Bathhouse Babylon - Full Release

 

During whatever spare time I could find over the past hectic year, I rewrote Bathhouse Babylon for a final, full release.

When the first edition of the book was published in May 2021, it thankfully garnered global media attention for a solid year, and sales seemed to generate on their own long after.

Although I was pleased with how cathartic and interesting the process was, after some time, I believed I could make it even better.

I listened to feedback from friends and strangers who bought the book. With most of the requests from the LGBTQ community indicating a desire for more juicy scandal and sex stories.

So, I ventured deeper, and added a number of salacious chapters to provide even more bang for the buck.

Consider this a second cumming.

Drawing from my diaries and over 13 years of experience in the bathhouse industry across North America, Bathhouse Babylon offers an unfiltered, behind-the-scenes look at this unique world.

The book charts my journey from a regular customer to managing three gay sauna establishments, providing an insider's perspective that is as candid as it is captivating.

Bathhouse Babylon reveals the intricate subculture of bathhouses, a realm often hidden from the public eye.

Through vivid storytelling, it shares the unusual and shocking sex stories that are an integral part of this environment.

Yet, the narrative also delves into the sociological aspects, exploring the dynamics at play in a venue teeming with half-naked men in party mode. Topics such as drug use, money-driven owners, escorts, celebrities, diversity challenges, business competition, and sex addiction are examined in depth.

If you can imagine it, it happens in a bathhouse.

Bathhouse Babylon, can currently be found on Amazon as a paperback or ebook.

Championing LGBTQI+ Rights with Monaco Pride 2024

Earlier this week, I had the privilege of attending the third Monaco Pride event in the Principality. Despite being relatively young compared to other Pride gatherings, Monaco Pride grows stronger each year, drawing an international and diverse crowd united in championing LGBTQI+ equality rights.

Monaco Pride was initiated in 2022 through a collaboration between Barclays Monaco, Fight Aids Monaco, and the former Stars’n’Bars. Their goal was to educate Monaco’s decision-makers about LGBTQI+ rights and address the outdated laws that cause significant hardships for many families living and working in Monaco.

This year, on June 20th, Camille Gottlieb, Princess Stephanie’s youngest daughter, joined over 150 participants at Monaco’s third Pride event. The event was co-organized by Barclays Bank and the local Fight Aids association, and held at the newly opened Marius restaurant on the Quai des Artistes.

Speakers included Monserrat Marchetti, Team Leader of Barclays Private Bank Monaco, Hervé Aeschbach, Coordinator at Fight Aids Monaco Association, and Annette Anderson, former manager of Stars’n’Bars.

Barclays has long been a global leader in promoting workplace diversity and inclusion. According to Marchetti, “Making everyone feel comfortable in their work is at the heart of our culture. We foster this environment through various activities and initiatives, creating networks that allow colleagues to build connections.

Our ongoing relationship with PRIDE is just one of many ways we demonstrate our commitment to the LGBTQI+ community.” As in previous years, the façade of the Monaco bank will be illuminated in rainbow colors throughout June in observance of Pride Month.

Hervé Aeschbach reported that since the last Monaco Pride, LGBTQI+ residents have been meeting regularly to discuss educating decision-makers about civil inequalities in Monaco. These inequalities create severe financial difficulties for many, including the lack of spousal rights for widows or widowers in same-sex marriages recognized in other countries and the denial of medical benefits for children in same-sex families.

Monaco is consistently rated among the worst countries in Europe regarding LGBTQI+ civil rights. Aeschbach emphasized that Princess Stephanie, President of the Fight Aids Association, denounces all discrimination and defends the right to equality for all Monaco citizens and residents.

Annette Anderson thanked the courageous members of the Conseil-National and the High Commissioner for Protection of Rights for their efforts in fighting for equal rights for the Rainbow Community. However, she stressed, “It is OUR responsibility to fight for OUR rights.” She applauded the creation of the new Mon Arc En Ciel Association, which aims to educate decision-makers about LGBTQI+ rights and advocate for changing the outdated laws that burden many families in Monaco.

This year’s Monaco Pride highlighted the urgency of bringing even basic LGBTQI+ equality rights to the Principality. Despite the serious conversations, there was a hopeful and positive spirit among the group, with live music, dancing, laughter, and drinks, as participants enjoyed the early evening overlooking Port Hercules in Monaco.

Group photos courtesy of Frédéric Nébinger

Read The Room - Bookstore & Café in Nice

 

It has been said that estimates indicate there are tens of thousands of English-speaking and even more so, bilingual expatriates living in the region, particularly in cities like Nice, a cultural hub in the French Riviera.

So when I noticed online a new bookshop and café aptly called, “Read The Room” having recently opened in Nice, I had to check it out. I was delighted to meet the owners, Danaé and Andrea at their establishment, located near Place Garibaldi at 3 rue Papon.

Can you tell us a bit about yourselves and what inspired you to open an English bookshop and café in Nice?

My mom and I had already been living in the South of France for just over 2 years. We were both talking one day about how fun it would be to open our own business together and seeing as we are both avid readers with very little purchasing options in the area, we decided to do it ourselves! It literally happened overnight. It’s easy to be inspired in Nice.

What is the overall vision and mission for your bookshop and café?

We have a very clear vision of being a culture hotspot for English and anglophone expats and tourists. We really want to make our space a place where book lovers can connect over their love of literature and a good cup of coffee (and a delicious slice of cake too!). A big part of our mission is to open our doors to cultural events as well so that the community can stay connected.

How did you come up with the concept for combining a bookshop with a café?

This is a very popular concept overseas especially in the UK, US and South Africa where my mom is from. We wanted to give the option to people to be able to sit and enjoy their book outside of their usual comfort zone. The margins on buying and selling books is also so small, so offering the coffee side (with our menu) helps us stay afloat and enables us to invest in more and diverse book stock.

What kind of atmosphere are you aiming to create for your customers?

In my personal life, I am very passionate about art, books, vintage, interior design and beautiful, aesthetic things that make you feel good. My own apartment feels like a fun museum and that’s the energy we wanted to convey for our customers. A space where you walk in and feel at home immediately. A place where you feel relaxed enough to sit by yourself and enjoy a book, and feel inspired when you look up. My mom and I have a lot of pride in our space and I think it is easily noticeable.

What types of books will you be focusing on in your inventory? I noticed you have an LGBTQ section.

Being inclusive and diverse in our book stock is a top goal and priority for us here at Read The Room. Being two strong women who have always been passionate about equality and human rights, we want our stock to reflect that. Our LGBQT selection is not just available for Pride Month, and we restock it weekly. We place quite a lot of importance in women’s rights, women authors and mental health advocacy books. We are also big on giving a platform and help amplify the voices of marginalized authors who are often silenced or ignored. These are all topics we care deeply about personally and we wanted to incorporate that professionally. 

We also always make sure to check out the latest and bestsellers lists, the women’s literature prize winners and runner ups, TikTok’s booktok community favorites and our selected few Instagram book influencers to guide us and keep us up to date with what the public is reading.

We also don’t forget our children’s books and kiddies’ corner. They are also a very big priority for us as we believe reading is one of the most important aspects of a child’s life to benefit their futures. Keeping the stock fresh, educational but also interactive and fun seems to be working wonders so far!

 

Are there any specific genres or authors you are particularly excited to feature?

Like we mentioned above, we are very big on amplifying the voices of women and marginalized authors and it will always be a priority to seek them out. We are also very excited to feature more “alternative” books in our photography and design selection from Mack Books. We really do love our coffee table books from Assouline and the beautiful photographs they hold. At the moment, we are very focused on featuring Middle-Eastern literature from Arabic and muslim authors for all ages to enjoy and learn from.

Can you describe the kind of food and drinks you will be serving in the café?

We have a small menu made up of small, healthy, and fresh meals that run all day. We have breakfast options like chia seed pudding and granola bowls to nice lunch dishes like a delicious caesar salad or salmon trout  and avocado stuffed croissant. Our avocado toast is definitely a fan favorite! We also bake fresh croissants every morning and all our pastries are homemade. We have the usual range of drinks, teas and coffees and offer matcha specials (we’ve been told they’re the best) and fresh pressed OJ everyday!

 

How do you plan to engage with the local community and build a loyal customer base?

We are mainly using Instagram and Facebook as our means of staying connected with our local community but we are also starting to host more events and do collaborations with people. We also have our loyalty card that customers receive after their first book purchase. We have already had two filled out so they are popular! We also have a community pinboard at the entrance of our store where customers and tourists alike can pin up information and events to advertise and find each other for a variety of activities and offers, most of which are in English.

Will you be hosting any special events or activities, such as book readings, author signings, or book clubs?

We have already hosted a book swap event which went brilliantly, people loved the idea of being able to drop books off and swap out second hand books to take home. We also have Taste Taste Thursdays, which consists of cooking a meal from a new cookbook we choose in the store every Thursday. We have a book signing coming up in July and another in August. We are also introducing the kiddies reading corner on Wednesdays: we will choose a book to read for 30 minutes every Wednesday in the kid’s corner. Every book will have a lesson or activity.

What have been some of the biggest challenges you've faced in setting up the bookshop and café? Especially since it seems to be a focus towards the English speaking community in France. Did you feel this is something the expat community needs and was asking for?

The English community was definitely waiting for this. The main feedback we received was that this was really needed. There wasn’t a library in a 30 minute vicinity from Nice where you could find a nice, extended selection of English books covering a variety of genres, especially for children. Read The Room has quickly become a spot for locals to come and have a coffee, enjoy a chat, have a nice salad and buy or order a new book for themselves or a friend. 

The biggest challenge we faced was all the red tape that comes with French bureaucracy and admin. Even when you are French, the French are difficult, haha. But we were lucky in most aspects. 

Do you have any personal favorite books or authors that have influenced your decision to open this shop?

This is a very difficult question to answer. 

We have too many favorite books and authors but one that really stuck with me recently is ‘I’m Glad My Mom Died’ by Jenette McCurdy. I was totally awestruck by her courage and bravery. It’s crazy to look back and think I was 12 years old watching her on TV while she was going through hell on earth and hiding it so well. My mom recently read ‘A Woman is No Man’, by Etaf Rum, an American Palestinian author. We are always and what we read is so diverse that I wouldn’t say one particular book is what inspired the book shop. All of the stories we have ever read are part of our own.

What do you hope customers will take away from their experience at your bookshop and café?

A book(s), a good word to a friend or neighbor and a revisit. 

Why did you choose Nice as the location for your business?

It’s the middle ground of everything. It’s in between Monaco and Cannes and with the airport being in Nice, a lot of our clientele is around this area because of tourists and expats. 

What are your future plans for the bookshop and café?

We already want to find a bigger space to have more bookshelves filled with books! We want to add a bigger seating area for reading and eating, as well as sell more art and photography when the opportunity arises to expand. We will soon be getting our terrace confirmed, so we will be adding 4 more tables outside (with shelter of course!) so more people will be able to enjoy our space. 

Is there anything else you would like our readers to know about your new bookshop and café?

Dogs are welcome and definitely get a puppacino on the house. We take special orders every week and place them on Sundays, which in turn arrive no later than the next Thursday if there are no public holidays etc. We are open to suggestions and book recommendations and anyone is welcome and free to email us should they want to use our space for an event. 

How can people stay updated on your events and new arrivals?

Follow us on Instagram and make sure to turn the post notifications on so you can stay up to date with our newest arrivals, our business updates and events!

As the saying goes, reading is fundamental. Be sure to visit Read The Room the next time you are in Nice.

The Monaco Open Air Cinema 2024

 

If you're seeking a truly wonderful experience in the Principality of Monaco, we recommend spending part of an evening watching a movie under the stars at the Monaco Open Air Cinema.

 

We first wrote about this unique venue a decade ago, but it’s always worth revisiting as it is quite the experience. And as of June 15, it reopens to the public for the height of the summer season.

 

Situated next to the architecturally stunning Oceanography Museum and just a few minutes' walk from the Prince’s Palace, the Monaco Open Air Cinema offers a picturesque setting by the Mediterranean Sea. Throughout the season, you can enjoy a variety of movies, from new releases to vintage classics.

Seating options cater to different comfort levels and budgets, ranging from standard outdoor chairs to more lounge-like areas. All seating is on a first-come, first-served basis to ensure fairness. Refreshments are available for purchase as well.

The cinema opens at 8:45 pm, with the evening's events starting at 9:30 pm and the movie commencing at 10:00 pm. It's advisable to arrive early, as tickets cannot be purchased online. This traditional approach to cinema-going adds to the charm and memorability of the experience. 

 

A lesser-known fact is that the fortress wall behind the screen is part of the Monaco prison, though there are few windows in the area near the top of the wall.

For a memorable movie-watching experience, spend an evening at the Monaco Open Air Cinema.