Happy Birthday

10-10-10

A day of thanksgiving for our family,  for it's the birthday of our firstborn son.

Happy Birthday Ryan!

We are so proud of you and love you so much!

What a sweet family you have,

and it thrills us even more to finally be able to announce your news

that your family

 is growing

with 

a new addition to be released in April!

Congratulations to you, Allison, and big sister, Jordan !

Printemps Loves New York

During the past month, the ever-surprising department store Printemps in Paris has been celebrating the Big Apple with a pop-up store full of Americana.

Superman reigns supreme and King Kong rules over the street entrance.

Much of this celebration goes hand in hand with the opening of the first Coach boutique in Europe, right near the front door among all the European designer big names. 

You can see a video of their grand opening here. Click twice to view full screen.

American fashion design is also being celebrated, and 15 designers, including Michael Kors, Marc Jacobs, Diane von Furstenberg and Tony Burch, were asked to create an exclusive signature T-shirt just for this occasion.

Selected American products are also available for purchase. I found it amusing which iconic products were selected for purchase. Caesar dressing, which was offered at $12 a bottle, peanut butter for about $7 a jar,

marshmallows, and all types of syrup

including strawberry syrup.

And who really buys strawberry Fluff in America?

A small jar of Hellman's for $6 in a country that is known for its delicious homemade mayonnaise.

The very trendy Berko counter located in Printemps, added to the fun with its decorated cookies

and a yummy selection of cupcakes, which have just recently been introduced in France.

The pièces de resistance, however, were the hot dog and Obama "necklaces," I guess you could call them, which were retailing for about $225, yes $225!

Non, merci. My suitcase was not big enough for even one more souvenir, even at that very enticing price!  

Catch it quick--the promotion only lasts until October 10!

McDo

After a Paris weekend filled with culture, I decided to enjoy the beautiful weather we were blessed with that weekend, and stroll along the Seine River. It was almost too pretty to be inside that day, even though, as I've posted preciously, what I was seeing inside the typically closed buildings was incredibly beautiful.

I walked across the Alexander Bridge,

passed by the Petit Palais,

and then hopped on the metro to go and see the new phenomenal Apple store

in the Carrousel du Louvre, an underground section of the Louvre with shops and a food court.

Having worked up a thirst from all the walking, I headed to the dining area of the Carrousel, where I found the recently opened McCafé,

or "McDo" as the French call it. I remembered there had been quite an uproar over the insertion of McDo into the underground area attached to the Louvre, but 

I was unprepared to see the view afforded those dining in style. While enjoying your Big Mac, you have the view of the remains of the original fortress built by Philip II in the 12th century, the earliest foundations of what is known today as the Louvre.

Interestingly enough, this cafe marks the 30th anniversary of the first McDonald's in France. With restaurants numbering almost 1150, the French market is the biggest market outside of the US.

I found some of their new technology to be fascinating. You can step up to this kiosk, place your order on the screen, pay with a credit card, and then,

Voilà, you pick up your order at the EasyOrder counter. How cool is that?

And what's a French McDonald's without fancy pastries,

and an assortment of those ubiquitous French macarons,

offered for your take-out pleasure?

You may think it's sacrilege to stop at a McCafé while in the gourmet capital of the world, but when you want a cold, icy Coke and a bathroom in a pinch, McDo's is my kind of place!

As they say in France...C'est tout ce que j'aime--

I'm lovin' it!

Sunday Open House

Continuing with the theme of the last two posts, I'll close out relaying my experiences on the Open House weekend in Paris with a few more peeks into some incredible buildings. All in all, I toured a dozen buildings over a two day period, which are only open by special invitation every other day of the year. I know my jaw must have been dropping on numerous occasions. The interiors were just stunning, and when I think about how I've walked by these buildings many, many times and never knew what was behind the facades, I'm amazed even more. 

One of the buildings that surprised me was l'Hôtel Clermont--the Ministry in Charge of Parliamentary Relations. With an title like that, you need a place of opulence, right? 

Built between 1708-1714 and located on Rue de Varenne, the Salon Doré is considered its grandest room,

but my favorite room was the gallery 

which was laid out by the Count d'Orsay for his collection of masterpieces.

The ceiling was exceptionally lovely.

I moved on to l'Hôtel de Noirmoutier on the Rue de Grenelle,

which is the Préfecture (office of the capital city) of the Ile-de-France, one of the 100 départements of France. Beautiful furnishings enhanced the rooms,

such as this beautifully paneled dining room.

The Ambassador's Life in Paris

My weekend of peeking into beautiful buildings of Paris which are typically closed to the public continued with a glimpse into three embassy buildings. All historical buildings with their own stories, they come alive in this century with the festivities that go along with embassy life. The first I visited was l'Hôtel de Charost, currently the residence of the British ambassador, located on the rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré.

Built between 1722-25 for the duc de Charost, it was later sold to Pauline Leclerc, the sister of Napoleon.

Seen here is the Salon Pauline with her bed. When Napoleon's empire was established, Pauline became an imperial princess and her home was the center of a small court who attended to her.

In 1814, the Duke of Wellington was the newly appointed British ambassador to France, and he purchased the home and all its contents from Pauline to be the new embassy building for his country. The throne room is still used for investiture ceremonies.

Queen Victoria still oversees the activities there.

Dinner was set for 60 guests in the dining room decorated in the Louis XVI style. The table is 15 meters long with  28 leaves, and one single linen cloth made in Northern Ireland covers the length of the table. Wouldn't you just hate to be the guest to spill a drop of wine on that??

The grounds behind the house are expansive, stretching all the way to a back gate to the Champs Elysées which Napoleon would use to access the property.

Next we stood in a short line to visit l'Hôtel de la Rochefoucauld-Doudeauville, the embassy of Italy. Located along the rue de Varenne with many other 18th century hôtels particuliers, the Italian Embassy acquired it in 1937. The best translation for hôtel particulier is a grand, private, usually free standing house, which is located between the entrance court at the street and a back garden. Seen here is the front entrance, behind which is a courtyard where the carriages could pull in and unload, and then the house would be behind the courtyard. 

Once again, the interior was dazzling,

with many rooms decorated in the Louis XV style. Beautiful!

The Théatre Sicilien was unique. This 18th century theater was transported from the Palais Butera de Palerme in Sicily and installed in this location in the early 20th century. Do you think they might could use someone on staff to straighten the candles? Why do little things like that drive me crazy!!

Behind the house are the beautiful gardens, perfect for strolling.

We also had time to see l'Hôtel d'Estrées, nearby on the rue de Grenelle, which is the home of the Ambassador of Russia. You get a feel here of standing in the courtyard after you have entered through the street entrance.

Dazzling interiors were somewhat obscured by an exhibit about Russian art and tradition,

so that you would tour the exhibit and then step back and take in the grandeur of the rooms. Having been to Russia in the spring, I found the exhibit fascinating, as well as the website advertising it with its photos of the Russian embassy.

Lunch was ready to be served,

as well as tea.

And every "proper" hôtel particulier had its lovely garden for entertaining and enjoying.

Here's a souvenir I really wanted to take home with me for my princess of a granddaughter-- a tiara created in 1911 by Cartier, in the style of a diadème kokochnik, a popular Russian style. Not for sale in the gift shop at the end of the tour though--too bad.

Believe it or not, there are more buildings to come in my next post--so many open doors. Hope you'll come back for the tour.