Paris In The 1950's - Now That Was A Time

On this Sunny Friday in Beverly Hills, I am missing my Paris, more to the point the Paris of my youth in the 1950's and the following clip from the 1950's movie - 'Funny Face' - will give you a good idea of what Paris looked like in the the 1950's.
Its fun and ya know......................................., the city is still beautiful..............
.it always will remains so.

Roscoff, Brittany, France - My New Found Love!

The town of Roscoff, in northern Brittany, is as disarming a granite-built little port as any in Brittany, Coastal southwest England or American's Maine coastline villages to be exact. 
The town, although it seems like a village, is open to the sea but drawn tight round the community. Shipping and free-booting wealth equipped it with a framework of fine solid 216th and 17th century houses. Some fishing continues and good beaches ( somewhat cold to swim in) have a generous coating of pleasure seekers. 
Brittany like its two other regions in France ( Alsace and Corsica) are very independent and have their own culture, language, music and customs. Brittany is closer to southern England and Ireland in many ways than to France. In fact  Ferries from Ireland and Plymouth come into port every day. The music you hear all over Brittany is Celtic. Close you eyes and you'll think you are in Ireland. 
The storybook harbor and towns buildings are trimmed with flowers and  it is one of the , if not the most pleasing places to stay for awhile anywhere in France.

It's also the home to the Onion Jonnies - these were Breton Farm men who used to cycle around Britain, peddling their local pink onions ( and are they great!) door-to-door With berets, hooped shirts and bikes laden with onion-string, they established the caricature of Frenchmen for British people who rarely saw any others. 

There are two wonderful hotels here, also the boat 15 minutes over to the tropical island of Batz, After Roscoff drive east along the most fantastic coastline called 'the Pink Granite' coast to another wonderful town called Perros-Guirec.
If I had to live in France ( which I want to do) then Roscoff would be where I would end my days; happy and content,no question about it. Brittany and Roscoff have captured my heart and soul.
Email me about more details of this magical place.   

I Am Back From My Month In France

My travels took me to Brittany - Northern and Western Finistere ( Like having to pick your favorite child - what is my favorite area of France? well, truth be told.. its Brittany - the New England of France), then I flew to Lyon and headed a bit north to the Beaujolais area ( much more dramatic than its neighbor Burgundy in my opinion) and then worked my way south towards Provence - Northern Provence first , in the Drome area ( the hidden part of Provence) and then into the Luberon Valley ( the heart of Provence) and then drove to the Marseilles airport to catch a flight to Paris and then 30 minutes north a new hotel, a new and fabulous hotel in Chantilly and its chateaux. Photo below.

Forget Versailles, this is the place along with the Vaux-le-Vicomte Chateaux south of Paris. 

In between a few restaurant highlights, including Anne Sophie Pic's new bistro in Valance. 

So, stand by for more in-depth reports of my trip........

I am Off To France For a Month - Hurrah!

Dear Readers
I am off to France for about a month and so I'll pick up blogging on my return in late may.
If you ask? I am visiting my beloved Brittany and then on to northern Provence to check out new and old hotels to see how they are doing for my clients.

oh yes! I am eating some of the most glorious food in the world and enjoying the company of French old and new friends ( they are the best)