Jul 30th, 2012 at 10:00AM:
June 27, Cours Saleya, Nice, France:
It's my last day in Nice, this vibrant capital of pleasure and art and ease on the Cote d'Azur, and I'm sitting in the Cours Saleya, site of the fruit and flower market where I was 11 days ago, at the start of this glorious re-immersion in the riches of the Riviera. There's a cold glass of vin rosé du Provence on my table, the sand-colored awning ...Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
france posts
Postcard From France: Now And Then In Nice
Jul 30th, 2012 at 10:00AM:
June 27, Cours Saleya, Nice, France:
It's my last day in Nice, this vibrant capital of pleasure and art and ease on the Cote d'Azur, and I'm sitting in the Cours Saleya, site of the fruit and flower market where I was 11 days ago, at the start of this glorious re-immersion in the riches of the Riviera. There's a cold glass of vin rosé du Provence on my table, the sand-colored awning ...Packing Notes For Summer Travels
Jul 8th, 2012 at 3:00PM: Did anyone else totally screw up their packing for TBEX, the recent travel blogger's conference in Denver? I did, egregiously. Having deferred to the Rocky Mountain location at Keystone Resort, I completely overlooked the fact that it was in the 90s in Denver. I packed as though I were summering in Seattle – a raincoat, jeans, long underwear, and layers, you know. As a result, I ended up ...Paradise Regained: Revisiting La Colombe d'Or In St.-Paul-de-Vence, France
Jun 30th, 2012 at 12:00PM: June 28, 2012; at La Colombe d'Or, St.-Paul-de-Vence:
Conjunction of memory and moment: Nineteen summers ago I sat in this limestone-terraced restaurant in the medieval marvel of St.-Paul-de-Vence, experiencing a time-stopping, life-enlarging afternoon that has become iconic for me. Now I am back, my journal opened to a page as white as the brilliant sunlight that splashes over everything ...Letter From Lilliputia: Small Is Beautiful In Paris
Jun 28th, 2012 at 10:00AM: It started on our flight back to Paris from New York: our seats had been put through the drier. They were too small to hold our newly fleshly forms. After a month in Chicago, San Francisco and New York City we had expanded our views – and backsides. Well, I had. My wife doesn't thicken. Her DNA descends from termites.
The Paris taxi seemed luxurious after the battered Yellow Cabs of ...Photo Of The Day: Locks Of Love
Jun 21st, 2012 at 6:00PM:
Today's Photo of the Day was taken on Paris' Pont des Arts bridge, where it is tradition to write your name and your lover's on a padlock and attach it to the railing to symbolize your unbreakable bond. It's a tradition popular all over the world, from Florence to Taiwan (check out Gadling's gallery from Cologne, Germany. Over the years, many cities have tried to remove the locks or limit new ...71-Year-Old Grandmother To Bike From Russia To France
Jun 4th, 2012 at 2:00PM: After having traversed Russia no fewer than 16 times by bike, what's next? For 71-year-old grandmother Yulia Mikhailyuk, the next step is a bicycle journey from the western Russian city of Tver to Paris, France.
According to Russia Today, Ms. Mikhailyuk, a former physical education teacher, took up biking only after her 50th birthday as something to do after retirement. Since then, she has ...
The World's 10 Scariest Haunted Castles
Jun 4th, 2012 at 10:00AM:
From a Czech forest castle reported to house the gates of hell to a gargantuan castle right here in the United States, the world's most haunted castles boast histories rich with frightening details. Specters haunt the halls of these old castles and travelers visit to experience brushes with the paranormal. Some of these castles possess secrets darker than a moonless night, and when ...Centre Pompidou-Metz Recreates Artistic Life Of World War I
May 27th, 2012 at 11:00AM: In the first of a series of events to commemorate the upcoming centennial of World War I, the Centre Pompidou-Metz in France is hosting "1917," an exhibition of artistic life during that bloody conflict.
While millions were dying on the battlefield, the arts were flourishing in Europe. Much of it was centered on, or a reaction to, the most terrible war the world had yet seen. A large portion of ...Encountering Monet At The Musee d'Orsay
May 21st, 2012 at 10:00AM:
Reading Gadling's marvelous Museum Month posts has reminded me of a trip I made two decades ago to Paris. I had fallen in love with that exhilarating city in the mid-1970s, when I lived there for two successive summers, first after my junior year in college and then after graduation. I returned in 1988 to celebrate the city, and as part of that celebration, I wanted to write an essay about the ...10 Extraordinary Islands To Visit On Your Next Vacation
May 10th, 2012 at 10:00AM:
Summer is the time of island vacations. It is time to put as much distance between you and the real world as possible. It is time to stand outside of your everyday life and to see how it all looks from a paradise perspective. Here is a collection of islands for escape – places to recharge, gain perspective and explore. From an island in the land of the gods to a tropical Amsterdam at ...Travel For The Inexplicable Human Connection
May 1st, 2012 at 2:30PM:
Editing a contribution to the site from Jill Paris the other day I was reviewing her bio at the end of the article and took note of the reason why she travels: "for the inexplicable human connection."
Those connections affect all of us when we travel, whether we know it or not, and it's a big part of what makes the journey so special. For me, personally, I have wonderful stories of meeting ...
Video: Bones And Art In The Paris Catacombs
Apr 26th, 2012 at 8:00AM:
You've probably seen videos or photos of the famous Paris Catacombs, with their miles of ossuaries holding the bones of some six million Parisians. The catacombs were created in the 18th century from existing underground quarries, and these quarries, tunnels, and other mysterious underground spaces create a network under Paris measuring more than 180 miles. It's truly a city under the city, ...
Fact vs Fiction: The Eiffel Tower in Paris, France
Apr 10th, 2012 at 10:00AM:
Warm days in Paris can bring out the crowds, especially in the parks near the foot of the Eiffel Tower. While lines can be long year round, they get the worst around Bastille Day (July 14) when the picture on the right was taken. And once you get to the top, well, expect more congestion.
Next: The Acropolis in Athens, Greece >>
[flickr images via nickboos, subpop77, and joybot] ...Photo of the Day: Stops along the way
Mar 27th, 2012 at 7:00PM:
A simple stop along a bicycle route is captured in today's Photo of the Day from Flickr user Kurt Schmidt. The image, taken with a Canon EOS 7D, depicts a quiet street scene with a vintage pink bicycle parked outside a cheerful cafe. One can imagine the rider ordering an espresso then sitting with a croissant and a newspaper before continuing along her way.
Does your travel snapshot belong ...Sustainable or just plain weird? Accor hotels sell their used furniture on eBay
Feb 17th, 2012 at 4:00PM:
This week French hotel brand Accor launched
reBorn, an online store through eBay that will sell the hotel giant's used furniture.
What can you snag? Everything from Luis XVI bedside tables to bronze chandeliers to 1980s wing armchairs, minibar furniture and even safes. About 2,500 items are on the site in total, with prices listed in Euros.
"The reBorn project satisfies a current ...Flying a dream: Urban Side
Feb 13th, 2012 at 7:30AM:
In this flying video we see Jean-Baptiste Chandelier who has been a paraglidiing pilot since 2004 and wants to inspire us all.
"My goal is to share my paragliding universe with my videos, for make everyone dream of flying," says Chandelier on his website.
Specializing in acro flight, Chandelier flys through Peru, France and Chile using a variety of aero-acrobatic maneuvers and ...
Infamous French prankster arrested for impersonating a traffic camera
Feb 7th, 2012 at 4:00PM:
While it's probably safe to say that most people think traffic cameras are pretty annoying, infamous French prankster Rémi Gaillard has brought harassing drivers to a whole new level. In this video, he impersonates a traffic camera, literally flashing lights at commuters and then chasing them while dressed in a cardboard costume. While many people have found the joke to be out-of-line, ...
Paris postcard: Savoring the subversively seductive splendors of the Marais
Jan 31st, 2012 at 11:00AM:
French star architect Jean Nouvel once gave me a ride home from his studio in Paris' edgy 11th arrondissement. I chuckled to discover that the guru of transparency, glass and steel lives around the corner from me in a 1600s building on the Rue des Francs Bourgeois, the spinal column of the Marais. Old is better?
I was amused but not surprised: after 40 years of blanket gentrification the ...10 free things to do in Paris, France
Jan 18th, 2012 at 10:00AM: While Paris, France, is not typically thought of as a budget travel destination, with some research and planning it is possible to visit the The City of Lights without spending a fortune. Just add some of these free and fun activities to your itinerary to help you save cash while still exploring the city.
Take a walking tour of the city
While most tours charge a fortune to show you the sites ...Photo of the Day: Paris bakery run
Jan 12th, 2012 at 6:00PM:
You might have been able to guess the location of today's Photo of the Day without a title. Advanced use of scarves? Check. Frou-frou dogs? Check. Delicious-looking loaf of bread? Mais oui, it is Paris. The French have a closer relationship to their bakers than most Americans can understand, picking up a fresh baguette daily. Even with the advent of baguette vending machines, you can be sure ...
