This spring, I discovered the vast properties held by The Trustees of Reservations, who protect over 100 properties in Massachusetts from development or falling into ruin. I bought a family membership and my husband and I have enjoyed visiting a different property several weekends since.
Recently, we visited the delightful Eleanor Cabot Bradley Estate in nearby Canton, Massachusetts. Eleanor inherited the estate, built in 1902, from her uncle and eventually passed it to the Trustees. Until recently, the house served as administrative space, but now the remarkable formal gardens have been restored to their former glory. This year, in fact, there were three successive plantings, 5,000 tulips in the spring, rare lilies raised from seeds imported from England in the summer, and when we were there, a dozen humming birds were dive-bombing the late summer flowers.
The interior of the house has elegant bones but contains very little that originally belonged to Eleanor, as all went to her heirs. The guide told us that there used to be two Monets, because Eleanor’s aunt, American Impressionist Lilla Cabot Perry, studied with him in France. She spent nine summers working with Claude Monet at Giverny. Cabot Perry also played a significant role in introducing the Impressionists to wealthy Bostonians. I’m always amazed by the way people are relié (ruh-lee-ay), or interconnected, across countries and centuries.
Thomas Antiquités (98 rue Oberkampf, 11th Arrondissement) This is a charming little shop has many affordable and packable pieces, although the knowledgeable owner, Thomas Annie, told me that someone took a chandelier to Canada in her luggage. I had more modest ideas and picked up a pair of adorable cavorting cherubs that now live on my desk.
Au Bain Marie (59 blvd Raspail, 6th Arrondissement and 56 rue de l’Université, 7th Arrondissement) is chock full of pieces to set a beautiful table – some vintage, some made for them, and some carefully curated. The merchandising is so inventive, it’s worth a visit just to gawk at the thousands of covetable objets.
La Meringaie (41 rue du Cherche-midi, 6th Arrondissement and 21 rue de Levis, 17th Arrondissement) Just down the road from one of my favorite lunch spots (
La Vallée Village is an upscale outlet in a Paris suburb. I’d known about it for years, but thought I’d have to go to great lengths to get there. It was actually very simple: take the RER A to the Val d’Europe station (one prior to Euro Disney), walk through the mall beside the station, cross the parking lot, and there it is. The deals on the big names were quite impressive. And it’s a beautiful place to shop, even with Instagrammable backdrops, with hashtags already prepared.
Paris in Stride
This summer, I finally was able to see a spot in Paris that I’ve been wanting to visit for a few years. La coulée verte, formerly known as La Promenade plantée, is similar to New York’s Highline, a former elevated rail line, converted to a walkway. The former rail line, which extended from the train station at the Place de la Bastille to La Varenne-Saint-Maur, operated from 1853 to 1969. It was transformed in the early 90’s into a charming three mile long garden.
La Coulée verte (lah koo-lay vehrte) can be translated as “the green flow” and that’s what this pathway is like, a river of green flowing through Paris.
4. The Palais des Beaux Arts: Although its relief maps from the 18th century are currently being restored, there was still enough to see in a pleasant hour. The second floor houses several Rubens’ and this rather lovely sculpture of Napoleon’s son, for example.
A tradition at my summer job in Paris has become doing an Escape Room as a bonding activity during the week that we prepare for the students to arrive. This year, a colleague suggested that we try a new venue, 
Costumed actors played the role of a troupe who have lost part of a musical score to the Phantom of the Opera. Our mission was to find the missing letters in order to complete the score. As usual, we had one hour to complete our task. If you are successful, your group will earn admission to hear the completed aria with the missing notes restored.
I don’t want to say too much in case I end up spoiling this for you, but it was a lot of fun in a tremendous setting. I think the setting was actually the biggest handicap for my group; several of them had never been to Opéra Garnier before and we lost time as they gazed around in awe at the ornate interior. It was an inventive way to explore a great Parisian landmark. L’échapper belle (lay-shap-ay bell) is to have a narrow or lucky escape. I hope that is your fate if you try Inside Opera.
