hours of walking. I revisited streets I’ve loved for decades and unearthed new ones, guided by the endlessly witty brilliance of Joolz’s walking guides. Truly, it’s London at its best — the city narrated with irreverence, intelligence, and unusual depth.
Architecture was my constant companion: the Georgian calm of Belgravia, the glassy swagger of the City, the impeccable proportions of Kensington, the curated stillness of the Serpentine Galleries, the polished brutality of new commercial towers. It’s a city that understands the long arc of urban history and doesn’t mind stitching eras together, unapologetically.
And the walking — endless. My calves protested, but my mind rejoiced.
Evenings dissolved into familiar rituals: cooking dinner in the flat, editing photos, wandering neighbourhood streets at night, and letting London’s particular hum settle into my bones.
London remains, unequivocally, an adopted home. But this time, it wasn’t just comfort I felt — it was an even closer possibility.
This isn’t the first time we’ve travelled on the blog. If you love seeing new and inspiring places, check out these posts next:
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Amsterdam: A City in Human Scale
From the moment I stepped off the Eurostar and into the compact bustle of Amsterdam Centraal, everything shifted. The city is a study in manageable density — a place where streets tighten, bridges leap across canals with elegance, and bicycles outnumber humans (or seem to).
My flat, reached only after conquering a set of Dutch stairs just shy of vertical, was a revelation. Tastefully lived-in, contemporary and full of light, overlooking a canal, and warm in the most human way. That set the tone for the entire stay.
Amsterdam rewards wanderers. I spent my days exploring design shops with pieces so inventive they made my architect’s heart skip a beat — sculptural lighting, experimental furniture, and oddities you’d never find in North America. I paused for lunch beside canals, watching boats glide silently beneath my feet. I detoured through the Nine Streets, crossed bridges that felt like film sets, and marvelled at the city’s quiet eccentricity.
One afternoon, while perched on a bench by the water, editing photos, I realised something: this city prioritises people in a way Toronto rarely does. Bicycles have a rightful dominance. Sidewalks are sacred. Streets bend to humanity. Cars are nearly an afterthought. And life feels richer for it.
Evenings were a blend of cooking, outings with Dutch beer experiments, and research into Amsterdam real estate (which, alarmingly, is not entirely out of reach). A dangerous discovery.
The city has its grit, its imperfections, its decidedly unslick corners — but that’s precisely what makes it captivating. Amsterdam feels alive, honest, and beautifully uncurated.
In Toronto, finding homes with character and grit often means looking to older homes. Read these posts next to learn about unique homes in Toronto:
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Paris: Familiar Rituals and a Gentle Landing
Arriving in Paris after 10 days of intense walking felt like stepping into a warm bath — comforting, stylish, and deeply familiar. Staying with my favourite cousin always anchors my time there, giving it the grounding of home rather than the transience of tourism.
Our days filled up quickly:
• the opulent Art Deco exhibition at MAD,
• the stunning rebirth of the Fondation Cartier,
• leisurely meals at Parisian institutions,
• long, winding conversations with Parisian family over excellent wine,
• and spare moments here and there, dawdling while life swirled around us.
Paris, ever the contradiction, is a city both impossibly glamorous and refreshingly ordinary. One moment you’re immersed in museum-level aesthetic perfection; the next you’re watching families on scooters, friends sharing cigarettes, or someone carrying an entire baguette home like a baton of civic pride.
My days there weren’t about new discoveries so much as reaffirmations: of what urban beauty looks like, of how density can support culture and connection, of how good it feels to be surrounded by architecture that honours history without embalming it.
And amidst all the wandering, I could feel something settling more clearly inside me: this is the scale and pace of living that feels right.
Living a Life of Luxury means curating quality in the things that matter most to you. Keep reading these posts next for ideas on how to create your own Life of Luxury:
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Returning Home: And Knowing What Comes Next
My return to Toronto was swift, efficient — almost jarringly so. I stepped through my front door with jet lag tugging at me, the familiar creak of home greeting me as Cooper padded over in excitement.
But alongside the comfort came something else: clarity.
Toronto is my base, my family’s centre of gravity, my practical reality. But Europe — its cities, its urban form, its cultural priorities, its daily pleasures — is where my heart sits more naturally now. Where my mind feels stimulated and grounded in equal measure. Where I can walk for hours and feel profoundly connected to the fabric of life around me.
This trip wasn’t an escape. It was a calibration.
And now, more than ever, I know what I want: A life that is increasingly lived on European terms — human scale, rich culture, dense beauty, and daily inspiration woven into the urban landscape.
I don’t yet know the timeline. But I feel the pull.
And perhaps that is the real journey that began during these two weeks.
As I return to life and work here in Toronto, I’m reminded that this longing for human-scale living isn’t only personal — many of my clients feel it too. Increasingly, people are seeking homes that support a way of life rather than simply accommodate it: walkable neighbourhoods, thoughtful architecture, access to culture, connection, and daily inspiration.
Find inspiration close to home with these posts next:
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With decades of experience as both architect and broker, I help clients interpret these quieter priorities and translate them into real choices — finding homes in Toronto that echo the sensibilities of European living, where scale, rhythm, and lifestyle work together. The good news is that this kind of living is becoming not only possible here, but quietly embraced. And I know how to help you find it.
If you’re ready to rethink the architecture of your own life — and the home it deserves — I’d be delighted to explore that journey with you.
Contact me today by filling out the form on this page, calling me at 416-824-1242, or emailing me directly at robert@lifeofluxury.com.
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