A French medieval town to add to your visit list

Where I could easily retire to....

Aug 03, 2023

Hello from… November. As I write this it is chucking it down for the umpteenth time today. It has been raining almost non-stop for the past three weeks, an event that is unheard of at this time of year; usually we are in the middle of a sweltering canicule (heatwave). Yesterday morning was so grim as I crawled out of bed to go check on my project in the 8ème (which is nearly finished); rain beating against the window as the wind howled that I left home in a trench (although this would have been better), a knit slung over my shoulders and winter boots. And we haven’t even been on our summer holiday yet.

As you can imagine, I’m counting down the days until we drive south. We did however get a little taste of slower-paced life (and some sun) last Saturday when we visited English friends who were holidaying in France. We met them in Mortagne-au-Perche, a fortified medieval town two hours west of Paris in the heart of the picturesque Orne region in Normandy, which I highly recommend visiting. It is accredited as a Petit Cité de Caractère and is just charming with its stone houses, pretty cobbled streets and wild flowers sprouting everywhere. We spent a few hours exploring its alleyways and browsing the galleries (be sure to check out sculptor, Marc Valley’s work and gallery), before picking up some local produce at the market and bringing it back to the house they were staying in, so we could eat lunch on the terrace in the sun (that seemed to come out just for us). After so much rain and a tough work week, where I hardly left our apartment, it was exactly what I needed. Plus it was such a treat to spend time with one of my closest and oldest friends and her family on my side of the Channel.

But back to Paris before I sign off for two weeks. Tomorrow I’m sending out another bumper newsletter to those of you who are signed up to my membership, The Insider, which will be filled to the brim with more of my coveted Parisian addresses. This time I’ll be talking hotels, namely the most beautifully-designed hotels in Paris that I would stay in if I were visiting. It’s a question I get asked often so I’m finally putting them together all in one place and sharing my favorites with you.

Watched, read, listened, enjoyed…

This week I watched Barbie (a must see; I loved it and it does indeed live up to the hype, plus I need to print out America Ferrera's soon-to-be Oscar-winning speech and stick it on my wall as a reminder); I’ve been enjoying the Augustinus Bader body oil that I received this week, which will also be perfect skincare hydration when I’m finally in warm weather), I listened to Pulling the Thread: Elise Loehnen in conversation with Jakki Leonardini about tackling fear and how we can be mindful of our energy. And I visited the newly-opened Craven in the 6ème that has taken over a beautiful 17th century building and over four floors offers a space for dining, cocktails and a Rizzoli library.

A bientôt, Marissa xx

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Interior Inspiration: an elegantly restored 18th century Provençal stone house in Luberon