The Budget Babe | Affordable Fashion & Style Blog

Nordstrom Anniversary Sale



The Nordstrom Anniversary Sale begins tonight when the clock strikes midnight...so that's technically Friday, July 18th. Save big on fall's finest (gulp! I do not want to think about fall fashion just yet...but hey, a sale's a sale!)

Savvy Travel: Fifi Returns to Paris

The Budget Babe's International Travel Advisor Fifi LaMode revisits Paris and discovers the more things change, the more they...well, you know the rest. —BB


by Fifi LaMode
PARIS - Plus ça change... OK, OK, I know I said I'd focus on places other than Europe, but heck, it's France and I couldn't stay away. It's 3 years since I was last in Paris and here's an update on what's changed and what hasn't:

What's changed: The prices. Big time. The cute boutique hotel we stayed at for 120 Euros is now a Best Western and charges 290 Eu. Ouch. I also switched from cappuccino to the local brew, i.e. espresso, because it's 1/3 the price and I discovered you can sleep after you drink it. Anyway, it's much cooler drinking the teeny cups of mud, er, coffee, than big globs of foam which stay on your upper lip marking you as a tourist. There's a reason they charge 3.5 Eu for these things.

They've also discovered yuppification where wine is concerned, i.e. charging stupid amounts for a glass of something that costs little more than that for an entire bottle. Shame on you, Paris. I recall my student days when no matter how little money we had, we could always get a decent bottle of vin rouge, a loaf of bread, and some cheese. The bread and cheese are still cheap and good, but even the locals complain about the high price of everything. Mr. Sarkozy, please, you love America, learn a lesson from us. If it's a moneymaker, run with it. French wine and cheese are why folks keep coming back - really. Keep those taxes down!