Shops you HAVE to revisit each trip..
May 3rd, 2001, 07:06 AM
#22
Guest
Posts: n/a
Lindt chocolate shop in Lucerne as well as other places in Switzerland--bought a shopping bag full of it at a grocery in Montreaux. Love Ritter candy bars from Germany. I ordered a box of Leonidis from New York after you all raved about it; now I need to go to Belgium. Ahh, life after retirement--travel, books, and chocolate.
May 3rd, 2001, 07:27 AM
#23
Guest
Posts: n/a
Paris - always the Vanves flea market (I'm not a fan of St Ouen/Clignancourt either); Galeries Lafayette (especially the food shop for little bits of things, like a tin of pate or fancy crackers); Monoprix for inexpensive makeup (they also now have food shops - imagine Target selling quail eggs, and you'll know why I'm in love with the French); BHV for drawer pulls and brass hardware (and those cool coats that service people wear, you know, long and white like a doctor's coat); the Museum Shops at the Louvre (first I buy something for ME, then something for someone else, then something for ME, etc.) <BR> <BR>London: Harrod's, especially the food court (a foodie's hog heaven, which appears to be redundant) and the bookstore (newest books by English mystery writers, Michelin maps for about 1/2 what I pay in the U.S., and unusual cookbooks); discount teapot shop at Covent Garden (they sell other pottery/porcelain but they always have teapots in the window); Tower of London gift shop for fun souvenirs to keep or give as gifts <BR>Several years since I've been in Manhattan, but my favorites were Bergdorf's and Bendel's.
May 3rd, 2001, 09:01 AM
#25
Guest
Posts: n/a
This is fun -- I've heard of armchair travel; now I can have armchair retail therapy, too?! <BR> <BR>London: Liberty, Hatchards, Sainsbury's <BR> <BR>Florence: Il Torchio for marbled paper albums and books; Bottega delle Stampe for affordable antique prints; Co-op markets <BR> <BR>Paris: Bon Marche, Dehellerin, Monoprix, L'Occitane (coming soon to a mall near me -- hooray)
May 3rd, 2001, 10:21 AM
#27
Guest
Posts: n/a
Thanks for all the tips especially all the tips for Paris,,, which we will be going to the end of June, question,,,, can you recommend some flea markets in Paris? <BR>Also the linen shop mentioned,,, I think is the Bobbin Lace House on Lombardstraat 39 BC- Brussels,,, we have shopped there a lot and there prices are the best for the high quality they carry. They are also recommended by the US embassy, and Leoniads is all over Brussels,,, it is the best! <BR>
May 3rd, 2001, 10:58 AM
#28
Guest
Posts: n/a
Claudia, I live in the lovely Southeast, and a L'Occitane store is allegedly coming to Perimeter Mall in Atlanta in June. There are many stores in the US already )things sometimes take a little longer in the South). <BR> <BR>Go to www.loccitane.com to find your nearest shop; I know there are some in DC & N. Virginia, southern California and plenty in NYC. Now, go get some soap!
May 3rd, 2001, 11:16 AM
#29
Guest
Posts: n/a
Gosh I suream glad I started this!! Can't wait to try some of the places mentioned. <BR>L'occitane is in Fl ,too. even have it in the lavatories on delta flights now, Sneak into business class , they have hand lotion in addition to soap!! <BR>I think Cy was right about the name of the Belgian linen place someone else mentioned, I recall shopping there and getting some lovely things. <BR>You may have noticed that both Elvira and I mentioned Porte de Vanves, I think it is so much better than St Oeun, more mangable and not nearly the crowds. I hear there is a super flea mkt. in Versailles on Sundays but have never ben, maybe this trip we'll make it.Can't wait to try Monoprix for those cosmetics!
May 3rd, 2001, 12:05 PM
#30
Guest
Posts: n/a
Just about anywhere in the English-speaking world except the U.S. (e.g., Canada, Great Britain, Ireland): Marks & Spencer. <BR> <BR>Why? To stock up on their talcum powder in "Forest Fern" scent. I've been buying it for a very long time now, and it's still only about $1.25 U.S. per container. The fragrance instantly makes me a young student again. <BR> <BR>I make a point of buying talc as a souvenir everywhere I go. It's cheap, lightweight, used in almost every country I've ever visited, and sold in everyday, ordinary, but sometimes surprising places where tourists wouldn't usually shop. Figuring out where to find it and how to ask for it is half the fun; the other half is getting to relive memories of my trip at home each day for months as I use it up. <BR>
May 4th, 2001, 11:53 AM
#34
Guest
Posts: n/a
I second whoever mentioned Harrod's bookshop - it's great for picking up British translations of foreign books... I got Smilla's Sense of Snow there, which was titled Smilla's Feeling for Snow and was, I thought, infinitely better than the American version!
May 4th, 2001, 06:01 PM
#36
Guest
Posts: n/a
UBU in Paris near the Place de Vosges. It is a wonderful costume jewelry shop and the owner makes it all. Its tiny and I love everything in there. I'm also a fan of a chain of jewelry stores in France called Agatha. Great earrings. And finally, any shoe store London!
May 4th, 2001, 09:01 PM
#38
Guest
Posts: n/a
I could spend hours in the Corte Ingles in Spain.I start w/breakfast ,usually on the top floor and work my way down to the basement to the best supermarket.You can find/discover everything you want to check out in one place from pearls,CDs,saffron,turron,wine,pottery,designer leather goods and clothing,toiletries etc.They take care of filling out the VAT forms,all you do at the airport is get it stamped and walk over to the bank window,get your refund in US$ or a credit on your cardof choice.They also have ATMs and the best rate of exchange for cash or travelers checks-no extra charge.Corte Ingles for me
May 4th, 2001, 11:21 PM
#39
Guest
Posts: n/a
In Paris, I like BHV, Fauchon, Mariage, Monoprix, Galleries Lafayette Gourmet, and some grocery stores for cheap foodie stuff. <BR> <BR>London: I like Selfridge's better than Harrods. Lush, Neals Yard Dairy, any of the Karen Millen stores. <BR> <BR>Wherever I can find it: H+M, and KARE (for household stuff and knickknacks).
