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 ...Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
paris posts
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 ...Four top treats from my 2011 travels
Dec 31st, 2011 at 11:00AM:
Since I've been a travel writer for three decades, people often ask me if I don't get tired of all the traveling and writing. After all, when you do anything for 30 years, it must get boring, right?
Wrong! I guess that's one of the gifts of this line of work. Every trip, every place, offers something new, even if I've been there a dozen times before. This year I took four big trips -- to ...Chinese tourists chart a new European Grand Tour
Dec 24th, 2011 at 11:00AM: According to BBC Travel and the China Daily, approximately 70 million Chinese nationals traveled abroad in 2011, up from 10 million in 1999. A chunk of this new crop of Chinese tourists is traveling to Europe, but their itinerary veers a little off the trodden path.
BBC Travel outlined some of the historical highlights of the "new" European Grand Tour: cities like Trier, Germany, the birthplace ...Things you won't see in Paris this holiday season: beggars
Dec 14th, 2011 at 3:30PM:
As tourists window shop in Paris this holiday season, they won't find any more homeless people asking for change around some of the city's most popular areas; the French government has issued a series of decrees that ban begging around Paris' most popular tourist and Christmas shopping spots. According to the Guardian, the Champs Elyssés was the first Paris landmark to fall under the ...Christmas in Paris: 'tis the season to be feasting
Dec 14th, 2011 at 3:00PM: It's not that Paris doesn't have Nativity Scenes or Christmas trees or even Santa Claus-lookalikes called le Père Noel-Father Christmas..
It's not that Parisians don't string blinking lights, buy extravagant gifts, throw parties, ring bells, and sing "noel-noel". Isn't noel French for "Christmas?" A few French faithful even attend ceremonies, light candles, observe Advent Lent, and fold ...10 reasons to travel to Ljubljana
Dec 13th, 2011 at 9:00AM:
When I found cheap airfare from Istanbul to Ljubljana, I didn't find many other travelers who'd been there or even say for sure which country it's in. The tiny of country of Slovenia is slightly smaller than New Jersey and its capital city isn't known for much other than being difficult to spell and pronounce (say "lyoob-lyAH-nah"). After spending a few days there last month, I quickly fell ...Thieves steal rhino horn from Paris museum
Dec 9th, 2011 at 8:00AM: Earlier this week, two people entered a museum in Paris, used some kind of gas to neutralize the guards, and made off with a rhino horn from one of the stuffed animals on display. This was the fourth such robbery in Europe this year, as thieves look to sell the valuable horns on the black market in Asia.
The incident took place on Tuesday at the Museum of Hunting and Nature in the Marais ...Blogger Jessica Marati
Dec 5th, 2011 at 10:00AM: Introducing another new blogger at Gadling, Jessica Marati...
Where was your photo taken: This photo was taken on my family's beach in the southern part of Guam, the tiny Pacific island territory where I grew up. It's probably one of my favorite places on the face of the earth.
Where do you live now: I'm based in New York, but I've spent the last several months living in Phnom Penh, where ...Photo of the day - Skies above Paris
Dec 2nd, 2011 at 5:00PM:
Oh, the skies above Paris...
There's a reason so many people love Paris. The city itself seems to be bathed in a special light. It's a place of tempestuous moods and lovers' quarrels. It's like one big all-encompassing set for a film about the glory or tragedy of love.
Concurrently, it's just a city. But what a grand city it is. Flickr user Aypho captures the City of Light's basic ...The Gadling young family travel gift guide
Dec 2nd, 2011 at 10:00AM: If you are traveling with a baby over the holidays, visiting with children on your next trip, or just hoping to convince a new parent that you don't have to hand in your passport once the new addition arrives, we've compiled a gift guide for families traveling with babies. Traveling light is the best advice you can follow when traveling with a baby (even without a baby, it's just good sense) but ...The hidden gem museums of Paris
Nov 28th, 2011 at 9:00AM: The City of Light. The City of Love. The City of Museums? Why not. With the Louvre's 30,000 paintings and the Musée d'Orsay's thousands-strong art collection, it's easy to forget that there are other museums in the City of Light. In fact, almost 200 museums-both plus-sized and petite, illustrious and obscure-are sprinkled throughout the French capital, featuring everything from Picasso to ...Kids travel gift: Junior "crumpled" city maps
Nov 26th, 2011 at 9:00AM:
Last year we reported on Italian designer Emanuele Pizzolorusso's crumpled city maps, a delightful series of maps made out of tough waterproof material. Pizzolorusso's maps can withstand crumpling and crushing. They fit in a little pouch and are easily transportable. They are a wonderfully fanciful yet solidly utilitarian tool for tourists.
Pizzolorusso, working with Berlin-based ...Walking on the wild side of Paris
Nov 22nd, 2011 at 10:00AM:
The good news is Paris' kaleidoscopic, multiple-choice future is playing today not in a theater near you but in the Oberkampf, Ménilmontant and Belleville neighborhoods. That's where Algiers meets Caracas and Istanbul via Zanzibar. Despite occasional intrusions by fanatics, the inhabitants here and in Paris' many other ethnic enclaves seem to get along like traditional French peas in ...David's Discoveries: A tale of two labyrinths: Chartres
Oct 20th, 2011 at 10:00AM:
Outdoors in a panoramic park behind the famous cathedral of Chartres a teenage girl skipped along the concentric pathways of a grassy labyrinth. Other kids shouted and kicked a soccer ball. Young lovers simultaneously pecked at each other and the touchpads of their handheld devices, observed by curious onlookers.
Most such onlookers in Chartres are day-trippers from nearby Paris: The ...TripAdvisor launches free Mobile City Guide apps for Android users
Oct 12th, 2011 at 1:30PM: On Tuesday, October 11, 2011, TripAdvisor launched their free Mobile City Guide apps for Android users. The apps cover twenty popular destinations, some of which include Paris, New York, Tokyo, Los Angeles, and London.
Benefits of using the app include:
Reviews of restaurants, hotels, and attractions
Suggested city itineraries
Interactive walking tours
Historical and cultural ...Fly business class to Paris for $750 roundtrip
Oct 7th, 2011 at 2:30PM: Open Skies, the all business class airline, is canceling their Washington to Paris (Orly) route as of October 28, and that means good news for last-minute travelers.
With no minimum purchase, enjoy fares of $750 round trip, including all fees and taxes, for departures from Washington (Dulles) for travel completed before October 28.
This is by far the best business class fare we've ever seen ...The best "offline" budget hotels in Paris
Sep 22nd, 2011 at 9:30AM:
Hunting down a cheap and central hotel in Paris can be a daunting challenge. It's not hard to find one and two-star hotels for under €75 (about $105) per night, but they're often less-than-inspiring places and frequently located in rather grim neighborhoods.
Fortunately, there are dozens of hotels in Paris' prime neighborhoods that offer rooms at budget rates. However, they can be ...Sotheby's: the museum where you can buy the art
Sep 4th, 2011 at 2:00PM: Have you ever looked at a work of art hanging on a museum wall and thought, "That would look great in my living room"? Well, at one of the best "museums" in London you really can take it home with you.
Sotheby's is London's oldest auction house, and has been a London institution since 1744. They sell everything from fine art to vintage wine to antique furniture. While most items are beyond the ...
