Atelier des Lumières - must see in Paris

Van Gogh at Atelier des Lumières (c) 2019 by David Ourisman, all rights reserved

The first in a series of postcards from my recent Baltic Cruise and four days in Paris... you simply must get tickets to Atelier des Lumières. Hard to describe with mere words, the performance we visited consisted of three distinct sound-and-light presentations...

• Van Gogh, Starry Night
• Dreamed Japan, Images of the Floating World
• Verse

The audience gathers in a really large warehouse-sized room. The show is projected onto all four walls and the floor. A sound-track is choreographed to the visual images. You can stand wherever want want, move about the room, and watch the presentation from different vantage points. There are some seats up the stairs on a second level and a few benches in the middle of the ground floor. I stood quite contentedly in the middle of the room.

The image above was photographed (obviously) during the Van Gogh presentation. It provides a sense of what to expect while immersed in the midst of these larger-than-life, iconic images. We loved the approximately hour-long exhibition.

Tip: you can download a coupon code for a 10% discount from O'bon Paris. The discount is good off the full rate only, so it's a better value than booking the Senior Rate (as I learned too late). On the other hand, if you are eligible for a reduced rate as a student or youth (ages 5-25), book those rates and forget about the coupon.

copyright (c) 2019 by Ourisman Travel LLC. All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell, a Virtuoso® Member. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.

art walk in Deià, Mallorca

painting of Deià by Leila Ward

I have two top tips for visiting Deià, a cute stone village on the northern coast of Mallorca.

1. Stay at Belmond La Residentia, truly one of the best resorts I've ever visited. Typical of all Belmond properties, it is an historic property with local flavor and understated luxury. The simple but elegant rooms have simple white plaster walls, splashes of color being provided by original works of local artists. My suite (number 42) is just wonderful, filled with the light of the afternoon sun streaming through its abundant windows — and there's a painting by Leila Ward right over my desk (the same artist who created the picture of Deià at the top of this article).

2. Enjoy the Artist's Walk, a complimentary activity offered to guests every Tuesday morning at 10:30 a.m. This means you should plan to spend Monday evening at La Residentia to take advantage of this opportunity. Otherwise, make plans with the hotel in advance to book a private tour for you. You'd never be able to duplicate this walk on your own. Just finding the studios on your own would be a challenge, and the artists may not be in studio — or prepared to welcome you — unless the visits are scheduled in advance.

Van Gogh and his Apple computer by Arturo Rhodes

I enjoyed meeting some of the most creative souls I've ever encountered, including David Templeton, Leila Ward, and Arturo Rhodes whose picture of Van Gogh (shown above) demonstrates his delightful eccentricity. Van Gogh is working on an MacBook computer, his ear taking the place of the Apple logo and a live "mouse" to move the cursor.

This short summary can only hint at what awaits you. The Artist's Walk more than exceeded my expectations as we strolled the winding streets of Deià and engaged with some of the village's resident artists.

copyright  (c)  2017 by Ourisman Travel LLC.  All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell, a Virtuoso® member. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.