Hmm, ca sent de la rose! 

Don't miss this incredible exposition! 
Breathtaking Flowers of all Shapes, Sizes and Colors,
Photographs, Artistic lawn furniture and Sculpture
The natural scent is as pleasurable as the picturesque setting!
A perfect sunny day out at
Journées de la Rose, Abbaye de Chaalis

An exceptional retrospective and tribute to a legend in the history of photography, Henri Cartier Bresson 
now at the unmissable Centre Pompidou.  Considered the father of photojournalism, Bresson's style 
coined 'the decisive moment'  has continued to inspire photographers for generations.  
As one of the founders of Magnum Photos - currently the world's most prestigious photo agency, 
his work and life as photographer encompasses a timeless genius and artistry that will never be forgotten.  

"It is life that interests me and therefore always the next photo."
Henri Cartier-Bresson

 I have seen this performer twice in Montmartre near the Sacré Coeur. 
His freestyle act is simply amazing! 
 It is just breathtaking to watch such talent amidst the rooftop view of Paris. 

An amazing night spent on Le Calife, Paris. 
 The breathtaking 'City of Lights' on display while enjoying excellent food and wine on a boat of true character. 
Perfect for a very special occasion, proposal, anniversary....
An ultimate, intimate experience, the dreamy romance of Paris.  

Last Sunday was the perfect day for an estimated 47,000 guests to gather at the prominent 
Chantilly racecourse for the 2013 edition of the Prix de Diane Longines.  Compared to Royal Ascot in England, 
the Prix de Diane is well known for it’s long running reputation of class and elegance.  
Although formal dress is not required by all and white gloves for the ladies are no longer mandatory, 
a stylish grace remains present.

The guest of honor and Longines Ambassador of Elegance who had the ladies swooning was Simon Baker
 an Austrailia actor and director most currently known for his role in the television show The Mentalist.  
 Within the nine big races of the day one is the most important race for filles in the world- the Prix de Diane Longines.  
This year a record was set by the winner 'Treve' mounted by Thierry Jarnet running the 2,100 meters in 02:03:77.

"Haute couture was born in Paris in the mid-19th century, and the city is still the capital of this special art. By showcasing masterpieces from the Galliera museum, the Hôtel de Ville is paying tribute to this little-known world, one of the jewels in the crown of French culture, and to a Parisian industry characterised by creativity and high-tech expertise."

"Paris Haute Couture"
Exhibition at the Hôtel de Ville
From 2nd March to 6th July 2013
Open every day from 10am to 7pm (except Sundays and bank holidays)
Admission free of charge
www.paris.fr/haute-couture

As a champagne lover, I was very excited to visit Reims,
 the capital of the Champagne-Ardenne region for my Birthday last week. 
 Reims is a wonderful city with a lot of history, much of the city was destroyed in WWI and restored in Art Deco style. 
 My husband and I stayed in the city for one night and had time to tour two champagne houses,
 Lanson and Vranken Pommery.

Lanson was a very informative tour in the lengthy process of making champagne. 
 It is the only champagne house in Reims to have a vineyard on site.  
The tour allows you to see the consecutive steps and thorough process in making champagne 
within an operating factory.  Although there seemed to be a lot of health and safety risks for the visitor
  wondering through this workplace, it was a special inside view as to how their bubbly is created!  
I was amazed by the fact that after all this time and technological advances, the internationally famed company
 still relies on the human palate for the consistency of taste in their champagnes. 
 And although the machines have taken over the majority of the processing, there are still many operations 
that are necessary to do by hand, in particular for the larger, Magnum, or irregular sized bottles, labels are put on by hand, they are also manually positioned and turned over time resulting in the sediment falling to the neck of the bottle
 (a necessary step in the process so that in the following step, the sediment can be removed by degorging the bottle).
  After all that information, I was ready for the tasting and in the realisation that the glass of champagne I was now drinking had taken a process of over four and a half years, I found myself appreciating the taste even more!  

Pommery was the better of the two tours.  
The guide was more engaged and the house created in consideration of it's many visitors. 
 I found the history of Pommery very interesting as Mme. Pommery was widowed only just after her husband began
 the business.  She decided to take over the company at a time when women entrepreneurship was not at all common.  
She was very interested in contemporary art and this tradition has been carried on through the years.
  A few of the exhibits included an elephant upright by his trunk- the artist calculated
 an approximate location in space where an elephant could be positioned in this way..
An exhibit 'Shelter' in which there is constant water flowing through a wooden cabin 
to observe the effects of deterioration over time…
Another, a line of boots that took me by surprise!  These boots are imagined to be of the many men
 throughout the years who worked in the cellars, they are motion activated and methodically stomp
 in the otherwise quiet of the cellar.  
Other highlights of the tour included the houses' oldest bottles, the earliest dates from the year 1874 and a visual display of the sediment which must be eliminated from the bottle after the second fermentation in a fascinating process called degourgment.... and OF COURSE the tasting afterwards,
which included a seasonal champagne and one of the houses' best vintages!