#Garage flooring in Golden Grove

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[loreleywrites]

The Gateshead Engine

If you bought the itch.io game bundle for racial justice and inequality a month ago, one of the games it contains is a single-player ttrpg called The Gateshead Engine by Adam Roy (Follow the link to buy and play yourself!)

The basis of the game is simple: It is Victorian England, and you have been commissioned to built a steampunk mech. You flip cards from a tarot deck to give you situations for your diary entries, and you can finish...basically whenever you want.

I enjoyed it greatly, and wanted to publicly share my game. Content warning for a bit of body horror and minor surgical stuff at the end? It’s not like, explicit though. Anyway, I haven’t stretched my horror muscles in a while, and I love how this game started vs where it ended. Hope y’all enjoy!

Starting Questions:

—Who are you, and why did you agree to build the Engine?

I am Loreley Weisel, German thermodynamicist on the brink of bankruptcy. Europe is corrupt, and my will careens towards destruction.

—Who is your patron, and what, if anything, do you know about them? Why did they tell you they wanted the Engine?

My patron is an English aristocrat, Thomas Boroughshire III. All I know is that he has deep pockets and a fascination for thermophysics. He wants my Engine as a mechanical marvel, a party trick for a boy with too many years behind him.

—What is your community like? What do they value and what do they fear?

The community is wealthy. Large estates line a well-kept road. Dogs are bred. Horses are shoed. Foxes are hunted. Gardens beg for release from their clipped restraints. The air itself is made of brick. They value stability, power (or the projection of it), and greed.

—What will the Engine do when it’s completed, and what will it change? (This may shift during play; for now, decide what you think the answer is when you agree to build the Engine.)

My Engine is a herald of death. The aristocracy will be beaten into submission, and England will follow France in the march towards the guillotine.

My Engine:

Diary:

Monday, April 26, 1880—

I do not belong here, in this kingdom, in this estate, in this…garage. Hope’s Paradise is far from the largest house in this community, and His Highness can barely provide enough space for me to work. He does not respect me, nor does his staff. Dinners will be cold on nights I work late. There will be no hot water when I go to draw a bath. They do not want me here.

Fitting enough; I do not wish to dwell here any longer than I have to.

The neighbors are no better. Squire Duncannon of Blah Blah Blah invites me to speak German whenever he harasses me with what he calls conversation, but refuses to use the tongue himself. His wife has never uttered a word beyond her scowl. When I pass by Covington Place, the children stop and watch, twittering among themselves. I wonder what the Duke and Duchess have told them about me. I would not know, for I have never been allowed inside their gates.

England will burn, and this wretched grove of greed will be the tinder.

Wednesday, April 28, 1880—

That godforsaken child has entered my workshop again. Grease smeared all across the floor. Handprints of coal dust cover every box and bench. Every fire hazard should come at the cost of a finger. The little brat will have nubs by week’s end.

Friday, April 30, 1880—

Saturday, May 1

A song. Melancholic, but strong. Thunderous, but ephemeral.

How many hours have slipped by tonight? Dream grips my mind like a starving urchin with hardtack. Maybe these gears and pipes are singing me a lullaby.

Oh for heaven’s sake it’s half two. To sleep with me.

Tuesday, May 4, 1880—

Fucking Third of Family horseshit-brained fool. Every thief with deep pockets thinks themselves a scientist just because they bought opium from one once. I know how to build my Engine. Fuck off with this talk about gas compression. My math is sound, and changing one element means redesigning the entire boiler system.

His Highness has been placated with some minor aesthetic downgrades that better cater to his asinine tastes. For now.

Wednesday, May 5, 1880—

Fucking Third of Family horseshit-brained fool. If it weren’t for the coal dust handprints, I’d think he was the child ransacking my workshop with relentless fervor. Instead, he has simply decided to rearrange my supplies to the garage entrance. My ankle will heal in a few days, but I cannot work on my Engine until it mends. Time is money, and he has more money than I have time.

Sunday, May 9, 1880—

The ankle works.

Monday, May 10, 1880—

His Highness invited his dearest, most important friends to dine in his atrociously cultivated garden. The Wells boy snuck off and found me in my workshop. I have never met another child like him. His curiosity is insatiable, and he knows more about thermodynamics than most learned men I’ve met.

He asked me a question I could not answer: “If this machine is meant for war, how can you fight a navy with it?”

I suppose this will be a larger problem when the revolution hatches from England and threatens the mainland. For now, I must keep focused on this single-minded task. If we make it that far, I will find an answer.

…Perhaps I am naïve and misguided.

Wednesday, May 12, 1880—

The entire community has decided to roll their porcine asses to the south of France for holiday. Such a shame I contracted a bit of a cough and elected to stay here to recover. The travel would have been much too hard on my delicate frame.

Two weeks of uninterrupted work begins tonight.

Friday, May 14, 1880—

For. Fuck’s. Sake.

Her Highness fainted at the pier moments before they were to board a ferry across the Channel. Feared she had come down with the same pestilence I had contracted. Now the entire extended Boroughshire rabble is returning posthaste.

The quiet? Gone. Their need for attention? Only I can sate it. My Engine? Still incomplete, and will be for some time.

If I drown myself in enough whiskey, the mystery of my death should keep their tiny minds occupied for at least a week.

I intend to refill my lamps and work as long as I can tonight. May their arrival home tomorrow wake me at noon for all I care.

Saturday, May 15, 1880—

I was awoken at nine in the morning. Forty minutes of unrestful rest.

Tuesday, May 17 18, 1880—

Knocked the fucking lamp looking for my pen. Lucky I didn’t burn this entire estate to ash.

…Perhaps unlucky.

He even haunts my dreams, touching my Engine and reducing it to rust at the moment that should have been my victory. What Hell of idiocy have I gotten myself into? Fucking aristocrats standing in the way of their own downfall by sheer incompetence. Back to sleep with me.

Tuesday, May 18, 1880 (again)—

I’ve read a number of fascinating papers that I received in the mail today. While I admit I know little of the burgeoning field of electrical engineering, the work being done in the States is fascinating. I intend to take a short trip into London to seek more research (And get a right stein of beer; this house and its occupants are worthless.)

Friday, May 21, 1880 (London)—

I have been granted access to ~~Royal~~ archives. Despite my distaste for locking knowledge away from the public, I am nonetheless grateful for this opportunity. All the kingdom’s brightest minds (what few there are) have recorded years of research on every possible thread of science.

Galvanic principles are fascinating to me. To think, all these thousands of years, we have had electricity inside us! Thoughts percolate, but I do not yet know to what end.

I shall return to the cursed Golden Land in the countryside tomorrow. Between my notes and a few papers, I have been allowed to abscond with, I am reinvigorated with hope for my work.

Saturday, May 22, 1880—

I should extricate and boil every last one of their tongues!

The entire community’s patriarchs were waiting in the living room of Hope’s Paradise (Clearly not my hope.)  Word got out of my project, and every cock-waggling primitive decided that this was a matter that required ending their holiday early. While their offspring splash in the Mediterranean, their sagging eyes are now fixed on that fucking garage.

I don’t know who is merely curious, who else feels inadequate enough to lie about their scientific credentials, or who wants to break my Engine merely because I’m a woman. Too many men in my workshop. Had I less restraint, an axe may have been all I needed to solve this annoyance.

Hopefully the dullards bore sooner than later. I may need to beat Mr. Duncannon with a German dictionary regardless.

Tuesday, June 8, 1880—

Between the constant need to shun nosy men from my workshop and the actual work itself, I have not had the constitution to keep my diary.

But today…ah, today! The control platform appears to be totally functional! I have toiled too long to have failure spring from my fingertips. Rotational velocities are stable, cranks and gears are greased and mobile, the Gatling guns are…gatling.

For the first time since I began my work here, I feel like I have accomplished something great. The aristocracy’s days are numbered.

Monday, June 14, 1880—

Work continues to sap my focus. Boiler…not cooperating. I fear I will lose all the work I’ve done on it due to some unforeseen flaw. A redesign at this stage would be costly, but so would continuing with a faulty boiler. Either way, I’m taking tomorrow off from work to clear my head.

Thursday, June 17, 1880—

Time off has proved productive. I finally finished reading the documents on loan from the ~~Royal~~ archives, and there is a fascinating bit of research by a man by the name of Frankenstein. His work on galvanic sciences from earlier this century are far beyond anything I’ve found from English archives in the last decade. This even only seems to be his initial work; perhaps I can track down his true masterpieces of intellect. Maybe I don’t even need to redesign a boiler…

One blight on my day over lunch: that coal-handed bastard child has returned. I think it’s Constance.

Wednesday, Jun 23, 1880—

The Andersons down the way lost one of their bitches last night. She was a beautiful hound, but her memory will live on in my diary. I wanted some hands-on experience with Frankenstein’s work, so I was able to procure the corpse for a small fee (to His Highness who is paying my bills).

Wondrous! Such are the things I learned. A body, made of muscle, controlled by electricity. I suspect I may need to seek out an anatomist or some other scholar of the biological sciences to continue this research.

My mind is alight with so many ideas…

Wednesday, June 30, 1880—

June ends and takes the boiler with it. My Engine shall have a grand new design. Thomas has been placated by promises of surprise. “The most groundbreaking work in thermodynamics!” I lied. His is a mind easily led astray by spectacle.

Sunday, July 4, 1880—

Constable came round today. Mr. Duncannon hasn’t been seen in three days. He left for an important business meeting in Paris, but missed his boat. Coach is missing too. It’s all very curious. I did everything I could to keep that sniveling pig out of my workshop. Given the way his nose recoiled into his skull, it seems the stench of grease and ozone was enough.

In more academic news, I received notice that more of Victor Frankenstein’s research papers are being released from an archive in Switzerland. I should have them by week’s end. My excitement radiates like the sun.

Friday, July 9, 1880—

Wolfgang. Heinrich. Fuchs.

At my forsaken door. With my forsaken research papers.

How the fuck did he find out I was working on galvanism? Who is he still connected to? Which one of my friends betrayed me (besides him)?

He was in this fucking house asking me fucking questions about my fucking work. Fuck him. He better not stick around. After what he took from me…fuck.

Tuesday, July 13, 1880—

Chaos reigns.

Wolfgang has shacked up with the Andersons. He swings by almost daily. When I’m not actually busy, I try to look it.

Constance has gotten her hands into the coal again (I haven’t disposed of it for appearance’s sake.)

The Duncannons are planning a funeral for…whatever his name was. I don’t think I ever bothered to remember anything about him other than when he would finally leave this hellish corner of England.

Thomas has been migrating in and out of Hope’s Paradise. Something about a trade deal in India. It sounds very important for a man who makes riches off the backs of foreigners.

I could use a big stein at a small biergarten.

Sunday, July 18, 1880—

Widow Duncannon speaks! Her first words spoken to me in the months I’ve resided her are accusations that I have something to do with the death of her husband and his driver. Utter nonsense. The police found the driver at the bottom of a pint in a pub last week. The way gossip echoes around these families, however, I won’t be surprised if they begin to turn on me.

My work must accelerate.

Thursday, July 22nd, 1880—

Widow Duncannon, Duchess Byron. Mrs. Boroughshire. All the Andersons. None of them will speak to me. They glare if they see me, so I try to keep to my room and my workshop as much as possible. I’m lucky Her Highness is so subservient to Thomas. This house would be unbearable if she had any willpower over it.

Tuesday, July 27, 1880—

Celebrations are in order! I have poured over work by Golgi, Frankenstein, and Schwann. Every guide I could find on electrical engineering. Trial after trial, failure after failure. And yet…

And yet.

It’s not that I have hope my Engine will work, it’s that I have knowledge that it will. My designs are so clear to me. My protypes are all working as planned. The path to revolution has been laid out before me. Now it is up to me to walk it.

Tomorrow is the beginning of the end.

Wednesday, July 28, 1880—

Coal hands. Inside my workshop. Inside. My. Workshop. And this time, ha! This time, I have a culprit.

I made it very clear to Constance that she will not be loitering in my laboratory anymore.

Saturday, August 7, 1880—

What have I become?

Why did I begin building my Engine? Something about a war? Who can say. Time marchers onward. My Engine will march with time. Every experiment has made it clearer to me that I have stumbled upon the greatest discovery of this era.

No one celebrates with me. Not Thomas. Not Her Highness. Not Constance, nor the boys, Timothy and Franklin. Even Wolfgang is silent (at last).

The neighbors have stopped visiting. I wave when I pass them by, but they just sneer and hurry past. Finally, I can work in peace and silence. Finally my genius can become reality. Finally all of Europe will know what Loreley Weisel is capable of.

I have become the herald of great change, a conduit of the very building blocks of existence.

Tuesday, August 10, 1880—

A toast to the Duke and Duchess! May their patronage live forever in my greatest work! Soon I hope to bring the Andersons into this project as well.

Wednesday, August 18, 1880—

The Engine lives! The support of this community has been invaluable as the final construction has occurred. Everyone has poured their hearts into my work, and it’s truly a masterpiece that could not have been built alone.

My galvanic calibrations have been finalized. My circuits have been tested. It is nearing time for me to put all of myself into my work. I will see success.

Saturday, August 21, 1880—

The loneliness is getting to me. Not even the dogs bark anymore. I talk to my Engine, but its flesh is silent.

Monday, August 23, 1880—

The constable returned. With six policemen. He had questions about His Highness and the Duke and Duchess and Widow Duncannon. I told him the truth: I could help him find them.

I cooperated.

I have a surplus.

Wednesday, August 25, 1880—

Why shouldn’t I? It worked for them. Shouldn’t it work for me? All the principles are the same. They’re muscle. I’m muscle. They’re electric. I’m electric. Why shouldn’t I be in control?

Thursday, August 26, 1880—

Wolfgang, that bastard! He said he knew everything that I had been up to. That is outrageous! He knows nothing!

I have destroyed my room in rage. Fucking Fuchs! What does he think he knows? Who has he told? I should have killed him. Why didn’t I kill him? He doesn’t deserve it. He doesn’t deserve my creation. He covets it. He wants it for himself. I know it. He got me kicked out of university, he got me run out of Germany. He is jealous. Jealous! He knows I’m better. He knows I’m smarter. He wants what I have, my Engine, my child. He can’t have it. He can’t. He won’t. Where did he go? Fucking Wolfgang I will fucking kill him. He knows nothing. He’s bluffing. He just wants my success. My genius. He is nothing. He will be nothing. Nothing. Nothing. He nothing. Nothing. nothing nothing nothing noth

Sunday, August 29, 1880—

This will be the final entry to my diary. The morning air is heavy with the musk of summer. It’s strange to me how calm I am given what I am about to do.

My Engine has come so far from its days as a sketch on a piece of parchment. Veins of red pulse behind the metal. Sinew, steel, and lightning working in harmony. Every stitch and every suture as perfect as the one before it. So many died for its creation, and so many more will die when I am finished today.

I expected my hand to shake more as I inked the incision lines across my skin. I expected my mind to be foggier as I tried to remember every nerve that would need work. Even the pain I am about to endure has not shaken my resolve.

I am uncertain what the scientific community will think of my work. Of the sacrifices I made. But I have proven a radical truth: All the money in the world does not stop one from being built from the same parts as another. And that’s all we are: Animals with organs and muscles and electricity surging through us. If machines can harness that energy, why can’t we? If new machines can be invented, why not new humans?

All I can hope for now is that my composure holds through the entire procedure. Once I am integrated into my Engine, I will command a mind and body unseen by man. Unparalleled by any of God’s creation. Magnificent in its genius. My genius.

Today I will change humanity forever.

[yuuudachi]

First

It’s weird figuring out how to start a blog, especially when you expect zero to a handful of people to read it. Most of you who do look at this likely already know me quite well, but in case not: Hello, my name is Brooke, and I have been living in Shimane, Japan for 8 months. 

One thing to know is that Shimane is the second to least populated prefecture in Japan, battling on and off for the number one spot with its eastern neighbor, Tottori. Have you heard of either of these places? If you’re not very familiar with Japan, likely not. I live in a very quiet and green village of barely over 3,000 people nestled in the mountain region of Shimane. It’s full of farmers, monkeys, wild boar, tanuki, the occasional bear (or so I’ve been told), and many, many trees and bamboo groves. On particularly warm and clear skied Sundays, the monkeys tend to gather around my apartment and on top of the detached garages in the parking lot and have a heyday. Eating bugs off each other, having random (and very loud) spats with each other, and just taking a nap on our cars. I shake loud plastic bags when I go outside to keep them a safe distance away from me, but despite this, I’ve adopted all of them as my children. There’s a word in Japanese that is “inaka.” It literally translates to “rice field cottage,” but it basically is the word for very rural areas. Now there are no rice fields in my village that I know of due to the mountains, but I am living the extreme inaka life.

Each weekend, I buy all my groceries from the local farmers market for about 2,000-2,500 yen (roughly 18-23 USD) and take frequent walks along the river, weather permitting. There are no trains here. The one and only train that was here closed down a few years before I arrived due to low usage but frequent environmental disturbances (fallen trees on the tracks from what I heard). There are a few sparse buses that go to surrounding towns randomly throughout the day, and most of the high schoolers here are actually recruited in from other prefectures and far away towns and live in dorms due to how low the local student number is. There are a few ma and pa restaurants in the “downtown” (a cluster of about 30-40 houses and small stores by the river), but I’ve only been to two. One was a curry house owned by an elderly couple, and the other is a recently opened cafe, right next to the water. Life here is very quiet, and the town is usually asleep at 7PM. Lights out everywhere, almost all stores closed except for the Lawson on the other edge of town, and silent streets. There are maybe 10 streetlights across the entire village or less, so the skies at night reveal more stars than any area I’ve been back in America. The nearest actual town is a 40-45 minute drive away. The nearest “city” with a mall, movie theater, and many restaurants is 1 hour and 20 minutes away. The nearest real city is Hiroshima, but it’s about 2 hours away by car. I’ve only been once. 

I live in the teacher apartment building on the family side despite being a single person, so I have a very roomy apartment with one bedroom (tatami), a living room (tatami), a large kitchen (wood flooring), a bathroom/wash room (wood flooring), and a spare room off to the side (tatami - it gets very cold in the winter and very hot in the summer, so I don’t go in there often). I have a bed instead of a futon because mukade (poisonous centipedes who are aggressive and have bites that hurt more than hornets’ stings and can be dangerous if bitten near vital organs. Fun!) are a frequent guest, and you’d be a fool to think I’d lie on the floor when I’m a first floor apartment next to the woods and many bushes hosting these fellows. I’ve also had a huntsman spider greet me at my genkan (the area to take your shoes off in all Japanese homes by the front door) and a few terrifying venomous spiders chilling nonchalantly on my patio and outside my bedroom window. The huntsman met his maker that day, but I let the other ones stay; I’m living a happy mosquito free life with our unspoken agreement. 

So that is a short rundown of what life is like here. I know 3 paragraphs doesn’t seem short, but do understand that it’s briefing over 8 months of life. It covers most of the picture living here, but I’m sure the rest will reveal itself over the next few posts. 

I’m starting this blog for one main reason. I am lonely. While what I described above may seem very picturesque and like a dreamy (and sometimes scary-- looking at you, mukade) adventure, it is very isolating. Despite knowing conversational Japanese, I have not had great luck making friends as most of the people here are families or elderly people with their own lives and tasks to attend to. While I enjoy their company when I have it, I could hardly expect anyone to go out of their way to spend time with me when they have children to raise or farms to tend to. So I spend most of my days quietly alone, trying to make the most of it, but ultimately beginning to lose a battle to a reticent sadness that is hard to overcome. I write this blog to not only remind myself but invest myself in the good that I have slowly become a bit blind to amidst the personal struggles I’ve faced.  

The name of my blog comes from  " 夕立 " , read as “yuudachi.” It means a sudden shower in the late afternoon/early evening, but could be literally translated to  "occurrence of the evening (meteorological) phenomenon.” I really love this word. The first time I learned it, there was a yuudachi around 4:30PM as I was leaving work, and my coworker explained the word and its kanji to me. It was a warm and sunny day with sparse clouds, so it was the perfect dictionary description of “yuudachi.” I walked home from work right after it ended during that golden time of the day, and saw a lovely rainbow above the mountains and met a cool little beetle outside my door. It was a very magical moment for me that etched itself into my memories, so when I was trying to decide on a name for this blog, the word 夕立 kept coming back to me. It was a lovely afternoon despite the storm. Grossly sentimental, I know. I’ll let you read into the rest of the meaning before I sound overly dramatic and emotional. For now, look at these cool photos I took on that day.

[raindrop-on-a-spiderweb]

Mommy Dearest, Part 1

"What if Leonardo was already married when he met Patience?"

****

Francesca ironed her husband's white dress shirt, carefully smoothing out the wrinkles. He was a dapper, handsome man and she wanted him to look perfect. Nothing less would do.

A distant cry made her look up and out the living room window. Her boys were carousing in their roomy green yard. Chris was trying to yank his brother down, fingers entangled in his black hair.

"Bambini!" She called out in warning, but they still tussled, and didn't separate until they heard the engine of their father's black car as he pulled into the garage.

The kids nearly stumbled over themselves, shouting joyously and running in through the back door as the front door opened. Her husband put down his suitcase, picked up Chris and swung him around. "You're being a good boy for your mama?"

As he passed, Leonardo brushed a soft, affectionate kiss on the nape of Francesca's neck. "How is our little Fiorella?"

"Sleeping. Finally." She smiled prettily and tucked a strand of her long, thick black hair behind her ear.

"We're having pasta e fagiole for dinner. No, don't get up. I'll make it. You've been busy all day, deserve a break."

Sometimes Francesca wondered what he did out all day. He said he was managing his father's businesses, but Francesca was from Sicily. And she knew what kind of a man Silvio had been. So sometimes, as she fed the baby or did the laundry, her mind wandered, and she wondered.

But watching her husband's back, head bent and light shining off his beautiful golden curls as he tilted his head to listen to his son's chatter...

She wasn't sure why she would even want to.

***

Patience flexed her fists. In. Out. In. Out.

Fifteen minutes.

Michael had fifteen minutes to plant the wire.

Borghese was lingering by an oak tree, by Central Park. He was carefully watching something in the distance in the grove of trees that surrounded them.

Patience stomped up, gripped his leather-clad coat and turned him around.

"You better LISTEN to me," she spat in his face. "I know what you're doing. You fucking criminal. You can hire as many fancy lawyers as you like--"

His eyes were clear blue and opaque as the day she had stormed up on the courthouse steps and screamed at him. "Ssh," he said, voice a hush. His pupils focused on hers, fixed in a terrifyingly intense way. He pressed a finger to her lips just as a dirty-faced toddler stumbled out of the sandbox and latched on her leg.

"Leonardo, cosa non va?" Chirped a pretty voice. A dainty dark-haired woman was walking towards them, holding the hand of a little boy.

Patience stood there, bare in front of his devouring eyes, the warmth of a child against her leg.

"I--I'm sorry," she stammered, picking up the baby girl and clumsily cradling into her shoulder. "I never meant--"

The woman--Mrs. Borghese--regarding her hesitantly. "Who are you?"

The baby kicked at her chest and babbled. Patience looked down. "I'm sorry. I thought you were--" alone "someone else. What a beautiful girl you have."

"Her name is Fiorella," said Borghese softly, taking his daughter from her arms. "You are good with children. Do you have any of your own?"

His gaze was making her tremble. "No," she said quickly, under the disturbing eyes of Borghese and the more confused ones of his wife. "I need--I need to go now." Michael should have had plenty of time to plant the wire. Plenty. She hurried away, hearing Mrs. Borghese erupt in a chattering of Sicilian behind her. Borghese himself did not answer. He was silent, and the silence echoed behind her, and it disturbed her more anything in her life.

***

Patience stumbled backwards, her torn ankle wrenching in pain. "You disgusting murderer," she spat. "You--you let me go r-right now, I have friends, friends in high places."

"No one's going to look for you, Pazienza, and you know it." He was calmly taking off his jacket.

She cast a desperate look outside the window. They were in an apartment--high up, too high up for her to jump out the window. 

"You're a married father, Leonardo BORGHESE! You have a god damn family and you're kidnapping young women! I feel sorry for your wife, I really do, unless that whore is in on it with you."

He didn't seem to be particularly bothered by her spat threats, even when she called his wife a whore. "She's a good wife. That's all she is."

For some reason, that infuriated her father. "Two sons. They're old enough to know what their father gets up to. And I pity your daughter."

That seemed to irritate him. "Lie down and take your dress off."

She spat in his face, and he slapped her without his face twitching or changing. "Oh, dolcezza. You're, as they say, a tough nut to crack."

***

Francesca could not get the worry out from her mind.

"I had the ball!"

"No, I had it!"

Christoforo and Giuseppe. Chris and Johnny. Different as night and day. Both had their mother's thick, dark hair and father's elegant features, but Johnny was loud and rambunctious, his brother quiet and thoughtful. Chris had always been her favorite. He always helped his mama in the kitchen and looking after his baby sister, Fiorella.

"I'm off, my darling," Leo said to her as he shrugged on his dress jacket. He looked so handsome with his hair slicked back, those golden curls teased straight. Where was he going? Why was he dressing up?

"You be careful, dear," Francesca murmured, kissing Leonardo on the cheek. Instead of turning and kissing her back, he simply smiled warmly at her and left through the front door.

As he left, and as she saw him turn, his neck shifted, and Francesca saw a faint bruise on his nape. One that looked like a…

Hickey.

***

A hickey.

Francesca agonized and mulled and worried. The thought festered and nibbled at her even as she fed her baby.

"Mama, Johnny won't let me have the football," whined Chris, who instead of fighting his brother, had come to her. Francesca barely spared him a glance. "You sort it out with him then."

Francesca was from Sicily. She knew what her husband was involved with. He was a good husband--she wanted for nothing. He took her along on his galas, made love to her, bought her jewelry, adored their children. Even if their marriage had been arranged, she had dared to think he loved her.

Until now.

She knew that men--especially men as powerful as Leonardo--liked to have mistresses. It was natural. However much he had spoiled her, he was a man.

But it didn't stop worrying her.

She had been a good wife, had she not? Borne sons, raised them, not complained? What had she done wrong?

The keys to his other houses hung on the rungs by the door. She had not touched them before now.

***

The first house was still shuttered, and there were dead leaves in the driveway. It had not been inhabited for some time.

Francesca almost decided to just go home, but decided to check the apartment building he rented. After that, she decided, she would go home.

The inside of the lobby was cold and quiet, marble floors clicking under her heels. She checked her key. Room 2103.

She took the elevator, nervously worrying if someone should spot her, one of her husbands' "friends". Francesca had never done this before--but she had never mistrusted him like this before.

The silence of the hall rang in her ears. It looked new. Artificial. Like no one lived behind any of the lacquered doors.

She twisted the key into 2103, and slowly pushed it open. The onside stunned her--it was a wreck. It looked like a bunch of hoodlums had come through and trashed it. As she stepped onto the mussed rug, she heard a distant gasp and a moan.

Her heart went into overdrive. She crossed the room in one stride, yanked open the bedroom door, and saw her worst nightmare

Inside the bedroom, on a bed with the sheets crumpled and tossed over the edge, Leonardo, her… her… husband was lying on top of what looked like a young girl, his body between her thighs.

As soon as the door swung open, Leonardo whipped around onto his back, next to the girl, and his eyes displayed a wild panic before they focused on her and recognized her. "Chicca. I can--"

He had not called her Chicca since they had courted. Somehow, that detail made her fury rise to neverending heights. "You disgusting disgrace!" Francesca screamed, tears streaming down her face. Ten years of marriage were slipping down a black hole in front of her horrified eyes.

The girl had rolled over onto the floor, covering her small breasts with the sheet. She had to be in her teens at the very least, early teens if Francesca was being truthful. She felt the disgust roil in her belly.

"Francesca," said Leonardo finally, and he stepped towards her, curving his hand over her tear-stained cheek. For a moment they were back in Sicily again, in Scafapani, at their first meeting in the cathedral, him with his hair in rebellious curls framing his gentle face, her hiding behind her scarf to shield her beet red flush. But he had laughed and taken her hand and kissed it anyway.

And his hand drifted down to her neck.

***

Patience ran out of the bedroom, clutching the sheet around her like a cape, and burst through the front door. She heard Borghese's wife wailing behind her, calling him mixed insults in English and Italian. When she came to the elevator, her high, despairing voice stopped as quickly as it began.

Cut off. Like a pig's throat slit, or a goose's neck strangled.

Tears beaded in her eyes as the silver doors of the elevator opened. When they klinged on the first floor, Patience ran out of the building, never looking back.

***

Chris knew there was something wrong as soon as his father called upstairs. There was a stern, sorrowful edge to his voice. "Giuseppe. Christoforo. Come down here. Your father wants to talk to you."

"I didn't do it, dad!" Johnny protested immediately as their father sat them down in the sitting room. Dad was holding baby Fiorella on his lap.

Chris felt the chill rest over his shoulders before he started speaking. He knew it was more enormous than that.

"You didn't do anything, Johnny. It's about your mother."

"What about mama? Is… is she all right?"

"Mama isn't coming back. She… had an accident."

There was a pause, and Johnny began to howl loudly. Chris's eyes welled with tears, but he didn't speak. All he could do was stare. His brain refused to believe it.

With Johnny's wails, Fiorella began to cry too, and Dad rocked her in his arms, getting up. "I'm so sorry, my darlings. I'm so sorry." He took them both in his arms, and Chris finally let himself weep, face pressed into the breast of his father's suit.

"What are we gonna do?" Sobbed Johnny when his father let go. "What are we gonna do without Mama?"

"Hush now." He gently stroked his son's head, gentle fingers threading their way through his thick dark hair. "Things will be back to normal soon. You won't be without a mother for long."

"Whaddyou mean?" Sniffed Chris. His father smiled a strange, secret smile and looked down at his daughter in his arms, bouncing her.

"There is someone I want you to meet. And I promise you… you are going to just adore her."

[jkmhoffman]

7Inside the Government’s Top-Secret Doomsday Hideouts

Christopher Klein

As the Cold War heated up in the 1950s, the U.S. government devised top-secret plans to ensure its survival if the Soviet Union launched a nuclear attack. These “Continuity of Government” preparations included building dozens of underground bunkers and arranging to move high-ranking government officials out of harm’s way. From a White House at sea to a subterranean capitol at a posh resort, learn more about seven of these doomsday plans.

A view of the West Tunnel Blast Door, which weighs 25 tons and serves as an entrance to a former government relocation facility codenamed “Project Greek Island”. This 112,000 square-foot shelter was constructed beneath the Greenbrier Resort’s West Virginia Wing, to serve as a relocation site for members of the U.S. Congress and associated staff in the event of a nuclear attack on the U.S. soil.   (Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

The Greenbrier—White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia For decades the most ambitious Cold War hideout for the U.S. government was hidden in plain sight at a mountain retreat 250 miles southwest of the capital city. When the Greenbrier resort undertook construction of a new conference center in 1958, the expansion project included a top-secret doomsday bunker for the U.S. Congress that included everything from a dentist’s office to a 400-seat cafeteria.

While much of this intended wartime capitol was hidden behind reinforced concrete walls, the resort’s public meeting spaces included some of the facilities that would have been used by lawmakers. “For decades, you had conventioneers and conference-goers filing through the public spaces, never realizing they were actually sitting in the doomsday chambers of the House and Senate,” said Garrett M. Graff, author of Raven Rock: The Story of the U.S. Government’s Secret Plan to Save Itself—While the Rest of Us Die.

Although the construction project stirred local curiosity—workers were particularly puzzled as to why so many urinals were required—the 90,000-square-foot complex remained a secret until The Washington Post revealed it in 1992. The bunker is now open for public tours.

USS Northampton (CLC-1) off Boston in 1953 (Credit: PJF Military Collection / Alamy Stock Photo)

Floating White House—Atlantic Ocean Beginning in 1962, two special Navy command ships—the light cruiser USS Northampton and light aircraft carrier USS Wright—were considered the best options for evacuating the president from Washington, D.C., in the event of a nuclear attack. Under the National Emergency Command Post Afloat (NECPA) plan, one of the two “Floating White Houses” was always at sea in the Atlantic Ocean, Chesapeake Bay or shadowing the president around the world.

The ships carried special Joint Chiefs personnel and featured elaborate staterooms with full communications capabilities. “The Soviet Union had such a weak navy that it was thought almost impossible to find the ships in the grand expanse of the Atlantic,” Graff said, “but once satellite technology made it easy to track ships and get aerial observations, it was quite clear it was no longer feasible to hide the president in the Atlantic Ocean.”

The NECPA plan was dropped in the early 1970s, and both ships were eventually sold for scrap.

Aerial view of the Grove Park Inn and its golf course in Asheville, NC (Credit: Aurora Photos / Alamy Stock Photo)

Grove Park Inn—Asheville, North Carolina The Supreme Court’s doomsday digs would have been more luxurious than those of Congress and the White House. The nation’s highest court decided in 1955 that in the case of an apocalypse it would convene inside one of the three banquet halls of the palatial Grove Park Inn, which sported a golf course and—as an added perk—was in the process of building a new swimming pool.

One problem with the plan: Chief Justice Earl Warren said he would never leave Washington, D.C., after learning wives would not be allowed to evacuate with their husbands.

“There’s a funny intersection between government plans and normal human psychology,” Graff said. “The government still doesn’t plan for spouses and children, and the expectation is still today that people will leave their families behind and evacuate to whatever bunker they are supposed to go to.”

The curator’s cottage built to house the National Gallery of Art treasures in doomsday scenario, now Maier Museum of Art at Randolph-Macon Woman’s College.  (Credit: William F. Campbell/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images)

Randolph-Macon Woman’s College—Lynchburg, Virginia During World War II, the National Gallery of Art hid dozens of its most precious paintings and sculptures—including Gilbert Stuart’s portrait of George Washington—in a first-floor music room of the Biltmore Estate, not far from the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, North Carolina.

With the advent of the nuclear age, a pre-staged convoy of trucks in the gallery’s garage stood at the ready to evacuate its masterpieces to a $550,000 privately funded facility at Randolph-Macon Woman’s College (now Randolph College) that included a fully stocked, three-bedroom cottage for the gallery’s curator. The facility is now home to the Maier Museum of Art.

Tunnel gateway into Cheyenne Mountain (NORAD) near Colorado Springs. (Credit: Ulrich Baumgarten via Getty Images)

Cheyenne Mountain—Colorado Springs, Colorado Unlike most of the other doomsday bunkers constructed during the Cold War, no secrecy surrounded the underground fortress built for the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). A public groundbreaking was even staged in 1961 as burrowing work began at the 9,000-foot-tall granite Cheyenne Mountain.

Two tons of dynamite a day were needed to build the five-acre complex that contains reservoirs of water and fuel and chambers capable of housing three-story buildings. The facility became fully operational in early 1967, but has since been re-designated as an alternate command center.  

The Conservation Laboratory building of the Packard Campus for Audio-Visual Conservation is the only part of the facility which can be seen on the side of Mount Pony. The rest of the 45-acre campus is underground as it was originally part of a of a previously existing Federal Reserve Bank facility. (Credit: Melissa Golden/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Mount Pony—Culpeper, Virginia Built into a hillside 75 miles south of Washington, D.C., the doomsday bunker constructed for the chairman, board of directors and staff of the Federal Reserve System included an enormous vault that held more than $4 billion—enough to replenish currency east of the Mississippi River and maintain the money supply for the two years it would take for the Bureau of Printing and Engraving to resume operations.

Opened in 1969, the facility held 700 million pieces of currency, many of them the unpopular $2 bills reintroduced in 1976. “Rather than scrap them, the government packaged them all up and put them in the Mount Pony bunker. It would ensure that after nuclear war we would be largely using $2 bills, figuring people would be a lot less choosy about currency post-apocalypse,” Graff said. The underground bunker now houses an audio-visual archival facility for the Library of Congress.

(Credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Outpost Mission—Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Beginning in the 1950s, a helicopter search-and-rescue unit remained on standby outside the capital’s blast zone at Olmsted Air Force Base to save the president’s life. Wearing dark visors and lead-lined flight suits to protect against the effects of a nuclear blast, members of the special unit were trained to rescue the president from the rubble of the White House and relocate the commander-in-chief to a bunker or the Floating White House.

Although the unit disbanded in 1970 when advances in atomic weaponry practically eliminated the chances of surviving a nuclear blast, Graff says there is a modern analog to Outpost Mission still posted outside Washington, D.C. “It was put on alert in the hours after the 9/11 attacks to possibly dig Vice President Dick Cheney out of the rubble of the White House bunker,” he says.

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Cold War

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[architectnews]

Cheaper By The Dozen Mansion, Los Angeles

Cheaper By The Dozen Mansion, LA Home For Sale, Los Angeles Residence and Pool, Californian Property Photos

Cheaper By The Dozen Mansion in Los Angeles

8 Feb, 2022

Kat Von D’s Cheaper By The Dozen Mansion, Los Angeles – is now for sale priced at $15 million.

Location: Los Angeles, California, USA

Source: TopTenRealEstateDeals

Cheaper By The Dozen Mansion For Sale

Best known for her TLC reality show LA Ink, which chronicled her work as a tattoo artist and tattoo studio owner, Kat Von D is a multi-faceted star. A model, recording artist, New York Times bestselling author, animal rights campaigner, and entrepreneur, the Mexican-born Kat Von D is famous for her gothic style.

In 2016, she paid $6.5 million for the LA mansion which served as the set for 2003’s family comedy Cheaper by the Dozen and completely remodeled it to suit her spooky aesthetic. In recent months, Kat has closed her LA studio, High Voltage Tattoo, and announced a move to Indiana to spend more time with her family. Her spectacular, distinctive home has now been listed for sale at $15 million.

The three-story Victorian mansion was originally built in the 1890s by Isaac Newton Van Nuys, who once owned the entire southern portion of the San Fernando Valley and for whom the city of Van Nuys is named. With striking red brick and turrets, the magical estate is completely gated and sits on over half an acre of manicured grounds with maze-like gardens and fountains. A blood-red swimming pool flanked by classical statues makes for an impressive statement piece, with plenty of patio space for entertaining.

The sprawling main residence offers 12,565 square feet, eleven bedrooms and eight-and-a-half baths. The grand salon connects seamlessly to the library, den, formal living and sitting rooms. The dining room is lined with linenfold paneling and stained-glass windows and connects to the fully renovated chef-quality kitchen. A hidden bar with hand-carved walls conceals a secret door that leads out to the pool and spa.

Every room in the house has been carefully styled, with intricate woodwork and ornate details. One bedroom suite features a custom-painted, bat-themed mural and a fireplace, one of seven throughout the residence.

The top floor provides a special living space that doubles as a theater with a bar and kitchenette. The stage is complete with original footlights and a dramatic turret side room. The home’s systems are modern and updated, including the multi-zone HVAC system, painstakingly installed without disturbing the intricate original wood and plaster work. The estate also includes a two-bedroom, two-bath carriage house above the garage.

Located near Hancock Park, the home is close to the center of Los Angeles, convenient to the 10 and 101 freeways and a few miles from the entertainment zone of Hollywood Boulevard. Nearby options for entertainment include the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, The Wilshire Country Club, and the numerous shops and restaurants at The Grove.

At one time, Hancock Park was home to Golden Age Hollywood celebrities, including Howard Hughes, Mae West, Muhammad Ali, and Nat King Cole. Home to many historic houses, the neighborhood still attracts celebrities such as George Takei, Manny Pacquiao and Antonio Banderas.

The listing is held by Jamie Sher of The Sher Group.

Source: www.sherhomes.com

Photo Credit: The Sher Group

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[wingedeverlasting]

Some things I love: driving the back roads through the rolling hills of hay fields in the morning, when the shadows from the oak groves are long and the light is golden. The abundance of bees and other insects humming as they visit all the flowers. The smell of marigold, flowering tobacco, snapdragons and lemon basil in the hot summer sun. Eucalyptus and feverfew. Walking the dog in the quiet, shaded, deep green forest through sword fern clearings. How on Friday mornings the garage floor is filled with buckets of flowers and above that, the drying lines are filled with hanging bunches of flowers, creating a tunnel of flowers that I make bouquets in. Eating a croissant behind my market booth in the sun. Some things I don't love: the stress, the heat, the lack of any days off, the feeling that more should always be done, wedding consultations, living on peanut butter and cucumbers, never seeing friends or going camping, still working another farm job.

[superkrispypeanutstudentstu-blog]

Gold Costs To Improve Dramatically

One of the oldest European nations, Portugal also has been an impartial kingdom because the twelfth century. The local people are in less of a promote, sell, sell mode. This metropolis is legendary for its college, the University of Coimbra, which is among the oldest universities in Europe. It's also possible to go to right here the Royal Place of Belem, which is now the Presidential Palace of Lisbon. Clearwater Seashore is a small island and one can find it has a prettypier, an incredible public beach with beautiful white tender sand - and just a brief stroll to eating places. It is also imperative to contemplate flying during off-peak occasions that happen throughout autumn and spring seasons the place rates are deemed as less cheaper and inexpensive. The capital is Nicosia, and is situated in land but the nation is an island and is due to this fact completely surrounded by water. cheap hotels at gatwick airport Top 10 seaside holiday leases delivered to you by Holiday Rental Centre, the net vacation leases firm. Jamon Iberico de Bellota is named the satisfaction of Spain and it's their most vital contribution to the culinary world. Faro has a lot to offer, nice climate and delightful beaches with very good waterfront eating places and bars. This country has been a most well-liked vacation spot for its seashores and resorts as well as its Mediterranean local weather and decrease value of living. In each contexts that as rulers of their massive southern kingdom in France and as raiders into Spain they're performing as allies of the nice Roman Empire. Identified for his or her nice customer service and speedy delivery, Store Flip Flop will make your customized flip flop by hand and have them to you in a well timed manner. Alongside the Algarve most of the beaches are found on sandbanks and require a short ferry journey to visit. The closing meal's focus was do-it-yourself hen breast nuggets fried in oil with dried basil, black pepper, and crushed chilies. The rugged, volcanic rock coastline, with a sharp decline in the sea-shelf, meant that Madeira attracted distinctive sea life to its vicinity. Madeira: Go to the beautiful volcanic island of Madeira and explore the mountains and the forests. I have been to Lisbon three times, however only for a number of days every time. Each seashores take round an hour to succeed in and could be mixed with a go to to Cape Canaveral. Get some brochures and pamphlets on the destinations provided and perform a little research on the corporate's complaint history to test whether previous purchasers have been satisfied or otherwise. A survey carried by Deco Proteste (a national journal) has proven that Viseu is one of the best city to dwell in Portugal. Jacob Lumbroso is a world traveler and an fanatic for international languages, history, and foreign cultures. It is a slender coastal strip that runs more or less West to East of the Southern tip of Spain and represents less than 5% of the Country. Do plenty of studying on the vacation spot you intend to vacation at. There's a wealth of knowledge online that can enable you make plans to your holidays. St. Anthony's, with its Baroque fashion, was inbuilt 1707 to interchange a good older church. Additional south, the resorts in Tunisia offer an amazing balance between the services of a bustling resort town with access to the desert to the enchanting tradition and hospitality of the Center East. There is an historical system of levadas, a community of slender irrigation channels carrying water from the north and the inside to the drier south. For these involved within the historical context of the apparitions of Our Woman of Fatima, visits may be made to the homes of the shepherd witnesses within the village of Aljustrel. The gastronomical affect of historical past is obvious in trouxas de ovos, lampreias de ovos (sweet dishes made with eggs) and cavacas (mild crisp cakes) from Caldas da Rainha, bean pies from Torres Vedras and paes de lo (sponge desserts) from Landal, Painho and Rio Maior. Instead of large concentrations of individuals arriving in a single location in July or August the unbiased traveler will venture elsewhere decreasing the environmental footprint and serving to the economies of more rural economies. He has visited Madeira on quite a few events and always found it helpful to have the helpful free tourist Madeira map obtainable which is accessible by free downloaded. Though Sintra is a part of the district of Lisbon, it's a city in its own proper and takes about thirty minutes on the native practice to get to from Lisbon. Holiday residences in Portugal may be rented near glorious beaches which are perfect for family trips and offering alternative attractions for the children close by. Among the many occasions that happen every year in Obidos, the most important are the Holy Week Festivities (recreating the steps on the Manner of the Cross), the Historic Music Pageant in October and, for the extra gluttonous, the Worldwide Chocolate competition in November, which incorporates an international competition during which the recipes are judged by a global jury of specialists. The city has a energetic music scene and plenty of lovely gardens and inexperienced areas. Theorizing that cork is a invaluable resource that ought to not go to waste, Yemm and Hart plan to begin manufacturing tack boards, coasters, plaques, and flooring tiles all comprised of wine cork. These, mixed with the truth that the situation, though fully secluded, is close enough to many local ammenities corresponding to the brand new Algarve Shopping centre in Guia, make it splendid for the purposes of the Naturist vacation maker: privacy and entry. It's a rose made in an unspecified area of Portugal from unspecified grapes. The fortunate ticket holder was Dolores McNamara, mother of six; she is still the biggest single winner in Euromillions history. It's the third richest region within the nation, with a GDP per capita of 86 percent of the European Union Common. Many tourists additionally succumb to the temptation of visiting the delightful Sinatra and Cassias that are each easily accessible from Lisbon. The town is inside easy reach of some great beaches. For years, Joe's Garage has been such a place in Lagos. In the summertime, France is almost as standard as Spain is within the winter for these on their European motorhome tour.

As a proof that Rahman and his government was some what forward of their time by Western European requirements locations of studying and healing were included in their building ideas. This can be a port metropolis found in southern Portugal and its history is so diversified and fascinating. Immediately four communities are correctly categorized underneath the Sephardic label, although the time period Sephardic is usually misused to designate other communities that were from North Africa, the Arabian peninsula, or current day Iraq and Iran. He is effectively travelled and an unbiased writer with 30 years experience of writing for the commerce press. The standard rule of thumb for most insurers has traditionally been that Europe consists of all nations in Europe 'west of the Ural Mountains'. The historical past of Porto can be traced again as far as the Celtic and Proto-Celtic occasions. If you're searching for a golfing holiday Portugal ought to be top of the listing. Most of the Europe is stuffed with Ultra modern and excessive-tech cities and exotic locations. If potential take a ship journey to the tiny island referred to as Colom the place you will see more positive sandy seashores. From the seaside of Ancão, in front of Quinta do Lago, to the village of Cacela Velha, stretches an environmental treasure trove of peaceable waters, huge expanses of sand and delightful pristine islands. The native culture and enironment are at your fingertips and independent travel makes it simpler to reduce and unfold the environmental affect and economic benefits to the native populations in the locations you go to. Many folks choose to go down the coast, visiting Barcelona and then working across the nation to Madrid, having fun with all of the hospitality of small Spanish cities alongside the way, rich in orange groves and folklore. On third february 2006, after rolling over eleven occasions, the Euro lotto jackpot of £a hundred twenty five,194,303 was collected by three ticket holders (two in France and one in Portugal), making it Europe's biggest ever lotto prize. The highlight and space we spent most time in was Lisbon's decrease city space, the Baixa. Bringing an 18-year old Portuguese participant to exchange an international super-star like Beckham did not seem like a good suggestion at first, but from his first season Cristiano Ronaldo's goals proved decisive and he quickly gained the love of the Pink Devils' fans. At one time in the 15th and 16th centuries, lengthy after the influence of the Celts, Romans and the Moors, Lagos loved a golden age of discovery, with ships sailing to find new lands and trade routes from its port. If you're feeling hungry you can find the museum restaurant to have a wide variety of delicious food. The most popular coastal regions inside Cyprus embody villas in Paphos, Limassol, Larnaca and Farmagusta. Fascinating as it's that these processes have been used back within the days of wagon trains the place silver and copper cash had been tossed into the drinking water barrels to help purify the water. "We at all times had been very busy (regionally and wholesale) and didnt take into consideration promoting on the worldwide internet directly to retail prospects. There are about 60 wine institutions in the metropolis space, and you'll easily find excursions and tastings. Should you journey by tuk tuk, make sure you negotiate a worth and a direct path to your vacation spot earlier than embarking in your journey. To high it off, the Algarve is regarded to have the perfect all round climate and has among the greatest holiday villas in Europe.. There are some small seashores in Sao Miguel offering water sports activities like swimming, diving and surfing in the summer months between June and October, but usually the area is thought for its lush green hills and superb climate for strolling and trekking.

[mastergaragedoorngates]

Tips for Garage Door Repair

Garage doors should be maintained the whole year round. This will help ensure that they will efficiently work. In this light, you should immediately address the small problems that as to do with them. If not, these small problems may progress to serious ones that may require you to shell out large amounts of money. There are only a few things that you have to look out for if your garage door is not properly functioning as it should and you see no loose parts lying on the floor of your garage. This article will present you with some tips on how to repair them.

Door Panel Tightening

First, you may need to tighten the door panels. Continued use of the garage implies that this home addition is regularly subjected to vibrating forces. Eventually, these forces can take their toll on the door by loosening up fasteners and brackets after a certain period of time. To help you tighten these fasteners for your door, you should use a socket or a wrench for the repair. In case it is directly connected to your garage door opener, you should disconnect the lines first by pulling on your emergency release handle. Using this method can help close the panels. In turn, the rest of the components will hold tight against one another. In this regard, you should also tighten up the hinges attach to your it. Missing nuts and bolts warrant immediate replacement and garage door repair to prevent disruptions in garage operations.

Pulleys and Rollers: Considerations

You should also check out the rollers attached to your door. If you can spin the stems using your fingers without meeting strong resistance in the process, there is a great chance that your door is functioning well. On the other hand, frozen rollers in the hinge may mean problems in gliding forces and friction involved in garage door operation. To help you address this problem through garage repair, you may add a drop or two of oil intended for door components. Steel rollers will especially require you to apply one or two drops of oil so you can keep your bearings lubricated. You should check out the roller inside the track of your garage door. If your rollers appear to be worn out, you should immediately replace them with new ones. If your garage has springs that span the sides, you should thoroughly inspect the pulleys.

Track Inspection

As for track repairs, you should look for the presence of bent tracks along the entire span of the door. Most of these bends will take place along the curve on the track. You may repair any of these bends into place by utilizing your vice grips. After this, you should check out the brackets that will hold the track against the wall. If lag bolts have turned loose, you need to tighten them up. You may then close the garage door.

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[stargategarage123]

Replacing a Garage Door Window

Garage door windows are prone to get cracked at one time or another. The culprits range from children playing in the driveway to taking tools out to the garden but whacking the door window by accident. Either way replacing the pane is fairly easy but should be done as soon as possible because broken glass is a danger and rain may get in.

The first thing you should do is take measurements for the window and purchase it. A good idea is to buy something more durable like Plexiglas but make sure whatever you choose it's between 1/8th and 1/16th of an inch smaller than the frame. A good idea is to take a piece of the old glass to the store in order to acquire the same type if you don't want to go with something more resilient.

Next, compile the necessary tools: ladder, work gloves, several types of screw drivers including flat head, putty knife, pliers, and a rag. You may need some new nails or wood putty.

Steps:-

Put the door in the down position and secure any remote control. Alert the rest of the household not to use the door or simply disconnect the power chord to prevent it from opening altogether. That's the best option.

Standing inside and wearing work gloves, place the ladder near the broken window and pull out any lose glass.

How is the trim around the window on the door installed? Is it screwed in, nailed in, glued on? You may need a putty knife or a flat head screw driver to remove it and pliers to remove any stubborn nails. NOTE: Newer doors may have an easy snap on/off trim.

Clear any leftover glass out of the frame. If it is being held in place by a solvent you may need to carefully bang it out with a hammer.

Clean the frame with a rag or brush.

Place the new window flush against the frame. Apply some wood putty around the frame to help it stick.

Return the trim to the frame.

Caulk around window on the outside of the door to ensure it's sealed. You may also caulk on the inside.

After you're finished make sure to sweep the garage floor well to remove any fallen shards, nails or other debris that could be harmful to others or cause a flat tire.

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[restylepaintinganddecorating]

House painting in Kensington Gardens-Quality painters in Rose Parkroof and fence resurfacing in wattle Park

https://restylepaintinganddecorating.com.au/services/epoxy-designer-garage-floors/ Restyle Painting and Decorating is the perfect place if you are in search of professional painting & decorating services.We take pride in offering an educated and professional approach to all projects.Visit us:https://restylepaintinganddecorating.com.au/

[tfleming2]

Bushman stone paintings and glass blowing

What a great adventure awaited us yesterday. John and I took a Combi (mini van public transportation) to Manzini where we rented a car. On the Combi, which will remain parked until full, I was surrounded by women dressed in traditional dresses and scarves. So beautifully colorful! Though some ignored me (I had neglected to cover my jeans with a wrap before boarding the Combi), most were very friendly. We passed neat clusters of Swazi round houses in the homesteads. Some were ancient with thatched roves and mud-stick construction. Others were brightly colored with new thatch or colored metal rooves. The hillsides remind me of New Mexico if you block out the numerous clusters of Swazi homesteads. Near the city, four-plexes, many which have neither electricity nor indoor plumbing, are reminiscent of 1950’s motels. Families live in the one room apartments. My observations have shown that many have no furniture. People sleep on mats placed around the floor. A cooking structure is normally located near the center of many clusters of apartments. In contrast, it is interesting to notice several large, fancy, and obviously African homes in the vicinity, often boasting of garages and vehicles. Right alongside the very nice homes are the traditional kraals, the rough pole enclosures for cattle. Toilets are designated ‘Bobabe’ (men) or Bomake (women). Some of the homes near Hlatikulu are made of mud and stick with rusted Tim rooves. However, they boast a TV satellite and a vehicle. The closer we drove toward the city of Manzini, the larger and fancier some of the homes became. This is such a land of contrasts.

Do you remember the rickety ‘hanging’ bridge that I have described to you? It is being repaired, replacing the rickety wooden slats with a sturdy metal bridge. Truly, it is better for the local people but it looks out of place. When in Mbabani a few weeks ago, I met a young woman from Colorado. She is an engineer and came here with Peace Corps to build and replace foot bridges. This must be one of the projects for the group. In July, one of the planks that I stepped on broke through from rot. It is good that Westerners are making the needed repairs.

From Manzini, we drove north, through Mbabani, the capital. As we neared, we noticed spray irrigation, similar to that still used in Kansas. For the dry season, the irrigation must bring relief. Construction surrounds us. Many of the houses are two story - even adapted traditional round houses! Sculpted columns, fancy walls, and extravagance contrast the mud and stick houses that continue to house families nearby. It seems fascinating to see banana groves, huge Bougainvilla shrubs in full bloom, Waddle trees, and giant cactus that resemble trees all, growing near to each other. Oh my! Here comes - there goes a large cross country bike team. Biking is big sport here, as is motor biking. Some time back, we had passed a huge motor bike resort where thousands of bikers come to compete. In fact, I have been told that they gather from many African countries for the events. Harleys, Hondas, and a plethora of other names can be seen in eSwatini.

The highways, unlike the dirt roads, tend to be in pretty good shape. Speed is controlled, however, with speed bumps. The paint is worn on many of them so drivers must remain very alert or risk damaging their vehicles. We were passed by a large work truck carrying a dozen or so children in the back. Perhaps the children are with a school or might just all be the children of one man. Two Swazi friends were talking about men who have 60 and 80 children! These are not from children’s homes but their own flesh and blood, depending on how many wives each of them have. As it happened, the truck was pulled over by a policeman. Perhaps the lives of the children were spared.

It is interesting to think of the Bushmen, whose paintings we are headed to see. Years ago, Zulus and other groups took this land from the San/Bushmen, a golden skinned tribe of people. Often, when I see golden skinned people, I wonder if they. Are descended from the San. Hmmm. Though this country is predominantly dark skinned, that ranges from very black to golden to cream. Some of the variation may be explained by intermarriage but some seems to be genetic. Wouldn’t it be cool if some of the golden skinned, short stature Swazis found out that they are descendants of the original San who populated this region for hundreds of years?

As we ventured toward Nsangwini, the location of the ancient stone paintings, the roads were as rutted and rough. As in Shiselweni, the region that hosts Pasture Valley. Trees and plants near the roads are coated with the red dust that comes from the dirt. How do these plants and trees survive? As we neared Maguga Dam, John told me of the orphanage that is sponsored by Neil, Michelle’s brother. More than 100 children live there. The children’s home is actually a town with grocery store and other necessities (which is good since it is so far from other towns). Isn’t it interesting that, after Peter and Michelle started caring for orphans and abandoned children, her younger brother and sister followed suit? This family is amazingly generous and kind. God is really using them. Even their mother, so gifted in pottery, painting, and horticulture (Michelle and her siblings seem to have inherited their talent from the gifted parents) is involved with a home for elderly widows - very uncommon in Africa. ESwatini is truly blessed by this family.

Hiking up the rocky path and then down even farther was worth the effort. The young guide, Sinle, held my hand in precarious situations. She said I am the age of her grandmother, who had never risked the trek to the paintings. She was a knowledgeable guide and very thoughtful. At 15, she is in a school of 700 students with only 5 teachers! Perhaps the teachers are unwilling to live so far out from the city. More likely, there is a serious shortage of teachers in eSwatini.

On the way home, we stopped at Mugg and Bean for coffee with hot milk. What a treat! Back to teaching and daily time with the kids. We do drawing and Bible study, as well as playing Tensie and Farkle regularly. How I enjoy the children here.

[iqvts]

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[itsworn]

UFO Sighting: The 1967 NHRA C/XS Championship-Winning 1965 Plymouth A990 Belvedere I is Reborn

Tom Tignanelli’s job as a Chrysler Race Group engineer provided the opportunity for his father to buy this 1965 Plymouth A990 Belvedere I from Chrysler Engineering. Adam Engelhart and the team at AAA Restorations in Rushford, Minnesota, performed the incredibly accurate restoration after its current owners, Clark and Collene Rand, bought it in 2014.

Chrysler built 101 Dodge Coronets and 101 Plymouth Belvedere I post cars with the A990 package. The cars featured lightweight steel fenders, a hood with scoop, a radiator support, and grille brackets. The package also included lightweight Corning glass. In building the UFO, the Tignanelli crew replaced the fenders and hood with fiberglass units from the Golden Commandos. The wheelbase alteration was done at Shadowoods Auto Center, the Tignanelli family business.

The 426 Hemi was restored and rebuilt by AAA Restorations to factory specifications. The engine features a 12.5:1 compression ratio, a 0.590-lift Comp Cams solid-lifter camshaft, Hooker headers, and a correct 1965 dual-point distributor.

The Holley 3116 770-cfm carburetors are mounted on the factory magnesium cross-ram intake manifold that was used on all the 1965 A990 cars.

The original rollcage is still in place, yielding 1965 vintage protection for the driver during those 130-mph jaunts.

The Moon spun aluminum 3 1/2-gallon fuel tank is rated at 10 psi maximum fuel pressure. The tank is topped off with a traditional Moon three-bar gas cap.

The weight of the huge Mopar Super Stock battery was placed over the right rear corner for optimal traction assistance. Bob’s Drag Chutes supplies the laundry for shutdown security. Since the UFO has no front brakes, the chute was a necessity.

Photos courtesy of Tom Tignanelli 009-tignanelli-1965-plymouth-belvedere-a990-sidebar-testing Though the date is uncertain, here is the UFO testing at Motor City Dragway in Detroit.

A young Tom Tignanelli demonstrates the lightweight fiberglass replacement hood that was partly responsible for removing 400 pounds from the car when it was converted to C/XS status.

The front straight axle was supplied by Logghe Chassis, sans front brakes, when built for Experimental Stock racing. Those 12-spoke American Racing wheels are still on the car.

Tignanelli’s work as race support for various Chrysler contract drivers netted him the benefit of free parts for his Chrysler race cars.

Having earned a mechanical engineering degree from Detroit Engineering Institute in 1964, Tom Tignanelli went to work as a technician and test driver in the Road Test Garage at Chrysler Engineering in Highland Park, Michigan. His dream job, though, was at Chrysler’s offsite Woodward Garage, headed by Roger Lindamood.

“My boss at the Road Test garage used to let me sneak over to the Woodward Garage so I could possibly get hired there,” Tom recalls. “In the Woodward Garage, which was the Clark Pontiac dealership at one time, there were cars being built for circle track, drag racing, and road racing.”

At first there wasn’t a position open for him, but things changed “when Roger decided to go drag racing fulltime,” Tom says. “I was hired to work as Race Group Engineer in the Woodward Garage. That job opened me up to working with the great minds of the product planners at Chrysler, like Dick Maxwell, Robert Cahill, and Dave Koffel. In addition, I had the privilege of being taught by and working with the Chrysler engineering staff that included legends like Tom Hoover, Dan Mancini, Warren Tiahart, Tom Coddington, and Allen Adams, who worked and ran the Woodward Garage. I couldn’t help but be a good student since I was being taught by the best talent in the industry. It was a great time in my life. I worked on a number of Chrysler race cars, including those owned by Jack Werst, John Tedder, and one car for Ron Mancini.”

Chrysler built 102 1965 A990 Plymouth Belvederes featuring lightweight body panels and the 426 Hemi engine with a magnesium intake manifold. Chrysler Engineering received two of those cars. Tom says, “The UFO car was a real A990 Chrysler engineering test car with the lightweight panels, 426 Hemi engine, and reverse-pattern manual valvebody TorqueFlite transmission. As part of the R&D, I recall having the Chrysler engine room build the motor with an Isky cam and some other go-fast items. Eventually, my father, Robert Tignanelli, bought the car from Chrysler. It was offered to us because I was their youngest test driver and my family was heavily involved in drag racing. I didn’t get an official racer contract with Chrysler, but since I was an employee for Chrysler Race Group, I ended up getting free race parts.”

Tom raced his newly acquired A990 in NHRA Super Stock during the 1965 race season. Hooked on drag racing, he began planning for the 1966 race season. NHRA had announced that it was introducing a new category called Experimental Stock (XS) that would be divided into six classes running from Super/XS to E/XS. Tom decided to build his 1965 Plymouth to compete in C/XS. Experimental Stock would come to be known as Funny Cars, largely because of the wild creations that came from the brilliant minds of racers like Tignanelli.

Tom tells the story of the birth of the UFO: “We rolled the car into Shadowoods Auto Center in Roseville, Michigan—my dad’s business—at the end of the 1965 race season in order to build it for Experimental Stock. It never left the shop until it was ready to race in the spring of 1966. My dad, brothers, Alex Richards, and I did the chassis modifications, drivetrain preparation, and paint work. We had a great relationship with the guys at Logghe Chassis shop, so they built the front straight-axle suspension. We moved the front axle forward 10 inches and the rear forward 15. The factory lightweight fenders and hood were replaced with lighter fiberglass parts from the Golden Commandos. We also replaced all the factory glass with orange Plexiglas.”

Further modifications included replacing the steel trunk floor with aluminum, installing a rare aluminum dashboard, and mounting a 3 1/2-gallon Moon spun aluminum fuel tank in the front grille. Tom built the Hemi motor with an Isky 550 Le Gerra cam, Chrysler race pistons, and the stock A990 magnesium cross-ram intake manifold with twin Holley 3116 carburetors. The aluminum cylinder heads were race-prepped by Bartley Kenyon, featuring a five-angle valve job. The Hemi was located farther back and higher in the altered-wheelbase shell. Modifications brought the total weight of the UFO from 3,400 pounds to 3,000.

The UFO emerged from Robert Tignanelli’s shop as if it had been abducted by aliens. It was unbelievably faster. During the 1966 season, Dieter Nubel would create the UFO’s signature nose piece that would enhance performance. Tom was NHRA Division 3 Points Champion in XS, and earned a C/XS National Championship in his follow-up 1967 season. Additionally, numerous class wins and eliminator victories would pile up to establish the UFO as an extremely successful race car for Tom and the entire Tignanelli family.

When Tom moved up to a Charger Funny Car in 1968, he sold the UFO as a roller to Bruce Elmer, who later sold it to Paul Janda from Canada in 1971, where it was placed in climate-controlled storage until 2014. Clark and Collene Rand purchased the car in 2014 and sent it to Adam Engelhart and the crew over at AAA Restorations in Rushford, Minnesota. The car received an impeccable restoration back to as-raced status and now serves as a rolling testament to the golden era of mid-1960s NHRA drag racing.

Reflecting on the unique opportunity he had as both a Chrysler Race Group engineer and a successful drag racer, Tom says, “I always tell this to people: There was nothing any better. I got paid to drive a car, I got overtime, and I had free run of Chrysler proving grounds. They sent me to every drag race a week early in order to be a part of testing factory cars. I had a gorgeous truck, a D700 four-door, with three or four engines in the back of the truck to assist factory racers. I serviced their transmissions, supplied spare parts. I was the keeper of the keys. I had it made!”

Tom misses every car he ever raced. Not one given to spectator status, he is currently working on building a Wedge-powered altered-wheelbase 1965 Plymouth Belvedere I post car for nostalgia drag racing. He still works seven days a week on Hemi engines, race car builds, and vintage parts upkeep, proving himself to be an unrelenting fanatic obsessed with the sport that shaped his passion for Chrysler race cars.

At a Glance

1965 A990 Belvedere I Owned by: Clark and Collene Rand, Fair Grove, MO Restored by: AAA Restorations, Rushford, MN Engine: 426ci Hemi V-8 Transmission: 727 TorqueFlite reverse-pattern manual valvebody Rearend: 8 3/4 Mopar with 4.88 gears and spool Interior: A100 seats, original UFO rollcage by Shadowoods Auto Center Wheels: 15×4 American Racing 12-spoke front, 15×10 American Racing rear Tires: 7.75-15 Goodyear nylon cord 4-ply front, 10.50-15 Goodyear Blue Streak rear Special parts: Custom nose cone, Sun tachometer and gauges

002-tignanelli-1965-plymouth-belvedere-a990-rear-three-quarter Tom Tignanelli’s job as a Chrysler Race Group engineer provided the opportunity for his father to buy this 1965 Plymouth A990 Belvedere I from Chrysler Engineering. Adam Engelhart and the team at AAA Restorations in Rushford, Minnesota, performed the incredibly accurate restoration after its current owners, Clark and Collene Rand, bought it in 2014.

003-tignanelli-1965-plymouth-belvedere-a990-side Chrysler built 101 Dodge Coronets and 101 Plymouth Belvedere I post cars with the A990 package. The cars featured lightweight steel fenders, a hood with scoop, a radiator support, and grille brackets. The package also included lightweight Corning glass. In building the UFO, the Tignanelli crew replaced the fenders and hood with fiberglass units from the Golden Commandos. The wheelbase alteration was done at Shadowoods Auto Center, the Tignanelli family business.

004-tignanelli-1965-plymouth-belvedere-a990-hemi-engine The 426 Hemi was restored and rebuilt by AAA Restorations to factory specifications. The engine features a 12.5:1 compression ratio, a 0.590-lift Comp Cams solid-lifter camshaft, Hooker headers, and a correct 1965 dual-point distributor.

005-tignanelli-1965-plymouth-belvedere-a990-hemi-engine-induction The Holley 3116 770-cfm carburetors are mounted on the factory magnesium cross-ram intake manifold that was used on all the 1965 A990 cars.

006-tignanelli-1965-plymouth-belvedere-a990-interior-overall The original rollcage is still in place, yielding 1965 vintage protection for the driver during those 130-mph jaunts.

007-tignanelli-1965-plymouth-belvedere-a990-moon-tank The Moon spun aluminum 3 1/2-gallon fuel tank is rated at 10 psi maximum fuel pressure. The tank is topped off with a traditional Moon three-bar gas cap.

008-tignanelli-1965-plymouth-belvedere-a990-trunk The weight of the huge Mopar Super Stock battery was placed over the right rear corner for optimal traction assistance. Bob’s Drag Chutes supplies the laundry for shutdown security. Since the UFO has no front brakes, the chute was a necessity.

A UFO Is Born

Photos courtesy of Tom Tignanelli 009-tignanelli-1965-plymouth-belvedere-a990-sidebar-testing Though the date is uncertain, here is the UFO testing at Motor City Dragway in Detroit.

010-tignanelli-1965-plymouth-belvedere-a990-sidebar-fiberglass-hood A young Tom Tignanelli demonstrates the lightweight fiberglass replacement hood that was partly responsible for removing 400 pounds from the car when it was converted to C/XS status.

011-tignanelli-1965-plymouth-belvedere-a990-sidebar-front-suspension The front straight axle was supplied by Logghe Chassis, sans front brakes, when built for Experimental Stock racing. Those 12-spoke American Racing wheels are still on the car.

012-tignanelli-1965-plymouth-belvedere-a990-sidebar-tignanelli-in-car Tignanelli’s work as race support for various Chrysler contract drivers netted him the benefit of free parts for his Chrysler race cars.

The post UFO Sighting: The 1967 NHRA C/XS Championship-Winning 1965 Plymouth A990 Belvedere I is Reborn appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

from Hot Rod Network http://www.hotrod.com/articles/ufo-sighting-1967-nhra-cxs-championship-winning-1965-plymouth-a990-belvedere-reborn/ via IFTTT

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Cannes City Guide

Although best known for the International Film Festivel each May, Cannes is a vibrant, cosmopolitan city on the Côte d'Azur or French Riviera. Regarded as the second most important city in France for business tourism after Paris, business travellers and conference attendees often outnumber tourists during the summer months. Renowned for its glittering casinos, premier shopping venues on La Croisette, and a wide range of gastronomic delights, Cannes is one of the crowned jewels of the French Riviera, a playground for the rich and famous, basking in the warm and incomparable light of the Côte d'Azur. Hotels Hôtel Majestic Barrière Built in 1923 and located on the Croisette, the Hôtel Majestic Barrière faces both the sea and the Palais des Festivals, thus naturally serving as the traditional celebrity hotel for Cannes Film Festival attendees. With 265 rooms including 84 suites and 2 penthouses, this newly refurbished, five star accommodation epitomises elegant charm and refined luxury. Facilities include well appointed meeting spaces for corporate events with a capacity for 600, a business centre, a private sandy beach and access to all water sports, heated swimming pools, fitness centre, five clay tennis courts, and adjacent golf course among others. A premier warm weather resort with an international reputation. Hôtel Majestic Barrière 14 La Croisette Bp163 Cannes , 06400 France Tél : +33 (0) 4 92 98 77 00 Fax : +33 (0) 4 93 38 97 90 lucienbarriere.com Croisette Beach Hotel Situated just a short walk from both the famous Croisette and the luxury boutiques of the Rue d'Antibes, the Croisette Beach Hotel offers a peaceful haven on a quiet, private street. Charming, but modern, the hotel features comfortable rooms and a sandy, private beach. Enjoy international ambiance in Mediterranean style. Whether socialising at Le Bellini bar or relaxing on the terrace near the pool, patrons find themselves in an island of luxury in the heart of one of the world's most exciting cities. Twenty four hour room service, sauna, private garage with valet parking, pets accepted. Croisette Beach Hotel 13 rue du Canada 06400 Cannes France Tél : +33 4 92 18 88 00 Fax : +33 4 93 68 35 38 cannes-hotel-croisettebeach.com Le Grand Hotel Cannes A four-star hotel overlooking the sea, La Grand Hotel is the oldest on the famous Croisette. Revamped in the style of the 60s, Le Grand offers a green oasis of peace with 76 rooms and suites, terraces, a garden, meeting room, and wifi Internet access. Stroll through the garden to the fine, sandy Le Plage 45 to enjoy the crystal clear water of the Mediterranean with numerous water sport activities available. (From April to October the restaurant La Plage 45 serves seafood and local specialities, with cocktails and light food available at the lounge and bar.) Fine dining at Restaurant Le Park 45 or enjoy intimate drinks at Bar Le Cercle. Le Grand Hotel Cannes Grand Hôtel 45 boulevard de la Croisette 06400 CANNES Tél : +33 4 93 38 15 45 Fax : +33 4 93 68 97 45 grand-hotel-cannes.com Hotel Martinez Known as one of the flagship hotels of the French Riviera, the Hotel Martinez, eminently positioned on the sea front along the boulevard de La Croisette in Cannes mixes comfort and technological amenities with aesthetic elegance. Seven floors overlook the sea front in this 40,000 square metres luxury facility with 412 room and suites. Three restaurants including La Palme d'Or (2 Michelin stars). Piano bar, large private beach, heated pool. Fifteen meeting rooms and reception areas create 2500 square metres of conference space, only slightly less than the congress centre Palais des Festivals. For its spaciousness and ability to host social, festive, and professional events, the Hotel Martinez is one of the most versatile of accommodations available in Cannes. Hotel Martinez 73, La Croisette 06400 Cannes France Tél : 0 800 050 011 (Toll Free in France) International toll free numbers listed on website. hotel-martinez.com InterContinental Carlton Cannes Built in 1911, the Intercontinental Carlton Cannes draws on years of well-evolved service and refinement to create an atmosphere catered toward the well-being of its guests. With breathtaking views of the Mediterranean and easy access to the shopping district and the Palais des Festivals, the hotel offers a full featured health and fitness centre, extensive business services, travel assistance, day care and children's activities. Dine at the Carlton Restaurant or Carlton Beach Restaurant (April to October) or enjoy drinks at the Carlton Bar and Carlton Terrace (with live jazz on Friday and Saturday evenings) or the more intimate Petit Bar. InterContinental Carlton Cannes 58, Bd. La Croisette, Bp 155 06414 Cannes France Tél : +33(0) 4 93 06 40 06 Fax : +33(0) 4 93 06 40 25 intercontinental.com Hotel de Mougins Located outside the historic centre of Mougins, the Hotel de Mougins offers cosy, elegant accommodations. Whether relaxing by the fireplace in the bar/lounge, or strolling the beautiful open courtyard and lawns, guests enjoy a private and quaint atmosphere in authentically French style. The rooms are comfortable and spacious, marked by small touches like slippers for guests that set the hotel apart from larger, urban establishments. Many rooms have private balconies and the bathrooms are large and well-appointed. Guests have access to an on site restaurant. All together, an excellent site for rest and relaxation away from the mainstream tourist crowds. Hotel de Mougin 205 avenue du Golf 06250 Mougins, France Tél : +33(0)4 92 92 17 07 Fax : +33(0)4 92 92 17 08 Hotel Le Mas Candille Located between Cannes and Grasse, the Hotel Le Mas Candille is a five-star luxury hotel and spa in the medieval city of Mougins. Originally an 18th century farm house, this hotel, lying only 7 km from Cannes, is known for its exclusive tranquility and informal luxury. A blend of traditional architecture and contemporary amenities, Hotel Le Mas Candille lies close to the Mediterranean but is nestled in the countryside of Provence surrounded by mature cypress trees and beautiful old olive groves. Offering the first Japanese style Shiseido spa in Europe (among a wide range of spa treatments available), guests will enjoy a relaxing experience for both the mind and body. Le Mas Candille Bd Clement Rebuffel 06250 Mougins France Tél : +33 492 28 43 43 Fax : +33 492 28 43 40 Cannes Hotel 3.14 The 3.14 hotel is located in the heart of the Golden Triangle in Cannes, 50 m from La Croisette and 300 m from the Palais des Festivals. Each floor is designed to represent one of the five continents, creating a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural experience. On the third floor, Oceania, guests enjoy the cool freshness of the sea air and light filtered through raffia shades hinting at the original paradise, while guests in first floor "America," enjoy Pop Art decorations emphasising the American melting pot. The 3.14 is a hotel that appeals to the open-minded interested in stepping over traditional boundaries and enjoying an extraordinary experience in accommodations. Arranged according to the principles of Feng Shui, the 3.14 encourages energy throughout. Cannes Hotel 3.14 Rue François Einesy 06400 Cannes, France Tél : 04 92 99 72 00 3-14hotel.com Palais Stéphanie Cannes Boasting a rich cultural and artistic heritage, the Palais Stéphanie Cannes sits nestled between the Mediterranean Sea and the Southern Alps. An unparalleled France luxury hotel, the 262 spacious rooms have clean lines bathed in bright, natural light and are outfitted with the best materials for a unique experience in elegant refinement. Each features images of the great stars of film, so intimately linked with the tradition of Cannes. Enjoy dining with an outstanding view of the ocean at La Scena lounge bar and restaurant, which serves cuisine from Italy, Japan and France. Visit Le Panorama rooftop bar overlooking the Bay of Cannes, Lérins Islands and the Esterel Mountains for drinks, snacks, or a visit to the swimming pool. Palais Stéphanie Cannes (Formerly Hilton Cannes) 50 boulevard de la Croisette 06414 Cannes, France Tél : +33 4 92 99 70 00 Fax : + 33 4 92 99 70 11 hotel-palais-stephanie-cannes.com Spas SPA Martinez Located on the 7th floor of the Hotel Martinez, the SPA serves both men and women in the interest of good health, youth, beauty, and relaxation. Using Lancaster anti-ageing, solar skin care, and Sothys beauty concepts, the experts at the SPA concentrate on merging concepts of mind and body in perfect harmony. Offering a range of services from facial care to massages, the SPA promises an unforgettable experience in personal wellness and luxury. Open every day from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., the SPA has a direct telephone line for the arrangement of individual appointments. SPA Martinez In the Hotel Martinez 73, La Croisette 06400 Cannes France Tél : +33 (0) 4 92 98 74 90 hotel-martinez.com Spa Candille Located in the Hotel Le Mas Candille in Mougins, Spa Candille introduced two exclusive spa treatments in 2010, the Yutaka Ritual (2 hours, 210€ per person) and the Ultimate Candille Zen Treatment (1 hour 30 minutes, 160 € per person.) Both are true to the spa's unique approach to both beauty and well being. Using the Shiseido Qi method, which stimulates both mind and body energy, the treatments encourage relaxation at the deepest levels while restoring the skin's natural beauty. Both oshiboris (Japanese hot towels) and shiatsu massage are incorporated. Day Spa Packages are also available and guests will enjoy shopping for products in the spa boutique. Reservations required. Le Mas Candille Bd Clement Rebuffel 06250 Mougins France Tél : +33 492 28 43 43 Fax : +33 492 28 43 40 Restaurants La Palme d'Or During the Cannes Film Festival this is the place where stars go to be seen. A sophisticated restaurant serving some of the finest cuisine on the French Riviera. The beautiful Art Deco building with its bay windows has outdoor, enclosed terraces overlooking the sea, the pool, and the Croisette. The Modern French menu changes seasonally. Located in the Hôtel Martinez. Open Tuesday-Saturday 12:30-2pm and 8-10pm. Reservations are required. Closed April 19 to May 2 and November 5 to December 5. La Palme d'Or 73, La Croisette 06400 Cannes France Tél. +33 (0)4 92 98 74 14 hotel-martinez.com Château de la Chèvre d'Or Exquisite two Michelin star restaurant housed in a 14th century castle that is now a four star hotel. Redecorated in 2008 to create a quiet, modern atmosphere, the restaurant's terrace offers magnificent ocean views and overlooks an African styled garden. Inspired and innovative cuisine featuring seasonal produce carefully selected to draw inspiration from the Mediterranean style, but with a modern twist. Fresh and refined, the dishes take on new, unexpected and delightful dimensions. Open for lunch and dinner. Château de la Chèvre d'Or Rue du Barri Moyenne Corniche Eze-Village 06360 Tél. 4-92-10-66-66 Fax. 4-93-41-06-72 chevredor.com Château Eza A Michelin starred restaurant with a la carte French and Mediterranean cuisine. Set against the stunning backdrop of the French Riviera, the retractable roof of the glass-edged room allows patrons to fully experience the glorious weather, as do several terraces overlooking sparkling ocean views. Menus change on a weekly basis guaranteeing a fresh experience on each visit. An exquisite blend of traditional French dishes and modern, international influences. Tapas service and à la carte salads are served from 12:30pm to 6:00pm. Château Eza Rue de la Pise Eze-Village 06360 Tél. 4-93-41-12-24 Fax. 4-93-41-16-64 chateauezarestaurant.com Côté Jardin A personalized, friendly dining experience just minutes from the Croisette near the Palais de Justice. Generous portions and reasonably priced, the French Provençal cuisine is served either on a street level veranda (glassed in for privacy), on the garden terrace surrounded by flowering plants, or in a cosy upstairs dining room. A lovely spot for an intimate, romantic dinner. Due to the loyal local following, reservations are required, especially during the busy summer months. Closed one week in early January and on Sundays and Mondays. Côté Jardin 12, Avenue Saint-Louis Cannes 06400 Tél. 04 93 38 60 28 Fax. 04 93 38 60 28 restaurant-cotejardin.com Gaston et Gastounette Offering an unparalleled view of the marina, diners are drawn to the stucco exterior and oak moldings that distinguish this restaurant from its surroundings. Serving the best regional specialties including two bouillabaisses prepared for only two diners at a time, expect hearty, traditional French fare. Diners are served daily from noon until 2pm and from 7 to 10:30pm. The sidewalk terrace is surrounded by flowers and forms the perfect setting for a relaxed dining experience. Reservations are required and the restaurant is closed December 15-24 and January 3-20. Gaston et Gastounette 6-7, Quai Saint-Pierre Cannes 06400 Tél. 04 93 39 49 44 Reservations. 04 93 39 47 92 restaurant-a-cannes.com Le Moulin de Mougins Located in a 16th century mill in the town of Mougins, the restaurant was founded by chef Roger Vergé. With a four "knife and fork" rating from Michelin, expect hearty, but upscale fare with modern twists on traditional dishes from Provence and across France. Favourites on the menu include seafood stuffed artichoke, roasted Provençal goat with herbs, and sweetbreads with mushrooms fried in grease. Technically an inn, there are four suites and three rooms with air-conditioning available for rent. A restaurant is open Tues-Sun noon-2pm and 7:30-10pm. Reservations are required. Le Moulin de Mougins Notre Dame de Vie 06250 Mougins, France Tél : +33 04 93 75 78 24 Fax : +33 04 93 90 18 55 moulin-mougins.com Restaurant Candille With a menu rivaling the best restaurants of Cannes, the Michelin-starred restaurant at the hotel Le Mas Candille offers one of the finest gastronomic experiences on the French Riviera. Located 25 minutes away from La Croisette in Cannes, a trip to Restaurant Candille makes for an excellent gourmet experience and a relaxing evening away from the bright lights of one of the regions most storied cities. Open to diners who are not guests, the beautiful setting in the countryside of Provence only augments the excellence of the cuisine. Specialities include Tournedos of Simmental Beef with Summer Truffles, Baby Vegetables and Chervil Emulsion. Smart, casual attire. Open all year round for lunch (12:15 to 2:15pm) and dinner (7:30 to 10:00pm). Reservations recommended. Le Mas Candille Bd Clement Rebuffel 06250 Mougins France Tél : +33 492 28 43 43 Fax : +33 492 28 43 40 lemascandille.com Les Pêcheurs Located in the Cap d'Antibes Beach Hotel, the restaurant Les Pêcheurs offers creative cuisine replete with the fragrances and tastes of the Mediterranean. Enjoy a table by the window with beautiful ocean views. Favourites include veal with mango, and vanilla flower salt and green pea mousse with peppermint. Freshly caught seafood offerings include turbot, sea-bass, dorade royale, pageot, chapon, denti, baudroie, barbue and sole. Jackets are required for men. Breakfast served from 7:30am to 11am; dinner from 7:30pm to 10:30pm. Open every evening from March to October. Reservations are required. Les Pêcheurs 10 Boulevard du Maréchal Juin 06160 Antibes, France Tél : 04 92 93 13 30 ca-beachhotel.com Astoux et Brun Since 1953, Chez Astoux et Brun has maintained an outstanding reputation for offering fresh, high quality seafood and fish to patrons. A 'brasserie' style venue, it has been owned by three generations of the same family. Sample plates available of shellfish, crustaceans and other seafood. Daily specials or "suggestions" and desserts. The restaurant offers packaged, pre-prepared dishes for take away. Shellfish is served throughout the day. Chez Astoux et Brun is open from 8am to 11pm with the kitchen in operation from noon to 2:30pm and 7pm to 11pm. In the afternoon a limited number of hot menu dishes are served in addition to shellfish. Astoux et Brun Angle 27, rue Félix Faure and 2, rue Louis Blanc 06400 Cannes Tél : 04 93 39 21 87 Tél : 04 93 39 98 94 Fax : 04 93 39 98 54 Beaches and Beach Restaurants L'Ecrin Plage On the edge of the port of Canto at the end of the Croisette, L'Ecrin Plage features an interior restaurant with a roof open to the sky and open picture windows as well as a terrace and lounge bar directly facing the sea. Favourites include pan-fried salmon steak with the flavours of Asia, grilled sea bream with a hint of lemon, and poached saddle of cod. Also look for the veal piccata with lemon and the fillet steak with three varieties of pepper. Open for the day year round, brunch is served every Monday from October to May. In the summer, both the restaurant and lounge bar are open in the evening and offer wifi access to patrons. There are 180 deck chairs on the sand, teak decking and pontoon. (A lifeguard is on duty.) Magazines and dailies are provided. L'Ecrin Plage Port Pierre Canto 06400 Cannes Tél : 04 92 59 60 60 Fax : 04 92 59 11 00 Z Plage Once known as the Hotel Martinez Beach Club, the restaurant at the hotel's private beach is a celebration of teak wood finery and parasols in the summer season. The open-air restaurant specialises in good healthy food prepared with herbs and spices that enhance the food's natural flavour. A variety of spit-roasted meat and fish prepared in a clay oven. The cocktail menu at the available bar is elaborate and tempting and includes freshly squeezed juices and fusion frappés. During the supper expect lively beach evenings with fireworks and colourful dinners. Open daily, with lunch served from 12:30pm to 5:30pm. Z Plage - Hotel Martinez 73, La Croisette 06400 Cannes France Tél : +33 04 92 98 74 22 hotel-martinez.com La Mandala Open year round, the beach at La Manda offers fine sand and stunning views of the Mediterranean. Enjoy the warm, family atmosphere, relaxing in the sun and enjoying the restaurant's refined cuisine. Favourites include clams linguine with garlic and basil, cream and white truffle risotto; and raviolini with Italian ham, mozzarella cheese and white truffle. Also look for the roast sea bass filet with mashed potatoes and a virgin sauce as well as grilled sea bass, dorado, or sole with fresh steamed vegetables. Available for receptions and events. La Mandala 1 Boulevard de la Croisette 06400 Cannes, France Tél : 04 93 94 24 22 Fax : 04 93 43 91 33 plage-lamandala.com Bars & Clubs Casino Croisette One of the best known and well loved casinos in France, the elegant Casino Croisette dates from 1907 and has long been an establishment of the wealthy and famous. Its slot machines draw more gamblers than any other casino in France. Situated near the promenade, the ornate rooms play host to all the classic games from blackjack to roulette. Enjoy an exquisite meal in the casino restaurant or dance to live music at the adjacent Le Jimmyz Club. (Jackets are required for gentlemen.) Casino Croisette 1, jetée Albert-Edouard Palais des Festivals 06400, Cannes France Tél. 4-92-98-78-00 Fax 4-92-98-78-85 Palm Beach Casino Open daily from 11am to 4am for slot machines and 8pm to 4am for table games, the Palm Beach Casino in Cannes features 100 gaming machines and twenty-two gaming tables including blackjack, English and French roulette, punto banco, poker and stud poker. (There are three restaurants on the property and a 106 room hotel.) The dress code is described as "proper and casual." Palm Beach Casino Pointe Croisette Place FD Roosevelt 06400 Cannes, France Tél. 04 97 06 36 90 Fax 04 97 06 36 89 casinolepalmbeach.com Les Coulisses Patrons who want to get in the door of the trendy Les Coulisses for dining or dancing need to "dress to impress." The crowd is young and hip, enjoying drinks with pizza, sushi, olives or tapas. Open from Monday to Sunday, 6pm to 2:30am. DJ gets the party and the dancing started after 10pm. Les Coulisses 29 Rue du Commandant André 06400 Cannes, France Tél. 04 92 99 17 17 Jimmy'z After a loyal following developed for the original Jimmy'z, in Monaco, the sister club opened in Cannes to an equally enthusiastic reception. The spacious dance floors (there are several) offer plenty of room for patrons to enjoy the upbeat music. It's not unusual to see high rollers and stars here, especially during the Cannes film festival. A high fashion club with a high profile clientele. 1 boulevard de la Croisette Palais des Festivals 06400 Cannes France Tél. 4-92-98-78-78 Shopping La Croisette A street with a global reputation running along the shoreline of Cannes and filled with endless opportunities for upscale shopping, dining, and sightseeing. Watch the boats and the sea on one hand and elegantly dressed pedestrians on the other. A parade of upscale boutiques and designer shops including Jimmy Choo, Hermes, Luis Vuitton, Chanel, and Dior among many, many more. Lovely restaurants open only for lunch scattered along the beach. Expensive, top quality, and a venue in Cannes not to be missed. (Most of the best shops in Canne are located in an area between La Croisette and the rue d'Antibes, which runs parallel a block or two inland.) La Croisette World famous street running along the shoreline. Bouteille The best (and most expensive) parfumerie in Cannes, Bouteille offers an expansive selection of scents and a generous range of free samples (with a complimentary bag.) Carries both the latest fragrances and the great classic perfumes. Additional wares include high quality costume jewellery, top of the line beauty accessories, and exquisite presentation boxes for a variety of special occasions. A delightful experience for the serious buyer or holiday browser. Bouteille 59 rue d'Antibes 06400 Cannes, France Tél. 04 93 39 05 16 Marché Forville The primary fruit, flower, and vegetable market in Cannes (and a brocante market on Monday), Marché Forville is a traditional outdoor French market specialising in locally harvested produce of the highest quality. An excellent outdoor venue for a pleasant stroll, camera in hand. Expect quaint adjacent artisan shops and small bars including three oyster bars. Wine, cheese and bread shops, intimate restaurants. The market provides excellent "people watching" opportunities with local flavour and interesting wares. One of the most popular shopping destinations in Cannes. Open Tuesday-Sunday, 0700-1300. Marché Forville At the edge of the Quartier Suquet. Galeries Lafayette Located in the heart of Cannes near the train station, Galeries Lafayette is known for meticulously displayed upscale fashion. A branch of the popular international department store based in Paris, Galeries Lafayette provides a good range of prices for varied holiday budgets. Wares range from gourmet food selections to designer clothing. While not as trendy as adjacent boutiques or as colourful as the artisan shops, for the visitor attracted to this type of venue, Galeries Lafayette can be a pleasant afternoon stop. (Also a good place to acquire necessary items forgotten in packing for your holiday.) Galeries Lafayette 6 rue du Maréchal-Foch 06400 Cannes, France Tél. 04 93 39 27 55 Ciné-Folie Also known as La Boutique du Cinema, Ciné-Folie is a year-round bookstore devoted entirely to the subject for which the name "Cannes" has become synonymous -- films. With a reputation as the finest bookstore in the south of France devoted exclusively to cinema, Ciné-Folie also sells movie posters and vintage film stills. A popular place to stop for "take home" souvenirs. (Also sells official posters from the Cannes film festival, past and present.) Ciné-Folie 14 rue des Frères Pradignac 06400 Cannes, France Tél. 04-93-39-22-99 Golf Cannes Mougins Golf Country Club An 18-hole, par 72, parkland course founded in 1923, the Cannes Mougins Golf Country Club offers catering, buggies, trolleys, and a driving range. Designed by golf architects Peter Allis and Dave Thomas, the course is set in the beautiful countryside of the French Riviera. The slightly hilly course is maintained in outstanding conditions. Making for exacting play, with generous fairways, the greens are small and fast. Strategic play is required at every hole, with the luxurious clubhouse featuring top-quality regional cuisine, a welcome reward at the end of a long day of play. Located 10 minutes from Cannes. Reservations are required with green fees for non members. Cannes Mougins Golf Country Club 175 avenue du Golf, 06250 Mougins, France Tél : +33 4 93 75 79 13 Fax : +33 4 93 75 27 60 golf-cote-azur.com Gold de Cannes-Mandelieu (Old Course) Founded in 1891 by the Grand Duke Michael Aleksandrovich of Russia, the 18-hole, 71-par, Old Course Cannes Mandelieu (originally the Cannes Golf Club) is split in two by the River Siagne and has a small adjacent railway. It is the fourth oldest course in France. Set in natural parkland and designed by Harry Colt, the course forces players to cope with the inevitable tree lines. Not an overly long course at just 5745 metres, the greens with their subtle slope will test a golfer's all around skills coming off the moderately tight fairways. A classic course maintained in excellent condition. For 18 holes, visitors pay green fees of €90 with twilight rates available. Booking in advance required. Visitor tee-times available on both week days and weekends. Handicap required. Gold de Cannes-Mandelieu (Old Course) Route du Golf Mandelieu-la-Napoule Cannes, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur 06210, France Tél : +33 04 92 97 32 00 Fax : +33 04 93 49 92 90 golfoldcourse.com Golf du Claux Amic A new and challenging, woodland course, founded in 1992, Golf du Claux Amic lies high in the hills above Grasse. Quiet, natural, and tree-lined, the terrain of the 18-hole, par 72 course is cut from the hillside, but does not make for strenuous walking. Designed by Jean-Pascal Foures, some of the drives are intimidating, but many of the vistas are spectacular, especially on the 12th green. The clubhouse, a former chateau, is large and sumptuous. The course is located 20km north of Cannes. Visitors will pay green fees of €53-€100. Credit cards are accepted. Advanced bookings are required with tee times available on both week days and weekends. Handicap required. Golf du Claux Amic 1 route des Trois Ponts D11 (Cabris Road) Grasse, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur 06130, France Tél : +33 04 93 60 55 44 Fax : +33 04 93 60 55 19 claux-amic.com Domaine du Chateau de Taulane A golfing gem, established in 1992 and designed by Gary Player, Domaine du Chateau de Taulane is an 18 hole, wooded parkland course (par 72). The chateau, dating to 1750, has been magnificently restored and the course is available for "stay and play." Situated in a natural pine forest, the course is maintained to unusual levels of excellence. Well balanced play with features to keep low and high-handicap players both pleased and challenged. Water features on some holes, especially on the double green of the 9th and 18th holes. Visitors will pay green fees of €51-€100. Credit cards are accepted. Handicap required and must book in advance. Tee times are available on week days and weekends. Located 50 km northwest of Cannes. Domaine du Chateau de Taulane D6085 Route Napolean Le Logis du Pin, nr Castellane Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur 83840, France Tél : +33 04 93 40 60 80 Fax : +33 04 93 60 37 48 chateau-taulane.com Golf de l'Esterel An 18-hole, wooded, par-71, parkland course designed by Robert Trent Jones and located 28 km southwest of Cannes. Golf de l'Esterel is a favourite of golfers on holiday in this area of the French Riviera. Fairly short, at 5852 metres, the undulating fairways are tight and lined with umbrella pines. Accuracy from the tee is a must. Look for water on a third of the holes demanding adept shots. Greens are good sized. The front nine feels like a tour through the estate's holiday villas, while the back nine is more interesting. Expect pleasant mountain views on the inward nine-hole loop. Green fees for visitors are €67, credit cards accepted. All visiting golfers are welcome, but advance bookings are required. Tee times are available on both week days and weekends. Rental golf carts available. Golf de l'Esterel 745 Blvd Darby nr St Raphael Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur 83700, France Tél : +33 04 94 52 68 30 Fax : +33 04 94 52 68 31 formule-golf.com See & Do La Croisette Perhaps in no city does a single street more epitomise the essence of the local culture than La Croisette in Cannes. Running parallel to the coastline and divided by islands of flowers and palm trees, this boulevard of upscale designer shops in full view of the ocean teems with elegant pedestrians walking their dogs, browsing the boutiques, and soaking up the golden light of the Côte d'Azur. Scattered with lovely restaurants and home to the shops of Jimmy Choo, Hermes, Luis Vuitton, Chanel, and Dior among others, La Croisette is truly the heart of all that is cosmopolitan and elite in Cannes. La Croisette World famous street running along the shoreline. Musée de la Castre Home to works of decorative art, sculpture, and paintings, the museum has a gallery featuring relics of the Mediterranean civilisations dating from the Greeks, Romans, Cypriots, and Egyptians. Five rooms are devoted to paintings from the 19th century and the ethnography section offers excellent examples of Peruvian and Maya pottery. Open June to August, Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 1pm and 3 to 7 pm. April, May, and September, Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 1pm, and 2 to 6pm. October to March, Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 1pm, 2 to 5pm. Admission is 3€. Free the first Sunday of each month. Musée de la Castre In the Château de la Castre, Le Suquet. Tél. 04-93-38-55-26 Palais des Festivals Located on the east side of the Old Port, the Palais de Festivals opened in 1982. The impressive complex includes three auditoriums, all outfitted with the most modern equipment for sound and simultaneous translation. There are 11 conference rooms, two exhibition halls, a night club, and a restaurant. The extensive Allées des Stars includes the hand prints and signatures of hosts of film industry notables and is a popular spot with visitors on holiday. (Just beyond the Palais des Festivals, look for the Vieux Port with a medley of luxury and fishing boats and the nearby allées de la Liberté flower market.) Palais des Festivals 1 Avenue Laugier 06400 Cannes, France Tél. 04 93 99 88 35 palaisdesfestivals.com Petit Train Enjoy a ride in one of the white-sided, diesel-powered Petit Train touristique de Cannes to understand the difference between the old and new parts of the city. To view modern Cannes, board in front of either of the two casinos. To view Vieux Cannes (Le Suquet) board opposite the Hôtel Majestic. Both depart on the hour throughout the day (10am to 7 and 11:30pm by season with no service in November.) Tours last approximately 45 minutes. Cost is 5€ to 9€ for adults, 2.50€ to 3€ for children younger than 10. (Lower prices are for the tour of the old town.) Combination tickets are 8€ for adults, 5€ for children under 10 and are good on separate days. Petit Train La Croisette, Cannes Tél. 04-93-38-39-18 Grasse Located just 16km to the north of Cannes, Grasse is the capital of the world's perfume industry and an excellent day trip out of the city. More than two-thirds of the natural aromas used in perfume and as food flavourings are produced in Grasse. Visit one of many perfume factories or tour the Musée International de la Parfumerie at 8 place du Cours. In August, the annual Jasmine Festival brings a carnival atmosphere to the town. Flowers, which grow in profusion in the warm, sheltered micro climate fill the streets with lovely aromas at every turn. Grasse 16km north of Canes

Cedric Lajoie is a real estate specialist from Saint-Hubert, Quebec, Canada. He is an owner at Goterreno and working as real estate expert.

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I am very excited to announce the new listing at 450 Oversteeg Gulch, Crested Butte. This incredible property is located just minutes from downtown Crested Butte in the beautiful Red Mountain Ranch community. This rural Crested Butte property is nestled in an aspen grove on 35+ acres in a pristine Rocky Mountain setting. This immaculate home enjoys 1,497 sq. ft of living space with three bedrooms and two baths. Enjoy a luxurious master suite with a private sitting area, abundant closet space, cathedral ceilings and a Juliet balcony. The well thought out open floor plan is spacious and inviting with natural light flowing through the large custom windows. Vaulted ceilings, a wood burning fireplace with a beautiful modern design and stunning finishes show off the modern mountain design. High end appointments include Carrera Marble counter tops in the master bath, level 6 Golden Crystal granite slab counter tops in the kitchen, main bath steam shower, wood floors and hot water radiant in-floor heat. An in home office, laundry room and attached two car garage allow you to live the lifestyle you want without having to leave your mountain retreat.

From 450 Oversteeg Gulch, Crested Butte take advantage of backcountry skiing, hiking, snowshoeing, or hunting with direct access to National Forest. If an active mountain lifestyle in a beautiful retreat is what you are looking for, this may be the home for you!

The one of a kind guest home is positioned to allow for a 5,000 sq. ft. main home to take in the commanding, 360 degree views. Build your Crested Butte legacy and savor the expansive views, access to national forest, the private location and the convenience of being just minutes from town.

For more information on this incredible opportunity or to set up a showing, please contact me.