Entering the Re-entry to Paris

When La Rentrée hits, it hits us all with a big bang. The summer is over and the kids are back at school. All hell breaks loose as everyone goes back to work. And for some crazy reason, everything you didn’t get done during the entire month of August while you were vacationing must now get done that first week back. It’s totally insane, but oh so true.

My first week back in Paris has been filled to the brim with catching up with friends, celebrating my 30 years in France with a small group of close friends, fixing up the new apartment in Paris so it feels more like home, attending the Paraylympics at Roland Garros, buying an apartment in Nice with a big terrace and a fabulous view, visiting exhibitions (Matisse and Kelly at the Fondation Louis Vuitton), getting my Carte de Résident renewed at the Préfecture, preparing for a month or more in the U.S. (with my daughter and her soon-to-come son in Maui), planning a next birthday adventure with an old friend (to Edinburgh) and a trip away for Christmas (to a spa in Tunisia with an expert in spas), and even ordering up new sunglasses (from my favorite optician, Optique des Vosges), etc., etc., etc. And none of this gets in the way of writing three Nouvellettres® a week, or doing five two-hour consultations a week, nor answering about 150 emails every day.

Ha! A day in my life is about as jam packed as a normal person’s month. Are you exhausted reading about it? I should be by doing it all, but instead I am energized! Bring it on!

ROLLING AROUND ROLAND GARROS

Thanks to gifted tickets, Tuesday I had the pleasure of attending the Paralympic wheelchair tennis matches at Roland Garros. My friend and I arrived early and were the first in line at the gate until two French women managed to sneak in front of us—thinking they were being very clever, is my guess. We just laughed and let the French be as French as they can be.

This was my first time at Roland Garros and yes, it was impressive, but found it strangely funny that our seats were up many flights of stairs without an elevator in sight…considering who the players were! The seats had exceptional views high up, on one end with access to one of the salons where you could buy food and drinks and hang out at the tables and stools. I was very happy not to be in the center bobbing my head back and forth to follow the ball like you see on TV when the spectators are doing that tennis dance.

The matches were fascinating and amazing. To watch these athletes perform just as well as any player running on legs, wheeling and spinning to complete the shots, was an eye-opening experience of mind (and skill) over matter. We pondered their incredible upper arm strength as we watched their determination to score to win. They were no less agile and perhaps even more physically skillful than a player on legs…because they have to be.

At one point in the event, once the drizzles had stopped, the roof of Roland Garros opened, slowly sliding back, to let in the gray sky mottled with clouds. The stadium was only about one-third filled, even though I was told that the event was totally sold out. The grounds were awash with people, however, patronizing the various food stands and the large boutique filled with Olympics souvenirs, now being sold at half price. The line to check out was so long that we surmised this is where the spectators were spending most of their time…taking advantage of the bargains.

We stayed for half of the event, as each match was long—about 1.5 hours each—and that meant taking up too much time on a work day. But, it was worth every moment and we felt we had been a part of something very special. We had.

HEAVEN ON SEVENTH

“En fin!” The signing of the deed of “Heaven on Seventh,” our new apartment in Nice, finally took place Thursday afternoon. There was a lot of drama at the meeting in the Notaire’s office—that I attended on video-conference—when it was requested to sequester 30,000€ in the Notaire’s escrow account to ensure that I would not be held responsible for any costs associated with the repair of the terrace (to prevent further leaking). The seller’s representative at the meeting (the seller was on video-conferencing, too) almost cost us both the transaction while he was wildly ranting and raving, pacing about and threatening to leave the meeting. The agents tried to calm him down and get him to behave like an adult instead by simply negotiating the deal.

We came to an amount with which we could both live and the signing finally took place. My daughter and I are now proud owners of this 7th-floor penthouse close to Nice “plage.” The work to renovate it will begin this week by Martine di Mattéo and her crew. Purchasing this apartment was not just frivolous, but a great way of getting assets to my daughter inheritance tax free. (If and when you make a purchase in France, be sure to consider your heirs and ways of avoiding the inheritance tax. We can help you do that!)

A VISA MORNING

This morning, I’m meeting Immigration Attorney Daniel Tostado at the Paris “Préfecture” to receive my third “Carte de Résident.” After 10 years of renewing my “Carte de Séjour Visiteur” annually did they finally grant me the 10-year card, now renewed for the third time.

In the meantime, I’ve applied for French Citizenship. It was approved, but I failed to notice. They (the immigration authorities) sent an email that only stated that there was a message in my “messagerie,” but it looked suspicious—the kind you are told never to click on—so even though three of us inspected it, all agreed to ignore it. Then, the news came in that they had closed my file as a result and Daniel and I had to resuscitate it by sending in all updated documentation. Let’s hope I hear from them again, soon, and this time, I know better than to ignore such important emails. For sure, at the very least, I’ll send them to Daniel for inspection. But, this is why he is holding my hand this morning to ensure I don’t screw up the appointment to get this very important visa that allows me to live in France.

Fingers crossed.

THE RED STUDIO

As a major fan of Henri Matisse, it would have been rude of me to miss the current exhibition at the Fondation Louis Vuitton, “Matisse: The Red Studio.” I headed to the Etoile to meet up with a friend and take the shuttle from avenue Friedland to the museum, and was surprised to find the entire Etoile cordoned off while spectators on the sidelines were watching the Paralympics Marathon runners run by. They challenged the legendary 42.195 km distance in a bid for gold on a course that links Seine-Saint-Denis to the center of Paris (see the route here).

I watched for a while, then grabbed a taxi to get to the museum on time, again surprised that there was not a single person in line waiting to get in, when normally the lines are a mile long. One reason we went early was to get a table at Le Frank, the restaurant under Frank Gehry’s Fish Lamp that serves up Michelin-starred chef Jean-Louis Nomicos refined, gourmet and fragrant cuisine. It’s pricey, but for a special treat, worth it.

Matisse is one of my favorite artists. In fact, my apartment in Nice is “Matissien,” and is named “Le Matisse.” Posters of his work adorn the walls and fabric that mirrors some of his paintings of the town of Collioure are on the draperies and pillow. The Matisse exhibit left me a bit disappointed, filled with paintings that were not his best nor most iconic. But a six-minute-long film that explores the depth of the painting, “The Red Studio,” offered up a new perspective and left us feeling more than satisfied.

The Ellsworth Kelly exhibition, “Ellsworth Kelly. Shapes and Colors, 1949-2015,” is also on, but both only until tomorrow (!!). The exhibition is a celebration of his 100th birthday, if he were still alive today (he died December 27, 2015 aged 92).

With Kelly, it’s “If you’ve seen one canvas of color, you’ve seen them all.” I love the color, but honestly, how long can you ponder a canvas of blue…or yellow…or red…or green…etc., etc.? It bores me to tears. Sorry, Ellsworth; thank goodness you have a lot of other fans.

 

I’m a huge Gehry fan and love the architecture of the Fondation, but (in my opinion), they’ve made lots of serious mistakes that make the experience less than enjoyable. Where are the cafés and place to sit? Where is the great boutique filled with affordable souvenirs? Where are the bathrooms? This is a museum at which you could easily spend the entire day if they made it possible for you to do that, but they don’t. And I don’t understand why the powers that be haven’t figured this out? Or maybe they just don’t care. As a result, I don’t go very often.

Coming soon is “Pop Forever Tom Wesselmann &…” from October 16th, 2024 to February 24th, 2025. Count me in.

APRES-MIDI WITH ELLA AND FRANCE WITH VERO

I will be spending the entire month of November on the Hawaiian island of Maui in order to attend my grandson’s birth. It’s a long way to go and the time zone difference at that time with France will be 11 hours. I’ll still be working, still be writing and still be doing consultations…but not as full a schedule as usual…all dependent on how it goes.

For only the second time since 2003, someone else is going to host our Après-Midi coffee gathering in Paris that month—Ella Dyer, author of Nice in Nice and our Nice Senior Property Search Consultant. She’s coming up to Paris just for this event with Véro Savoye. You’ll find the details on our website.

GIVING THANKS CAN BE VERY NICE (“NEECE”)

Mark your calendar for our second annual Thanksgiving Dinner in Nice November 28th from 3 to 5 p.m. at Oscar Restaurant, 15 Rue Masséna, Nice, 06000. Last year, we had 55 of our community and except as many this year! (See a brief video of the opening of last year’s dinner)

This replaces our usual bi-monthly Après-Midi coffee gathering, which falls on Thanksgiving Day, giving us the perfect opportunity to celebrate the American holiday together!

Invite all your friends and join us for a community gathering we can all enjoy! Oscar is preparing something extraordinary just for us!

A special menu includes:

• Turkey, stuffing and gravy
• Cranberry sauce
• Green beans
• Sweet potatoes
• Tarte aux pommes
• 1/4 wine or 50 cl sparkling water
• Coffee or tea

Price: 40€ all inclusive, with gratuity, etc. Any special drink orders will be billed separately and paid directly to Oscar Restaurant. Reservations and payment by credit card must be made in advance, no later than November 21st. Seating is limited, so be sure to reserve and pay early. Reservations are non-refundable, but are transferable to whomever you’d like!

Note: Please arrive between 2:45 p.m. and 3 p.m. to get your seat.

For more information, visit our Events page. To reserve your place, please email us today!

A la prochaine…