02 Sunday Oct 2016
Posted in Paris Fashion Week, Paris Wanderings
Tags
The dream job . . .
And how I ended the day. The start of Nuit Blanche, an event of various manifestations (performance art) taking place all over the city and lasting until 7 am.
06 Wednesday Apr 2016
Posted in Paris guide, Paris museums, Paris travel, Paris Wanderings
AT THE POMPIDOU
From 6 April to 1 August 2016, the Pompidou Centre presents an exhibition on one of the 20th century’s leading artists: Paul Klee. This retrospective, featuring 250 works by this major figure of modern art, looks at the career of the artist through the prism of irony. Originating in early German Romanticism, this satire and detachment enabled Paul Klee to be creative and paint whilet at the same time denouncing the policies and ideologies of his time.
The exhibition is organized around seven themes: ‘Les débuts satiriques (Satirical Beginnings)’, ‘Klee et le cubisme (Klee and Cubism)’, ‘Théâtre mécanique (Mechanical Theatre)’, ‘Klee et les constructivismes (Klee and Constructivism)’, ‘Regards en arrière (Looking Back)’, ‘Klee et Picasso (Klee and Picasso)’ and ‘Années de crise (Crisis Years)’.
11am – 9pm. Closed on Tuesday
€14. Reduced rate: €11. Free for children aged under 18.
Metro: Rambuteau (line 11), Hôtel de Ville (lines 1 and 11), Châtelet (lines 1, 4, 7, 11 and 14)
RER: Châtelet-les Halles (lines A, B and D)
Bus: 29, 38, 47, 75
AT QUAI BRANLY MUSEUM
PERSONA: Now until November 13, 2016
At a time of major debates on transhumanism and artificial intelligence, the Quai Branly Museum presents an exhibition for understanding the mechanisms by which the cultures of the ancient to the most contemporary, “inject person” in objects.
The shaman who summons the spirits through a statuette taking the features of the gods, the child who has a passion for his security blanket, all those who converse with the pet, mutual friend of everyday life … everywhere, the boundaries between the human and all that surrounds it seem more and more permeable, raising broader questions of cohabitation between man, object, animal and machine.
Musée du quai Branly
37 Quai Branly
75007 Paris 7
Closed on Monday
Tuesday, Wednesday, Sunday: 11:00 am-07:00 pm
Thursday, Friday, Saturday: 11:00 am-09:00 pm
05 Wednesday Aug 2015
Posted in Paris Wanderings
If you’re tired of impersonal hotel chains or super deluxe swank with “over the moon” prices, look no further. Here are a few that have been renovated by architects and stylists with color, style and contemporary decor. Vitality, glamor, customer satisfaction and reasonable rates are the key elements of these properties.
Hotel Fabric
31 rue de la Folie Mericourt, 75011 http://www.hotelfabric.com
Occupying 4 floors, the hotel boasts 33 ultra-comfortable rooms in a resolutely contemporary setting drawing decorative and ornamental inspiration from the industrial past of the Oberkampf district. The brick walls, plentiful space, unconcealed supporting structures and immense windows admit plenty of natural light. On a very quiet and quaint street with shops and restaurants very close no matter which way you turn. Honor system happy hour. Starts at $240.
Hotel Regent’s Garden
6 Rue Pierre Demours, 75017 Paris, www.hotel-regents-paris.com/en/
The former private mansion that is now the Hotel Regent’s Garden was a gift from Emperor Napoleon III to one of his most devoted servants, Dr Conneau. Regardless of the season, new plants and flowers are always making an appearance.
In springtime, magnolias, rhododendron and clematis illuminate this bucolic setting while summer brings climbing roses and hydrangea. Access to the garden is only allowed for hotel guests.
Elegant rooms feature free WiFi, flat-screen TVs, tea and coffeemaking facilities, minibars with complimentary drinks. Select rooms offer garden views, iPod docks and Nespresso machines. Suites add sitting areas. Eleven minute walk to the Champs Elysees. From $152
Le 123 Sebastopol Hotel
123, boulevard Sébastopol-75002, www.le123sebastopol.com/en/
At the heart of Paris 2nd district near the Grand Boulevards, this hotel is a short 10-minute walk to the Pompidou Center, the Opera and Marais. Dedicated to cinematic art and designed by architect Philippe Maidenberg, the decor will surprise you with its originality while providing you with a comfortable and luxurious experience. Private gym and cinema. Their bartender and mixologist Mei Ho will delight you with his famous signature cocktails. Starts at $183
Idol Hotel
16, rue d’Edimbourg, 75008, www.idolhotel-paris.com/
Steps from Saint Lazare, the department stores, the Opera and the Madeleine
the Idol offers you a musical experience and an original design allied to high-end services. Composed by Yann Gasparini, jazz, soul and funk music lover and painted by Julie Gauthron, the funkiest decorator in Parisian hotel industry, the Idol opened last December in Paris with sound and groove!
A super friendly staff who speak English. The rooms are decorated in modern, uniquely lit themes. You’ll be able to connect your phones to the blue tooth speakers and enjoy music in the room. Starting at 158 euros.
30 Saturday Aug 2014
Posted in Paris guide, Paris tips, Paris Wandering
Tags
detaxe, galeries lafayette, Paris, Paris blogs, Paris bucket list, Paris shoe shopping, Retail Export Form
Let your fingers do the walking online (see websites below) before you go to Paris. Good shoes start around $200 so you want to make sure you’ve honed in on just the right pair or two. Shop address in hand go in for the kill, hoping they have the right size and they fit. If you’re short on time Galeries Lafayette has almost all the big brands and make the detaxe (refunded tax) easy, a one-stop shopping experience. If shoe boutiques are more your style we have most of them listed. It’s work to plow through all the choices but if you love shoes like I do, it can be an enjoyable promenade through the brands.
Galeries Lafayette
40, Boulevard Haussmann 75009
http://www.galerieslafayette.com/c/chaussures-femme
Annabel Winship
29 rue du Dragon 75006
ww.annabelwinship-shop.com/the-real-shop.htm
Métro : Saint-Germain-des-Prés
Roger Vivier
29 rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré 75008
http://www.rogervivier.com
Saint Laurent
5, Place Francois Premier
http://www.ysl.com/us/shop-product/women/shoes
Christian Louboutin
38 rue de Grenelle
75006 Paris (St. Germain)
http://us.christianlouboutin.com/us_en/
Comme des Chaussures
169 rue du Faubourg Saint Antoine, 11e
http://www.comme-des-chaussures-paris.com
Kabuki
25 rue Etienne Marcel, 75001
http://www.kabukiparis.tumblr.com
Repetto
51 rue des Francs-Bourgeois
75004 Paris (Marais)
http://www.repetto.fr
Mi-Prix (discount)
27 boulevard Victor, 75015
Métro : Balard ou Porte de Versailles
Garrice
26 rue Saint-Antoine 75004
Métro: Bastille, Saint Paul
http://www.garrice.com
Robert Clergerie
5, rue du Cherche-Midi
75006 Paris (St. Germain)
http://www.robertclergerie.com/en/
Dina Brice
13 rue Meslay, 3e, tel: 1 48 87 58 78
Show Sur Stock (discount)
56 bd Sébastopol, 1e
info@showsurstock.com
Corine
29 rue du Dragon, 75006
58M
58 rue Montmartre
75002 (Les Halles-Sentier)
J.B. Martin
13 rue du Cherche-Midi
75006 (St. Germain)
http://www.jbmartin.fr
Prada
18 Avenue Matignon, 75008
http://www.store.prada.com/en/FR
Mellow Yellow
13, rue des Canettes
75006 (St. Germain)
http://mellowyellow.fr
Paraboot
304 Rue Saint Honoré, 75001
If you return empty handed because of indecision or price, try Zappos Couture
http://couture.zappos.com. They carry Clergeries. For practical shoes (walking the town with your No Worries Paris guidebook), don’t be afraid to slip on your best Adidas, Nikes, Converse or Pumas. Sometimes comfort trumps fashion.
All about the detaxe:
Spend at least €175 within one store on the same day.
The shop assistant will issue a special form known as Retail Export Form (“bordereau de détaxe”) that you need to keep with your receipt. The form should be duly signed up by you. The shop assistant will examine receipts and your purchases and then get the form stamped. If you are leaving the European Union from a French port of entry you should submit the Retail Export Form as well as the goods purchased at the airport customs desk. After reviewing everything Customs will keep a copy of the form and you will be handed back a copy, endorsed by Customs, which are required to retain in case of any possible dispute with the store. Do not forget to keep the goods with you at all times when you apply for Customs endorsement of the Retail Export Form at the point of departure from the European Union. Customs agents want to see them.
Upon arrival in your country mail the form back to the French store within three months of purchase to get the reimbursement by credit card or check.
You should receive, within a reasonable spell of time, the amount of refunded tax directly from the store, paid according to your instructions, given on the Retail Export Form (check mailed to your address, bank transfer to your checking account or to your credit card accounth Customs.The refund by the Tax Administration could take between 30 and 90 days.
25 Friday Apr 2014
Posted in Paris guide, Paris photos, Paris tips
Tags
Grand Palais, Paris, Petite Palais, Place de la Concorde, Port de la Bourdonnais, Port de la Conférence, Seine, Seine cruises
Strolling the bridges that span the Seine is a novel way to spend a day taking in many of Paris’s iconic sights (walk number one in your No Worries Paris guide).
You’ll see everything is connected by the waterway…the Tour Eiffel, Place de la Concorde, Grand Palais, Petite Palais, Tuileries, Louvre, Musée d’Orsay, St-Germain, Notre Dame. For those with tired feet, ride the Batobus, a cheap, fast way to take it all in at your own speed. Board and buy tickets at Port de la Bourdonnais, 7th arr.
Nightowls, take a dinner cruise on a Bateaux-Mouches (Port de la Conférence, Pont de l’Alma, 8th), stop in at the hip Batofar restaurant/bar/music (red lighthouse boat), or Showcase Club under Pont Alexandre III, Port des Champs Élysées.
Honeymooners might want to keep it simple by trotting over to the BHV (36 Rue de la Verrerie, 4th) basement hardware department, buying a lock, attaching it (if there’s room) to Le Pont des Arts rail, and ceremoniously throwing away the key in celebration of eternal love.
19 Saturday Apr 2014
Posted in Paris Wanderings
Some of the world’s best chocolatiers reside in Paris. Here are a few good addresses:
To celebrate Easter, Fauchon has drawn inspiration from Douanier Rousseau’s best works of art to create the collection. Drawing on the beauty and exoticism of the peacock, products are decorated with different shades of color. This ‘Peacock Egg’, a handmade creation, is made entirely chocolate.
Fauchon
24-26, place de la Madeleine, Paris 8e – Métro Madeleine
www.fauchon.com
The Maison du Chocolat plays on different levels to create their Easter collection of mischievous rabbits, straight out of Wonderland. With eyes bigger than their stomachs and grinning from ear to ear, these rabbits dressed like chefs are all chocolate.
La Maison du Chocolat
225, rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré, Paris 8e
www.lamaisonduchocolat.com
The chocolatier has decided to entertain us with some amusing gourmet creations. For this 2014 edition, pigs, toads, and sheep all made from chocolate take center stage.
Patrick Roger
http://www.patrickroger.com
118, boulevard de Saint-Germain, 75006
Easter Brunch
The Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme offers a special brunch. Starters are Brazilian prawns, sushi and maki, or Vitello with pine nuts. For the main meal, choose from Carnaroli risotto with lemon zest, saddle of suckling lamb or an organic omelette with morel mushrooms (as a main course). For dessert, choose something chocolaty from the Extravaganza dessert buffet.
Price
Starters/desserts from the buffet, choice of main meal and a glass of champagne Laurent Perrier 2004: €125
Prestige menu includes a glass of Grande Cuvée champagne Krug: €165
Easter brunch, Sunday 20 April and Monday 21 April 2014
Restaurant Les Orchidées, Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme
5, rue de la Paix, Paris 2e – Métro Opéra
http://paris.vendome.hyatt.com
Don’t forget mass at Notre Dame. Here’s the schedule:
Easter Sunday 20 April 2014
8.30am. Mass celebrated at the main altar
9.30am. Laudes
10am. Gregorian Mass
11.30am. International mass
12.45pm. Mass celebrated at the main altar
4.30pm. Great Organ
5.45pm. Vespers
6.30pm. Mass
Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris
Place Jean-Paul II – 6, parvis de Notre-Dame, 75004
www.notredamedeparis.fr
15 Tuesday Apr 2014
Posted in Paris guide, Paris photos, Paris tips
Stay up late and see a whole other Paris. Architecture and history buffs will get a whole new perspective. Illuminating!
12 Saturday Apr 2014
Posted in Paris Wanderings
Tags
cozy boutique hotel room, No Worries Paris, No Worries Paris guidebook, Paris, Paris accommodations, Paris hotels, paris travel
Wrap up in a soft white monogrammed robe, pop the champagne and unwind in your cozy boutique hotel room after the long flight to Paris. The following are all well located with chez this chez that dining just around the corner. They range from ultra-mod Phillip Stark to chintzy French provincal plush. Scroll through our suggestions, click through to their home pages, then move on down to Trip Advisor for their reviews. You can book directly (most staffers speak some English and you’ll bypass the middleman fee) or price at Expedia, Travelocity, Kayak, booking.com or hotels.com. Do your homework, you’ll be rewarded $$$.
Location is everything and all of these get our stamp of approval. Of course you know to book well ahead of your departure for the best deals. Price usually equates to the size of the room. Don’t be shocked at how tiny some are, especially the bathrooms. Most are ideal for short getaways when you can afford to spend a little more. Twenty to fifty dollars more per night can buy you a lot more room, amenities, charm and sometimes a free petit dejuner. Why you’re visiting Paris, non?
Dauphine Saint Germain Hotel
36 Rue Dauphine, 6th, 1-866-599-6674
http://www.dauphine-st-germain.com
Romantic and picturesque without being overly cute.
Hotel Le Six
14, rue Stanislas, 6th
http://www.hotel-le-six.com/en/
Known for its accommodating staff.
Hôtel Sublim Eiffel
94 boulevard Garibaldi, 15th
+33 1 4065 9595, Métro: Sèvres Lecourbe.
Doubles from €189
Steam room, fireplace bar, metro map carpeting, Paris kitsch
sublimeiffel.com
Hotel Design de la Sorbonne
6 rue Victor Cousin, 5th, +33 1 4354 5808, Métro: Cluny-La Sorbonne
Doubles from €165
Pizzaz, designer colors, in room computers.
http://www.hotelsorbonne.com/en/
Hotel Bonaparte
61 rue Bonaparte, 6th, +33 1 4326 9737, Métro: Mabillon. Doubles from €130
Rooms feature 19th-century architectural elements such as stone fireplace mantels and moulded ceilings.
http://www.hotelbonaparte.fr
Petit Belloy St Germain
Notre Dame and the Louvre are less than 15 minutes away.
1 rue Racine, 6th, +33 1 4326 8713, Métro: Cluny-La Sorbonne. On special now from €129
http://www.hotel-petit-belloy-saint-germain.com/en
Hotel du Cadran
10 rue du Champs de Mars, 7th, +33 1 4062 6700, Métro: Ecole Militaire. Doubles from €119. Modern, can be noisy. Opening soon, their very own chocolate bar.
http://www.cadranhotel.com
Hotel 7 Eiffel
17bis Rue Amélie, 7th
Phone:+33 1 45 55 10 01
Marble bathrooms and Fragonard toiletries. In summer the rooftop terrace is open to guests.
www.hotel-7eiffel-paris.com
Hôtel Du Prince Eugène
247 Bd Voltaire, 11th. For a change of pace, take a walk on the hip East Side.
http://www.paris-hotel-princeeugene.com
Hotel d’Angleterre Saint Germain des Prés
44 Rue Jacob, 6th. A solid choice, popular with Americans
http://www.hotel-angleterre-paris.net
Le Fabe Hotel
A Left Bank find (Montparnasse), somewhat out of the way but clean, well priced.
113 bis rue de l’Ouest, 14th, +33 1 4044 0963, Métro: Pernety.
http://www.lefabehotel.fr/en/
Villa Saint Germain des Prés
29 Rue Jacob 6th, +33 (0)1 43 26 60 00. Popular, great reviews.
http://www.villa-saintgermain.com
Hotel Sezz
6 Ave. Frémiet, 16th, +33 1 56 75 26 26
Designer WOW. Right Bank. Murano-glass fixtures in the lobby. No front desk, instead a team of personal assistants to guide you. Champagne bar, campy, chic.
http://www.hotelsezz.com
28 Friday Mar 2014
Posted in Paris guide, Paris tips, Paris Wandering
Tags
Boulanger de Monge, chocolate truffles, Etienne Marcel, Jean Charles Rochous Chocolatier, Les Halles, Paris, Taco Bell
Closed to traffic, this 3-block street in the center of Paris boasts some of the best bakeries (Stohrer, Boulanger de Monge), gourmet cheese and chocolate shops, historic restaurants, late-night cafes, and kitchen supply establishments. Etienne Marcel, Les Halles or Sentier metro stops will get you there. Check out the map on page 80, Walking Tour Five of your No Worries Paris guidebook and you’ll see what else to explore in the surrounds.
It’s the true center of Paris, before 1970, the sprawling home of the now dismantled Les Halles covered market. Sniffing and tasting your way down you’ll see old storefront vestiges remain. I’m certain you’ll want to return to this vibrant quartier more than once. A good excuse is Jean Charles Rochous Chocolatier (at no. 15) for silver boxes stuffed with heavenly dark chocolate truffles (best in Paris), great gifts for friends.
No Taco Bell crunch wraps, Cinnabon Delights, I-Hop cheesecake stuffed pancakes, Krispy Kreme sloppy joe sandwiches, but if you want to cheat, there’s a small Starbuck’s at one end.
26 Wednesday Mar 2014
Posted in Paris Wanderings
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Jim Morrison died in Paris in 1971. Whirling around, still to this day, are questions as to how he died and where. Some are convinced he is still alive. The official police version is that he died of a heart attack in his bathtub on 17 rue Beautreillis.
Other witnesses claim he overdosed on heroin in the bathroom of a famous club. It’s been said the two drug dealers whom he had purchased the heroin from moved his dead body to the bathroom of his apartment and swore never to reveal the truth and ruin the club’s reputation.
The real ending is buried with Jim whose grave is the most visited at Pere Lachaise Cemetery. Hand drawn arrows sometimes (they are often erased by the guardians) point the way or just follow the swarm carrying the printed plot map. His headstone is unassuming, however, there’s always a collection of memorabilia, candles, letters to spice up the space.
Dedicated fans who want to visit the apartment can find it mapped on page 92 of the No Worries Paris guidebook. A recommended followup is the stylish Hotel Sully and Place des Voges, the oldest square in Paris, just down the block.
