-
Marie-Antoinette’s Versailles Hamlet
I recently watched Sophia Coppola’s stunning version of the life of Marie-Antoinette, France’s iconic but ill-fated queen. And while enjoying this contemporary trip into a lavish piece of French history, I had the opportunity to envisage how this Austrian-born queen may have spent her time in the garden that she had built as a personal oasis. Marie-Antoinette’s Versailles Hamlet afforded her a humble retreat from the opulence and grandeur of the Versailles Chateau. The Queen’s House I first visited le Hameau de la Reine in the spring of 2016 and I must admit, I was disappointed. For metal scaffolding covered the Queen’s House that I had been so looking forward…
-
An Autumn Tour of Champagne
The late September day dawned cool and overcast. However, that did not dampen the excitement my friend and I were feeling for our upcoming adventure: an autumn tour of Champagne. We met our guide at a nearby Parisian hotel and settled in for a pleasant ride to northeastern France. In less than two hours, we arrived in Reims, the heart of the Champagne region. Here, we took a few minutes to visit the Gothic Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims. With it’s twin, square towers and stunning, rose windows, I couldn’t help but notice the similarities to Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris. I also found the expressions on some of the façade sculptures…
-
A Row Through Paris: La Traversée de Paris en Aviron
It was a cool, clear September morning as over a thousand rowers slipped their rowing sculls into the Seine on the edge of Paris. The full moon reflected off the water as the rowers took their seats in the boats and waited patiently in the darkness. At exactly 7:00 AM, the horn sounded and the oars of 220 sculls began to churn the water. Overhead, on the Pont de Sèvres, fireworks heralded the start of our 28 kilometre journey, la Traversée de Paris et des Hauts-de-Seine, a row through Paris. The Crew Convenes My Toronto crew and I had begun our tour experience the day before, convening at le MiniPalais…
-
La Sagrada Família – Gaudí’s Wondrous Masterpiece – Part 1
Towering over the skyline of Barcelona, stands the wondrous la Sagrada Família. This singular, yet unfinished, edifice is the crowning achievement of Modernista architect, Antoni Gaudí. And I was fortunate enough to visit it after finishing an amazing rowing tour down Spain’s Ebro river. I approached from the east, having made my way down the street from exploring Hopital de Sant Pau: The Other Modernista Wonder of Barcelona. Upon arriving, I was met by the elaborately decorated Nativity Façade. The Nativity Façade Gaudí’s dream for the Basilica de la Sagrada Família was to recreate the Bible story of the life of Christ in stone. Thus, he began with the Nativity.…
-
Schokoladenmuseum: The Chocolate Museum of Cologne – Part 2
My visit to the Schokoladenmuseum – Chocolate Museum – of Cologne continued with a look at the earliest known peoples who processed and enjoyed this rich treat. Food of the Gods The Aztecs and Mayans of Mesoamerica didn’t just use cacahuatl or kakaw, as they each respectively called it, as food. For them, it also became a currency and a sacrifice to the gods. So great was its use that they developed their own stone cacao grinders. And, as I shared in Schocoladenmuseum – Part 1, these would be mimicked in the industrial age by huge, automated machines. Luxury Item In the 17th-century, Spanish invaders of South America introduced hot…