If I were a magician, I would wave my wand and excitedly exclaim, “Prepare to be enchanted for you are about to enter the dazzling world of The Antiques Diva!”  As I’m not a magician, just an antique-shopper extraordinaire, then I’ll have to ask you to trust me to be your shopping companion as I show you the best places in Europe to stop, shop and roll out the dough.  France is the ideal place to start any antique shopping tour.  Around the world, I find  “European Antiques” and “French Antiques” used interchangeably.  If France is the sun, then antique shoppers are the world.  Our buying patterns revolve around French finery as if one of the Louis’ cast a spell to magnetically pull all future generations towards the treasures of La République!  If you’re going to France, then what better place to start than the world-famous “Marché aux Puces de Saint-Ouen - Porte de Clignancourt”.  As lovely as Paris is with the Tour Eiffel and the Haussmanian buildings, this market is located in the hairy armpit of the city.  And trust me, Paris isn’t wearing any deodorant.  This isn’t a typical flea market filled with makeshift tents but, instead, well-organized permanent structures housing millions of euros of inventory, complete with 13 districts, 2,000 vendors and 7 miles of alleyways.  As this is Paris, the flea market also boasts an assortment of eateries such as the singing Chez Louisette or the gourmet Le Soleil.  “Les Puce” is only open 3 ½ days a week -- Friday morning for the dealers and Saturday, Sunday and Monday for the mere shopping mortals.  On Mondays, half the vendors close early in the spirit of TGIM. Perhaps the downside of the market is that “les puce” is the 4th largest tourist attraction in France with 11 million visitors per year.  For this reason, French friends advise “leave Clignancourt and their overpriced forgeries to the tourists.”  Personally, I ignore these naysayers, as I’ve found incredible purchases, once buying a Chest of Drawers that was later valued at 4 times the price.  I’ve found forgeries but vendors tend to confess when asked if something is a reproduction. In Paris, I also peruse the 380 stalls set up Saturday and Sunday 7am - 1pm along the 14th arrondissement’s Avenue Marc Sangnier and Avenue Georges Lafenestre.  The Porte de Vanves Market has less panache than Clignancourt, but you’re more likely to find a bargain, especially during the last weekend in July when many of the vendors are departing for their working holidays as they select inventory while vacationing in France. While the flea markets in Paris have a special place in my heart, I love to browse the upscale galleries where I do more sight-seeing than shopping.  Visiting galleries is like doing a wine tasting to educate the palate or touring a museum to educate the eye.  The 120 galleries in the Carré Rive Gauche across the river from the Louvre in St-Germain-des-Prés literally have me licking the windows.  I can barely contain my drool when I cross the Seine to Le Louvre des Antiquaires on the other side of the museum where you’re given the option to purchase the type of treasures found within the palatial walls.   For more attainable prices, I head to Village Suisse, at 54, Avenue de la Motte-Picquet, in the shadow of the Tour Eiffel.

History lesson, tourist guide and storytelling all rolled into one.  Archie Satterfield’s fascinating account of the birth, death and re-birth of the canals and waterways of Western Europe is compulsive reading. What is the black legacy of Paris?  Is there some reason Blacks ought to go there either as a place to vacation or as an expatriate destination?  The answer is yes.  The French have a legacy of accepting the disenfranchised regardless of the cause of that disenfranchisement.  It make the French a special people, and Paris a special place.  Online since 1996! Parisians do it and you can do it, too -- have a great three-course meal with wine and coffee in Paris $20 to $30 including tax and tip! Adrian personally updates the guides regularly, often weekly -- every time she eats out! She samples each and every one and only recommends the best. Take Adrian's advice and discover more than 200 good-value restaurants in Paris!. Living in Paris is as difficult as it is romantic. Just as anywhere else in the world, life is filled with the practical issues we must confront from day to day. Work has to be secured, papers registered, an apartment or house needs to be bought or rented. Though France might seem as familiar as any other Western country, the truth is, from paying taxes to having a baby -- things are done differently in France. Get this guide to help you.

No antique shopping trip to France is complete without a trip to Provence to visit L’Isle-Sur-La-Sorgue, where the town appears to be a year-round, town-wide (incredibly chic) garage sale.  If you’ve never heard of L’Isle, then you might as well lie down and begin kissing the ground I walk upon for this is among the best “brocanting” in Europe.  The flea market day is Sunday along the Avenue de 4 Otages, but even without the market you’ll find the loot literally pouring out of shops.  Of course, all this shopping makes me hungry, so I stop at the Café de France with its wonderfully fresh Provencial cuisine. 

Don’t think that L’Isle is the only antique shopping Provence offers.  I could write a book pondering the best markets, but for the short list, a trip to this region is not complete without stopping in Villeneuve Les Avignon for their Saturday morning flea market in the Place du Marché.  The new city of Avignon was built across the river from Avignon where their market is held Sunday mornings at the Place de Carmes.  Wednesdays in Saint Remy-de-Provence is an excellent typical Provencial market, which I insist you must visit in spite of the fact antiques are non-existent.

It’s time to hop on the Eurostar and shoot under the Channel to London, where if you’re a native English speaker, you’ll be jolly glad to have a break from thinking in a foreign language.  Of course, the time you save taxing yourself speaking French, you’ll spend in shock at how bloody expensive everything is.  My husband tends to go numb as he accepts the inevitability that he will spend more than intended. 

The first place you’ll want to pour out your pounds is at the Portobello Market where you’ll join the hip and trendy as you walk, rubbing elbows with celebs and designers.  That is, assuming you can actually walk.  The last time I was there I stood bottlenecked for a good part of the morning.  The market is open on Saturdays with stalls arranged along Portobello Road offering everything from upscale to low scale, or no scale at all.  Recent purchases have included an antique map of London, 12 mismatched tarnished silver goblets perfect for a medieval feast, porcelain, porcelain, porcelain and a coat straight out of “That Girl”. 

I like to return to Notting Hill mid-week to visit the shops along the side streets.  I arrive early and stop in The Hummingbird Bakery, where as an American living overseas, I am given “a taste of home” with cupcakes, cookies and pies.  Later, carb hungry yet again, I pop into Still Too Few for a spot of tea and some scones.  In London, I live on carbs.  My British friend Sue is appalled by the classlessness of my repeated cravings for greasy fish and chips.

At Covent Garden you’ll find two Monday antique markets 10am - 6pm -- The Apple Market inside the piazza and Jubilee Hall Market on the south side of the piazza.    A variety of crafts are sold alongside antiques. These markets are a tad too commercial, but the location is convenient, so I keep coming back.  Speaking of places that pull me back, a trip to London is not complete without visiting Camden Passage at Upper Street N1.
Wake early on Wednesday or Saturday and you’ll be rewarded with the hustle and bustle of activity in their 200 antique stores.  Popular with tourists, you’ll be surprised to note that in this English city, Camden vendors proudly display “French, German or Japanese spoken here” signs.  Perhaps the variety of languages is indicative of the variety of antiques sourced from around the globe.  Clearly the vendors search east and west, north and south for their wares.  Dining in Camden Passage causes you to take a mental voyage and I always pack my passport to be prepared for the journey.

Camden Passage shouldn’t be confused with Camden Lock, a favorite haunt of the alternative crowd.  It is now open 7 days a week, but weekends are still the most popular.  Although the area is home to several markets, my favorite is Camden Stables at Chalk Farm Road N1 with over 500 vendors.  Another alternative market is the New Caledonian Market, or Bermondsey Market, held Friday mornings 6am-12pm on Bermondsey Square.  Each time I visit, I feel like I’m about to be cast as an extra on BBC’s Eastenders. 

After all this time in the city, it’s time to ride the English rail!  All aboard British Railways!  First stop, The Cotswolds -- England's answer to Provence, known for it’s antique shopping and for Madonna’s country abode.  I start in Chipping Camden because I’m addicted to “cream tea” at Bantam’s Tea Room and I enjoy the antique and artisinal goods shopping on Sheep Street.  I’m also impressed by Highgrove, Prince Charles’ residence nearby the antique-shop-filled town of Tetbury. 

Speaking of Charlie and cream tea, the last time I was in Somerset, I stayed in The Corston Fields Farm B&B on Duchy of Cornwall land nearby Bath.  Please, darling, don’t say “Bath” as if it’s a “hygene word” but draw the short “a” out as if Professor Henry Higgins himself is standing behind you.  Oprah chose Bath as one of the top 5 places you must see and I couldn’t agree more.  I amend her list specifying that, when in Bath, you must go to Sally Lunn’s for tea and a bite of their famous bunns!  Antique shops and markets are tucked into every nook and cranny in this Roman Village.  The Paragon Market in the Bladud Building takes place Wednesdays and all 60 vendors are on staff as my personal shoppers.  Saturdays from 6am – 2:30pm I hand over my paycheck at the Walcot Street Flea Market.  Then I hand over my credit card when I walk in the door of Bartlett Street Antiques Center (located at # 5/10) where their 80 stalls offer everything from buttons to barometers.  The well-established Fountain Antique Center, on Lansdown Road, has 2 floors filled with military memorbilia, clocks and 19th C furniture.  Amidst their many collectibles, I purchased my best find yet -  a WW II aviators scarf printed with a map of the area the parachuting soldiers were expected to land within. 

While I would advise that you purchase one of these rare maps should you stumble upon it, thankfully you won’t be needing it when you hop on the budget airline Easy Jet to fly back to the continent.  After spending so much money in England, you’d be wise to head to The Netherlands and Belgium – home of the best antique bargains in Western Europe.  In the past decades, antiques have fallen out of favor with the fashion forward low landers and every Jan, Henk and Peter is cleaning their “zolder”, selling it’s contents. A perfect place to start your tour of canal-lined Amsterdam is opposite the Rijksmuseum in The Spiegelkwartier where the 100 best antique shops have congregated.  Next on your list should be De Looier Antique Mall at Elandsgracht 109, overflowing with more perfectly packables.

My favorite place to shop in Amsterdam is the 9 Little Streets.  The district was built in the 17th C to house the craft and guild workers outside of the original town center.  Over the centuries, Amsterdam was built up extending the city but the artisans weren’t driven away by the gentrification.  My favorite antique shop, De Weldaad at Reestraat 1, specializes in French and Swedish country style.  Both their shop in A’dam as well as their other one “on the farm” in Abcoude are so perfect that I’d move into the window display tomorrow.  When I don’t have time to shop all 9 Streets, I do a “Cliff’s Notes” version, visiting 2 streets nearby this district - the Prinsenstraat and the Herenstraat.

I do not like the flea markets in Amsterdam.  Though considered institutions, the Albert Cuypmarkt and Waterlooplein tend to be too heavy on the fleas.  The Monday morning Noodermarkt is full of used clothes and bric-a-brac, however I’ve found a few stalls selling genuine antiques. I picked up an art deco bronze for a third of it’s value.  Sundays May to October head to Nieuwemarkt, similar to the Noodermarkt, to do casual browsing.  On a sunny afternoon, take a coffee at In de Waag, housed in a part of the former city wall where Rembrandt used to lurk. 

Amsterdam is charming with it’s chunky gables and glittering canals, but The Hague feels regal with her international flavor. Thursday and Sunday, May to September, Lange Voorhout Antiek Markt gathers in front of the gorgeous Hotel des Indes where I stop for an afternoon tea experience worthy of The Ritz.  Visit a VVV (Tourism Office) to pick up a map of The Hague’s antique shops.  s’Hertogenbosch, in central Holland, is host of the the AFSH Art Fair, and they also offer a map of their antique shops.  The pièces de résistance of Holland is TEFAF, the world’s leading art and antique show held each March in Maastricht.  As you can imagine, Maastricht itself has a great number of antique shops clustered primarily in the district of Wijck. 

Once in Maastrict, it starts to feel a bit like Belgium already.  Say what you want about little Belgie, but I adore it and I am looking to buy a country home nearby Tongeren, which hosts Europe’s 2nd largest flea market after L’Isle-Sur-La-Sorgue.  Tongeren is the oldest town in Belgium and is complete with Roman fortifications and an imposing Gothic church. Add to this setting tons of antique shops and you’ve got an antiquer's euphoria. Of course, before going to Tongeren you really should hit Brussels and go to the Place du Grand Sablon Market, an upscale market that is oh-so-yummy, Saturdays9am-6pm and Sunday’s 9am – 2pm.  Around the square, interior shops compete for attention with art and antiques galleries.  Though the flagship Flamant Interiors at Place du Grand Sablon 32 is not an antiques shop, I spend an incredible amount of time here, browsing and drinking free samples of Nespresso.  At # 39 is the Sablon Antiques Center, with 15 vendors and at least 50 items I want to take home.

The Place du Jeu de Balle Market is a grittier sort of flea market.  Although this market occurs daily there are no permanent structures.  Blankets and tables are spread out in a parking lot.  It’s not in the best of neighborhoods, but true treasures are to be found. 

The town of Ghent is less well known than Brussels but is an excellent source for antiques.  Walk the following streets - Onderbergen, Koornlei, Kraanlei and Steendam – and you’re certain to come home with a world-class souvenir.  An antiques market is held Friday, Saturday and Sunday mornings around St. Jacobs Church.  From Ghent, Bruges is a short drive away and happens to be one of the most beautiful towns in Europe.  From mid-March to mid-November you’ll find a flea market along Dijver street on Saturday and Sundays 10am until 6pm.  Nearby Charleroi, you’ll find L’usine, on the Rue des Emailleries, in Gosselies, a warehouse emporium with 4,000 m2 or 43,000 ft2 packed with antiques.  Leige offers a famous Sunday street market, with 500 vendors stretched over 2 miles hosted in the tradition of the old medieval fairs and selling everything from antiques to animals. 

Last, but certainly not least, on every antiquer’s list should be Antwerp.  Should you be as interested in fashion (or diamonds) as you are in antiques, then you might choose to never leave this tiny metropolis.  There are over 200 antique stores in Antwerp, clustered around the Schuttershofstraat and Leopoldstraat and on Sint-Salvatorskerkhof.  Antiquairs Antwerpen offers a brochure listing each dealer and their specialties.  Two weekly flea markets are held from Easter to October on Saturdays from 9am – 5pm at the Lijnwaadmarkt and mornings only at the Vogelmarkt.

Antwerp is one of those cities many tourists visiting Europe neglect to visit, not realizing what a gem it is.  That’s why I’m writing this article, so that you, my friend, won’t miss the best antiquing Europe has to offer.  While this certainly isn’t comprehensive, it’s a good start to set you on your way to antique touring in Europe.  As always, it’s best to confirm dates and addresses as locations move, events are canceled and days of the week change. 

Alas, I’m utterly exhausted!  Shopping is hard work.  But don’t worry; a diva’s work is never done… I’ll be back again in Escape From America with more tips on antique shopping! 

The Writers Insider Guide To Paris - Perhaps you are fed up with your 9 to 5 regime; perhaps you are a writer needing a new perspective . . . perhaps, like so many, you are intoxicated by the myth of writing in Paris (have read A Moveable Feast, dreamt of Sartre in Les Deux Magots, been haunted by the Beatniks' or Henry Miller's immortalized adventures) and are interested in discovering what such a life is all about. For whatever reason, you are ready to make Paris your home and haven for new words. KNOW IT IS POSSIBLE. This guide will set you off on the right footing by bringing to your attention all the international and French resources available to writers in Paris which might otherwise take you many pains and hours of research to locate. The guide also directs you toward the active community of writers currently located in Paris: i.e. the journals, bookstores, cafes, and soirées where you can seek support, listeners, and public outlets for your work. Throughout the guide you will find other writers' stories -- those published or just beginning -- proof that the dream of writing in Paris is possible.