Luxury Real Estate

By Nicola Christinger of HOMEHUNTS

Journalist and children’s author, Nicola Christinger, offers an insight into the city which combines Roman, Mediterranean and Provencale influences and why she has made it her home.

Dating back to the 2^nd century BC, Nîmes, the capital city of the Gard in the Languedoc-Roussillon department of southern France was discovered by the Emperor Augustus. Since then it has maintained the title of being the most important Roman city, outside of Rome and is not only a popular holiday destination but home for many people looking to live in the Languedoc.

The “Nîmois” (the locals) are fiercely proud of their traditions and the city excels because of the many different influences that all join together to make it such a vibrant, cultural, gastronomic heaven.

Although there are many Roman historical buildings throughout the city, the most impressive is the Arena of Nîmes (Les Arènes), an amphitheatre that was constructed in around 70AD and remodelled in 1863 to serve primarily as a bullring. It can seat 16,000 spectators and the people of Nîmes take the bullfighting sport extremely seriously. The most important two dates in the bullfighting calendar of Nîmes is the ‘Feria de Pentcote’, which takes place during the end of May Whitsun weekend, and the other is the Feria des Vendanges, organised for the 3^rd weekend of September to celebrate the grape harvest.

I got my “dummies guide to bullfighting” last September, when I attended the ‘Feria’ with my Nîmois neighbour, a resident here since 30 years. I had initially said that although it fascinated me, I wasn’t sure I was quite ready to watch a bull being taunted and killed. He nodded sympathetically (obviously privately he thought I was mad) and said that I would be missing out. As we wandered past the Arena, we could hear the crowds inside cheering and clapping then all of a sudden silence would fall. In bullfighting decorum you can’t just pay for one bullfight, you pay for the whole event which is up to 6 bullfights in one sitting – just a little bit too much bull killing for my liking. Suddenly, the gates to the entrance of the arena were thrown open and hastily my neighbour grabbed my arm and quickly explained that it was free to anyone wanting to watch the last bullfight of the event. We ran up the steps and took our place, squeezing into the standing room only centimetres of space left in the gangways. Every single seat was taken, every last standing place was occupied, the music faded, a hush descended and in galloped his majesty, the bull - all 500 kilograms of him.

“Go back, turn around, before it’s too late” I wanted to shout, but then after several minutes the atmosphere became so tense and exciting I was mesmerised. There are some basic rules to bullfighting; the first is to know that the Matador (mata in Spanish means killer) uses the red cloak to obtain control over the bull (known as the ‘passing phase’) and it is he that starts and finishes the fight. The second is that just the right amount of “ooohing” and “aaahing” in the right places are essential. It is not a place to throw caution to the wind and shout your own appreciation – it is a crowd decision.

Armed with these basic facts and after a lot of ceremony, dancing and taunting from men in tightly fitted colourful outfits, the bull finally gave in. As the “show” finished, my neighbour handed me a white handkerchief whereupon I smiled but shook my head defiantly and declined his offer. Surprisingly, I wasn’t the least bit tearful but he insisted and pressed it into my hands. Seconds later the arena was filled with spectators waving their white handkerchiefs – a sign of their appreciation and taken into account by the judging panel. The more white handkerchiefs are waved the bigger the honour for the Matador. Another tip, always listen to the locals.

There are such strong, clear influences on the lifestyle in Nîmes, not only Roman and Hispanic. Although still in Languedoc, it is a border town and is considered part of Provence. The region famous for fragrances, culinary delights and olive trees extends its delicious tastes and smells throughout the city. The passion and influence of the Mediterranean also reveals itself through the architecture, tradition and language in Nîmes. The coast, Le Grau du Roi and La Grande Motte are half an hour away by car and the captivating region of the Camargue, with its docile white horses and flamingos are to be seen in the surrounding villages just outside the city.

On the hills that overlook the city, many luxurious villas and beautiful estates keep a watchful eye over the grandeur below and exclusive areas such as La Tour Magne and Quai de la Fontaine are highly sought after. One stunning example is a magnificent property located in the TOUR MAGNE area. This unique residence has been totally refurbished with high quality materials and comprises a main stone house opening onto a wooded park. Boasting a panoramic view and in keeping with city’s style there is a roman pool in the grounds and is on the market for sale at 1,360,000 euros.

Nîmes is a true city of crossings, where all roads meet. Just north of the city is the town of Uzès, Remoulins and the famous Roman aqueduct the Pont du Gard and to the east are Arles and Tarascon. Heading south brings you to the Mediterranean and vivacious city of Montpellier and out to the west will bring you to the magnificent nature park in the Cevennes hills.

I had been coming to Nîmes on holiday, every year since 2003 for five years and now after eight months of living here, I am proud to call it home. The atmosphere and traditions of an energetic city combined with culture, sophistication and stunning countryside make it a fascinating place to live. The locals are open, friendly and only to keen to offer their advice – and a very good way to do a crash course in French language learning! My two children started French school in the city, unable to speak much more than a ‘bonjour’ and ‘au revoir’ and after eight months the youngest girl now corrects me in the supermarket and the older girl runs up the telephone bill discussing boys and what to wear with all her teenage friends. My French may not be perfect but I am proud to shrug my shoulders and sigh heavily like a local.

Nîmes holds on to its deep-rooted identity, diversity and exuberance to ensure that it remains unique and, like its roman architecture, original.

Nicola Christinger is the PR and Customer relations manager for luxury property search company HOMEHUNTS, the author of the illustrated children’s book “The Fish with a Wish: and other stories” and also a freelance journalist writing for French Property News and a number of property and lifestyle publications.

Information:

For a selection of luxury property in Nimes: www.home-hunts.com

Feria 2009 – 27 May to 1 June. www.arenesdenimes.com/cartels.php

Restaurants:

L’imprevu : place d’assas. Tel: 04 66 38 99 59

Restaurant au Chapon Fin : 3 rue du Château Fadaise. Tel : Tel : 04 66 673 473

Chez Jacotte : 15 rue Fresque. Tel : 04 66 21 64 59

Le Lisita : 2 boulevard des Arenes. Tel : 04 66 67 29 15

Casa Bella : 6 place de la Revolution. Tel : 04 66 67 64 68

La Bodeguita : 3 boulevard Alphonse Daudet. Tel: 04 66 58 28 27

By Jon Larrance of Perry & Co.

Denver, CO (December, 2008) - Neither cold, nor wind, nor predictions of snow kept away the crowds when Perry & Co. hosted its annual holiday lights celebration on the evening of December 3rd at the Denver Zoo’s Wild Lights. Over 1400 guests, a good portion of them children, were exuberant over the 150 animal-themed light displays set up all around the 38 acres of the Denver Zoo. “This is one of our favorite traditions,” said Don Larrance, President of Perry & Co. “We get to host a party at the Zoo with our clients and meet their families and friends. It’s become one of our yearly events - a good time for people of all ages.”

Perry & Co. rents the entire zoo facility for the party and offers hot cocoa and cider and holiday cookies inside the Gates Center’s Norgren Hall so guests can warm up before heading out into the night. Themed and animated lights dot the landscape and create surprises around every corner as visitors strolled the zoo’s paths. Santa usually stops by for a visit and the little ones know to come with their lists in mind. Twirling in the dark on the decorated old-fashioned carousel is a favorite of children and their parents alike.

For Perry & Co. Agents it’s a great way to deliver holiday greetings to clients and potential clients. Some agents even invite people who live in their farm areas or their children’s classmates. The staff is encouraged to invite friends and family, too. “I love to invite my vendors to this event as well,” said Lorrie Grillo, Director of Marketing. “It’s a way of saying “thank you” to them for their great service to our company over the past year.”

By Meghan Barry

If you have ever visited the LuxuryRealEstate.com Headquarters in Seattle, near the historic Pike Place Market, you may have been to the rooftop deck on top of our building. A popular spot for staff gatherings and summertime lunches, this deck boasts expansive views of Puget Sound and Downtown Seattle. What a perfect place to view Fourth of July fireworks!

In-city living often has its limitation with access to the outdoors. However, on LuxuryRealEstate.com there seems to be ample opportunities to purchase a home with the convenience of a metropolitan location, yet with a ground-floor garden, multilevel terraces, or rooftop decks.

This is an appealing option on New York City, listed by Stribling & Associates, Ltd., in the heart of Chelsea’s gallery district. Looks like the perfect place for a hip Fourth of July barbecue.

www.luxuryrealestate.com/749432


Or this one in Boston, listed by Hammond Residential GMAC Real Estate. You can almost hear the fireworks… and the drum beating of Minutemen.

www.luxuryrealestate.com/869190


A 2005 Recipient of The Carolopolis Award for New Construction, this home has maintained that quintessential Charleston style, with a modern updates. What a stunning view! It’s listed by Disher, Hamrick & Myers.

www.luxuryrealestate.com/610485


Editor’s Note:
Meghan Barry is the Executive Vice President of LuxuryRealEstate.com. She works closely with CEO/Publisher John Brian Losh to organize a variety of Luxury Real Estate programs, events and services. Each of the brokers who represent the properties in this blog entry is a member of the Board of Regents, the governing body of LuxuryRealEstate.com. There are plenty of ways to enjoy the Fourth of July, and hopefully you’ll have a great holiday.

By Yvonne Harvey

With the Fourth of July weekend just around the corner, I can’t help but talk about the Declaration of Independence. And, of course, it all happened in Philadelphia, where we are holding our 13^th Annual Luxury Real Estate Fall Conference!

I found some interesting factoids on the famous, or maybe infamous, painting by John Trumbull, simply titled “Declaration of Independence.” As you know, paintings back then were the cameras of today. And this painting today would more likely be in the tabloid section or propaganda fodder. There are so many historical flaws in this painting, that its historical relevance is almost moot.

You may remember, if you read or watched The Da Vinci Code, how you instantly went and looked closely at the painting. Well, this might just make you want to take a look at this one, too. Look under the desk at the legs of our standing forefathers. They seem to be disproportionate to their bodies, especially Thomas Jefferson’s leg.

The painting includes 48 portraits. Of those 48, 43 were signers and 5 who may have been there, but did not sign the Declaration of Independence. Please note there were 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence. Hmmmm… several seem to be missing.

The painting itself was piecemealed together. It is said that John Trumbull carried his canvas with him to take advantage of any occasion which might arise; this would be comparable to our picture phone today. Many of the portraits were painted directly onto the canvas from life between 1789 and 1794, or sketches Trumbull had done in earlier years, i.e. John Adams in 1787 in Paris. If an historian wants to correct me here, please chime right in, but I need to ask this question. Wouldn’t that mean the attendees may appear as much as 18 years older from the date the Declaration of Independence was adopted? If my calculations are correct John Adams was 41 when he adopted the Declaration of Independence, and yet Trumbull sketched him at the age of 52. Just thinking out loud.

It is also historical fact that Trumbull was unable to meet all 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence; in nine of the cases the attendees had died before the opportunity arose. In some of these cases he painted from portraits hanging in the “Independence Chamber.” Since then, four of these portraits have been deemed fake. One, in particular, is the so-called portrait of William Whipple who died in 1785, and yet the signer of the painter is St. Memin, who was only born in 1770 and didn’t even come to America until 1793. Historians now agree the portrait is of a Joseph Wipple (note the spelling of his last name is even different Geesh!).

Painter Robert Edge Pine had an unfinished painting “Congress Voting Independence,” which historians agree was more historically accurate than Trumbull’s. And yet, we use Trumbull’s painting in many history books. Pine actually lived in the very building and painted in the “Independence Chamber” It appears that Trumbull embellished the room in his painting with colorful red, white and blue, and even had the wrong furniture. We know this because the actual desk and chair used by John Hancock is preserved in the Independence Hall. Again, Pine’s depiction is much more accurate.


Finally, I find this quite weird, even the Internet is unclear on the spelling of John Trumbull’s last name. Some spell Trumbull, and some spell Trumball. Oy!

Whew! I feel like I just did a whole book report for my teacher. I hope you enjoyed my little rant.

See you in Philly!


Editor’s Note:
Yvonne Harvey is the Events Coordinator for LuxuryRealEstate.com. So when you come and enjoy the wonderful presentations, discussions and networking opportunities at Luxury Real Estate conferences, you know who to thank. History is quite amazing, isn’t it? I love the Founding Fathers and I am always amazed by how much they sacrificed to fight tyranny and establish the first nation of liberty. George Washington is one of my biggest heroes and he is one of the best people who ever lived, in my humble view. The two pictures above are from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Declaration_of_Independence_(John_Trumbull).jpg and www.loc.gov/exhibits/jefferson/images/vc53.jpg.

By Meghan Barry

Someone has to be the one to mention that today is Valentine’s Day, right?

I noticed this article, simply entitled Happy Valentine’s Day, on Boston.com (I am a Seattle transplant… one of the many).

The National Association of REALTORS® suggests "If you can’t fly to Paris, France this Valentine’s Day, take your sweetheart to Paris, Texas" in a press release, entitled Explore American Towns Sharing Names With the World’s Most Romantic Cities.

Paris, Texas (average home price $84,000); Rome, Georgia (average home price $95,000); Seville, Ohio (average home price $122,000); Venice, California (average home price is a bit higher, $1.3 million… it’s California after all).

There may not be much luxury real estate in these versions of Paris, Rome and Seville, but think of the investment possibilities!


Editor’s Note:
Meghan Barry is the Executive Vice President of LuxuryRealEstate.com. She works closely with CEO John Brian Losh to organize a variety of Luxury Real Estate programs, events and services. What’s in a name, anyway? It might be even more unique an experience to seek luxurious opportunities in little-known areas than looking in the obvious spots. You might even fall in love with these smaller versions of great European cities. Happy Valentine’s Day, indeed.

By Jaime Sanders

I recently received a great email from Joanne – a wonderful real-estate agent in Folsom, Calif. Typically, I’m not huge fan of forwarded emails, but this one struck a nerve. It is about letting go and moving forward, which is really hard at times! Especially with the negative press in our industry, people seem to quickly forget about moving forward and start to drown in the mire of the news and problems in life. Please take a moment to read and think about HOW MUCH you can accomplish in 2008! Best wishes for the year ahead…

2007 is done...
...make 2008 unforgettable...

The 28 days of February stretch before you like blank pages of a Personal Diary. What will be written on those pages by this time next month? Next year? Will it be a tale of health, wealth, romance and wondrous prosperity...or will it be more of the same?

Fact is, the "movers and shakers" have long ago moved beyond 2007 and are looking ahead. Those are the same people who always seem to be "on top of their game" all the time. How do they do it? How can you run with this crowd? How can you leap one step ahead?

The simple answer is these people know the wisdom of "looking beyond today" and laying the groundwork for the months and years ahead. It's called taking action - Making a game plan, implementing, and CONTROLLING their future.

The time is NOW for YOU.


Editor’s Note:
Jaime Sanders is an Account Manager with LuxuryRealEstate.com. She assists many brokers in their endeavor to maximize exposure of their properties through creative marketing techniques. I definitely share Jaime’s sentiment of striving to improve ourselves in the present and future. Don’t worry about other people’s negative predictions too much – they’re just guesses, really. Simply focus on doing as much good as you can and improving yourself and your luxury real estate business day by day. That’s what I think.

By Robert Lockard

Predicting the future is a tricky game, as you can easily see from the failure of many experts last year to predict the problems this year in this Inman News article, entitled “2007 real estate forecaster report card.” I don’t expect people to be perfect and so it’s completely understandable even for experts to make mistakes from time to time. But here’s my question: Why do these experts spend time trying to predict things that they ultimately have little ability to control? Why not devote more time to simply suggesting good courses of action for regular people to take? That would definitely be more helpful to you, me and other homebuyers and sellers.

People probably pay more attention to expert advice about not getting into too much debt or staying away from certain risks because it’s something they can actually control. But hearing that a certain number of millions of homes are expected to be bought or sold in the coming year means little to most people. I just think it would be smarter to focus less on guessing and more on doing. Instead of asking, “What’s going to happen?” let’s ask “What can we do to better our situation?” Anyway, feel free to let me know what you think.

And, by the way, Happy New Year!


Editor’s Note:
Robert Lockard is the Public Relations & Media Specialist with LuxuryRealEstate.com. I am Robert. I create all of Luxury Real Estate’s newsletters, write the editorials in LuxuryRealEstate.com Magazine and much more.