Super Triste

Dear Google,

Thank you for making a Super Bowl commercial that hit so close to home, I ended up crying in front of the 20 guests at my own party.  As if I wasn’t missing France enough, you had to go and make this:

Bisous,

A certain Boston girl missing Paris like no other.

The Holidays

It’s that time of year now.  Tomorrow is December 1st, which means the Chrismukkah season is upon us (I am half Jewish, after all).  This, without a doubt, is my favorite time of the year.  Hands down.  I have fond memories of hanging out with my family, making caramel popcorn with mom, and decorating the tree with my sister, 10 years my junior.  Moreover, let’s just say my family throws kick*ss parties that no one forgets.

That said, I’m trying to not get depressed.  You might be asking, “How could one be so sad during such a joyous season?”  Well, it’s simple.  Last holiday season I was in Paris, where every window display was decorated as if the visual merchandiser was on crack–in a good way.  Galerie Lafayette and Bon Marché resembled the world of Wonka for the fashion obsessed, or anyone who likes sparkly and pretty things for that matter.

The outside of Galeries Lafayette

The best part, though, were the lines of lights that hung effortlessly and illuminated the Champs Elysée.

Looking down the Champs Elysée towards the Arc de Triomphe

To top it all off, the carousel at Concorde was up along with little Christmas shops up and down, where you could taste anything from all over the world.

The Ferris Wheel at Concorde

I’ll never forget the feeling of saundering up and down, tasting candies and eating fresh oysters from Normandie, holding hands with my (then) love.  The only word that even remotely comes close to that sense of euphoria: Magic.

Christmas Market

Needless to say, Boston is not Paris, and love and I are no longer together.  I’m still going to try and make the best of it.  For the first time I’m going to the Boston tree lighting ceremony.  It’s this Thursday and should be a good time, weather permitting.  If you see a girl spiking her Starbucks Peppermint Mocha with nips of Peppermint Schnapps, come over and introduce yourself.  My roomies and I are also throwing a Chrismukkah Party, complete with caramel popcorn, mistletoe, eggnog, Secret Santa (a personal fav), DVD’s that show a fire and play Christmas carols (we have no working fireplace so we had to make due), lights, and a menorah and cute little tree from Urban Outfitters.

Until then, I will continue to walk up and down Newbury hoping to catch some good deals before my New Year’s Eve excursion down to Miami. It might not be the boutiques in the Marais, but it has its own charm in itself.  Being away for so long has made me appreciate this city much more.  Wish me luck!

Santé.

Bursting in to Fall.

I guess my last post lacked the picture.  I could have sworn it showed up initially, but I clearly need more work.

The picture was a flyer for an upcoming pop-up shop hosted by the lovely Lisa Pierpont at Boldfacers.  Since coming back from Paris, it’s clear that Boston’s culture, fashion, restaurant and overall lifestyle is changing.  Blame it on the economy or what is going on in Menino’s office, the point is that this is not the same Beantown as it was when I left in 2007 to go exploring.  That being said, I think the pop-up shop was a great step in slowly breaking that routine mold this city still plays by, that old “Boston Brahim” mentality.

The pop-up shop was highlighted local jewelry designers around the area.  I was quite impressed with a lot of the ladies.  It’s hard work to be in a studio and create your own pieces, and it’s even harder to be an indie designer in Boston.  Overall, it was important that this inaugural shop be set up.  Boldfacers wants to make this a monthly event, focusing on a different theme each month.  Next month will feature urban street style and underground culture.  As more details surface, I’ll be sure to post them up here to keep people informed.

Building off of that, I feel as if we are suddenly bursting in to this fall season, for better or for worse.  I looked at my Entourage calendar yesterday and almost had a panic attack at what my cab fare expenses might be like come the end of the month.  Regardless of how all the hours I will be putting in to get my company going, write a book (yes, that’s right), and lack of sleep I will be experiencing, I’ll be sure to post it all here.

I’m serious about that last one.  Time to turn over a new leaf.  It is fall, afterall.

Boston is the new Europe

….Well, not really, but two things happened today which made me jump for joy and filled me with so much glee I squeaked like a little girl.  Boston is becoming a little more like Paris by allowing citizens to register their Charlie Cards online and unveiling a bike sharing program scheduled for next spring.  YAY!

Paris, much like Boston, is rich with history, tiny streets [SUV’s just don’t fit there], and is notorious for crazy drivers.  Unlike Boston, Paris has 6.5 million more residents in the metropolitan area.  Yet, they’ve been able to make it work. Since it’s debut in July 2007, the Paris program, Vélib—a contraction of vélo for bicycle, and liberté for freedom—is the city’s answer to both increasing congestion and the climate crisis.  Within it’s first year there were over 26 million riders and the program can average around 200,000 rides a day.  Because of the Vélib’s popularity the government was forced to double its initial fleet of 10,000 bicycles.  I don’t know about you, but those numbers are astonishing in my eyes.

Anyone with a bank or credit card can rent a Vélib at one of the many docking stations Paris has to offer.  A Vélib can be rented for a euro a day or five euros for a week, as well as a yearly subscription rate of 29 euros, approximately eight cents a day.  Whatever plan you choose, the first 30 minutes of each ride are free.  And with over 20,600 bicycles in service and over 1,450 docking stations merely 300 meters from one another, the entire city is available right at your foot pedals.  The program is so popular that there are now blogs dedicated entirely to the fashion of Vélib riders, ranging from women to heels and skirts to men in suits with briefcases in the front basket.

From the Boston Globe article published today, it seems that the MBTA is taking a note from the Paris system.  The Hub plans to install up to 3,000 docking stations located about 300-400 yards apart, focusing heavily on main squares and popular tourist attractions around the city.  A potential rate offered by BikeNow, one of three companies in competition to run the program, would charge $2.50 for a day pass and $40 for a yearly subscription.  Similar to the Vélibs, renters would be allowed unlimited rides under 30 minutes, after which an additional rate would be added on.

Even Jessica Alba is a fan of the Vélib

Granted, I understand that there’s a lot of risk involved by launching 3,000 inexperienced bikers into Boston traffic. That was the same risk in Paris as well and although the risk is high, there are many more perks. Maybe this is the way to get Boston drivers (aka Massholes) to finally blinker and stop driving like lunatics. It allows people to be fair weather bike owners. If it’s sunny, take a bike to work today. If it happens to rain towards the end of the evening, you have the freedom to opt for another mode of transportation. The Boston sharing program would be a great way to restore faith [if possible at this point] in the MBTA system. City dwellers would now have the opportunity to take public transportation in their own hands and not rely on the T or the bus, both notorious for being late (if functioning at all).

Maybe this is also what universities in Boston need in particular.  Rent will always stay high in certain areas, and this might just be the perfect opportunity for students to be able to live in other parts of Boston–like the South End, Somerville, or even East Boston–with students from different universities living in mingling in areas outside of their respective “traditional” city campus.  Maybe this is the way to pop that fabled “College Bubble”.  I know you and your friends have thought at a least one time that Cambridge is a great idea, but how the heck are we going to get there and back.  And when 2 am rolls around and you and your friends are getting kicked out of Rumor, Daisy’s or whatever your watering hole may be, it will be reassuring to know that you don’t have to rely on Boston cabbies or your tired soles to take you back home.  Like Paris though, don’t ride one of these bikes drunk. My friend spent a night in jail for being pulled over for drunk vélibing.  Granted, his experience made for plenty of teasing over wine afterwards.

For me, I’m excited. I will continue to be excited till these bad boys roll out tentatively next spring.  And when they do know that I will be out there braving Boston drivers, coming back from Formaggio in Cambridge at dinner time to my Symphony apartment, with my bike basket full of cheese, baguettes, and my Longchamp purse, imaging just for a moment that the Charles is the Seine.  And as I peddle down the Harvard bridge in my high heels with the wind catching my skirt, it’ll be nice to know that my dream has finally become a reality.

Now…a quick movie [courtesy of StreetFilms] about the Vélib in case you’re craving more…