Travel & Visitors Guide - Aug. 12, 2009
Pinching pennies in Paris and London
I'm about to get hitched and, subsequently, go on a honeymoon that takes us to Paris for a week and then London for a week.
Tags: recession buster getaway, paris, london, frugal traveler

Movies & TV - March 10, 2009
Lessons of "The Class" extend beyond Paris
Don't mistake actor and writer François Bégaudeau's "The Class" (or "Entre les murs" in French) for "Head of the Class" or Mr. Kotter's cast of lovable TV misfits. No, in this film of François Bégaudeau's book -- directed by Laurence Cantet -- in which the author stars as a version of himself, Mr. Marin -- is a hard-edged look at daily life in a French classroom that reflects the changing face of the country.
Tags: François Bégaudeau, The Class, Entre les murs, Paris, Cannes, Laurence Cantet, Palm d'or, Downer

Travel & Visitors Guide - March 10, 2008
Home is where the heart is
I had a great time on my 11-day light-speed tour of Germany, France and Spain. Maybe it was the 20-hour travel day from Munich to Amsterdam to Newark and finally to Milwaukee, but today has felt especially dramatic.
Tags: europe, paris, madrid, munich

Travel & Visitors Guide - March 5, 2008
Gradually making our way to Madrid
Blogging from a slowly boarding plane, which is at least 45 minutes late. Today has been frustrating.
Tags: Paris, Spain, France, CDG, DeGaulle, BMW, Madrid, Easyjet

Travel & Visitors Guide - March 4, 2008
A jam-packed final full day in Paris
Please pardon me if this blog is a little rambling. It’s 10:45 p.m., and we just got back to the hotel after 12 and a half jam-packed hours through the streets of old Paris, the Orsay Museum and Montmartre.
Tags: paris, europe, orsay, montmartre, bmw, european delivery program, madrid

Travel & Visitors Guide - March 3, 2008
Napoleon, that little guy with the Louvre-sized ego
We planned only three major sights for today’s agenda. First, we visited the Arc de Triomphe. Next, we strolled down the Champs-Elysees. Finally, we toured the major works at the Louvre. After a quiet dinner, we’re back at the hotel by 9 p.m.
Tags: paris, europe, bmw, european delivery program, louvre, france, arc du triumphe, champs-elysees, bercy

Travel & Visitors Guide - March 2, 2008
Versailles is ornate, Rodin is great, and the Seine is très bien
After a European breakfast of crepes and coffee, we set out for Versailles, the palatial estate of several kings, but most famously belonging to Louis XIV.
Tags: paris, seine, bmw, european delivery program, versailles

Travel & Visitors Guide - March 1, 2008
Hurry up and get lost (Paris edition)
The plan for tonight was supposed to be the Trocadero and the Eiffel Tower, and I’ll be damned if I wasn’t going to make this day turn out right. Exhausted and more frazzled than yesterday, we set the evening in motion.
Tags: paris, strasbourg, bmw, european delivery program, france, eiffel tower

Travel & Visitors Guide - Feb. 25, 2008
Two more sleeps till the big trip
On Wednesday, my wife and I head to Munich to pick up our BMW as part of its European Delivery Program.
Tags: bmw, european delivery program, munich, strasbourg, paris, madrid

Travel & Visitors Guide - Jan. 31, 2008
I'm re-learning French, but I hope I don't need all of it
In preparation for a trip to Europe at the end of this month, which includes Paris and Strasbourg, I bought a set of CDs recently that boast they can teach you French by listening during your commute.
Tags: paris, france, apple store, french

Movies & TV - July 28, 2007
"Avenue Montaigne" digs up the pain beneath the fame
Driven to Paris by her grandmother’s tales of glamorous Paris, Jessica (Cecile De France) of Mâcon heads to the City of Light, but like her grandmother (Eve Ruggieri), Jessica might be able to work around luxury, but is she able to live it?
Tags: Avenue Montaigne, Paris, Cecile de Paris, Sydney Pollack, Fauteuils d’orchestre

Movies & TV - July 12, 2006
Parkour overwhelms "District B13" story
In the French film "District B13" ("Banlieue 13"), opening this weekend at the Times Cinema, an ex-criminal and an undercover cop must combine forces against both a gang lord and a corrupt government official.
Tags: District B13, Parkour, Banlieue 13, Paris, France, French, Cyril Raffaelli, Dany Verissimo, Bibi Naceri

Dining - May 1, 2006
Trocadero brings a bit of France to the East Side
Styled after a European café and tabac stocked with sundries and notions, Trocadero features a bit of something for everyone, including sandwiches, cheese plates, patés and a respectable wine selection, which make it easy to live the good life (vivre bien) even on a budget.
Tags: Trocadero, tabac, cheese, wine, France, paris, Eitel

Movies & TV - July 14, 2005
"Apres Vous" brings two hours of laughs
That a film which practically opens with an attempted suicide can be described as light-hearted comedy movie fare might seem a mystery, but it's exactly right for "Apres Vous," a 2003 French film directed by Pierre Salvadori that just now arrives in the Midwest.
Tags: Apres Vous, Paris, Auteuil, Sandrine Kiberlain

Music - July 8, 2005
Despite major label leap, Death Cab fans remain loyal
Cramming 15 songs into an hour, Death Cab for Cutie's Summerfest set Thursday night was about as energetic as possible for a band whose strength lies mostly in layering introspective lyrics perfectly on top of pleasant pop melodies. But the fans ate it up.
Tags: Death Cab, Summerfest, Maritime, Von Bohlen, Paris, Tx., Paris, Texas, Barsuk, Gibbard