Archive for March, 2008
Honeymoon Hotel Par Excellence: Hotel Raphael
Few of us can afford the mind-boggling hotel rates starting at $775 (490 Euros) for a basic room at the Hotel Raphael - and capping at just under $9,500 (6000 Euros) for the best suite. But we can dream. Or you can see the short film ‘Hotel Chevalier’ which is the R-rated opening short for the “Darjeeling Limited.”
Even though I’ve never set foot in the Hotel Raphael, I sensed immediately that the invented ‘Hotel Chevalier’ was actually the Hotel Raphael (noted in the credits). If your wedding plans do allow for such a splurge, you might want to see this short film to get the full impact of spending a few days in most romantic setting.
Needless to say the arrival of Natalie Portman on the scene adds to the allure, but even before Portman’s arrival, hotel fans will love the traditional French furnishings and the ‘rechampi’ or intricately painted wall moldings.
If you’re interested in taking a peek at Hotel Raphael’s interiors, you can visit the Hotel Raphael’s website for their video walk-through, but I think the Hotel Chevalier probably does a better job of capturing the ‘romance’ mixed with a little sense of the practical.
Date: March 31st, 2008 |
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The Romance of Trains
Photo by Chris Card Fuller 2008
If you asked me where the most romantic place was in Paris, I would have to say the train station, especially on a Sunday night. Unlike travel by plane where travelers are separated from their loved ones either at a curbside drop-off or in a dismal parking lot, in Paris, couples cling to one another until the last possible moment. It’s impossible not to be touched by the electric sparks of passion that transform an otherwise grayish, impersonal train station such as Montparnasse into a veritable sighing, pulsating embrace.
Date: March 30th, 2008 |
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Best Hot Chocolate in Paris for the Best Price
A La Duchesse Anne
Montparnasse
Call me old-fashioned but part of the pleasure of sipping a hot chocolate in Paris is savoring the cozy setting of a real ’salon du the’, not the latest trendy chocolate bars. Sorry, but being served a sterile glass of hot chocolate by a server (or even the chocolatier himself) in a white lab coat makes me feel like I’m in the waiting room of a doctor’s office - being handed the famous little glass.
That’s why I am delighted to share with …
Date: March 28th, 2008 |
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La Graine et le Mulet: The Secret of the Grain
Abdellatif Kechiche’s film La Graine et le Mulet recently won Best Film in the prestigious Cesar awards, comparable to an Oscar award in the U.S.
Hafsia Herzi also won a Cesar as best new emerging talent for her portrayal of Rym, the vivacious adopted daughter of Slimane Beiji (played by Habib Boufares). Beiji represents the patriarch of an Arab immigrant family settled in Sete - a fishing town in southern France.
First, a word about the film’s title: La Graine et le Mulet
The English translation isn’t really quite right: The Secret of the Grain. It should be: The Grain and the Mullet
Date: March 26th, 2008 |
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TBM: The Left Bank's Best Kept Shopping Secret
At least that’s what Le Bon Marche department store’s advertising copy suggests in this week’s Madame Figaro.
What is TBM? TBM stands for ‘Tres Bonne Marche’ or a REALLY good deal.
This year’s TBM starts on Wednesday, March 26 (2008) and ends on Saturday, April 5 (2008). Le Bon Marche is Paris’s most famous Left Bank department store.
If you can really find a Vivienne Westwood dress for 190 Euros as the advertisment suggests, then this would be a really good deal,
Date: March 24th, 2008 |
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La Blue Car - France's Hope for an Electric Car: Nipped in the Bud
You’ll remember in a past post I raved about La Blue Car prototype: Designed by a Frenchmen, built in partnership with the company Bolloré? Its projected date for commercial production was January 2009.
Don’t bother looking for it. If you caught a glimpse of La Blue Car at the Geneva auto show, consider yourself lucky.
Date: March 31st, 2008 |
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Daylight Savings Time Starts Today!
Sunday, March 30, 2008. If you’re in Paris today, remember to turn your clocks forward so you won’t miss your train? Who would be scatterbrained enough not to remember this? Yours truly. We have missed trains in the past, but today we’re ready for Daylight Savings time - and you can be ready too.
Date: March 30th, 2008 |
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La Plus Belle Fille du 5eme - Prettiest Girl in the 5th
Photo by Chris Card Fuller © 2008
Parislogue’s Parisgirl continues her search for the most beautiful Parisians in response to Amsterdamlogue’s challenge.
Clearly, Parisians are not only beautiful but charming as well. Laura is a Parisian who lives in the Left Bank’s 5th arrondissement - you may recognize this as the student district and the famous Latin Quarter which was once inhabited by such luminaries as Abelard and his beloved Heloise - who both ended up their lives in monasteries and convents for the sole error of having fallen madly in love with …
Date: March 27th, 2008 |
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Jazz
Paris’s love affair with jazz may have something to do with its liberation at the end of World War II. After four years of desolation and constraint, the strains of jazz arrived with waving flags, dancing in the streets.
Nowadays, you can find jazz clubs that reflect all sorts of taste, from Dixieland to fusion, from blues to world music. There are dozens of jazz clubs where you can while away a ’smoke-free’ evening. Many of these clubs
are listed in the weekly entertainment guide Le Pariscope which you can pick up at any newsstand.
Before you choose your spot to camp out, be aware that Paris also has plenty of Jazz Festivals throughout the year. You can find out in advance about some of these events at www.evene.fr, but if you really want to know what’s going on around the Paris Jazz scene, you’ll have to stop in to say ‘hello’ to Jacques Thevenet at Jazzbox. Thevenet DJ’s a Saturday night radio show on Aligre FM at 5 pm. His Myspace site will bring you up to date about the Jazz happening jazz events.
Date: March 25th, 2008 |
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Paris Fashion Guides
In France, fashion is a family affair. Mothers and grandmothers begin giving their daughters (or sons) and granddaughters fashion tips at an early age. In a BCBG family i.e. ‘bon chic, bon genre’ family, daughters’ upbringing (in the past) had been pretty strict when it came to how much jewelry could be worn - in good taste. A simple gold chain necklace, bracelet or the similar style in silver was considered chic.
So, what do you do if you’re an American in Paris - and totally clueless when it …
Date: March 24th, 2008 |
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