I Prefer Paris

Sweet Week 4, Day 4: Paris My Sweet by Amy Thomas

I decided to end Sweet Week 4 with a sweet read: Paris My Sweet by my friend Amy Thomas. Amy is from New York and in 2009 had the good fortune of transferring to Paris for a golden job opportunity working for Louis Vuitton. Amy is a sweet freak (in fact she writes a blog called Sweet Freak) miles beyond me and makes me practically look like an amateur when it comes to uncovering the best sweets and pastries.

Paris My Sweet is a memoir about Amy's adventures living in Paris for two and a half years, the highs, the lows, and in-betweens, all set against a backdrop of methodically and obsessively uncovering the best sweets in Paris. Not only does the book constantly compare the differences between Paris and New York, it also pits the favorite French desserts and pastries against American ones, for instance macarons versus cupcakes, madeleines versus muffins, and pain perdu versus French toast. I can so identify with her constant angst about New York versus Paris, wrestling with which is better, constantly going back and forth, then finally coming to the conclusion that maybe there isn't a definitive answer.

 She covers many of my favorites- Jean Paul Hevin, Pierre Hermé, a l’Etoile d’Or, and du Pain et Des Idees, but I have learned about some new places I don't know about-Ble Sucree and Au 35. Now I have some new places to investigate for my next Sweet Week and to possibly add to my chocolate and pastry tours. The other great thing about the book is that Amy writes about some incredible sounding sweet shops in New York, many which have opened after I moved to Paris, which I will now have to try on my next New York trip. Amy smartly puts a full address list of all the Paris and New York sweet shops so you can rent a Velib bicycle and track them just like she did.

 Thanks Amy for making my sweet day and a perfect end to Sweet Week 4.

 Click here to order Paris My Sweet on Amazon.

http://dessertfordinner.blogspot.com/

 

In addition to my Eye Prefer Paris Tours, we now offer Eye Prefer New York Tours, 3-hour walking tours of New York's best neighborhoods including Soho, Meatpacking/West Village & Tribeca. Tours cost $195 for up to 3 people and $65 for each additional person.Come take a bit of the Big Apple on an Eye Prefer New York Tour!

Come experience my blog ìliveî with my Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I lead. The Eye Prefer Paris Tour includes many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes & food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks, and much more.Tours cost 195 euros for up to 3 people, and 65 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. www.eyepreferparistours.com
 

 

New! Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes
I am happy to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes. Come take an ethnic culinary journey with me and chef and caterer Charlotte Puckette, co-author of the bestseller The Ethnic Paris Cookbook (with Olivia Kiang-Snaije). First we will shop at a Paris green-market for the freshest ingredients and then return to Charlotteís professional kitchen near the Eiffel Tower to cook a three-course lunch. After, we will indulge in the delicious feast we prepared along with hand-selected wines.

Cost: 185 euros per person (about $240)
Time: 9:30AM- 2PM (approximately 4 1/2 hours)
Location: We will meet by a metro station close to the market
Class days: Tuesday,Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday
Minimum of 2 students, maximum 6 students.

Click here to sign up for the next class or for more info.

Jacqueline Luckett: Why, Oh Why, Do I Write Paris . . . ?

Jacqueline Luckett did one of our cooking classes about a year and a half ago and during our conversation while shopping at the market,  I discovered her unbridled passion for Paris. So profound is her love, it propelled her to write two novels about Paris. Her second novel, Passing Love, is hot off the presses and being released today. She describes it as " Two women dealing with lost love, secrets, and betrayal...and how Paris may hold their answers". Jacqueline has written todays blog about her fascination with Paris.

Like a character in my novel, PASSING LOVE, I’m not quite sure where my fascination with the City of Light comes from. I simply know that it’s always been there, and I’m blessed to be able to indulge it every now and then.

The first time I went to Paris, I hadn’t spoken a word of French since high school. I’d longed to see it for most of the twenty years it took me to get there. The memory of conjugated verbs and gender-based nouns took quite a while to dredge up. But I did—for the love of the language and the excitement of speaking French in France. I did tons of research, too, and made plans to see the sites and visit museums. I chucked the list at the end of my first afternoon and learned to walk purposefully, but without intention. It wasn’t until my second visit that I realized that, for me, Paris is like the fat dictionary my parents kept in our living room when I was a young girl. So many words waiting for me to discover them. A book that I could never read in one sitting, but one that I always wanted come back to.

For all of the times I’ve been, I haven't lost my passion for Paris. I hope that I never do. I try my best, each time the navette from Charles DeGaulle shuttles me toward the heart of Paris, to hold on to the feeling I had the first time I saw the city. My awe at the rushing Seine and its many bridges, the tightness of the buildings, the wide boulevards, and, of course, the Eiffel Tower off in the distance, tricking my eyes into believing it lies within my arm’s reach. With each visit, I’ve held on to my “first time” feeling. One I’ve wanted to share. On my first visit I documented my stay with photos. Since then, I’ve documented my trips with journal entries, and those words have turned into two published novels.

 English teachers and professors typically advise new writers to “write what you know.” I thought I knew Paris, but I don’t—certainly, not as well as I want to—and that’s why I keep returning, and my characters keep following me. Every trip brings a new discovery. A left or right can yield adventure, an unexpected shop, bakery, theater, bookstore, or café. New York is the only other city where I’ve had the same feeling. But, in Paris, language is the frosting on the cake. Yes, this is why my characters romp about the city, look for love in the faces of strangers, and try to discover themselves in Paris. It’s my selfish way of learning as much as I can about the place that I love.

 I write about Paris because I want to relive seeing the city for the first time. Because I want to hold on to the romance of a place where couples kiss often, freely, and without shame. Because I want to revisit all the streets that I’ve wandered and somehow memorialize them for myself, and others, so that I can pick up a book filled with my words, and recall exactly how I felt.

Jacqueline Luckett is the author of two novels in which Paris plays an important part of the story: Passing Love and Searching for Tina Turner. She lives in Northern California and travels to Paris as often as she can to practice French and sit in sidewalk cafés while drinking café crème and contemplating new story ideas.

Click here to order Passing Love from Amazon.

 http://www.jacquelineluckett.com/index.html

http://www.facebook.com/Author.JacquelineLuckett
Twitter: http://twitter.com/jackieluckett

Photos by Jacqueline Luckett

 New Eye Prefer Paris Photos for Sale

I am happy to announce the sale of a new set of prints of my Eye Prefer Paris Photos.  I am offering 20 of my most popular and iconic images for sale including my doors, architectural details, statues, and monuments. They will make great gifts for all your Francophile friends, relatives, and colleagues but don't forget to buy some for yourself.

Click here to see photos and for full details including sizes, prices, and shipping. Here is a sample of some of the photos.

 

New! Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes
I am happy to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes. Come take an ethnic culinary journey with me and chef and caterer Charlotte Puckette, co-author of the bestseller The Ethnic Paris Cookbook (with Olivia Kiang-Snaije). First we will shop at a Paris green-market for the freshest ingredients and then return to Charlotte's professional kitchen near the Eiffel Tower to cook a three-course lunch. After, we will indulge in the delicious feast we prepared along with hand-selected wines.

Cost: 185 euros per person (about $240)
Time: 9:30AM- 2PM (approximately 4 1/2 hours)
Location: We will meet by a metro station close to the market
Class days: Tuesday,Wednesday, Thursday,Friday, Saturday, and Sunday
Minimum of 2 students, maximum 6 students.

Click here to sign up for the next class or for more info.

I am pleased as punch to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I will personally be leading. The Eye Prefer Paris Tour includes many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes & food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks, and much more.

Tours cost 195 euros for up to 3 people, and 65 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

Meredith Mullins: A New Perspective

I first met Chula on a street in Paris. I admit to being terrible at recognizing celebrities, but there was something about Chula that made me take notice. (She was outside the gallery during my photography exhibition vernissage.) She seemed to be on a journey of discovery—proud, curious, and mischievous all at the same time. Part explorer. Part poster child for wide-eyed innocence. But 100% Sheltie. She was my first dog superstar … a soon-to-be-famous canine author.

The recently-released book Dog Trots Globe is Chula’s story (as barked to Sherry Long). It’s a memoir of sorts, but also a practical guide and loving look at the adventures of a dog visiting France. Chula lives a life to be envied … and, on her first journey to Europe, she split her time between the excitement of Paris and the sunny sights, smells, and sounds of Saint-Rémy-de-Provence. She’s 9 years old (roughly 63 in human years), so an international excursion was long overdue. “New tricks” were there for the taking. Every moment was a discovery.  And, as a result of Chula’s thoughts on the world, we humans see, smell, and hear a little differently.

The book is hard to categorize. It’s an amalgam of memoir, travel narrative, guide book, history tidbits, French culture, language lessons, and dog puns. It provides everything from tips on airplane travel for animals to what paperwork is needed to take your pet to France to what kind of train ticket is needed for your dog (yes, c’est vrai). It includes vivid, sensory descriptions of a dog’s life (complimented by colorful photos and illustrations) … capturing the “how to’s” of living under bistro tables, honing the art of catching spilt croissant flakes, and distinguishing among the infinite number of French cheeses.

Illustration by Darius Detwiler

Throughout the book, Chula learns things that we humans might want to know, such as how the Eiffel Tower gets painted, the outdoor market schedule for towns in Provence, and what happens at the Saint Rémy Transhumance (a celebration of sheep … 3000 of them).

I’m glad to have met Chula. In fact (full disclosure), she devotes a chapter to her visit to my photography exhibition, including her favorite photographs (she’s got good taste!) … and her agonizing discovery that her “socks” are too dirty for her to truly fit in with the elegant guests at the vernissage.

I’m glad to have met her because her book is beautifully presented and reaches out to a wide audience. One can imagine reading Dog Trots Globe with a child, discussing it with Francophiles and dog lovers, or using it for some (four-legged or two-legged) armchair traveling. And, if you download the iPad version, you get an original music score, video clips, and the opportunity to spend some up close and personal time with each photograph.

Most of all, I’m glad to have met Chula because she has made me see the world a little differently. Every moment is an adventure, deserving of the full attention of all the senses.

 Note: You can order Dog Trots Globe at amazon.com or download for the iPad. You can find some “extras” at http://www.oic-books.com/extras.

 Meredith Mullins is an internationally exhibited America photographer and writer who lives in Paris. She is the author of the award-winning book “In A Paris Moment” and an instructor of photography. Upcoming classes include a Holiday Photographic expedition on December 5 and a Words and Images course (writing and photography) beginning on January 16, 2012. For more information on these and other courses, visit www.meredithmullins.artspan.com. Meredith is also available for private photography instruction/exploration in Paris. Sign up for an information-filled, creative lesson! Her original photographs are available directly through the artist.  meredithmullins@earthlink.net or (www.meredithmullins.artspan.com)

Dirty "socks" at the vernissage

All photos by Sheron Long

Eye Prefer Paris on Twitter

I just launched a fun new daily Twitter post- Paris Photo du Jour. Every day I will post a photo of Paris. Follow me on Twitter - http://twitter.com/eyepreferparis
 

Eye Prefer Paris Photos for Sale

I am happy to announce the sale of prints of my Eye Prefer Paris Photos.  I am offering 17 of my most popular and iconic images for sale including my courtyards, doors, architectural details, statues, and monuments. They will make great gifts for all your Francophile friends, relatives, and colleagues but don't forget to buy some for yourself.

Click here to see photos and for full details including sizes, prices, and shipping. Here is a sample of some of the photos.

New! Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes
I am happy to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes. Come take an ethnic culinary journey with me and chef and caterer Charlotte Puckette, co-author of the bestseller The Ethnic Paris Cookbook (with Olivia Kiang-Snaije). First we will shop at a Paris green-market for the freshest ingredients and then return to Charlotte's professional kitchen near the Eiffel Tower to cook a three-course lunch. After, we will indulge in the delicious feast we prepared along with hand-selected wines.

Cost: 185 euros per person (about $240)
Time: 9:30AM- 2PM (approximately 4 1/2 hours)
Location: We will meet by a metro station close to the market
Class days: Tuesday,Wednesday, Thursday,Friday, Saturday, and Sunday
Minimum of 2 students, maximum 6 students.

Click here to sign up for the next class or for more info.

I am pleased as punch to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I will personally be leading. The Eye Prefer Paris Tour includes many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes & food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks, and much more.

Tours cost 195 euros for up to 3 people, and 65 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

New Cookbooks and Pastry Books

There’s an endless flow of books about Paris and France and I am sent many new books all the time. Here are three that I think are worthwhile checking out.

 Pastry Paris by Susan Hochbaum

I almost yawned when the publisher of this book said she was sending me yet another dessert book about Paris. Been there, done that, could I stand another book about an American falling in love Ladurée macarons? Well, she proved me wrong because Pastry Paris is a total delight for the senses and the palate and deserves a place as one of the more unusual French pastry books. Author Susan Hochbaum, from New York, took a year sabbatical in Paris and spent much of it indulging in pastries. Every other page has a description and sometimes a history of some of the more well-known and obscure pastries. In between are some of the most sumptuous, clever, and mind-blowing photographs of pastries I have ever seen. A white domed pastry on Place Trocadero with the Eiffel Tower in the background, a religieuse (a type of creampuff) capped with violet colored sugar icing set on a stone ledge in front of Invalides, and a barquette (a pastry resembling a boat) sitting on the bridge overlooking the Seine are just some of the imaginative ways the gorgeous pastries are shown.

 On sale now for $13.97 for a limited time http://www.littlebookroom.com/pastryparis.html

 

How to Cook Bouillabaisse in 37 Easy Steps- Culinary Adventures in Paris & Provence by Diane Shaskin and Mark Craft

Two Canadians Diane Shaskin and Mark Craft, made the moving to France dream happen much like me a few years ago. They started in Paris and then tasted and cooked their way France throughout the next several years. Their tasty jaunt takes you from Christmas in Provence, to a cheese shop in Belleville, a cooking class at the Ritz while listening to Motown music, a truffle plantation near Carpentras, and finally to Avignon where an eccentric chef teaches them how to make Bouillabaisse in only 37 steps. Along the way they share some of their best recipes including foie gras sliders (I'm dying to try this one), polenta soufflé with chevre, Rosemary beef stew with roasted parsnips, and crème brulee with lavender honey.

 $17.95 from Amazon http://www.amazon.com/How-Cook-Bouillabaisse-Easy-Steps/dp/0986824100/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1319049532&sr=1-1

The Chez Bonne Cookbook by Wini Moranville

I had written about the wonderful Chez Bonne Cookbook and also gave a copy as a prize for my last contest. Wini Moranville is an American who has spent the last 20 summers living in various small towns in France and has lovingly put together a book of every day French women's recipes. Easy to follow and practical, the recipes have no more than 6 or 8 steps and ingredients are fairly easy to come by. As I said before, Wini has inspired me to cook again and I can't wait to try some of the dishes like salmon with wine, leeks, and garlic, Pomegranate Pot-au-feu, chicken, Comté, and spinach salad with apples, and most of all the strawberry- caramel crepes with Marscapone ice cream.

$15.80 from Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Bonne-Femme-Cookbook-Simple-Splendid/dp/1558327495/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1318338491&sr=1-1

Eye Prefer Paris on Twitter

I just launched a fun new daily Twitter post- Paris Photo du Jour. Every day I will post a photo of Paris. Follow me on Twitter - http://twitter.com/eyepreferparis
 

Eye Prefer Paris Photos for Sale

I am happy to announce the sale of prints of my Eye Prefer Paris Photos.  I am offering 17 of my most popular and iconic images for sale including my courtyards, doors, architectural details, statues, and monuments. They will make great gifts for all your Francophile friends, relatives, and colleagues but don't forget to buy some for yourself.

Click here to see photos and for full details including sizes, prices, and shipping. Here is a sample of some of the photos.

New! Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes
I am happy to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes. Come take an ethnic culinary journey with me and chef and caterer Charlotte Puckette, co-author of the bestseller The Ethnic Paris Cookbook (with Olivia Kiang-Snaije). First we will shop at a Paris green-market for the freshest ingredients and then return to Charlotte's professional kitchen near the Eiffel Tower to cook a three-course lunch. After, we will indulge in the delicious feast we prepared along with hand-selected wines.

Cost: 185 euros per person (about $240)
Time: 9:30AM- 2PM (approximately 4 1/2 hours)
Location: We will meet by a metro station close to the market
Class days: Tuesday,Wednesday, Thursday,Friday, Saturday, and Sunday
Minimum of 2 students, maximum 6 students.

Click here to sign up for the next class or for more info.

I am pleased as punch to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I will personally be leading. The Eye Prefer Paris Tour includes many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes & food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks, and much more.

Tours cost 195 euros for up to 3 people, and 65 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

Books: Thirza Vallois -Around and About Paris & Traveling Kids Guide to Paris

Around and About Paris by Thirza Vallois, is one of the most beloved series of Paris guidebooks. Volume 1 featuring Arrondissements 1-7 has been updated and available now as an e-book for the Kindle on Amazon. Thirza captures the heart and soul of Paris along with fascinating histories of the city where you get a true understanding of French culture and society. I have used them to learn the history of Paris for my tours. Along with Around and About Paris -Volumes 1-3, Thirza has also written Romantic Paris and Aveyron, A Bridge to French Arcadia.

Click here to order the E-book of Around and About Paris , Volume one
Click here to order other books

http://www.thirzavallois.com/books.html

Here's what the critic's say about Thirza's books.

"There are guides to every aspect of Paris... and then there are Thirza Vallois's extraordinary Around and About Paris. This three-volume walking guide by a long-time resident unveils Paris arrondissement by arrondissement, street by street. Packed with history, anecdote and curiosity, it brings the city alive."
Anthony Sattin, Sunday Times, London.

"For anyone who loves Paris and would like to know more about its historical and literary associations, this is a well-written and astonishingly informative companion. "
The Times Literary Supplement, London. 

Travelling Kids Guide to Paris is the first Paris travel guide in English especially written for children. The book invites kids to be the real guides, showing and impressing their parents with their knowledge of the city contained in the book. There are four themed tours of Paris including a treasure hunt of Montmartre. The 96 page book with fun, colored cartoons and illustrations, also features games, puzzles, quizzes, and a notebook to journal and spaces for photos. Two adorable mascots Alex and Maya travel along with the kids for the ride of their life in Paris. Oh-la-la!

Click here to order Traveling Kids Guide to Paris or e- book
The book can also be delivered to any hotel in central Paris Monday to Friday

http://www.travelling-kids.com/

Eye Prefer Paris Photos for Sale

I am happy to announce the sale of prints of my Eye Prefer Paris Photos.  I am offering 17 of my most popular and iconic images for sale including my courtyards, doors, architectural details, statues, and monuments. They will make great gifts for all your Francophile friends, relatives, and colleagues but don't forget to buy some for yourself.

Click here to see photos and for full details including sizes, prices, and shipping. Here is a sample of some of the photos.

New! Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes
I am happy to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes. Come take an ethnic culinary journey with me and chef and caterer Charlotte Puckette, co-author of the bestseller The Ethnic Paris Cookbook (with Olivia Kiang-Snaije). First we will shop at a Paris green-market for the freshest ingredients and then return to Charlotteís professional kitchen near the Eiffel Tower to cook a three-course lunch. After, we will indulge in the delicious feast we prepared along with hand-selected wines.

Cost: 185 euros per person (about $240)
Time: 9:30AM- 2PM (approximately 4 1/2 hours)
Location: We will meet by a metro station close to the market
Class days: Tuesday,Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday
Minimum of 2 students, maximum 6 students.

Click here to sign up for the next class or for more info.

I am pleased as punch to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I will personally be leading. The Eye Prefer Paris Tour includes many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes & food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks, and much more.

Tours cost 195 euros for up to 3 people, and 65 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

James Jennifer Georgina

My friend Jennifer Butler has written James Jennifer Georgina, a very personal, sometimes painful, and revealing memoir about her struggle to cure her husband's alcoholism and at the same time protecting her daughter from the harrowing process.

James Jennifer Georgina is told through a 1,000 postcards Jennifer wrote to her daughter Georgina between 1989 and 1999 while traveling the world from Spain to Singapore in attempt to rescue her husband James, while Georgina stayed at home with various nannies.The postcards record 205 flights, 268,162 miles driven, 2 bullfights. 1 speeding ticket. 53 unpaid parking tickets. 13 cancelled flights, 1 bomb scare, and 205 churches.

The limited edition book of 999 copies is comprised of 210 postcards and designed by one of the most sought after and respected book designers in the world, Irma Boom. A colossal 1200 pages, the book has a unique binding with an outside case in understated slate gray with the title in bold letters and the jacket cover is a smart contrast of blinding taxi cab yellow. Divided into three sections, it contains the postcards, interviews, and photographs of the family.

You are invited to join Jennifer at a reading of the book on Wednesday, April 6 at 7:30PM at the America Library in Paris, 10 rue Général Camou, 7th arr.
Email alp.skesliencharles@gmail.com to RSVP.

To order book email info@erasmuspublishing.com

http://jamesjennifergeorgina.com/

Eye Prefer Paris Photos for Sale

I am happy to announce the sale of prints of my Eye Prefer Paris Photos.  I am offering 17 of my most popular and iconic images for sale including my courtyards, doors, architectural details, statues, and monuments. They will make great gifts for all your Francophile friends, relatives, and colleagues but don't forget to buy some for yourself.

Click here to see photos and for full details including sizes, prices, and shipping. Here is a sample of some of the photos.

New! Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes
I am happy to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes. Come take an ethnic culinary journey with me and chef and caterer Charlotte Puckette, co-author of the bestseller The Ethnic Paris Cookbook (with Olivia Kiang-Snaije). First we will shop at a Paris green-market for the freshest ingredients and then return to Charlotteís professional kitchen near the Eiffel Tower to cook a three-course lunch. After, we will indulge in the delicious feast we prepared along with hand-selected wines.

Cost: 185 euros per person (about $240)
Time: 9:30AM- 2PM (approximately 4 1/2 hours)
Location: We will meet by a metro station close to the market
Class days: Tuesday,Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday
Minimum of 2 students, maximum 6 students.

Click here to sign up for the next class or for more info.

I am pleased as punch to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I will personally be leading. The Eye Prefer Paris Tour includes many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes & food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks, and much more.

Tours cost 195 euros for up to 3 people, and 65 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

No Goodbyes

Today's post is sad but inspirational and a way to make a friend's final wish come true.

My friend from New York Naava Piatka has terminal cancer and is spending her last days confined in her bed at home under hospice care. Her legacy to her friends, family, and the world is a book she has written- NO GOODBYES- A Father-Daughter Memoir of Love, War and Resurrection  that honors her Holocaust survivor parents'  past, something she has been committed to for the last decade, traveling the world performing her one-woman musical show, "Better Don't Talk!"  about her mother's life as star of the Vilna Ghetto.

NO GOODBYES recounts the fascinating true stories of Naava's charismatic Holocaust survivor father, Xavier Piat, in a stirring testament to the endurance of love, the art of survival, the influence of family and the lasting impact of war. Written from two perspectives, it explores their unique and complex relationship, revealing that through the sharing of stories, they were able to come to terms with the past, finding understanding, forgiveness and renewed connection. There's a piece in the book about her 19 year old dad visiting Paris, just before the war. His divorced mom moved there, so he went to vist her and it was the last time he saw her.

Miracles do happen even in the most dire circumstances and somehow Naava pushed through her pain and exhaustion, managing to work like crazy to complete the book, design the cover and get it published and out to market.

The book is selling very well on Amazon but her wish is that it makes it to Amazon TOP Best Sellers List.
She is calling it Naava's  9-1-09 campaign to get to Amazon’s Top 100.

Why 9-1-09?
September 1st, 1979 was the day her mother, Yiddish actress Chayela Rosenthal died of ovarian cancer. (Read how she never had the chance to say goodbye to her!)
 
September 1st 1939 is also the fateful day the day Nazi Germany invaded Poland, beginning World War II and causing too many heartbreaking goodbyes in too many ruined families.

Naava and I would be so grateful to you all for being so willing to play your part in honoring the lasting legacy of the Holocaust. So I ask you to reach out to make Naava's wish come true and buy her book NO GOODBYES- A Father-Daughter Memoir of Love, War and Resurrection between 1PM & 3PM-EST today by clicking on http://tinyurl.com/buynogoodbyes

I thank all of my generous readers in advance for supporting Naava.

Also checkout the book's website http://www.nogoodbyes.info

The Restored Edition of A Moveable Feast

I've been thinking about what to post for Bastille Day/July 14 2009. I have written about the usual festivities like the fireman's ball in past years and didn't want to repeat myself. One of my tour clients Jean Pierre sent me an article about a new edition of Ernest Hemingway's A Moveable Feast to be released on July 14. Writer and editor Sean Hemingway, Ernest Hemingway's grandson, took on restoring his grandfather's original manuscript after his uncle Patrick suggested he re-examine them. He discovered that Mary, Ernest's wife and his godmother, had edited the book and made changes to it that Hemingway did not know of and replaced with her own words. The Restored Edition has a section with 10 chapters Hemingway originally didn't include and also a reproduction of parts of the original manuscripts in longhand.

The Restored Edition of A Moveable Feast is being published on July 14 2009, the 45th anniversary of the book's publication and 50th anniversary of the original manuscript. Click here to read the full article.

So, voila, this is the perfect Bastille Day story.

Click here to order on Amazon

 
Sean Hemingway- Hey, this dude is trying to copy me.

New! Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes
I am happy to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes. Come take an ethnic culinary journey with me and chef and caterer Charlotte Puckette, author of the bestseller The Ethnic Paris Cookbook. First we will shop at a Paris green-market for the freshest ingredients and then return to Charlotte’s professional kitchen near the Eiffel Tower to cook a three-course lunch. After, we will indulge in the delicious feast we prepared along with hand-selected wines.

Cost: 185 euros per person (about $240)
Time: 9:30AM- 2PM (approximately 4 1/2 hours)
Location: We will meet by a metro station close to the market
Class days: Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday
Minimum of 3 students, maximum 6 students.

Click here to sign up for the next class or for more info.

I am pleased as punch to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I will personally be leading. The Eye Prefer Paris Tour includes many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes & food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks, and much more.

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

In a Paris Moment: Meredith Mullins

I met Meredith Mullins while swigging down some wine at an afternoon tasting at Le Derniere Goutte in St. Germain last week.

Meredith is the author and photographer of the lovely and enchanting book of black and white photographs “In a Paris Moment “. When we met at the wine shop we talked briefly and hit it off and I gave her my card. She later emailed me with a nice note about liking my blog and sent me some of her recent photos. Intrigued by her work, I decided to interview her for Eye Prefer Paris.

We met at Café Hugo on the Place de Vosges and she handed me a copy of the book, which she so kindly gave me as a gift. Meredith lives between Monterey, California and Paris. In a inspiring change of mid life story, in 2004 she retired from her job of over 20 years at a major publishing house to pursue her passion for photography.

Notre Dame Jazz

The idea for the book came to her when she was shooting photos here in 1991. She’s methodical in the sense that she takes the time and patience to revisit a subject or site a few times before she photographs them, instinctually waiting for the right moment to capture. With her portraits of street musicians,performers and artists, she introduces herself to them to establish a relationship and visits them several times before photographing.

The photo of the Montmartre street artist Stevan, next to his own self-portrait, has a wonderful story behind it. The first three times Meredith asked to take his photo, he refused. She asked him once more and he said yes, saying that he respected her because she took the time to get to know him and was now sure she wasn’t some tourist looking for a cheap thrill photo. He was so pleased with her photo, that he did a portrait of her. He said there was color in the black and white photograph and Meredith said that touched her heart.

Stevan

You can see the care, and attention to quality and detail that went into the book. The paper stock is thick and silky smooth, the design elegant and pristine, and the photos exquisite.

If you want a memorable and unusual piece of Paris, buy yourself a copy “In a Paris Moment”.

In a Paris Moment by Meredith Mullins
$29.50
Click here to order on Amazon.com

L'Homme du Feu

Special April Offer: Until April 30, all tours are 160 euros instead of 175 euros. Book today and save.
I am pleased as punch to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I will personally be leading. The Eye Prefer Paris Tour
includes many of the places I have written about including small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes & food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks, and much more.

I look forward to meeting you on my tours and it will be my pleasure and delight to show you my insiders Paris.


Special April Offer: Until April 30, all tours are 160 euros instead of 175 euros.

Check it out at www.eyepreferparistours.com