Wednesday, February 27, 2019

Glamour - an old fashioned word, returns to Paris once again

I for one have always thought I was born too late. I would have much preferred to have been around during the 1920's and into the 1930'as, in Paris and London. 
It seems to me, the younger generation is always chasing what is new as I have always been chasing the past. I thought the old fashioned word, GLAMOUR,  was dead, but in Paris ( and London) I find its not dead, but very much alive, what with hotels like The Bristol, La Reserve, the Plaza Athenee and now the opening or shall I say, the reopening of the Hotel de Crillon.


The historical building,  a landmark dating back to 1758 and used as a private residence until 1909, when it became a hotel., The Hotel de Crillon , it was here that Marie Antoinette had piano lessons and where the cream de la cream of the worlds celebrity stayed , closed in 2013 to undergo a whopping renovation that take 4 years to complete.  I loved the hotel as it was, and was fearful it would lose the glamour of the past, but it was worth the wait, as the no-expense project brought this grande dame of Paris into the present day and I must admit it  to keep its former glory, embracing its legacy while ensuring it met the demands of the modern traveler. 

My biggest fear was that the famous restaurant Les Ambassadeurs ( where I spent a lot of time and celebrations) would be ruined when they decided to turn it into a bar, but I was wrong, the bar is the kind you always imagined you'd find in Paris wit its velvet seats, slick cocktail list and its blowdried-to-perfection clientele. The rooms well? just a dream now - powder-grey, light and soft with giant beds. Perfect!
I can say, there really is no where else quite like the Hotel de Crillon.

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