For more than five decades, Cas Wonsowicz has explored the world not simply as a tourist, but as a curious observer of cultures, people, and the unexpected moments that make travel unforgettable. Throughout his careers with Unisys, Alcoa, and Intel Corporation, he transformed business travel into a lifelong education, collecting stories, experiences, and memorable adventures along the way.
In retirement, Cas deepened his passion for travel by studying art history, adding new cultural insight to the places he visits. Alongside his wife, Adry, he continues to embrace every journey with curiosity, humor, and an appreciation for the unexpected. Together, they have discovered that the most meaningful experiences often come from unplanned detours, shared laughter, and spontaneous moments.
Cas writes not to check destinations off a list, but to celebrate the people, cultures, and experiences that make every journey unique. He believes the best travel stories are rarely the ones that go exactly as planned as they are the ones born from surprises, chance encounters, and adventures that become cherished memories.
This retirement career change, from corporate travel executive to art history student and Paris travel memoirist, is what shapes the distinct voice behind Learning Paris, a perspective few other Paris memoir writers can offer.
Some corners of Paris left a deeper mark than others. These are the places that shaped Learning Paris, and the ones Cas returns to, in memory and in person, again and again.
Home to centuries of art and one of the most recognizable landmarks in the world, the Louvre remains a place Cas could wander for days without exhausting its stories.
Housed in a former railway station, the Musée d'Orsay offers an intimate encounter with Impressionist masterpieces, and one of the settings explored in Learning Paris.
A landmark of resilience as much as architecture, Notre-Dame's ongoing restoration adds a new chapter to its centuries-old story.
The river that gives Learning Paris: Discoveries Along the Seine its name, and the thread that ties the book's reflections together.
The historic heart of Left Bank Paris, where cafés and bookshops still hold the spirit of the writers and artists who once filled them.
No visit to Paris is complete without it, and no Paris travel memoir would be either. Cas revisits it not as a checkbox, but as a symbol of the city's enduring pull.
