Parisian yoga studio "Made in New York" with classes in French and English for all levels
and all ages 7/7.
Special 1st time offer: 35€ for 10 day unlimited pass with mat rental included!
For schedule and more information: bigappleyogafrance.com
Contact: bigappleyogafrance@gmail.com
Since you loved my article and blog about Capadoccia, Turkey last week, I thought I would treat you to another series of photos. Do you have some favorites?
Please don't forget to RSVP to Pauline Bernard event@hotel-pont-royal for the opening of my photo exhibit on February 5.
The modern day Queen of Burlesque, Dita Von Teese is joining the cast of the Paul Gaultier smash hit show Freak Show for only seven performances, January 22 to 27, 2019.
Von Teese and Gaultier are big fans of each other and are ecstatic to be collaborating together.
Freak Show, is an autobiographical musical and dance show about world famous fashion designer Jean Paul Gaultier. Running since October 2018, it’s been loved by critics and audience alike, selling out most of its run.
Von Teese is a global star, bringing old fashioned burlesque to a new generation of admirers for over two decades, elevating the art form to a new level. She gets her cue and inspiration from burlesque queens and pin-up girls from the past including Gypsy Rose Lee, Betty Grable, and Betti Page. Her last show “The Art of the Teese” played internationally to standing room only audiences.
If you haven’t seen Freak Show yet, now is a great opportunity to see this terrific show. Click here to read my review from last October.
Dita Von Teese in Jean Paul Gaultier’s Freak Show
January 22-27, 2019
Follies Berger 32 rue Richer, 75009
https://www.foliesbergere.com/uk
Please don't forget to RSVP to Pauline Bernard event@hotel-pont-royal for the opening of my photo exhibit on February 5.
After I left Istanbul in November, I headed to Capadoccia for three days. I took a 7AM flight (Mind you, at the Istanbul airport you have to go through security with your bags twice before you board), so I had to wake way before the crack of dawn.
It was only a 90-minute flight, so arriving at 8:30AM, I had the entire day to explore Cappadocia on my own, before I joined a tour group the next two days.
It was about a 20-minute ride to my hotel from the airport and I could already spot the dramatic mountain ranges.
The hotel was in Uchisar, the highest point of the Cappadocia province. Pulling up to the Karlik Evi Hotel, with quaint knick- knacks and terracotta pots covering the stone façade, I thought I was visiting a Turkish grandmother’s home. Inside it was a cross between an arts and crafts haven and a flea market, with dozens of folkloric and contemporary paintings, heavily carved wood furniture, oriental rugs, bric-a-brac, and backgammon sets resting on tables.
I walked to the back of the hotel and not only discovered exceptional views of the mountains and valleys but a working farm with a chicken coop, rabbit pen, and horses. There were also two swimming pools and a sculpture garden.
My room was quite grand with a floating bed with a shimmery, red wine colored bedspread and matching pillows, stone walls, and best accessory of all, a tall, antique dial telephone, which actually worked. My desk was decorated with red votive candles, and hearts on a string made of twisted paper. A daybed on the floor was made of pillows covered in tapestries and red and striped twill throw pillows. The terrace overlooked the valley and I inhaled the mountain air, which had a trace of chimney smoke from local fires.
After I checked in the hotel, I took a late morning stroll through the mostly unpaved streets and footpaths in the village. In between taking in the views, I browsed the souvenir and craft shops; one shop with hand stitched and hand painted table and bedroom linens caught my eye. I ended up buying a beautiful red silk and linen tapestry, which now hangs over my couch.
Hungry for lunch, I spotted an intriguing looking hotel. Blocked by a tractor, the owner told me the hotel was closed for renovation. I asked if he knew a good place for lunch and he mentioned he had just opened a new restaurant. He was kind enough to have his driver take me the restaurant. Looking more like a chic boite in Paris, than in the middle of a modest rural village, Reserved Restaurant was the place to be. The fab interior had turquoise velvet tufted chairs, cream color marble floors, exposed rock walls, and petrified wood tabletops. I learned the chef used to work at the Four Seasons in Istanbul. I ordered an appetizer of five different spreads; hummus, baba ghanoush, sun-dried tomato, red pepper and ground pistachio served with a bowl of olives and home-baked bread. It was so delicious and filling, I didn’t have room for a main course. The waiter offered a complimentary glass of Turkish red wine, which was excellent with my spreads. I was so impressed with Reserved Restaurant, I returned the next night for dinner.
The next morning the hotel kindly arranged a complimentary, small group tour, covering the northern part of the area and Goreme, the main site seeing town. An open-air museum was the first destination, a spectacular site of ancient monasteries and churches carved from natural stone. Mostly intact wall paintings with vividly colored illustrations from the Bible from the 10th to 12th century were located in a few of the caves. A towering seven-story rock mass contains the Nunnery, a centuries-old chapel. Our next stop was the Monks Valley, famous for natural rock formations resembling chimneys and mushroom tops.
One of the best things Cappadocia is known for is their hot air balloons rides. You may have seen photos of colorful balloons hovering over the valley. I was scheduled to take one the next morning at sunrise (another crack of dawn wakeup call) but unfortunately it was cancelled due to inclement weather. I was bummed because it was my last morning in Cappadocia but I realized it would be a perfect reason to return on another trip.
Since I wasn’t able to take my balloon ride, I booked another tour small group tour. Organized by Ala Turka Tours, it was a full-day Green Tour of the southern part of Cappadocia. The landscape colors were quite different than the day before, with stunning hues of orange, pink, and green painting the mountains and rock formations. The best part of the tour was a 2.5-hour mostly, flat hike through the Meskendir Valley. At every turn and twist was another take-my-breath-away landscape, the likes of which I have never seen before. I felt as though I were on another planet. I’ve been to the Grand Canyon, Death Valley, many of the western National Parks in the U.S. and Petra, Jordan, but they seemed one-dimensional compared to the incredible variety of colors and landscapes in Cappadocia. I was told it was even more spectacular in spring and summer when the trees and wild flowers are in bloom.
The weather had been mostly overcast the three-days I was in Cappadocia, but as we approached a bare-bones café carved into the mountains, the clouds parted and blue skies and sunshine prevailed. The group sipped on fresh pressed orange and pomegranate seed juice, taking in the magnificent terrain, now cast with a different light.
Cappadocia is probably one of the most naturally beautiful places I have ever travelled to and I can’t wait to return.
Karlik Evi Hotel
Reserved Restaurant
Tel. +903842192523
Andromeda Tours- private and group tours
http://www.andromedatour.com/category/cappadocia/
Ala Turka- private and group tours
https://www.alaturkaturkey.com/cappadocia-tours
I was fortunate to stay in some great hotels in Istanbul, all with excellent service, convenient locations, and cool interiors.
The Fairmont Quasar Istanbul is a design hotel knockout with two soaring, modern towers make is presence known on the skyline. Pulling up to the lobby in my taxi, the outside pillars were graphically painted by local graffiti artists. I later learned the hotel sponsors a special program committed to showing the work of Istanbul artists.
As I waited for my room to be ready, I toured the lobby, bar, tea salon, and restaurant. All of them were so chicly designed and inviting, I wanted to sit in every last chaise, chair, ottoman, and sofa. Soft palatable colors of cream, taupe, chocolate brown, were accented with bold orange accents.
My room was sleek and sexy with cool electronic features, including a digital control panel to manage the lights, temperature, window blinds, and television. A tufted, dark leather headboard gave the room a masculine feel but was softened with white cotton bed linens. The room is on the 16th floor with unobstructed, outstanding views of Istanbul; I spent a long time gaping at the thriving metropolis below. The shower room has ability to turn into a steam bath but I didn’t make time to try it. An appetizing selection of nuts, dried fruits, and olives was a perfect late afternoon snack.
Breakfast was quite an extravagant buffet with three stations, way too much to choose easily from. American and Chinese cuisine plus Turkish specialties such as yogurt, white cheese and pastries and homemade breads were served
One afternoon I made an appointment for a gommage treatment and massage. I had requested a male masseuse but at the last minute he wasn’t available, so as an apology, the hotel extended my initial 30-minute massage to 60 minutes.
I sat in a huge tub while the masseuse gently washed my body repeatedly and then briskly rubbed with me with a cloth to exfoliate my dead skin. I went into a coma-like sleep during my massage, as my tired and overworked muscles from miles of walking the past few days were worked on. When I woke up I was totally relaxed and spent about 30 minutes cozied up in my thick, terry robe in a chaise lounge in front of the soothing swimming pool.
That evening I had dinner at Ukiyo, an Asian fusion restaurant in the hotel. Located on a high floor with aerial views of the Bosporus, the dramatic interior was dark and trellis paneled walls were decorated with leaves and flowers. The highly flavored but light Asian cuisine was a nice alternative to the Turkish food, I had eaten all week.
I was sad to leave this design heaven, but alas I had other territory to cover.
After my stay at the incredible Four Seasons in Florence in 2016, I was psyched to stay at the Four Seasons Sultanahamet. The location was ideal, just steps away from the tourist sites of Sultanahamet, which I wrote about last week. The scale of Four Seasons Hotels is usually vast, and the setting for the Istanbul branch was a former prison. I was impressed with the courtyard formal garden surprisingly still lush with flowers, herbs, and plants in the end of November. My room was more than oversized, with two king beds and over comfortable mattresses that made me want to spend the day and night sleeping. I spent more time than usual pampering myself in the cavernous bathroom suite, treating myself to the L’Occitaine bath products.
The public rooms and the salons on the lobby floor represented stylish but classic Turkish décor with turquoise walls (did you know the word turquoise is originally Turkish?)
As usual with Four Season Hotels, the floral arrangements were works of art with sunflowers overflowing in stainless steel vases.
Breakfast was in a pleasant domed room surrounded with glass panels overlooking the lovely garden. Besides the extensive breakfast buffet, there was an omelet maker who made the fluffiest cheese omelets, the type I could never master at home, every morning. One evening I was so tired from my daytime activities, I decide to have dinner at the hotel. Funnily enough, I avoided kebabs all week for more exotic Turkish dishes, but I decided I couldn’t go home without having one. It’s a good thing I did, because this was one of the better kebobs I’ve had in a long time; the meat was succulent and spicy served with a flavorful, scented rice.
When I left my Four Seasons nest, I headed to the Amira, a small family owned boutique hotel. The staff of the hotel could not have been warmer, always helpful and honest. I saw an attractive restaurant across from the hotel and I asked the doorman if he knew about it. He tactfully replied that it wasn’t the best restaurant in the area plus it was known the Mafia owned it. A genial server at the restaurant kindly wrote down a half-dozen phrases in Turkish to get by with, including good morning, hello, please, and thank you. Karin, the owner’s daughter went out of her way to make sure I was happy with my time at the hotel. My room was small and ornate, like a little jewel box. I took the elevator to the top floor to discover the rooftop lounge and bar, which unfortunately was closed for the season. I imagined what it would be like in summertime, sipping a chilled aperitif while scanning the panoramic view. A special part of my stay at the Amira, was on my to breakfast every morning, there was a woman seated on cushions making flatbreads from filled with various spices and herbs from scratch on a table on her lap. The flatbreads were warm and delicious, a far cry from croissants in Paris.
My last night in Istanbul, I had to stay near the airport. As we all know, most airport hotels are not very stylish, pretty much standard and bland. I was surprised when I checked into the Pullman Airport Hotel, with a slick modern décor. My room was spacious and thankfully the bed was ultra-comfortable, giving me a good night’s sleep before I returned to Paris the next day. A complimentary shuttle bus from the hotel whisked me to the hotel in five-minutes.
Later in the week I will share about my other fantastic Turkey adventure.
Fairmont Quasar Hotel
Büyükdere Caddesi, 76 B Mecidiyeköy Mecidiyeköy, 34394
https://www.fairmont.com/istanbul/
Four Seasons Sultanahmet
Sultanahmet, Tevkifhane Sk. No:1, 34122 Sultanahmet/Fatih
Amira Hotel
Küçük Ayasofya Mah, Mustafa Paşa Sk. No:43, 34122 Fatih/İstanbul
Pullman Istanbul Hotel
http://www.pullmanistanbul.com/tr/
In my younger days, I was a full out disco king, going out to clubs like Studio 54 or Area in New York almost every night of the week. Strutting my best moves on the dance floor, I was stiff competition for John Travolta aka Tony Manero in Saturday Night Fever.
Nowadays, I don’t go out much anymore at night except to have dinner at restaurants. I’ve put my platform disco shoes, shiny shirts unbuttoned practically to the waist, and bell bottom pants into storage and now wear furry slippers, a Snoopy T-shirt and sweat pants at home. I’m in bed by 10PM and addicted to binge watching on Netflix and the new golden age of television.
Every once in a while, I’m invited to a new club or bar and although I don’t put my disco apparel on, I make an effort to dress myself up. In November, in a rare occasion, I was invited to two events back to back, the opening party of a new bar and the opening of a glamorous supper club and lounge.
Rhum Bar 1802 is the first exclusive rum bar in Paris, opened in November 2018 at the new Hotel Monte Cristo. The name of the hotel is based on the book, The Count of Monte Cristo by legendary French author Alexandre Dumas. Born of mixed race parents, his ancestors produced fine rums in Santo Domingo, where Dumas frequently visited. He returned from his worldwide voyages to Paris with the best rums he could find. The bar is specifically dedicated to Dumas’ passion for the great elixir.
At the opening, shots of various rums were offered along with explanations and histories of their origins. I don’t really drink straight-up rum but I did have a refreshing cocktail of rum and Champagne. The interior of the bar and lounge has the feel of a the salon of a grand t tropical plantation, decorated with wicker chairs, ceramic plates posted on black walls, tropical plants, and center bar with dark wood and blue and white ceramic tiles.
The extensive menu offers dozens of rums from around the globe including Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Fiji, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and Guatemala. White rum, amber rum, old rum, and spiced rum are the different categories. 1802 invites clients to store their special rum bottles in their cellar. They are also inviting 100 people to join the exclusive Monte Cristo Club where members receive the following perks: four hand selected bottles of rum, free participation at events at the bar including tastings and master classes, 15% discount on hotel rates, and a mixology class for four people.
Rhum Bar 1802 at Hotel Monte Cristo
20-22 rue Pascal, 75005
Metro: Censier Daubenton
https://www.hotelmontecristoparis.com/en/
Open every day 6PM to 1AM
The next night I was invited to a private dinner by a friend of a friend of mine at a new restaurant and lounge, Masha, in the 16th arr. near Place Trocadero.
As I entered the chic lobby café, dressed up in bold black and white zigzag patterned floor, black and white striped wicker banquettes, and teal blue mid-century dining chairs, I knew I was in for a special treat. I was escorted downstairs to the restaurant area, a series of three rooms.
An extended mural on the wall behind the dining banquettes by Japanese street artist Fan Sack, dominates the space (in a good way) with its sumptuous colors of red and pink. Japanese inspired throw pillows in rich patterns on the cream leather banquette softened the décor of the dining room.
Our genial host and owner of Masha, Antonin Cornet, invited some of his good friends and colleagues to experience his new venture. He proudly spoke of his new baby and highly praised his Asian chef Takahiro Matsumoto, who formerly worked with Paris chef’s Eric Frechon and Pierre Gagnaire. Matsumoto has conjured up an appealing menu of French classics with a Japanese spin and sushi chef Makoto from Tokyo slices the freshest sushi and sashimi.
Antonin highly recommended the tuna tartare with caviar as a starter, which I had no objections to and thoroughly enjoyed. Next up was a slow cooked salmon, another recommendation, which was spot on too. Still clinging to a formal French menu, there was a selection of cheeses from la maison Quatrehomme before the dessert course. Desserts were tame compared to the excitement of the other courses but the crème brulee with Hojicha (green tea) was a tad exotic.
After dinner Antonin invited us into the speakeasy for a performance by the camp singing trio of Romain Morian, Lolly Wish, and Charly Voodoo. The wild acting trio sung and joked their way though the room enticing the guests to play along with them. In between their sets, a DJ played some of my favorite disco hits from the 1970s. I was having so much fun that I didn’t leave till past the Cinderella hour, about 12:45AM.
Masha
85 avenue Kleber, 75016
Metro: Trocadero
Open for lunch Tuesday to Friday
Dinner Tuesday to Saturday, Sunday for brunch
Moi in my disco days-Dare to dance the Hustle with me?
Come experience Eye Prefer Paris live with Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I personally lead. Eye Prefer Paris Tours include many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes, food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks and gardens and much more. In addition to my specialty Marais Tour, I also lead tours of Montmartre, St. Germain, Latin Quarter, in addition to Shopping Tours, Gay Tours, Girlfriend Tours, Food Tours, Flea Market Tours, Paris Highlights Tours, and Chocolate & Pastry tours.
Tours start at 225 euros for up to 3 people, and 75 euros for each additional person. I look forward to meeting you on my tours and it will be my pleasure and delight to show you, my insiders, Paris.
Check it out at www.eyepreferparistours.com
