"Paris Hotel Las Vegas, Nevada"
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Monday, September 20, 2010 • Paris, France
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Dear Parler Paris Reader,
While those of you in France have been enjoying "Les Journées Européennes du Patrimoine," I've been enjoying a very different type of "journées" here in the good ol' U.S. of A. I was reminded of the special event when this morning I received an email from my friend, Al.
He was 'bowled over' by his tour of the Hôtel Bouthillier de Chavigny which is now a "Caserne de Pompiers" (fire station) on rue de Sevigné. He managed to 'sweet talk' a couple of the firemen (well known to be the most handsome men in France) into taking him on a private tour of their gym and dorm, and thinking all the while how much I would have "gone nuts over this" because "they were so 'butch' and 'beautiful' and the 'ancien hôtel' was pretty, too," so he wrote. I got a good laugh over that while reflecting on the last few days of our adventure in the States.
I spent one gloriously blue warm and sunny day in New York City with my daughter shopping for electronics -- a new digital camera (and perhaps considering a new Apple computer), having lunch outside in a West Village Italian 'restorante' while acclimating to American culture..."No, Dorothy, we're not in Kansas anymore." I ordered an "entrée" to be told that was the main course and it took more than 24 hours before I stopped saying "merci, au revoir," "excusez-moi" and "ça suffit."
The next day I met our Marketing 'Guru,' Lynda Sydney, at the airport in Las Vegas, and hopped in a taxi to the Red Rock Casino, Resort & Spa at which we were representing France on behalf of International Living (IL) at their 30th Anniversary Live and Invest Overseas Conference. The Red Rock is a sprawling complex about 10 miles away from "The Strip" with more than 800 rooms, a large casino, a bowling alley, conference center, theater, a dozen restaurants plus a food court and eleven swimming pools. We had a perfect view of the pool area from our luxurious room equipped with everything one can need or desire including an "Intimacy Kit." We did get a chuckle out of the word "concierge" written on the phone in the room spelled as "conierge." (Mistake? Do you think?)
Our arrival was a reunion of sorts with the staff of IL with whom I had worked many years ago during the time I opened and ran their Paris office from 2001. Much of their staff who work in Waterford, Ireland, were there, along with their Florida-based conference coordinators at Opportunity Travel and the staff from offices all over the world. While I am no longer 'staff,' they had invited us to speak about living and investing in France, man a table with information and be available to assist the attendees.
Five hundred fifty people attended the 2.5 day conference. Founder and president of the organization (Agora, Inc., http://www.agora-inc.com/), Bill Bonner, was the keynote speaker over cocktails the first evening. He is author of books and articles on economic and financial subjects as well as principal author of a daily financial column known as "The Daily Reckoning" (http://dailyreckoning.com), owner of two châteaux and sometime resident of France. Over the course of two days, a variety of professionals and experts spoke about great places to which one can retire to improve their lives on retirees' budgets, viable investment opportunities, how to set oneself up for a life overseas and a whole host of topics designed to educate those seeking an alternative to their current lifestyle in the U.S.
We set up a table with our usual printed materials, plus two enormous silver bowls, one filled with Eiffel Tower key chains and the other filled with mini bags of Herbes de Provence to give away (which jokingly we would tell the attendees to use as spice, not to smoke!). We had been told that about only 15% of the attendees were interested in France, but since IL hadn't promoted France much since my leaving them in 2004, it hadn't been 'on the radar' for their audience. We hoped we could turn some of them around.
On day one, I made a 30-minute presentation, then held a workshop for questions. It opened with the fact that France had, for five consecutive years, won the number one place in IL's Quality of Life Index (http://internationalliving.com/2010/02/quality-of-life-2010/). It wasn't tough to support their claim with my real-life experiences of France's health care system, high quality education, sound infrastructure, top notch transportation network, stunning beauty, rich culture, etc., etc., not to mention the amazing investment opportunities.
The attendance to both sessions was surprising, considering the low expectation and over the course of the two days, the traffic at our table was more than encouraging. We spoke with people we had met in years past and made lots of new friends who claimed that our "presentations were inspiring" and that we had managed to make them think more about France as a destination, now that they knew that life in France wasn't as expensive as they might have believed at first, and that they could enjoy a much richer life in France than in most other places.
In the evenings, Lynda and I ventured down to "The Strip" to get a taste of Las Vegas and take in one of the many "spectacles" this "adult Disneyland" offers. I hadn't been to the Nevada town in more than 20 years, so it was if visiting for the first time and landing on another planet entirely.
Imagine our awe to see our very own dear Eiffel Tower looming above our heads at the "Paris Hotel" along with a miniature Arc de Triomphe, both lit to look very much like the real things. The surrealism of being one among thousands parading along The Strip under the glow of the neon lights is a bit too much for a "Parisienne" such as myself who is accustomed to dressing only in black in order to dress 'down' rather than 'up' to fit into a world of smoky tones and romantic lighting. This was as far from the world of France as one can get, and something everyone must see at least once in their lifetime.
Lynda remarked that she had never seen "so many women in such little dresses" and I added "that shouldn't be so little" given that not much was left to one's imagination. There was a constant stream of humanity, the kind of which you don't see much of on the Champs-Elysées, many carrying beer cans or other take-away alcoholic drinks. The casinos were more than half full with people hoping to hit the jackpot on the 'one-armed bandits' -- which no longer have arms since everything is totally electronic, including Black Jack tables hosted by a beautiful dealer that is only screen deep.
The size and scope of the hotels are impressive, to say the least, and the Cirque de Soleil KA show was mind boggling -- but I'm sure I'm not telling you anything you don't already know about Las Vegas, if you've ever had the 'pleasure.' For us, it was an experience that is still keeping us laughing and awestruck, but also overwhelmed by the sheer imagination that has accumulated in this one spot on our landscape.
Yesterday we flew to San Francisco -- a major change in ambiance from our last few days in the desert, and from which you will next be hearing from me as we prepare for the talk at the Alliance Française there on Wednesday night. If you have still not reserved your place at any one of the four venues (San Francisco, Seattle, Portland and Los Angeles) at which I will be speaking on Living and Investing in France, you still may have time at most! Plus, if you want to meet with me personally, I'll be available for a consultation. Visit http://www.frenchpropertyconference.com for more information.
A la prochaine...
Adrian Leeds
Editor, Parler Paris
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P.S. Last week's Parler Paris Après Midi has been posted, so click here www.adrianleeds.com/parlerparis/apresmidi.html to read all about it and see the photos.
P.P.S. Scroll down to read important messages about Judith Merians' Night at the Movies on September 28th and a great deal on Beads, Bangles and Bows.
