When in Paris, go to Rome. Say what? Well, let me explain. France, like most of Europe, was once occupied a part of the Roman Empire. Though Paris seems thoroughly French today, there’s one amazing leftover from the time when Julius Caesar’s army ruled: Les Arènes de Lutèce. It’s one of my favorite Paris attractions. [...]

Louis XIV’s spectacular domain was the summit of French power, art, and culture. If you’re going to do Versailles at all, do it right, and do it with as little stress as possible. Most people will only remember stifling crowds, long lines for everything, overpaying, and leaving with the sense that not only did they [...]

Kings since Samson wore long hair as a crown of power. Louis XIV was losing his hair at the age of seventeen. He needed hair. What did he do? He ordered a wig and began an entire industry. In Egypt a shaved head identified someone as a high priest to the pharaoh. After the Second [...]

Opening today at the Orsay Museum is one of the most awaited exhibitions of the year: “A Passion for France,” 70 paintings from the Marlene and Spencer Hays Collection. The Hays are an American couple from Tennessee. Mr. Hays is president of the American Friends of the Orsay. The couple’s Nashville residence is a reproduction [...]

The spring tourists are here – here in Paris. Not long ago the last of the February tourists had left–which was just after the Christmas tourists had left. And here some thousands of tourists are back. But who is complaining–apart from me who would love to have the Mona Lisa all to herself? No one [...]

One of the most influential architects and furniture designers of the 20th century, the Hungarian Marcel Breuer is having an important retrospective. After being a Bauhaus student, at only age 23 Breuer invented the landmark modern furniture using tubular steel. Organized by the Vitra Design Museum, the exhibition also includes models of Breuer’s renowned buildings such as the Whitney Museum [...]

If you want to understand Paris fashion—from couture to street style—head over to the Museum of Decorative Arts. Every new exhibition claims to be a Paris must-see but their “Fashioning Fashion” is unique. Here, in one hundred outfits, you can see how history’s best-dressed Europeans actually looked. Amazingly, every piece is also in perfect condition. The show [...]

The construction of this grand church was started in 1823 under the reign of Louis XVIII and was completed in 1836 under Louis-Philippe. The elaborate murals were painted directly on the walls and one can see sections which are being restored. Considered too modern, too bright with gas lighting, the walls are entirely covered with [...]

I had recently read about a fashion exhibit at the Lace Museum in Calais. I checked the train schedule and Calais was an hour and forty minutes from Paris and the fares were reasonable. We arrived about 11:30 and walked through the quiet, working class city to get to the museum. Most people know Calais for its ferries [...]

Eileen Gray is synonymous with Le Corbusier and Mies Van Der Rohe for having created the revolutionary modern design movement in the early 1900s. The new exhibit at the Centre Pompidou encompasses many of her most iconic pieces and designs including Monte-Carlo Boudoir, the rue Bonaparte bedroom, and her own Villa Tempe a Pailla E1027 house [...]