The Budget Babe's International Shopping Advisor Fifi LaMode returns from Łódź, Poland, where everything old is new again—and film, culture and shopping thrives. —TBB


by Fifi LaMode
Łódź is located in central Poland, about 120 km from Warsaw. It's pronounced "Wooj", (the name is Polish for "boat") and used to be one of Europe's primary textile centers from the early days of the Industrial Revolution. Izrael Poznanski's factory at one time employed over 11,000 people. The city received privileges to encourage development and was labeled a special economic zone. Jews, Germans, Russians and Poles flocked there to get rich quick, earning Łódź the name "Ziemia Obiecana", or Promised Land. It was one of Europe's most multi-cultural cities.

This Golden Age ended with the world wars. After World War II, Łódź was the defacto capital of Poland, since Warsaw lay in ruins. The Jews were gone, so were the Germans and most Russians. It was still a major textile center, and designers like Yves Saint-Laurent and Daniel Hechter had their pret-a-porter collections made there; In the 70's and 80's you could find samples or seconds with their labels at the department stores and they were selling for a song (a Daniel Hechter corduroy jacket with flannel lining cost $12!).

Today the factories are closed but culture thrives. The Łódź Film School is respected world-wide (Andrzej Wajda, Roman Polanski, Agnieszka Holland—ring a bell? All from the Łódź Film School), continuously producing world-class directors and cinematographers. Arthur Rubinstein lived on Piotrkowska Street, once the world's longest shopping street at 4.5 km, boasting impressive art nouveau architecture as well as excellent cafes and restaurants.

The special economic zone still exists today and developers and investors are coming from around the world to take advantage of the tax breaks and financial incentives. Rumor has it that David Lynch fell in love with the place while filming there and plopped down a load of money for some project or other.

Yup, Paris is all that and a bag of chips…or should we say pomme frites? Fifi LaMode, The Budget Babe's International Shopping Advisor, sheds light on sightseeing, shopping and style in the City of Lights. —TBB


by Fifi LaMode
I LOVE PARIS—WHO DOESN'T?

5:30 a.m. on a cool April morning—the street cleaners are out, dressed in bright green, amazingly fashionable uniforms that fit just right—these guys looked like models. Only in Paris.

The French are cool. They are born cool. We can't imitate them, shouldn't even try, would look silly because we're not them. Period.

For the Francophile in each of us, here some stuff that's worth buying in France: Designer handbags and shoes (Longchamps, Lacroix, Dior, YSL, etc. roughly 20% cheaper than in NYC, even with the stinky euro exchange rate), and, get this, some of the sale items in the upscale shops on Faubourg St-Honore (YES!! Faubourg St-Honore!) This is a big surprise because the stuff is REALLY REALLY high end and yet they have better sales than you would expect—still pricy compared to Macy's but it's Paris, isn't it? Deal with it and brag when you get home. The whole point of being a 'budget babe' is that you can save money so you can spend it in places like Paris, right? Unlike Milan, the sales people are normal and surprisingly friendly in these ritzy shops. Told you—they're cool.

Also, neighborhood shops have a really good selection of fashionable stuff at reasonable prices (reasonable even by American standards). Blvd. Gen. Jourdan which runs south from the Left Bank all the way to Porte D'Orleans has a large selection of shops. If you get tired along the way hop on a Metro and in 5-10 minutes you're back where you started. It's that simple in Paris. On the Right Bank, facing the Madeleine church (looks like a Greek temple), there's Rue Tronchet, with pricier items, but very nice quality, especially the shoe stores. This is 10 minutes' walk from the Louvre, where, if you go after 4 pm, tickets are cheaper. Same with my favorite, the Musee D'Orsay. Unlike the Louvre, it's a small museum, so if you go after 4, you can see it all for 1/2 price! Such a deal—Really.