We leave on Sunday for Paris, so I'm hoping we'll be cruising into Fall weather by then. It's slightly cooler in Paris, but pretty unbearable in a city with almost no air conditioning. In Paris, where temperatures reached 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) on Wednesday, crowds kept cool by splashing and relaxing in the Trocadero fountains near the Eiffel Tower.
A few new (and old) recommendations
August 19, 2009
Friends are just back from Paris and here are their quick recommendations and (very) short comments: Lots of Amarino ice cream (they keep opening new locations beyond Rue du Buci)
... La Petite Cour for dinner (8, rue Mabillon 6th) -- we really like this one too We, including and especially the kids, LOVE Amarino ice cream, but eschew the rue de Buci location for other less touristy spots because the lines go down the block. ... We love the decor, which allows us to bask in a fantasy that we are a truly bilingual French-American editor at Gallimard having yet another intellectual tête-a-tête with the real denizens of the 6th.
Budget eating in Paris from The Boston Globe
August 9, 2009
Delightfully local in Paris On a no-frills budget? Drop the tourist routine and savor the City of Light’s simpler luxuries [From On a budget? Live like a local in Paris - The Boston Globe ]
Yet another review of Le Comptoir du Relais
August 5, 2009
This writer does have one thing right though: it's impossible to get a table at lunch, and worse at dinner. ... Luckily for the disorganised amongst us (myself included) no booking is required at lunch and during August this policy extends to dinner. Time your arrival correctly (think just before 12.30 or just after 1.30 for lunch) and you are likely to only have to wait a couple of minutes for a table.
5 Off-beat Museums in Paris
August 3, 2009
Some days we don't leave the apartment at all, bathing in the Buddhistic calm that comes with knowing that it's all outside the door if were just to open that door. ... Here are five museums (including one X-rated) that we haven't been to, but will add to our "maybe today" list when we inevitably have to leave the apartment for coffee and orange juice at some point. ... Address : 4, rue de la Montagne Sainte-Geneviève 75005 Opening Times : 09:00 – 17:00 Monday to Friday, Saturday: 10:00 – 17:00; Closed on Sundays Price: Free Website: http://www.prefecture-police-paris.interieur.gouv.fr/connaitre/musee/musee.htm 4.
Contador wins 2009 Tour de France, Armstrong takes third
July 26, 2009
From what I've read about Armstrong, I doubt if he's happy "just to be in it," but still for us over 40 or 50, it's still amazing to see these guys get so close, even if they don't take away the final trophy. I'm sure in France, older French men were cheering for Lance this year, even if he had to pop little blue pills to make it to the finish. ... The 26-year-old Contador outdueled Luxembourg's Andy Schleck and seven-time Tour champion Lance Armstrong, who finished third in his comeback after four years away from the race.
Final Stages of the Tour de France – Ending tomorrow in Paris
July 25, 2009
Final Stages of the Tour de France Tour de France leader Alberto Contador trails Astana teammate Lance Armstrong during Tuesday's 16th stage. Contador remains the overall leader by 1:37. (Eric Gaillard - Reuters) (Eric Gaillard - Reuters) [From Final Stages of the Tour de France - washingtonpost.com ]
Mona Lisa in Camelot
July 14, 2009
Two ladies in Camelot..... Who knew... Just read in the Vanity Fair article of how the 1963 American exhibition of the Mona Lisa in New York City and Washington, D.C., was America's first blockbuster art show. The writer Davids recounts in numbing detail the negotiations, preparations, flummoxes and successes of the exhibit. The exhibition was masterminded by the diplomatically savvy…read more
Gourmet Paris, the Remix « ArtsÉtoile
July 9, 2009
Here's another good round-up of food feasts in Paris, many in our neighborhood, and old favorites like Pierre Hermé and La Durée (though we've soured on the last given prices and crowds). ... Stop by Pierre Hermé on rue Cambon on the right bank or rue Vaugirard or Bonaparte locations on the left bank for mouth watering macarons – these are the best in Paris, seconded, perhaps by Ladurée (skip the macarons at Paul). Another worthwhile stop for an afternoon pause gourmande is the Grande Epicerie du Bon Marché, where you can sample many top shelf products, from cheeses, to meats, to a shellfish bar, more types of water than you have ever seen, and speciality products from Fauchon and Hediard.
Eiffel Tower turning 120!
July 8, 2009
Today it’s one of the most emblematic – a symbol of the launch of modernity, an artist’s icon, a destination for lovers who propose marriage at 1,000 feet. ... So revered is the Eiffel that it’s a shock at 120 to find out how close it came to being torn down.
... It's still a ritual visit for all first-timers to Paris, and worth wait to climb up the sides for the view, but no longer because it's " the only place in Paris where you don’t have to look at it,” as Tower critic and Belle Époque humorist Tristan Bernard famously quipped.