Summer Fun in St. Tropez, Monte Carlo and Paris!

It was no surprise to see over 35 private jets parked at the Nice airport when we landed. After all, the French Riviera is known for being the “Playground of the Rich and Famous.” And even though neither adjective applies to us, it is still our favorite vacation spot: We’ve been going here for over 19 years, so long, in fact, that PBS travel writer, Rick Steves, contacted me when he was writing his book about the region! It is a very special spot for me; I had my 50th birthday party at the Byblos Hotel and every year, we meet up with friends from all over the world for some fun in the sun around the Fourth of July. It’s hard to explain the magic of St. Tropez but the weather is usually perfect (although this year it was almost unbearably hot) and the people are chic and beautiful. The shops all carry things you don’t see until at least a year later in the States and the beach clubs are divine. Everyone is there to have fun so it is always a wonderfully upbeat atmosphere. It’s the sort of place where you can’t believe anyone could be sick or unhappy…my kind of place! Going back to the Byblos was like going home. Head concierge Giuseppe Pochintesta not only works magic with our reservations but he is also our friend. We share e-mails all year long in anticipation of our trip. And Sylvie, the reservations manager, always makes sure our friends are accommodated, even when the hotel is filled to the brim. The hotel has undergone an extensive renovation and is even more beautiful than I remembered it. Our room had a delightful terrace which overlooked the countryside and the dramatic umbrella pines sprinkled across the landscape. You can understand why all of the famous artists and writers came here for inspiration. Our band of merry friends met at the pool bar, as is our custom, to begin our week of fun. This year, Paul Iacono, Anita and Ken Brown (from Spain and London) and Tissy and John Kennington (from California) came to party. After a cocktail at the bar, we made our way to Dick Eddy’s 24th Annual Rose Wine Tasting Party at his villa in town. Every year, Dick hosts this party and guests are given a score card upon entering to vote for the best rose wine. Chuck and I go through the motions of voting, but in reality, it’s all about the party. Dick always has an interesting mix of people—regulars who drive up from Monte Carlo, a famous photographer – one year I even ran into Leslie Hindman there! – you just never know who you’re going to see. After the wine party, we went to Banh-Hoi which is a small, charming Thai restaurant located down a tiny little ivy-lined street. The following day, we went to one of our favorite restaurants in the world, Club 55. This beach club restaurant came about in 1955 when the film crew from Bridget Bardot’s movie, “And God Created Woman,” came for meals. Owner Patrice Colmont runs the restaurant and plays no favorites. There are always celebs here and on this particular day, we saw Liam Neeson with Ralph Fiennes (who had just worked together in “Clash of the Titans”), Ryan Seacrest, Joan Collins with husband Percy Gibson and sis Jackie Collins, Harvey Weinstein, Naomi Campbell and stunning Victoria Silvstedt (the Swedish actress, model, singer, TV personality, Miss World contestant and Playboy’s 1997 Playmate of the Year). Anyway, the food and ambience here are nonpareil. The loup de mer, the sea bass, is to die for and they must go through 500 a day. After lunch, we drove to another beach club, La Voile Rouge. This club is known for dancing on the tables and spraying expensive champagne all over the crowd. Their specialty drink is called “Sex on the Beach” which suits this spot perfectly. For dinner this evening, we went to one of the most beautiful restaurants in town, La Romana, where the entire ceiling is made up of wisteria vines with tiny, white lights strung throughout. At the entrance, is the largest arrangement of flowers you’ve ever seen and the room is aglow with all manner of candlelight ranging from small votives to magnificent, antique candelabras. There are large banquets filled with beautiful people. Their specialty drinks are bucket- sized and served with 50 straws and delivered to your table with huge fanfare—so you have to order one! There is a fashion show with beautiful French models and the items are for sale, bien sur, in a delightful shop at the back of the restaurant. The next day was July 4th and it seems like the French like to celebrate this day even more than we do: There is a big party at all of the beach clubs up and down the coast and everywhere you look, you see the American flag! We chose Moorea Beach to begin our celebration and to be with our friend Dick Eddy and friends. After lunch, we walked down the beach to La Voile Rouge where you could see the people already dancing on the roof! After giving the magic code word (the manager’s name), we were allowed in to this by-reservation-only party. There were women dancing topless, men wearing pirate costumes and jeroboams of champagne on many of the tables (which were priced at 9000 euros). The boats in the bay were enormous—lots of Russian billionaires call this their playground and they were easy to spot. Naomi Campbell was at Club 55 with her Russian boyfriend, Vladislav Doronin (known as Moscow’s Donald Trump), along with billionaire Topshop owner, Sir Philip Green. After La Voile Rouge, we drove to Nikki Beach Club. Playboy was hosting the party and they even had French bunnies there for photo ops. This club is my second favorite after Club 55; it’s always packed with fun seekers and the sushi here is the best I’ve ever eaten—Chuck thinks the atmosphere has something to do with it and I think he’s right. This is also the only club with a pool which is a big draw. There were large Playboy bunny heads hanging in the trees and our flag was flying in full force…and the people watching was unbeatable! We met some handsome guys from Chicago: Chris Draska, Mark Bell, Matt Unertl and Mike Manning, who the girls were all lusting after. It was great running into them and Matt even lives in our neighborhood in Old Town! After our daytime activities, we had a nap and then out to dinner that evening at Joseph’s. They play great music but after our long day, we preferred the quieter outdoor patio where we could hear each other. On our final day, we went back to our favorite spot, Club 55, and dinner that evening at L’Escale. This restaurant is in the port and is sheer elegance—the place is all white, silver and cream with white sand on the floor. It was a fitting place to say our goodbyes and raise a final glass of rose until next year. The following day, we drove to Monte Carlo, where Tissy and John joined us. We stayed at the elegant Hermitage Hotel and dined at one of the most beautiful hotels in the world, Hotel de Paris. One of their restaurants, The Grill, is on the top of the building and has a roof that opens to the Monte Carlo sky with views of the harbor and the palace. (Grace Kelly was a lucky woman!) The next day, we took a helicopter to the Nice airport where we ran into Victoria Silvstedt again who was on our flight to Paris. She is so beautiful no one could take their eyes off of her. I saw a man take his son to the restroom on the plane just so they could look at her in the first row…and they didn’t even go into the bathroom! In Paris, we stayed at a chic and charming boutique hotel on the Left Bank called Esprit de St. Germain. It was two blocks from Les Deux Magots, another favorite, and down the street from the church of St. Sulpice. We wandered all of the Paris streets and went to the largest flea market in the world on Saturday, Marche aux Puces, at Clignancourt. This year the dealers seemed to be a little nastier than I remembered and we both agreed it was probably due to the lack of American buyers which is the bulk of their business. In any case, I didn’t see anything I couldn’t live without and after filling my eyes with visions of fabulous antiques, paintings, silver, majolica and tapestries, back to the hotel we went. Dinner was at a new restaurant called La Societe, owned by the Costes brothers, the hip, cool team who run Café Marly and the Hotel Costes among many other places. On this night, we saw a man come in with two young boys who had 10 bodyguards with him!  I had no idea who he was but he must’ve had a lot to lose. The final evening was spent at Ralph Lauren’s first European restaurant, Ralph’s, 173 Blvd. St. Germain, with friends from Chicago. Inside this 17th-century mansion, Ralph Lauren has created a chic temple to American cuisine. The menu included Maine lobster salad, Maryland crab cakes, steak from the designer’s Colorado ranch, southern fried chicken and all types of hamburgers. I will dream about the deep fried olive appetizers. There was dining in the courtyard as well as inside and, as you can imagine, the restaurant was done to a turn. Every detail was perfect and it was a great way to end our trip. Leslie Hindman, Michael Sneed and friends had just arrived in town and it was great to spend some time together at this special spot with a Chicago connection. What a wonderful summer vacation…I hope you enjoyed reliving it with me! See more photos here! 

On the Chicago party front, there is still time to buy tickets for what CS Magazine has called the Number One must-attend summer event, Chefs & the City, benefitting Vital Bridges. There will be an amazing fashion show, great auction packages and, of course, GREAT FOOD! The event will be held on Thursday, July 22nd, at the Peninsula Hotel with the VIP After Party at RL. There are still a few tickets available so I hope to see you all there!!!! For tickets and more info, please call 773-271-5117 or visit www.vitalbridges.org.

On this same night, I will also be attending the PAWS Beach Party (yes, it will be possible to do both!). This 8th annual event will be at the Castaways at the North Avenue Beach Boathouse beginning at 6 p.m. Their auction items are not to be believed and the surprises that co-chairs Bonnie Spurlock and Christine Mallul have planned will make it the BEST one yet! So grab your best four legged friend and join the party!!! Visit www.pawschicago.org or call 773-890-5118 for tickets and more info!
 
Love always,
Candace (I missed you!)
Candace@CandidCandace.com