posted by Charles H. Russo on Oct 25
Florence, Italy is Italy’s foremost Renaissance city. It is the home of Dante, Michelangelo, Machiavelli and the Medici. The city has so much art and history that it can be overwhelming.
In fact the beauty of the city has caused some people to faint. The French writer Stendhal was so dazzled by the beauty of Chiesa di Santa Croce that he was unable to walk. This condition is now known as the Stendhal syndrome and Florentine doctors treat dozens of cases a year.
As beautiful and remarkable as Florence is most of the year, it is hot, crowded and polluted in the summer. If at all possible you should visit Florence in the fall, spring, or winter when you can enjoy all that the city has to offer.
Read the rest of this entry »
posted by Charles H. Russo on Oct 25
The island?s chronicles say that the conquerors, after disembarking, settled down on the Guiniguada ravine. Before finishing the conquest, they had already built the first villages on the hillock where the Castilians had set up camp. During the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, the city grew towards inland areas, occupying the vegetable and fruit plots, which the first settlers liked so much. Nowadays, the Palmas of Gran Canaria has become, according to the University of Syracuse, the city with the best climate in the world, as average annual temperatures are around 22? C.
Read the rest of this entry »
posted by Charles H. Russo on Oct 24
This afternoon I had Moroccan mint tea at the Institut de le Monde Arabe with a textile designer who divides her time between Los Angeles and Paris. What a dream job, right? With that instant rapport that we Americans often have, we had quite the interesting discussion about the brush fires in Southern California; politics; the Middle East; Paris; our children; work. On the way home, I couldn’t resist photographing the windows of a local chocolatier. The French make a half-hearted attempt to acknowledge Halloween, decorating windows of chocolate shops and boulangeries and some stores. But they don’t dress up in costumes or go trick or treating. For Europeans, the holiday to celebrate is November 1, All Saints Day.
Read the rest of this entry »
posted by Charles H. Russo on Oct 23
Savon d’Alep was the first hard soap in the world and is justifiably famous. Made with no artificial additives and chemicals, just pure olive oil and sweet bay oil, it dates back thousands of years and is made in Aleppo in Syria. Savon de Marseille is a mere youngster in comparison dating from the 15th century and was a copy-cat version of Savon d’Alep.
For the best buy, head for one of M?nilmontant’s orientale grocery shops, and pick up a supply for 2 euros a handsome-sized block. Alternatively, available in the bio (organic) market on Raspail each Sundays at 6 euros, or at Natures et Decouvertes in the Carrousel du Louvre for 6.95–for exactly the same size!
Read the rest of this entry »
posted by Charles H. Russo on Oct 23
Savon d’Alep was the first hard soap in the world and is justifiably famous. Made with no artificial additives and chemicals, just pure olive oil and sweet bay oil, it dates back thousands of years and is made in Aleppo in Syria. Savon de Marseille is a mere youngster in comparison dating from the 15th century and was a copy-cat version of Savon d’Alep.
For the best buy, head for one of M?nilmontant’s orientale grocery shops, and pick up a supply for 2 euros a handsome sized block. Alternatively, available in the Bio (organic) market on Raspail each Sundays at 6 euros, or at Natures et Decouvertes in the Carrousel du Louvre for 6.95….. for exactly the same size!
Read the rest of this entry »
posted by Charles H. Russo on Oct 22
The Southwest port city of Plymouth, England extends a flowery welcome to visitors. The floral design is spelled out on the Hoe, or high ground overlooking the seafront.
American and British flags flying over Pilgrims’ Point, Plymouth, leading to the entrance to the Mayflower Steps. The steps are believed to be the ones the Pilgrims descended when boarding the Mayflower, before setting sail for America. In 2000, visiting for the first time, tears came to my eyes at the unexpected sight of the American flag.
Read the rest of this entry »
posted by Charles H. Russo on Oct 19
In most Italian cities, cats roam at will, foraging and begging for food, making their presence known in alleyways, on church steps, and even hanging around famous monuments.
This, for example, is the view from our hotel window in Naples a few years ago. These kitties showed up the minute we opened the shutters, and kept up a three-day chorus of meows and purrs until at last we tossed some tuna out the window.
Read the rest of this entry »
posted by Charles H. Russo on Oct 15
10 octobre 2007 - 6 janvier 2008
Two must-see exhibitions at the Maison Europ?ene de la Photographie, covering America’s social undertones of the 70s.
“Tulsa, 1963-1971″ by Larry Clark
After having studied at the Layton School of Art in Milwaukee (Wisconsin), Larry Clark came back to his birthplace in 1963 where he photographed himself and his friends for a period of eight years. Aged in his twenties, he stated, without any concession, a drift of American youth lost between drugs, sex and violence. In his work entitled “Tulsa,” a collection of photographs reveal themselves to be both a private diary, and a rare document recording the trouble and misery of deep America. Published in 1971 by Ralph Gison (Lustrum Press), Tulsa created a scandal in the artistic scene, but remains a work of reference for a considerable number of contemporary photographers. You might recognize Martin Scorsese and Gus Van Sant’s inspiration from his work in their films Taxi Driver and Drugstore Cowboy, who then encouraged the artist to make his own film, the scandalous Kids.
Read the rest of this entry »
posted by Charles H. Russo on Oct 14
Weekend reading from the bookshop: Turkish writer and Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk’s Other Colours (essays on life, art, books and cities) and The Man in the White Sharkskin Suit, My Family’s Exodus from Old Cairo to the New World by Lucette Lagnado. Oscar Hijuelos, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author, calls Lagnado’s book “…beautifully written…rich with history and insightful. Wonderful.”
I also bought the October issue of BBC’s Homes and Antiques magazine and came home to find an invitation to the Salon Antiquities at 62 Avenue de la Grande Armee, Paris. It continues from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily through October 21. Take the Charles de Gaulle Etoile or Porte Maillot metro to reach the fair.
Read the rest of this entry »
posted by Charles H. Russo on Oct 14
Compiled by Hotel Teatro Concierge Carolyn Bartel
Shops
Cry Baby Ranch
Roxanne Thurman opened her doors in 1990 but moved to the north side ofLarimer Streeta few years ago in order to expand her ???homestead.??? Turning the term ???western wear??? on its ear, this boutique offers cowgirl boots, irreverent tees, outerwear and fabulous accessories. From panorama rawhide lampshades to custom jewelry; designer scarves (created by the family of the ???dickie??? inventor!) to vintage cowgirl home furnishings and bath products, this eclectic shop is a treat for the inner-cowgirl in all of us. Catering toDenver???s more upscale visitors, Cry Baby Ranch also does a bang-up business on line and is a favorite for mail orders from Hotel Teatro???s more high profile guests.
Read the rest of this entry »