Lisbon
About three blocks from my apartment, a new district is on the rise and my goodness, it’s going up fast. I can’t help but think that the partial Chinese ownership of Fidelidade – the insurance and financial group developing the new district – might have something to do with the speed with which foundations have been dug and towers erected. While it could do with some Beijing-style perimeter security overnight to deter the sprayers who deface the hoardings, the Entrecampos development looks like a promising addition to Lisbon’s cityscape despite its detractors. A new development can jar with its neighbours and this scheme, by any measure, is no small footprint – think a scaled-down version of Tokyo Midtown. But then again, it’s revitalising a long-derelict site with solid architecture, plenty of green space, a host of services and, in the process, creating a satellite city centre for the Portuguese capital. The best news? It promises to have the top gourmet food hall in the city.
London
On Monday we hosted one of our Minglers at Midori House. These in-house events are part business update, part inspiration and part extended aperitivo, bringing everyone from Monocle and its sister agency, Winkreative, up to speed on what’s happening across the world. We always hear from a sparky speaker and for this edition, Ruth Rogers of The River Café pulled up a chair and talked about everything from the basics of being a sharp entrepreneur to building a podcast business and knowing when to walk away from a deal. Most importantly, she reminded the assembled crowd about the power of hosting and getting the simple things right. Five days on, she has left me wondering what we should do for an encore in late October.
Paris
It felt as though half of Monocle was on one of the very early Eurostars on Tuesday morning and the station was rammed. Every time I take the service, I’m left thinking about all the missed opportunities to improve the offer, ease bottlenecks and deliver something simply better. I could go on but I’ll save that for another column. Meanwhile, the French capital was putting on a good show at 29C under sunny skies, with streets full of architects, decorators, journalists and brand owners all in town for Paris Design Week. As the sun dipped, we hosted cocktails for journalists and creatives at our café on Rue Bachaumont. Paris was electric, looking and feeling its best. After a summer break, it was a delight to be back.
San Francisco
On Wednesday I landed in San Francisco just after midday. As the plane’s wheels kissed the tarmac (nice landing, monsieur Air France 777 captain!), I was bracing myself for the queues and chaos of US immigration. How wrong I was! I made it from the aircraft door to the back seat of the car in seven minutes. Count ‘em! Seven! It helped that the immigration hall was empty but it wasn’t as though there were no international flights arriving. Do we have the current administration to thank for this efficiency? Or is SFO an example of a well-managed airport doing its own thing to be friendly and efficient? Either way, thank you.
Tokyo
The SFO to HND (Tokyo Haneda) flight on ANA got in at about 03.00. As I arrived on a Saturday morning, much of Tokyo was still awake and moving on to the next bar, lounge or club. It has taken a while but Tokyo’s nightlife felt as though it was back in full swing, despite it being a long weekend in Japan. Was I tempted to have the car stop in Ginza and meet up with some of my POTN (people of the night) at a tiny bar for a song or two? Briefly. My sensible side got the better of me and whispered that five cities across three continents in 96 hours was enough for one week and that a proper sleep, in a real bed, might be the more sensible thing to do. I believe that I made the right decision but I’ll never know the delights that I might have missed. Thankfully, I’ve already got a trip planned for October when it’s that little bit cooler, when the leaves turn and when Tokyo’s retailers stock their autumn collections. Can’t wait.
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