Paris and fashion are two concepts that marry to perfection and now, well into the 21st century, they continue to move hordes of journalists, fashionists, instagramers, influencers, it girls, the famous, the new rich and outsiders, who twice a year descend on the French capital in pursuit of the latest trends. The show takes place both on the catwalks, where the labels pull out the stops to achieve the best presentations for their creations, and on the streets, which throng with people intent on setting trends, even if this involves parading about in the most outlandish combination of the moment (often in rather dubious taste, too). For some, it’s a circus; for others, an explosion of creativity but, whatever the case, the Paris Fashion Week is the perfect excuse to steal a getaway to Paris to bring out the fashionist streak in you. And, needless to say, in these times you would want to share it all on social networks as well. What with parades, presentations and parties, you can also find some spare time to enjoy the city. Here, then, are our recommendations on what to do with your precious spare time.

1. A Gastro Tourist Bus, or How to Enjoy your Break to the Full

Pressed for time to sightsee Paris? The crew of BUSTRONOME have devised the ideal solution – an elegant bus with huge windows where you can delight in the magnificent gourmet menu of chef Vincent Thiessé while you ride around the city’s main tourist sights. This is the best way to tour the city without getting tired (you’ll already be getting tired between one parade and the next).

2. Let’s Go Shopping!

No seasoned fashion lover can resist a spot of shopping in Paris. The options are endless, from haute couture boutiques, suitable only for well-lined pockets, to vintage stores. Our favourites include the small ateliers you will come across while strolling through Le Marais, and along Saint-Germain-des-Prés – a heady shot of creativity!

3. An Exhibition to Get Inspired

Paris is fashion, but it is art, too. On any visit to the French capital, you should slip out – however briefly – to see some of the countless museums, art centres and art galleries the city is teeming with. If you have the time, be sure to head for the Centre Pompidou which this year marks its fortieth anniversary. If you’re the type that’s eager for something more unique, you should set your sights on Le Grand Musée du Parfum where you can embark on a sensorial journey into the world of perfume.

4. Time to Relax – Shall we Meet at the Spa?

After a long day of fashion parades and traipsing about the city, it’s time to take a breather and recuperate, and where better to do so than in a spa? Treat yourself to a stint at the Arab baths of O’Kari, where time stands still when you soak in its waters and take a massage and skin treatment. You will come out feeling new, ready to drop in on a party.

5. A Cocktail to Round Off the Day

We can’t think of any more glamorous way to see out a fashion-packed day than cocktail in hand at some chic venue in the city. Our favourites include the bar at the Hôtel Particulier, on Montmartre, a magnificently decorated space where you can relax and enjoy their splendid cocktail list, the bar at the Hotel Terrass”, where some fine views are guaranteed, and the bar Les Bains with its exquisite decor, where sanctuary and entertainment are assured.

Book your Vueling to Paris here and treat yourself to a fascinating Paris Fashion Week, to be held from 28 February to 8 March, and bring out the fashionist streak inside you. Don’t miss it!

Text by Los Viajes de ISABELYLUIS

Images by Fabio Sola Penna, BUSTRONOME, Le Grand Musée du Parfum,Le Grand Musée du Parfum, O’Kari, Hôtel Particulier, Hotel Terrass” , Les Bains

Practically the whole of 20th-century architecture is represented in Prague’s urban fabric. Even today you can admire examples of major achievements in the various styles that emerged over the last century. Here at My Vueling City we have prepared an introduction to these styles, as embodied in some of the city’s most emblematic buildings.

Modernism

Among other things, Modernism was born of a desire to harmoniously depict “a total artwork”. One of the most prominent illustrations of this in the Czech capital is Villa Bílek. The sculptor, graphic artist and illustrator František Bílek (1872–1941) – together with Alfons Mucha – was one of the leading exponents of Czech Art Nouveau. This studio and residential villa, located near Prague Castle, was built in 1911. It was designed as a backdrop to reflect a field of grain – indeed, many of its details give form to this idea. For instance, the columns are stylised sheaves of wheat. The villa now houses a permanent exhibition on František Bílek.

Cubist Architecture

Cubist architecture took hold solely in Czechoslovakia. In this style, artistic value prevails over practicality, which often ends up tending to an exercise in style. At any rate, well worth the visit is the House of the Black Madonna or Dům u Černé Matky Boží, designed by the acclaimed Czech architect, Josef Gočár. Design enthusiasts will be pleased to learn that this is the site of the Museum of Decorative Arts, featuring furniture, ceramics, posters, publicity graphics and other select works by the Cubist painter, Emil Filla, and Josef Čapek. There is also an exhibition of Czech Cubism which runs until 31 December 2017. And, there’s more – the building also houses the Grand Café Orient, the only Cubist café in the world.

Functionalism

Functionalism is an architectural principle by which the form of a building is derived from its function. It was the essence of modernity as opposed to traditionalism. The best example of this in Prague is the Villa Müller, designed by Adolf Loos and Karel Lhota for the owner of a construction company, František Müller. In this villa, built from 1928 to 1930, Loos applied both functionalist ideas and the Raumplan theory – instead of dividing available space into different levels or storeys, it is distributed in “cubes”. The latter are arranged so that each room is interspersed on different levels. The building belongs to the City of Prague Museum and the interior still features the original furniture and fixtures. There is also a small exhibition on the life of Adolf Loos.

Socialist Realism

Functionalism inadvertently created a kind of transition towards post-war Soviet realism. Prague was happily spared from being disfigured by the Communist regime and subsequent Soviet domination. It is not so long ago that half of Europe still lived under a Communist regime dominated by the USSR. Prague was one of the most important cities on the other side of the iron curtain, and it was there that the leading Soviet architects of the time were active – their work can still be admired today. It may not be one of the most widely applauded styles in the history of architecture, but it impresses in that it clearly fulfilled its mandate, becoming an identity trait for a whole era.

Socialist realism architecture tended to be monumental, historicist, symmetrical, decorative and studded with references to Stalinism. The most famous building from that period is the Hotel International Prague, in the Letná district, put up under the direction of the government of the time. Like Warsaw’s Palace of Culture and Science, it was a small-scale copy of seven similar, monumental buildings in Moscow. Completed in 1954, the building with the tallest tower is 16 storeys or 88 metres high.

Independence – Contemporary Architecture

Despite Prague regaining its freedom after the fall of the Communist Bloc, this did not prompt an architectural revival in the city. It did, however, spark a marshalling of valuable resources to restore the city’s historical areas and renovate its residential districts. The most internationally acclaimed achievement of recent times is held to be the celebrated Dancing House – also known as Ginger & Fred for its silhouette, which evokes the two dancers of Hollywood fame. Designed by Vlado Milunič, a native of Prague, and the American Frank Gehry, it initially stirred up considerable controversy due to its placement among Baroque, Gothic and Art Nouveau buildings, seriously rupturing the area’s urban profile. It now contains an art gallery, a bar, a restaurant and a hotel.

This, then, is My Vueling City‘s review of Prague’s most prominent architectural landmarks from the 20th century. We expect you to be surprised by them when you visit the city. Check out our flights here.

Text by Los Viajes de ISABELYLUIS

Images by Czech Tourism, Wikipedia Commons

A getaway to Leeds is the perfect excuse to do two diametrically opposite things. First, you should take the chance to do some quality shopping, as the city boasts an abundance of shopping centres, markets and pedestrian precincts packed with stores – a pleasurable exercise in which we put the credit on our card to the test. In contrast, you can also make the most out of your trip by exploring some of the jewels that lie in the Yorkshire and the Humber region, which is where cosmopolitan Leeds is situated. In the following we propose four outings to destinations less than two hours from the city where you will discover just how special and manifold is this beautiful area in the north of England.

1. Saltaire – In Search of the Region’s Industrial Legacy

Our first stop is Shipley, situated in the Bradford metropolitan district. Here we find the Saltaire model industrial village, a jewel from the Victorian era which was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001. Strategically located next to the river Aire and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, it was founded in 1853 by Sir Titus Salt, a philanthropist and entrepreneur of the Yorkshire wool industry – wool was the region’s major driving force during the Industrial Revolution.

This model village was purpose-built to house both the wool mill and the living area for the workers and their families. It featured a number of different spaces, designed to meet the needs of the community: a hospital, school, library, recreational areas, a church, etc. This enabled the workers to live near their place of work and also provided them with better conditions than in the nearby city of Bradford.

Nowadays it operates as a leisure area in which most of the buildings have been restored and turned into shops, art galleries, restaurants and cafés, but it still conveys the idea of the region’s important industrial past.

2. The Evocative Scenery ofWuthering Heightsin Haworth

The picturesque village of Haworth, situated some 36 kilometres west of Leeds, owes its fame above all to the Brontë sisters (Emily, Charlotte and Anne), who wrote their acclaimed novels right here. Most of the tourists who come here do so on account of one of their best known literary works, Wuthering Heights, penned by Emily Brontë, and to see for themselves the places depicted in the novel. Apart from having a walk through this peaceful setting, permanently marked by the curiosity of sightseers eager to capture snippets of fiction, we recommend hiking through the area and soaking up this unusual scenery which acted as the source of inspiration for what has become a veritable classic of English literature.

3. Outdoor Art

You’re an art lover but you hate enclosed spaces – in that case the Yorkshire Sculpture Park is for you. Located half an hour from Leeds, in the grounds of Bretton Hall, stands this unusual “museum”, where you can delight in their magnificent collection of modern and contemporary sculpture in an inimitable setting. Something to note – it boasts Europe’s largest number of bronzes exhibited in the open-air by Henry Moore, the most international local artist in this region.

4. Castle Howard – A Movie Set

North of the historic fortified city of York, which is well worth stopping over in, stands this magnificent country house, as these rural palaces owned by the British aristocracy are known. Castle Howard was built between 1699 and 1712 for the Earl of Carlisle. While its exterior, designed by the architect, Sir John Vanbrugh, is an exquisite example of the English Baroque, its interior will not leave you unmoved either. There you can enjoy the incredible collection of paintings by the likes of Canaletto, Leandro Bassano, Titian, Annibale Carracci, Marco Ricci, Joshua Reynolds and Gainsborough, among others.

A visit to this priceless mansion, which has been the home of the Howard family for over 300 years and is open to the public, has the added value of having served as a cinema and television set. It was here that Stanley Kubrick’s Barry Lyndon was filmed,as was Brideshead Revisited – both the successful 1981 series and the film from 2008, adaptations of the literary classic by Evelyn Waugh.

You simply must visit the region of Yorkshire and the Humber – book your Vueling to Leeds here!

Text by Los Viajes de ISABELYLUIS

Images by Tim Green, John Robinson, Nick, Michael D Beckwith, vagueonthehow, Karen Bryan

Picasso’s Corunnan period remains fairly unexplored, even though he himself considered it important to his development. On occasion, he even rated it above his Blue and Rose Periods. It all began in October 1891, when Pablo Ruiz Picasso was nine years old and, together with his sisters Conchita and Lola and his mother María, left his hometown of Málaga and moved to Galicia where his father, José Ruiz Blasco, took up a teaching post at the Provincial School of Fine Arts in A Coruña. The boy from Andalusia attended both the local secondary school and the aforementioned Fine Arts School for three years, embarking on his art studies at the latter.

During his sojourn in A Coruña, the young boy produced over 200 works, now housed in the world’s leading Picasso museums (Paris, Barcelona and Málaga) or in private collections, as is the case of Portrait of Modesto Castilla,which in 2012 was auctioned for 2.6 million euros, the highest price ever fetched by a painting executed by a boy – Picasso was 12 years old at the time.

So, on any trip to A Coruña, be sure to go on the following itinerary which will take you to the most significant landmarks during Picasso’s Corunnan period.

Picasso House Museum
The Ruiz Picasso family lived in Galicia on the second floor at 14 Calle Payo Gómez for five years. The building, its original structure still intact, features typical Galician architecture, including wooden galleries. The family’s living quarters include a re-creation of a 19th-century home, with a few reproductions of Picasso’s Corunnan work and that of his father, in addition to an engraving by the former which is contemporary with Guernica.

Instituto da Guarda
The Instituto Eusebio da Guarda, located in the Plaza de Pontevedra, is the secondary school and art school attended by Picasso. His school grades were very poor, but he excelled in his art exams. It was on the first floor that he received tuition from such artists as his father, in addition to Román Navarro, Isidoro Brocos and Amorós y Botella.

The Plaza de Pontevedra
This square, which at the time was still sand and stone, was where Picasso played at bulls and bullfighters with his friends, including Antonio Pardo Reguera, Constantino Sardina and Jesús Salgado. A drinking fountain used to stand in the square which the maid employed by the Ruiz Picasso family got drinking water from.

The Beaches of Riazor and Orzán
It is said that Picasso discovered the female nude for the first time in Riazor. This occurred while playing near the bathing boxes that used to be on the beach, which also had boats that Pablo drew. As for Orzán, he executed an oil on panel of that beach.

Chapel of San Andrés
The restored, Neo-Romanesque-style Chapel of San Andrés opened to the public in May 1890. Seven sculptures by Brocos, one of Pablo’s tutors at the School of Fine Arts, were put on display in its interior thereafter. A few metres from the chapel stands the Circo de Artesanos where Picasso attended dance classes.

The Calle Real
In February 1895, Picasso held his first exhibition at 20 Calle Real, in what was then a furniture store, which earned him two excellent press reviews. In March he staged his second exhibition in the same street – purportedly at number 54 – where he showed his Man in Cap, now housed in the Musée Picasso, Paris.

San Carlos Garden
In A Coruña, Picasso heard the story of Lady Hester Stanhope, the lover of Sir John Moore, who died in 1809 and was buried in this garden. He liked it so much that he vowed to travel to England to learn more about her. In fact, the first time he visited Paris, in 1900, he actually intended it to be a stopover on his way to London. Later, however, he changed his mind.

Escola de Artes e Superior de Deseño Pablo Picasso
This school, located at 2 Calle Pelamios, was where Picasso pursued his studies after leaving the Fine Arts School. Several of the chalk drawings he executed during the three years he studied in A Coruña are displayed in the school’s corridors, while photocopies of his school report are exhibited in the foyer.

San Amaro Cemetery
This is where Pablo’s younger sister, Conchita, was buried after her death from diphtheria on 10 January 1895. Costales, Brocos, Navarro and Gumersindo Pardo Reguera are also buried in this graveyard.

The Tower of Hercules
Picasso went on long strolls from his home to the Tower of Hercules, a lighthouse which was designated a World Heritage Site in 2009. Pablo did oil paintings of it and also drew it in both his Corunnan notebooks and one of his news sheets. In the latter he called it the “Tower of Candy”.

Text by Turismo A Coruña