There is something magical waking up in Toulouse. I emerge from my apartment in the Saint-Etienne district, one of three that makes up the historic Toulouse center, and walk outside. I am immediately greeted by blue skies, briskly moving white clouds in the wind (Toulouse gets almost 300 windy days per year, a result of…
By 1946, Pablo Picasso was probably the most famous artist in the world. His career had stretched from the turn of the century to now, nearly 50 years of periods blue, rose, cubist, and surrealist. He had changed art, had mastered all forms he tried, and had achieved the professional acclaim most artists hadn’t found…
“The pain passes, but the beauty remains.” In the early 1890s, famed French painter Pierre-August Renoir developed severe rheumatoid arthritis. Only in his 50s, recently married to his model Aline Charigot, with one son born and another on the way (he would ultimately have three), he was told to seek warmer climates in the south…
It is less than forty minutes by bus from my apartment in Old Nice, but feels like a world away. Life is slower here in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, and I sip a glass of white wine while waiting for my lunch. Sea birds and pigeons vie for aerial supremacy with wispy clouds, the soft sea breeze floats…
It is hard to be in this place and not have an emotional reaction. The colors on canvas are so vibrant, the themes so recognizable, the small details so impactful, that for anyone - art lover, scholar, or even casual observer - there is something to find that can easily create an intense experience. But…
In 1860, the County of Nice - including the city of Nice, obviously - was ceded to France by the Italian Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia in exchange for France’s support during the (failed, mostly) Second War of Italian Independence. The Treaty of Turin between Victor Emmanuel II and Napoleon III made the southern city and its…
Being here at the Matisse Museum, built mainly into the Villa des Arenes in Nice’s Cimiez suburb, I can certainly see the appeal of the area. The climate is mild, the Mediterranean shore a few brief minutes away, but seeming almost as if in another world from this hilltop retreat. The Roman ruins of Cemenelum…
Today, Nice is essential France. There is a bakery on every block, a wine bar next door, and crepe stands abound. There is art, there is culture. There is no doubt that this is truly France. But in fact, Nice is a relative newcomer to France, its inclusion in the country only permanently coming in…
Editor’s note: I spent three days in Bogota back before I started The Royal Tour, so I haven’t written about it. But I enjoyed my time, and while like Sam I agree that Colombia’s capital isn’t as touristic as other places in the country, I disagree with his assessment that it is less worth visiting.…
When planning my side trip from Genoa (my base for the month) to Turin, I knew I wanted to write about the Savoy dynasty that ruled Piedmont-Sardinia and then united Italy from here. (Click here to read that story.) I booked a hotel and found train tickets. And then, realizing I would be arriving just…