Eiffel Tower Quiz
How much do you know about La Grand Dame?
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If you’re coming to Paris, feel free to print this quiz and hand out to your group before visiting La Grande Dame de Paris.
- What is the total height of the Eiffel Tower?
324 meters, approximately 1,062 feet.
- What is the Eiffel Tower constructed of?
Cast iron.
- What is the name of the chef who has taken charge at the Jules Verne restaurant on the second level of the Eiffel Tower?
Multi-Michelin star chef Alain Ducasse.
We hope you enjoyed our quiz! For more information, visit the official Eiffel Tower website.
A Special Touch for Merlot
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Before
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After
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Sometimes we find ourselves working on a room that needs a special touch. This was the case with our Merlot apartment before we remodeled it several years ago. The living room had been furnished in a utilitarian style, with oversized, dark furniture. The potential was fantastic because of the hardwood floors, moldings, balcony and view, but the room itself had no charm. After studying it, we realized there was no central focus point, so we went to work to create one. We found a white marble fireplace at the Puces and opened the chimney brest that had been closed off years before. We found a beautiful mirror and hung it above. Voilá, the room had a focal point. We flanked the sofa with a traditional sofa that converts to two single beds and pretty french-style armchairs on the other. Have a look at the before and after pictures and we think you will appreciate the difference.
The second bedroom was a long and narrow room with a queen-sized mattress occupying most of the floor. We opted for two single beds, placing them on opposite walls of the room to take advantage of the length, painted it a pale yellow and created a pretty room thatis really comfortable to stay in.
When we remodeled the main bathroom, the funniest thing happened to us. The woman who lived on the adjoining wall of the next building stepped onto her balcony when she saw us working with the architect one day. She called over and asked us for a favor; it turned out that the common wall was quite thin and she heard all bathroom noises from her former neighbors into her bedroom. She asked if it was possible to insulate the wall in some way. Not a problem; we put up extra insulation before we tiled it and have never had a complaint since!
We transformed an ordinary french bathroom into something quite elegant, designed a double sink and imported botticcino marble tiles direct from Italy, pale and elegant. We originally bought our marble tiles in Paris, but my family spent many years in Italy while we were growing up, so I decided to try to import it directly from the Carrara region of Italy. Thanks to a wonderful friend we located a large distributor in Empoli, near Pisa and Philippe and I flew there to meet them. We found a delightful trattoria on the way (equally important) and ate some of the best home made tortellini we have ever had. We found the marble for half the price along with beautiful selections of marbles and ceramic tiles. It was a challenge (and continues to be) to organize on-time manufacture, shipment and delivery, but it's worth it. Thanks to our friend, who pursued them daily to make sure our order was first in line, we made the completion deadline. For the delivery, we had to be prepared because the shipper simply leaves the tiles on the sidewalk and drives away. It was up to our builders to get two tons of tiles up to the apartment. Have a look at our before and after picture of the bathroom; we think the transformation makes the old bathroom unrecgonizable. Not visible is the fact that we replaced the telephone-style shower head with a large fixed head and added a folding glass panel, meaning guests can luxuriate in warm baths or take power showers. More sublte still is the fact that we insist on the largest hot water tanks available - quite rare in most french apartments. It can be a challenge to find a place to put them, but for our guests, it's well worth it.
A Split Second Apartment Decision
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We tell our clients who are searching for an apartment in Paris that they must be ready to make a decision in a split second if we tell them we have found a 'Wow' apartment. This was the case for a delightful couple from Minneapolis/St. Paul a few weeks ago. They had contacted us late last year to find out more about our apartment search services. They had been looking at a fractional sale (similar to a time share but with an actual ownership in the deed) of an apartment located on rue Dufour but opted against it for a variety of reasons. We referred them to some of our articles and advice about finding an apartment in Paris on our website and they decided they would prefer to buy an apartment outright. Among other reasons, interest rates are relatively low and they agreed that it made more sense to buy outright and rent the apartment during the weeks when they are away than to share ownership.
We started our search and warned them that it could take many months to find something that has all of the special factors we feel an apartment should have. We don't believe in comprises and neither should our clients.
An agent we know well contacted me to say he had been working on the sale of an apartment that measured 150 square meters, a sale by five brothers and sisters who had argued about it for almost three years. They had finally agreed on the sale and he would have a set of keys on Sunday night. Our appointment was for 11 am; I was unaware that he had started to show it from early that same morning. The apartment had been empty for several years and dust coated everything. It had not been touched since the 1970's and the walls and ceilings were covered in loud floral fabric in beige and salmon. The wall to wall carpet hid the beautiful parquet floors (I know because we pulled some back in a corner and checked); the kitchen and bathroom had not been touched in decades. The apartment had a beautiful double living room, two large bedrooms, large kitchen a single bath and a long corridor to connect the living room to the rest of the apartment. It would need to be completely remodeled but it faced west, had a beautiful fireplace and features; the 'bones' were excellent.
We opened the shutters from the two sets of French doors in the living room to the balcony and stepped out onto the most beautiful view of the charming street below, a view of the top half Eiffel Tower in the distance and it was magic! There is a beautiful Art Nouveau building across the street and it is just off the bustling rue St. Dominique with all of its shops, cafés and bistros. I took pictures and rushed to my computer to email them. The price was 'correct' and I knew this apartment was not going to last a day!
Fortunately the husband was at work early, saw my email and got his wife out of the shower. She called immediately; I explained that we felt the apartment was absolutely the best they could find. If they liked the pictures and thought the apartment was what they were looking for, they must put in an offer immediately. Then followed a roller coaster ride of events and emotions that lasted for the next few hours. I hooked up the agent who informed us that the apartment had been sold to the first client who viewed it, a neighbor who lived on the street. We were heartsick!
Then a call back from the agent, who had stepped out of the office so his colleagues wouldn't hear, to give us the inside scoop. In fact the neighbor (the client of his colleague) had not written a formal offer at full asking price. He had written a note saying he intended to purchase the apartment at full asking price but wished that the apartment would be blocked for 24 hours until his wife returned from Luxembourg to view it. I shouted: 'Donc ce n'est pas vendu!' This did not comprise a formal written offer at full asking price, the only way an apartment can be blocked.
Back on the phone to our clients in Minneapolis where I dictated and emailed the exact text of the written offer they needed to sign and submit. It was emailed and faxed by the couple immediately, so there was no question of the time of arrival. I called the agent to confirm receipt of both because sometimes strange things happen among agents where another offer is claimed to have been magically submitted minutes previously. We wanted to prevent this kind of incident and hav the confirmation of the time of receipt of our client's fax.
It didn't stop there; I got in touch with our Notaire and asked him to call the agent to say he wanted to start the paperwork on the signing of the Compromis de Vente. He immediately called the agent so there was no question that the buyers were serious and ready to proceed and also to make the point that the written offer at full asking price had been made and could not be replaced.
The agent called back to say he had received the written offer and to tell us that he had started to cancel the viewings for the rest of the day. One Parisian woman was scheduled at 7pm and yelled at him, asking how he could possibly sell an apartment within hours of the first viewing -- when she hadn't even had a chance to view it! Later he recounted that another colleague was beyond disappointed: he had received a signed written offer from clients who lived nearby, only ten minutes after receipt of our client's. To make things worse, they had promised him the exclusive sale of their current, much larger, apartment on a very chic street in the neighborhood, dependent on being able to acquire this one. He lost the purchase and the other sale. A neighbor in the same building decided to buy it for his daughter, but he was too late.
All of this, and our clients had not even had a chance to fly over and view it! They came over last week, stayed in our St. Julien apartment and signed the Promesse de Vente. I begged the agent to borrow keys one evening so I could send the photos, of the view from the balcony at night (see above).
As we expected, they are delighted with their purchase, and they are obtaining financing now. We jokingly tell them that they if they have any second thoughts, they can probably sell it tomorrow for a profit, which is a nice feeling.
Our architect has viewed the apartment and will be getting back with ideas of what can be realized; we look forward to overseeing the remodeling and the decorating. They know they have found the best apartment they could find and it will rent beautifully when they are not in residence.
They realize that what we told them is essential; if your competitors are Parisians, you have found a real winner. And great apartments do not stay on the market for long.
Paris by Bike
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This summer the City of Paris will offer to all a fleet of bicycles that can be picked up and dropped throughout Paris for a modest fee. What fun! As part of their program to reduce car traffic, the City of Paris has contracted with private companies to offer over 14,000 bicycles that will be located at small bike stations all over central Paris. In some areas, the bike stations will be located 300 feet apart. Pay a subscription fee of €1 and ride for free for half an hour. Ride longer and you pay a modest rent depending on the distance. The maximum distance between bike stations is promised at only be 1,200 feet.
For Sale: Latin Quarter - Italian Design Studio
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This chic and stylish loft-style studio apartment has been beautifully remodeled and is an ideal pied a terre in Paris! It is located on rue de la Harpe, a charming, cobble-stoned street on the border of the 5th and 6th arrondissement in the Latin Quarter. The location could not be better: it is surrounded by cafés, restaurants and bistros, is 2 blocks to the Seine river, to Notre Dame and Ile de la Cité.
The Rue de la Harpe apartment measures a generous 59.5 square meters, 640 square feet and can comfortably sleep up to four people and would make an ideal home and vacation rentl in Paris. The price is E654,500 that includes a beautifully fitted Italian kitchen and all of the high quality furnishings.
Tour the Rue de la Harpe apartment.
Carina Apartment in Rome
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Carina means "darling" in Italian and the name is appropriate to this penthouse apartment in the Spanish Steps area, the best in the Eternal City. You can enjoy the prized terrace with its rooftop views as well as of the green trees of the Villa Borghese gardens.
Carina is spacious for a one bedroom apartment; the living room is large and flooded with light. The kitchen and dining room are also large for a city center apartment. The bedroom is cosy but there are two separate bathrooms.
Click to tour Carina
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