My favourite hotels in Paris
Safety and refuge is what I seek in a hotel. In turn that implies that the décor is aesthetic, the staff welcoming,...
27 December, 2022 / 0 Comments
Paris food & wine: south 11th – Séptime
On the rue de Charonne, in the backstreets of Paris' 11th district, just north of the Gare de Lyon, is a cluster of...
27 December, 2022 / 0 Comments
Paris food & wine: north 11th & Oberkampf
If I could live anywhere in Paris, I would chose an apartment overlooking the Maurice Gardette Square – the largest patch of...
22 November, 2022 / 0 Comments
Marseille: ‘Garlic, Mint & Sweet Basil’
I feel at home on the streets of Marseille. Maybe because I'm an exile (by choice). "Marseille is, and always has been,...
30 July, 2022 / 0 Comments
Lyon: capital of gastronomy
I sneaked in a visit to Lyon just before the arrival of the summer heat wave – or la canicule as the French...
25 July, 2022 / 0 Comments
Meadow-time at PRaiRiaL in Lyon
PRaiRiaL, a Michelin-starred restaurant in Lyon's Presqu'île district, is named after the ninth month in the French Republic calendar – the month of...
22 July, 2022 / 0 Comments
Arles in the frame
For the first time ever, I joined everyone who is anyone in photography in Arles for Les Rencontres d’Arles 2022 – an annual...
17 July, 2022 / 0 Comments
A weekend in Nantes ‘solidaire’
I spent a weekend in Nantes this June as part of my quest to find a city where the energies are right and...
08 July, 2022 / 0 Comments
Solo in Bordeaux for 2 days
A mere two hours south west of Paris by train, Bordeaux is a cool contender for a weekend break by the water. ...
23 April, 2022 / 0 Comments
My Cannes Awards go to…
I've been to Cannes more times than any other town (not city) in Europe. It's always for work, for an event, whether...
19 March, 2022 / 2 Comments
Bourse de Commerce: beauty in the building
"Beauty is the promise of happiness,” wrote French writer Stendhal in 1822. I went along to the Bourse de Commerce, in Paris' 1st...
26 November, 2021 / 0 Comments
Fleur de Pavé in Paris: Sylvain Sendra
Familiarity is comforting. It creates a warm feeling. That’s why I returned to Fleur de Pavé this autumn (2021). The...
25 November, 2021 / 0 Comments
Paris food & wine: Belleville
I discovered Belleville when I stayed at Babel Hotel Belleville, which has become one of my favourite hotels in Paris. Belleville is...
21 November, 2021 / 4 Comments
Knowing your linen from your flax
Homemade sourdough was so on trend for 2020. With the start of Fashion Revolution Week on 19 April, how about switching to weaving...
16 April, 2021 / 0 Comments
Eating & drinking in Reims
It was three summers ago that I was sitting one evening around a table in Koko Doko in Reims, the champagne capital...
07 August, 2020 / 0 Comments