The "Grand Double Séjour" as it was on Monday...Out with the Old...

Out with the Old, In with the New. Pain or Pleasure?

Parler Paris...
Your taste of life in Paris and France
http://www.parlerparis.com/
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Paris, France





Community Calendar Updated Every Wednesday

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Learn everything to make your French property dream a reality...

Living and Investing in France Real Estate Conference!
February 16-17, 2008
Alliance Française, Miami, Florida

If you've always dreamed of owning your own "pied-à-terre" in Paris or home in the Provinces of France, perhaps as a future retirement home or for now as investment property rented part of the year...this power-packed two-day conference is a MUST.

Hosted by Adrian Leeds, long time resident of Paris, Editor of the Parler Paris Newsletter and French Property Insider weekly E-zine and John Howell, lead attorney for the International Law Partnership, London, these two days in Miami will point you in the right direction to make it really happen! Includes three course lunch and cocktail reception.

For more information and to register, visit: http://www.frenchpropertyconference.com/

Or email Schuyler Hoffman at RSVP@adrianleeds.com

 

Dear Parler Paris Reader,

I haven't seen Paris in several days now, except from the bedroom window and the news and information online and on TV. The flu that has been running rampant through the city caught up on the unsuspecting victim that I am.

Thanks to the latest technology (a laptop computer, WiFi, Web Cam, cordless phones and remote controls), the office can be almost fully functional from the bed without having to move a muscle except for an occasional trip to the loo. Even the doctor (the most amazing physician anyone has ever had), faxed a prescription for antibiotics that could be printed from across the apartment.

Friends have steadily volunteered to bring in food, so while the restaurants have been missing the usual patronage, I'm not for wont. After a tiresome trip to the pharmacy on the corner, then at the market while purchasing "Actimel" (Dannon's "DanActive" in the U.S. -- which helps strengthen your body's defenses), wearing gray pajamas under a winter coat with a white beret closely resembling the color of my skin, I bumped into Omar, of Chez Omar, the favorite neighborhood "cantine." Even he remarked about the white tone having replaced the normally healthy red.

Meanwhile, the renovation to the apartment scheduled to start yesterday has been postponed till next Monday providing time to recuperate. Le Provençal sits patiently awaiting its next guest -- me.

The upholsterer, a man with amazingly the same name as the street on which Le Provençal resides, Monsieur Charlot, came yesterday to take away the couch and arm chairs that have been dear to the family for almost 20 years. Untold numbers of friends have slept on that comfy couch over the years, with its colorful California print that American friends found inviting and French friends found tasteless!

Monsieur Charlot left the "grand double séjour" vacuous and hollow, exposing the old oak parquet floors' previously hidden scratches, the balls of dust that had accumulated behind the furniture and an echo of every sound. For the moment, it's a sad state of affairs for this room that has seen more human activity than most, acting as living room, dining room and office for the last 10 years, and now it must wait a few more days before the real work begins.

Over the next six weeks, a complete metamorphosis will take place. A "meneusier" (cabinet-maker) is constructing a double desk unit to span the length of the room. The electrical wiring put in myself will be completely redone to include enough plugs to satisfy a multitude of computers, printers, modems, routers, phones, etc. New lighting will be installed to enhance the art. Cabinet doors will be added to hide the dozens of old files that the IRS says one can't dispose of for seven years. The dining room wall will get mirrored to add a sense of space and the ceiling will get classic molding.

Sitting propped up in bed with a view on the now unfurnished half-lived-in room through the double French doors, the memories of all the wonderful moments that have taken place in that space pass by my eyes like a parade of costumed merriment and a sense of loss has set in. Out with old, in with the new...and I wonder how many times over the course of the last three-and-one-half centuries this room as suffered the same pain or pleasure?

A la prochaine...

Adrian Leeds
Editor, Parler Paris

 

 

P.S. For a personal recommendation of the best doctor in Paris, email me at adrian@adrianleeds.com

P.P.S. It happened again, as it always does...when a reader doesn't agree with what I have to say, usually something politically oriented as was Monday's newsletter about voting the American primaries by Internet, they tell me I don't have a right to say it at all! Funny about that...somehow I assume that in my own newsletter, I DO have the right to say anything I wish! No? Note that there was no political view expressed, but only an encouragement of readers to express their own opinions. Yet, some found that offensive. Not a very 'democratic' outlook, is it?

Getting a mortgage in France is easier than you think...

Let us show you just how hassle-free it can be to get a French property mortgage for your dream Paris pied-à-terre or villa in the country!

Visit http://www.frenchpropertyloan.com or contact Mortgage Manager John Rule at loan@adrianleeds.com

This Week in French Property Insider...

rue de SaintongeThe Face Lift of rue de Saintonge, Part I
By Adrian Leeds

The project has loomed over my head for years -- repainting and renovating the living room and bathroom of my personal apartment...Subscribers Read On...

Learn how to buy property in France!

French Property Insider is a weekly e-zine, sharing insights, recommendations, tips, and discoveries about Paris real estate and French property. Each information-packed issue is devoted to educating its readers on how to effectively, efficiently and profitably purchase property in France.

For more information visit http://www.frenchpropertyinsider.com or email info@adrianleeds.com

Fast, Fun, Easy Cash: Pocket an Extra $1,000 a Month with Your Everyday Snapshots

If you can click a camera and you can spare a couple of hours on a Saturday or Sunday now and then, you can easily snag a tidy $1,000 a month taking snap shots in your own backyard... on your family vacations... or anywhere in the world you care to travel.

It's simple. It pays well. And best of all... it's A TON OF FUN!

You don't need fancy equipment. And you don't need to know a thing about photography to get started. You don't even have to quit your day job (if you don't want to, that is). Most photographers I know are turning a picture here and a snapshot there into cash in their spare time.

Here's everything you need to know about this fun and lucrative side-business: http://www.thephotographerslife.com/phc/09

We wanted better guides. So we wrote them.

Insider Paris Guides are written for people who love the City of Light. You'll get a Paris insider perspective on Good Value Restaurants... Making a Life... Black Culture... Expat Writers...plus the newest guide, Practical Paris!

Visit http://www.insiderparisguides.com

PARLER PARIS APARTMENTS
http://www.parlerparisapartments.com
Email: Apartments@AdrianLeeds.com

Welcome to your home in Paris. Home is how you will feel in a private apartment in Paris that has the "seal of approval" from Parler Paris Apartments and me, Adrian Leeds.

NEW LISTING!

Mon Petit Château
3rd Arrondissement, Le Marais
One-Bedroom Duplex, Sleeps up to 4

A magnificent illuminated glass staircase, as unique as a work of art, is the centerpiece of this charming little country house in the middle of Paris....

Reserve now! Visit http://www.parlerparisapartments.com/rentals/chateau.html
or email: Apartments@AdrianLeeds.com 

Parler Paris Après Midi
http://www.parlerparis.com/apresmidi.html

Come for a drink and to meet and chat with other readers in Paris...

The next gathering is February 12, 2008 and every second Tuesday of the month.

Parler Parlor French-English Conversation Group
http://www.parlerparlor.com/

 Practice speaking French and English. Make friends, discuss interesting topics, learn about other cultures, progress in understanding and speaking, naturally and easily. Meets three times a week -- come as often as you like!

For further details, visit http://www.parlerparlor.com

NEW LOCATIONS AND TIMES

NEW
Tuesdays 6:30 to 8 p.m. and Saturdays 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
AT LUTÈCE LANGUE
23, boulevard de Sébastopol (at the corner of rue de la Reynie), 1st arrondissement
3rd Floor on the Left (read notice on door to obtain entry code)
Métro Châtelet, Les Halles

NEW
Wednesdays 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
AT BISTROT DE LA GRILLE SAINT GERMAIN
14 rue Mabillon, 6th arrondissement
(at rue Guisarde and Le Marché Saint-Germain) 1st Floor
Métro Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Mabillon, Odéon

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The Art of Living Guide to Le Marais.

http://www.parismarais.com/parismarais-newsletter.htm

 

 

France Today The Magazine of French Culture and Travel, delivers all the information you need to indulge your passion for France: travel advice you won’t find anywhere else, off-the-beaten-path trips, the inside track on trends in dining, hotels, shopping and style, and the culture scene.

To subscribe, visit http://www.francetoday.com or call 1-800-901-6560

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Copyright 2008, Adrian Leeds®
Adrian Leeds Group, LLC, http://www.adrianleeds.com