Travelling to Paris?

Book into a Photographer’s Delight 

the Photography Themed Hôtel Déclic

By Steve Meltzer © 2017

I was planning a trip to Paris this spring for the publication of a book of my photographs and I was surfing the web looking accommodations when I came upon the Hôtel Déclic; a hotel that turns out to be a photographer’s wonderland dream wrapped up in elegant 4 star luxury. Crammed full of cameras and imagery Déclic was almost too good to be true. Even its name echoed its photographic ambiance; “déclic” is slang for a camera shutter release which is French « le déclencheur».

The Contact Sheet Suite

Checking it out, I discovered that the Hôtel Déclic was the creation of designer Sandrine Alouf of the company “Groupe Maranatha.” Alouf's vision was to create a unique hotel that surrounds its guests in a sumptuous photographic environment of images, nostalgia and deluxe furnishings. The hotel is located in Montmartre one of the city’s most romantic “quartiers.” Since the late 19^th century it has been known for its art and the artists who resided there; which includes everyone from Matisse to Picasso. As well as art this charming 18th arrondisement neighborhood exudes romance. Sensuality is in the air and Montmartre has been the setting for films like “Can-Can”, “Moulin Rouge” and “Amélie." The hotel itself is not too far from the famous “Folies Bergère.” 

The Photo Booth Room

From the street the hotel’s rather plain exterior belies the nearly hallucinogenic universe within. Entering the hotel you walk down corridors lined with cameras and hundreds of images. Checking in you discover rooms with names like the Reflex, the Contact Sheet and the Selfie. In fact all 18 rooms and 9 suites at Déclic are named for different photographic themes and decorated accordingly; often with tongue deeply in cheek. For a photographer it’s the perfect place to end a day after metro-schlepping across Paris taking photos.

The Reflex Room

In the Reflex Room for example you can stretch out on a bed shaped like a vintage interchangeable lens camera while in the Black & White room your bed’s headboard is a giant screen that projects a show of “retro” B/W images taken by anonymous photographers. As Sandrine Alouf charmingly puts it, “it captures the beauty of the art of photography, the taste of the image, and the joy of snapping”. It’s a room ready made for dreaming in black and white.

The Darkroom Suite 

Hotel Déclic blends sensuality and romance and it is nowhere more evident than in the “Darkroom Suite” (which is also known as the “Sexy Noire Suite.”) This room’s darkroom theme includes overhead ‘safelight’ illumination which will bring back fond memories to any analog era photographers. Having worked in a photo lab for 30 years myself I must say that this is the most deluxe darkroom I’ve ever been in. However the hotel frowns on actual darkroom work in suite as yellow fixer stains are impossible to get out of bed sheets and towels.

The Paparazzi Suite

Red is the color of passion and it dominates several rooms like the lusciously intense red décor of the “Paparazzi” suite. Fit for a visiting celebrity-- trying to avoid paparazzi-- it features a red carpet with a Hollywood gold star that leads to a sleek four poster bed. Looking up while in bed guests come face to face with a satiric pack of paparazzi armed with cameras staring down at them.

There’s also a "photo shoot" room for guests who want to sharpen their studio skills and the photographer Thierry Hugo is available through the hotel for classes and for private photo tours around the city.

The  Photo Studio Suite

Hôtel Déclic is an amazing place to stay. Comfort and luxury with prices that are quite in line with most 4 star Paris hotels (129-499€). You can find out more about Hôtel Déclic in my expanded article at

http://www.shutterbug.com/content/book-your-next-vacation-hotel-declic-fantastic-photography-themed-hotel-paris#adRmL3WECo84mDZb.97

For reservations or more information contact the hotel directly at  

http://declichotel.com/en/contact.html

(All photos abaca press courtesy Hôtel Déclic)   

Le Sud de France 5.4 : She Sings Hard for Her Honey.

Carla at work at her last job.

It has been a good week. The worst of the  Japanese reactor leaks has been sealed and in the local Canton elections, the l'Herault stayed firmly on the left, voting for the Parti Socialiste. 

However, the best news of the week was the announcement that Carla Bruni-Sarkozy’s new album will not be issued this year.

Some commentators speculated that Carla’s disk was being held back so it could be released to coincide with the 2012 presidential election. Her husband’s center right party, the L’UMP (the acronym seems quite fitting--lump) didn’t do 

Vox Populi

well in the Canton elections, losing seats to the leftist Parti Socialiste (PS) and the far right National Front (FN). Some l’UMPers worry that in 2012, Sarkozy might not even make it into a second round runoff.

This concern explains in part France’s lead in creating a no-fly zone over Libya and sending troops to Ivory Coast. It is a George Bush moment that M Sarkozy wants to exploit, perhaps hoping to win reelection as a “wartime” President. However, as one opposition PS minister put it, Sarko’s domestic policies show that he has an “attitude d’autisme.” He is as politically tone deaf to his people as much as Ghaddifi and the other presidents-for-life he’s trying to oust from power.

The other reason Carla’s album may have been pulled from distribution is, well, Carla. To see what I mean, go to YouTube and search for Carla Bruni singing the Rolling Stones song “You’ve Got the Silver” (or try this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXQy8WoTyVw)

N'est pas Joan Baez

Before you go to YouTube though, why not make this viewing opportunity a fun party for friends? Invite folks over and mix up a big pitcher of “Pineapple TGV.” It’s easy and fun. Just peel a pineapple and cut it into ¾ inch chunks. Put these in a large pitcher with some ice. Next pour a bottle of vodka over the fruit. Serve cold.


The TGV is a great drink, fruity and smooth, that hits the nervous system like the bullet train it’s named after.

Now for the party game I'll call, “Oops. She did it again.” Have everybody sit around your laptop and watch Carla’s video. Each time she goes off key, misses the beat or simply loses her accompanist, take a big swig of TGV. By the end of the three minute and eight second video, no one will remain standing; she’s just that kind of an artist. 



If anyone survives “You’ve Got the Silver” move these hardy souls on to her brain damaging version of “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out.” 


Oh, the irony. If anyone has a right to sing the blues, it certainly must be the daughter of rich Italian parents, who after a career as a highly paid “fashion” model, became France’s First Madame. This girl sings from her heart, wherever it is, and from that imaginary time when nobody knew her and she was down and out.

The Real Deal

Bruni calls herself a “folk singer” although from the photo above, you can see she looks nothing like Joan Baez or Big Mama Thornton. Paris Hilton styles herself as a “rapper” (and a movie star) and both these women are self-deluded rich girls who, thanks to their money and their willingness to remove their clothing, have reached similar heights of celebrity.  

This new disk was going to be Bruni’s fourth album--which tells you a lot about the state of French music--and it’s stirred up a lot of bad feelings. The disk contains Mme BS’s version of the beloved “Douce France” by the late Georges Brassens. 


Brassens was born here in the Herault in Sete and is held in reverential esteem by the local population. Trying to be a true folk singer, Bruni sings this French tune in her native Italian. The center of the controversy is that Brassens was a leftist who would never have voted for Sarkozy and wrote the song during WWII. It is about the occupation and it is an anti-fascist piece. For those of you too young to remember, fascism is an Italian creation, so you probably shouldn’t sing this song in Italian.

Perhaps, without irony, the Sarkozys think that Carla singing Brassens will be a political masterstroke that will win over the hearts of French voters. However, it is hard to imagine what positive effect Mme BS singing this song badly could have on the campaign.

The Le Pens Performing Political Karaoke

Perhaps what it will do is drive even more voters into the warm, waiting arms of Marine Le Pen of the FN. Marine (soft “a” if you please) is a smiling, twice divorced, blonde who’s trying to re-position the FN as something other than the neo-Fascist, immigrant bashing party of her father, Jean-Marie Le Pen. To the best of my knowledge, Marine hasn't  posed nude like the First Madame, and that alone should get her more votes than Le Petit Prez. Zut alors!

I raise the issue of singing because it’s spring and there’s a lot of singing around our village. Many residents here have "Midi" accents that make spoken French sound almost as though it is being sung. The accent involves lots of rolled r’s and a lot of inflection. A simple word like “merci” becomes “mer SEE,” with the voice rising merrily around the “see.” This Southern accent also adds the syllable “ah” to all sorts of words. My name becomes “Steve-Vah,” baguette, “baguette-TAH,” Pezenas, Pezenas-ZAH and so on.

Music 101

With the warm weather, more people are out and about in the village and you hear them singing a lot. Just the other day, I came around a corner and found a group of moms standing outside the door of our Ecole Danse, softly singing the words to the music their daughters were dancing to inside.

It is this kind of experience that makes me wish that Carla and Nikko would spend some time down here so they can learn how important singing is and how much it holds people together. The Sarkozys might even get to like actual French life (not Parisian) and end up a lot less tone deaf to the needs of the real folk.

Hey! Sarkozys! You're invited to shower at our place.

Note: You can hear some of "Dolce Franca" on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbYErGTB0cA



If you like “Le Sud de France”, please pass it on for your friends to enjoy too.

Sud de France 3.6: Tips for the Foreign Driver in France

Even a sedate farmer will speed up going home at the end of a day

Since I hope that some of my readers might want to visit or live in France one day  I’d like to offer these tips to make your driving--and parking--experiences more pleasant and less life threatening. Take these tips to heart and perhaps they will help you keep that heart in one piece. 

Sang Froid: Driving in France requires Sang Froid or cold blooded-ness. You cannot let anything that happens on the road shake your cool. For example, the other day I was behind  a car turning left. I slowed down and after he turned drove on. But, aha, the guy behind me had driven up on the sidewalk on my right to pass me. Did I blink at the sight of him suddenly there on my right? Zuts alor never! My sang froid held.

Small cars and Manual Transmissions: Cars in France are mostly small and have manual transmissions for good reason. They are small to fit the limited parking spaces and have manual transmissions to help you keep your mind on your driving. Never rent a big car with an auto transmission. You might be lucky enough live to regret it and then again you might not. 

Speed Limits: Speed limit signs say “Rappel” or “reminder the speed here is.” Most drivers are happy to be reminded of the speed limit just before they drive off as fast as possible.

On Passing: Everyone in France passes and often it's just for the hell of it. It is a communal pastime. German cars, like the Mercedes, Audi and BMW are required to pass all other cars at all times. 
You may be doing 150 kph (90mph) on a road marked 70 (42mph) only to look in your rear view mirror and see a Mercedes crawling up your tailpipe, flashing its lights and proceeding to pass you at over 200 (120mph). 
Don’t get angry, it doesn't pay, just get out of the way.

Freestyle parking: Parallel parking and angle parking are all options of choice on a French street. Park on either side pointed in any direction you want. Also freely mix angle parking with parallel parking as needed.

Parking lots: There are lots of lots and you’d think that it would make parking your car a breeze. Well yeah if you have a Mini Cooper, Smart Car or Fiat Uno. Built well over thirty years ago most lots have spaces sized for the tiny Citroen Deux Chevaux. Even an American compact like a Honda Civic would be too big for a typical French parking space. But at least let me offer this trick to help in a parking in a lot. Look for end spaces near side walls. Then park as far from the wall as you can. This assures you can get back in the car to leave. Parking in the middle of a row you will always be parked in on both sides and be unable to get into your vehicle  for days.

Boulangerie Parking: In front of any Boulangerie it is totally legal to double park or triple park or to simply stop your car in the street and run in to get you baguettes. No one honks or gets angry. Since the Revolution, the French have had the right to stop anywhere, at any time to get their pastries. 

The driver of this van parked as close as possible to his favorite boulangerie.

Speed Bumps: French mayors like to plant speed bumps the way vineyrons farmers like to plant grapes, as often and as much as they can. Often the speed bumps go unmarked and it can make for a bone jarring driving moment right in front of City Hall. Speed bumps are the fastest growing traffic control in France. What fun!

Roundabouts: The French love roundabouts. They are cheap and take up little land so they are all over the place. A friend of mine believes that there is a top secret factory in Lyon that stamps out roundabouts for shipment around the country. Since they are so prevalent you might consider practice driving in your a roundabouts before coming to France.

Narrow Streets: The Belle Époque construction boom was well over when the automobile arrived. Consequently many city and town streets are seriously narrow--think goat cart wide or horse and rider wide. Putting a big car like an Escalade on a village street reminds me of feeding a fly to a Venus Fly trap. After a few happy seconds of eating Fly Trap nectar--Squash!

This is a wide street in France

Never Drive In Paris: Finally the most important tip of all. Paris is the worst city on the planet to drive in. I have been with grizzled old Paris cabbies who now resort to GPS and onboard computers to help them figure out how to get around. And until you have been surrounded by two dozen cars in total gridlock haven’t really experienced driving.

None of these tips should discourage the brave from visiting France. It is a beautiful country and it is really worthwhile to have a car to travel through its lovely villages and countryside. Just be ready for some strange and unexpected driving experiences.

Photos and text ©2010 Steve Meltzer