PRINCE ALBERT. ASM: Prince Albert II cut the ribbon and formally inaugurated the AS Monaco Football Store last night accompanied by Vadim Vasilyev, Vice-President of AS Monaco and several members of the football club including  star players Radamel Falcao, Joao Moutinho, Lucas Ocampos and Valère Germain...

MONACO LIFESTYLE: BOMO, the English bookshop of Monaco held a bittersweet closing party on Thursday evening. Despite being open just eight months, the shop’s great selection of books, friendly atmosphere and events for children and adults had made it a great favourite among readers in the Principality...

PREMIUM - MONACO BUSINESS, MONACO TOURISM: Saudi Arabia’s HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud, Chairman of Kingdom Holding Company (KHC) met with Prince Albert at the royal palace in Monaco during his trip this week to the French Riviera. During the meeting Prince Albert welcomed Prince Alwaleed and discussed common interests in humanitarian and philanthropic activities and various general issues especially in the business and economic arenas…

PREMIUM - MONACO LIFESTYLE: Many of the parents of the 3,800 children who attend school in Monaco remain unhappy with the decision by the National Education service to require the purchase of school sports uniforms from one specified supplier - Nike. The pack of tee-shirt, a ‘sweat’, a pair of shorts and a swimsuit, costs 59 euros, which some parents say is too much, especially if they have more than one child attending school…

MONACO NEWS: While the summer season is well-known as the time when thousands of Italians visit the Principality, not all of them arrive with full pockets. One such is Eric Levi, who on Tuesday this week appeared in front of the Criminal Court for the third time in 15 days. While the previous appearances were for obtaining services by deception  - failing to pay his hotel bill - and insulting the forces of law and order, his latest case involved the charter of two luxury yachts from the Monaco company Charter & Charter…

PRINCESS CHARLENE: This week Princess Charlene was presented with a Certificate of Irish Heritage by HE Rory Montgomery, Irish Ambassador to France, with her husband, Prince Albert, in attendance. The Certificate of Irish Heritage is an official recognition by the Irish Government of those who are proud of their Irish ancestry and heritage, the Irish Independent reports. Other celebrities to have received a Certificate in recent years include Tom Cruise, former US President  Bill Clinton and actor Daniel Day Lewis…

Total, the French oil company, has said that it stopped buying shares in Russia's Novatek the day of the downing of a Malaysia Airlines flight over Ukraine. Total is one of the top foreign investors in Russia but faces a cloud over its future since the downing of the aircraft over Ukrainian territory held by pro-Russian rebels, which considerably worsened relations with the west and this week brought about deeper sanctions by the EU and United States…

PREMIUM - MONACO BANKING: The head of the Monaco body that oversees financial institutions, Marie-Pascale Boisson, has responded to a somewhat critical report from the Council of Europe’s MONEYVAL by saying that two more staff members will be added to improve efficiency. MONEYVAL, the Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures and the Financing of Terrorism, said in its report, published on June 30, that Monaco needs to ensure that money laundering cases are effectively detected and are subject to investigation and prosecution…

MONACO TRAVEL: Two leftist trade unions have warned of a strike by ground staff at Air France this weekend, the busiest of the summer as July holidaymakers change places with the August crowd. The former Communist CGT union and SUD-Aérien have called on check-in staff, baggage handlers and others to walk off the job, in protest at job losses and reorganisation…

PRINCESS CHARLENE: HSH Princess Charlene of Monaco has received the honour of "Cavaliere di Gran Croce della Stella d'Italia dell'Ordine" awarded by the President of the Italian Republic...

PRINCE ALBERT: Prince Albert visited the island of Mykonos, Greece, on Saturday to attend a presentation of a programme put in place by his Foundation and WWF-Greece for the protection of the monk seal.  The Prince continued to Gyaros island in the company of scientists to see the evolution of this species in danger and where he also met the crew of the sailboat Tara, which is involved in studying the species….

MONACO BUSINESS: For the six months ended June 30, 2014, Scorpio Tankers had net income of $52.8 million, or $0.28 basic and diluted earnings per share. The company's adjusted net loss was $9.4 million, or $0.05 basic and diluted loss per share, which excludes a gain of $51.4 million, or $0.27 per share, resulting from the previously announced sales of seven Very Large Crude Carriers under construction, a gain of $10.9 million, or $0.06 per share, resulting from the previously announced acquisition of 7,500,000 common shares of the company in exchange for 3,422,665 shares of Dorian, a write-off of $0.3 million, or $0.00 per share, for deferred financing fees relating to the repayment of the STI Spirit Credit Facility in April 2014 and an unrealized gain on derivative financial instruments of $0.1 million…

PREMIUM - MONACO NEWS: Four candidates have emerged as bidders for the troubled Nice Matin group, which is currently under bankruptcy protection and faces a November deadline to find a buyer. The frontrunner, according to the French press, is a consortium made up of Rossel, a Belgian newspaper publisher with interests in northern France, the Lebanese businessman Iskandar Safa, and the Marzocco construction company of Monaco. Bidders have until midnight tonight to submit their offers in the latest round of efforts to save the daily titles...

MONACO SPORT: Stéphane Richelmi, Monaco’s GP2 driver, had a disappointing first race at the weekend in Budapest after a collision that sent his DAMS car into the tyre wall. "I'm fine" - said the Monegasque when he got out of his car aided by the marshals. “I’m disappointed… It is a frustrating time because every time something seems to happen that ruins my race, but motor sport is like that,” he said…

MONACO SPORT, ASM: Reports in Spain suggest that Real Madrid are keen to sign Radamel Falcao on loan from Monaco, with an option to make it permanent next season, thehardtackle.com reports. Falcao joined Monaco after enjoying two wonderful seasons with Atletico Madrid. But even before he could properly settle in, Falcao suffered the terrible knee injury that meant that the former Porto striker made only 16 starts in the league for Monaco, scoring nine goals in the process. He missed all the second half of the season...

MONACO NEWS: A young Italian visitor to the charms of Monte-Carlo wasted no time in setting himself up in some style, hiring a chauffeur-driven limousine - at a cost of 480 euros - at Ventimiglia railway station on his arrival earlier this month from Brescia, where he runs a discotheque. Once in the Principality he checked in to the Hotel Hermitage and at the Twiga night club ordered a bottle of Dom Pérignon and a vodka, at a cost of 780 euros…

PREMIUM - MONACO TOURISM: The Black Sea may not have the same pull as the Mediterranean, and Sevastopol may not be quite as glamorous as Monte-Carlo, but Russian President Vladimir Putin is reported to be putting pressure on Russian oligarchs to invest funds in Crimea, which Russia took from Ukraine in March…

MONACO ARTS: Shakespeare’s 16th-century Padua is a far cry from Jean-Christophe Maillot’s scintillating new Taming of the Shrew at the Moscow Bolshoi, AFP reports. Instead, for his debut this month at the scandal-hit theatre, the French-born choreographer has devised a sensual and modern version of the comedy, with a minimalist stage set and music woven together from film scores...

MONACO TOURISM: The Monaco Government Tourist Office in New York has been elected one of the best official tourism offices (non-US destination) by the readers of Successful Meetings magazine and will be awarded the prestigious "Pinnacle Award 2014" for the fourth consecutive year. Recognising excellence in the tourism business, "Pinnacle Awards" rewards organizations that offered a high quality service around their meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions during the previous year. Winners are chosen through an online vote…

MONACO EVENTS: After marking time, the Monaco Watch Club, a Monegasque association created in 2009, has been revived by Thomas Fallegger, its chairman, and David Wigno to allow lovers of fine watches to gather at several events throughout the year. A big cocktail party in the salons of Barclays Bank this week hosted many watch brands that the Club was anxious to discover or rediscover…

Monaco Events & Announcements

MONACOUSA: Tuesday, August 5, starting at 18:00. It's our annual "beach party" and the venue is TWIGA, the waterfront bar and restaurant created by Flavio Briatore, founder of the Billionaire Club. It's a bit of a splurge (no Happy Hour prices) but it's an incredible, unique setting and a great place to celebrate summer!  If you want to stay and try the Italian cuisine, you can reserve at +37797984781 (info@monacoUSA.org)

The Tasting Room would like to invite you to come and enjoy the “Last Taste of Sporting D’Hiver” before sadly it closes later this year. La Maison D’Ecosse has taken the opportunity of using this beautiful space in one of the world’s most prestigious locations, to allow you to taste and buy exquisite whisky. La Maison D'Ecosse, Galerie Sporting D'Hiver, Place du Casino. T: +33 (0)6 43 91 27 00 E: info@lamaisondecosse.com

Tuesday to Saturday from 15:00 to 21:00 or by Appointment - Centre of Excellence for Rare and Collectable Whisky - Taste and Buy Exceptional Whisky - Meet the Experts and Book a Master Class - Private Whisky Tastings - Whisky Gifts. Taste the original Monaco Blend - Whisky Apero
Tuesday to Friday from 18:00 to 20:00. Our selection from €10 to €2000 per glass.

ANDY WARHOL: The exhibition “Andy Warhol” is at the Galerie Adriano Ribolzi all the summer (Tuesday – Saturday / 10:00 - 12:00 and 15:00 until 18:00).

Global High Net Worth Conference: Thursday, November 6 and Friday, November 7, at the Salon Bellevue of the Cafe de Paris in Monte-Carlo, a two-day conference of professionals serving the HNW and UHNW sectors. Distinguished speakers from around the world will address the major issues of the moment. Organised by the publishers of monacolife.net. Visit www.globalhighnetworth.com for more details.

Monte Carlo Whisky Conference: Friday, November 21, 2014 and Saturday, November 22, Oceanographic Museum - St. Andrews gala dinner, Saturday November 22, Salle Belle Époque, Hermitage Hotel, The Monaco blend after party, Friday, November 21, Cafe de Paris -  Murrays fish and Chip, Street Party, Culture of Scotland, Friday, November 21, Place de Casino.

Listings in Events & Announcements are free for non-profit associations, charged for commercial events and entities. To place listing email monacotoday@gmail.com

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CAR WANTED: Wanted. A small car for a young lady to get to university, good condition and low petrol consumption: htugman@monaco.mc

MOVING: Many items for sale, including lamps, chairs, tables, white goods: +33 6 78 63 24 75

SERVICE: Computers, IT, Internet, BBC reception - Philip - 06 1542 3824

FOR SALE: We have one blank 40 inch dome and 1 Seatel 4003 VSAT with cross pol and Co pol and a 6 watt Buc , 2003 model.
Material in storage in Antibes for collection by buyer , all offers considered. Contact lorraine@cochlias.com

FOR RENT: One bedroom flat for rent in centre of Cap d’Ail, fully furnished, parking, 55m² with 20m² terrace.  Available immediately, short or long term.  Price €1,265 pm incl charges. Please call 06 07 93 40 18.

FOR RENT:  3 Bed / 3 Bathroom beautiful modern townhouse in the centre of St Jean Cap Ferrat's fishing village. Approx floor space 90m2 over 3 floors. Patio 16m2. On street parking. Air-con/heating throughout. Priced at €3000 PCM +33 6 01 43 55 89 

FOR SALE: A collection of 46 works by Adriano Maraldi, the famous Italian artist. Call Olga for details +393480891547 or e-mail: obolenka3@gmail.com

FOR SALE: Fletcher 19 Sportscruiser with 115 hp Mercury outboard. Year 2000, one owner and regularly serviced from new. Dry berthed near Cannes and berth available. Perfect for summer at € 9,500. Tel. 06 78 63 73 56.

ANGLAIS: Parfaire votre communication écrite et orale en anglais. Cours d'anglais et/ou  accompagnement sur mesure pour groupes ou en individuel. Rédaction et révision de tous type de documents (CV, lettre de présentation, offres d'emploi, thèses académiques). Professeur de langue maternelle anglaise, Formation Berlitz, MBA et expérience professionnelle. Flexible et disponible - se déplace à domicile si souhaité. Téléphone:  0678635709   Email:  englishplusmc@gmail.com

LANGUAGE SERVICE: Improve Your Communication in English — Written and Spoken. English language training, coaching and consultancy tailored to your needs. Group or individual. Help with Documents, CVs, Cover Letters, Academic Theses, Writing and Editing. English mother tongue teacher. Berlitz trained, MBA, professional background. Flexible availability. tel:  0678635709   email:  englishplusmc@gmail.com

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Buy local or bye local

I passed a sign at a farmer’s market in the UK recently that said: “Buy local or bye local.” As a farm-bred girl, I endorse the philosophy of buying local. Indeed, I hanker back to the halcyon days of my youth when my family lived a self-sufficient utopia with an organic vegetable garden, a chicken coop, bee hives, and fields where a local farmer grazed his sheep and paid us annual rent in half a lamb for our freezer.  My sisters and I spent our days hunting for blackberries, and canoeing and swimming in the muddy river at the bottom of our garden. At least that’s how I remember it, but the rose-tinted spectacles of nostalgia probably make it sound a lot more Swallows and Amazons than it was...
 

A bemused reader in Beaulieu-sur-mer speculates about the air traffic controllers' strike and President Hollande and his runabout.

Dear Sir, More travel misery – that’s why Trierweiler was flying back home from India yesterday; the whole trip was planned round the air traffic controllers' strike programme.

The only answer for these disruptive strikers is to delocalize the whole French ATC sector to Bangalore. The Aiguilleurs du ciel never see a plane anyway, just their computer screens, so no problem putting the images offshore. As has been done with the military radar on Mont Agel – all the screens are manned in Lyon so only a few maintainers are left in BA943 above Monaco, a good nuclear target, but don’t tell the buyers flocking to settle in the tax haven just below, in the fall-out zone.

As for the Elysée, nobody has asked who the owner is of that Paris apt, home to Valerie. She says it is “in his name”; but his Declaration de Patrimoine (www.huffingtonpost.fr/.../declaration-patrimoine-francois-hollande-117-)...makes no mention of it – only the Mougins house and two small apts in Cannes.  Nor of any liquid capital to buy a large Paris apt.  So he keeps below the threshold for the ISF.  There's work for investigative journalists.

My main gripe about the President is he rides a foreign scooter – an Italian Piaggio, whereas I have just done my best to save France by buying not only a new Peugeot scooter, but also a ditto car (Peugeot 107).  Why does he not buy French, like me? Earlier civilizations were run by specially treated men, called Castrati, who were also in demand as singers. Not too late to apply this in the Elysée – though some high-profile ladies might not appreciate it.

Peter, Beaulieu-sur-mer (name and address supplied)

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR CAN BE SENT TO monacotoday@gmail.com. Please include a telephone number.

Previous letters can be found at MORE

MONACO MEDIA: The media world has been stunned this week by news that the founder of Amazon - the online shop - has bought the iconic Washington Post newspaper at what seems to be a knockdown price. The $250 million Jeff Bezos paid is just a little over one percent of his personal wealth of $23 billion, making a very small dent indeed in his bank account. Never mind that since its founding Amazon has lost money more than it has made, making Bezos a virtual billionaire in charge of a virtual empire. Perhaps he bought the Post because he yearned for something real.

To decry the sale of the Post is not just to indulge in unworldly sentimentality. Its disposal marks another milestone on the way to the cemetery for printed newspapers as we have known them for the centuries since the Times of London first appeared in 1785 as the Daily Universal Register, changing its name three years later. In the ever-evolving world of media, print is in its death throes.

If it's almost all over for ink except the burials, and the standouts are disappearing fast, should we be surprised? No. Disappointed, sorry? Yes. The great newspapers of the past, including the Post, the New York Times, the Times, the UK's Daily Telegraph, are empty imitations of their former selves thanks to cost-cutting. The greatest loss as these titles decline and disappear is the quality of the journalism that called them home..

WASHINGTON: THURSDAY JULY 31 - The United States issued a firm condemnation of the shelling of a United Nations school in Gaza that killed at least 16 Palestinians on Wednesday, but also confirmed it has restocked Israel’s dwindling supplies of ammunition, the Guardian reports.

The White House expressed concern that thousands of civilians who had sought protection from the UN were at risk after the shelling of the girls’ elementary school. Some 3,300 civilians were taking shelter there, after being told by Israel to leave their homes.

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, which runs the school, said its initial assessment was that it has been struck by Israeli artillery.

“The United States condemns the shelling of a UNRWA school in Gaza, which reportedly killed and injured innocent Palestinians – including children – and UN humanitarian workers,” said Bernadette Meehan, a spokeswoman for the White House’s National Security Council.

“We are extremely concerned that thousands of internally displaced Palestinians who have been called on by the Israeli military to evacuate their homes are not safe in UN designated shelters in Gaza.” SOURCES: The Guardian, BBC

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HUGE TRAFFIC JAMS: TUESDAY JULY 29 -  Huge traffic jams built up at the entrances to Monaco yesterday, with delays of up to two hours for traffic descending from the A8 motorway. Only the coast road from Nice operated at anything like normal speed, with delays of about 30 minutes even at 14:30. Road works at the crossroads of ave de Roqueville and Princess Caroline were to blame for the delays. Work on the gas mains is due to continue until August 8.

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Pushed to the Max

SATURDAY, JUNE 21: There will always be tensions when a large crowd of people are crammed into small spaces, especially when they take an instant dislike to each other or harbour long-term differences. I am not talking about the long-running opening ceremony of the splendid new Monaco Yacht Club attended by le tout Monaco - a splendid affair - but the lingering impact of the lengthy and tedious French rail strike.

Tasked with taking my youngest son to Nice for a Saturday rendez-vous with a schoolmate, I squeezed with him onto the 16:43 from Monaco - delayed for 18 minutes in Menton while the frazzled French border police sifted out the usual suspects, young Somalian males who, having crossed the inhospitable Sahara, are trying in considerable numbers to make their way to the economic paradise that is France. Or possibly the UK.

Most people were eminently sensible and moved down the train to occupy every available space to allow yet more frazzled and luggage-laden bemused first-and-last-time tourists onto the only TER regional express to visit Monaco for the previous three hours.
Someone sitting down said something to me. I assumed he was offering me a space to sit. I bent down to hear better. Translated from the French, what he said was: “Can you get your arse out of my face!”

To say I was astonished hardly covers it. A number of responses flashed through my hot head: “I am surprised you are bothered about my arse, since it resembles so closely your face,” was the most polite. I wanted physically to strangle him, and since I was standing up and he was sitting down I sure as hell had a good shot at it.

My nine year-old restrained me. “He’s an idiot Dad, don’t take any notice,” he said in a French that can only be described as impeccable. At the next available jolt in the tracks he managed to more or less fall onto the idiot’s mobile phone he was holding high in the air while playing what looked like patience, and make it look like an accident.

You can mess with me, but you can’t mess with Max.

Jeff Daniels

previous column at MORE

Nall on Nall

Pauline Litvin of the Chamber Music Association

Vasily Klyukin talks about his tall ambitions

Treorchy Male Voice Choir the stars of St Davids Day

Adriano Ribolzi is extending his Andy Warhol expo until the end of April

Nick Danziger was the special guest at a British Association of Monaco event at BOMO

Marika Taishoff, MBA Professor at the International University of Monaco, talks about luxury

Martina Brodie interviews top wildlife artist and Monaco resident Spencer Hodge

Sir Jackie Stewart and Roman Polanski at 'Weekend of a Champion' press conference

Father Walter Raymond tells us what's on at St Paul's Church this Christmas

Kory Tarpenning on opening the first Starbucks in Monaco

Dena Lyons and Art Factory Monaco

Anita Di Sotto talks about Whisky Weekend

Martine Ackerman talks about Child CARE Monaco

Martina Brodie interviews artist Laure Fissore

Martina Brodie interviews Peace and Sport champions

Ian Brodie interviews President of National Council

Ian Brodie interviews author of Mayhem in Monte Carlo

click on images to view

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Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Monte-Carlo Diary

6/6 for effort

I can hardly put into words how welcome some sunny weather will be. Every school day we trudge to the train station and from Nice Riquier to the school with our nine year-old genius. When it's raining, as it has been, we have to take a change of clothes, although I have greatly benefited by the recent purchase of sailing boots for the teenager. I have to wear three pairs of socks to stop them sliding off.

Monaco, so I am told, turned down the offer of an alternative private school, so it migrated west. Perhaps the Principality was too keen on its position at the top of the exam league tables to want anything more adventurous than a standard French school with its strict and orthodox adherence to 'the system.' We are very happy with Nice. The school, that is.

George is doing very well. He knows all about the pyramids and the solar system, although I have to admit to a nagging nervousness over his numeracy. Last week he showed me his sums. 0/6. Bearing in mind the need for constant praise and encouragement, I wished him better luck next time, as if he were a gambler at the Monte-Carlo Casino. "Ah, but Dad," he said, "I did much better than Michel. He got 0/0."

"Merde!" I said. "No Dad, not merde, merrde." His French is brilliant.

Jeff Daniels

The Jeff Daniels column is published in the interests of editorial diversity, and views expressed do not necessarily represent those of the publishers.

to read previous columns, please click on MORE

What on earth is the French President doing in Monaco? Well, there are a few things to see, such as the Oceanographic and Monaco's Scientific Centre. And a few bits of paper to sign. Lunch at the Palace should be good, and will not disappoint the Socialist President's champagne tastes. Otherwise, not much will be going on and the visit will be marked by an inconvenience to road traffic. That will be its high point, since it seems that the President won't be meeting any of the remaining 8,000 French residents - whose families have lived here for generations - to discuss the fact that they have to meet the high cost of living in Monaco while paying French taxes, an arrangement inherited from the treaty with France into which Prince Rainier was famously coerced in 1963.

If I were a Frenchman, or woman, I would wonder what my President was doing in Monaco. Perhaps he has come to open a bank account. Switzerland is certainly less attractive than it was for French savers. Or perhaps I would conclude that Mr Hollande fancied a day away from the office and a very unattractive in-tray.

Jeff Daniels

Jeff Daniels reviews

Mayhem in Monte Carlo

Long-term Monaco resident and former ad-man Mike Ferrier's second book in a trilogy, Mayhem in Monte Carlo, is at first sight a mixed bag of intelligent insight and mundane stereotyping. And as many new writers do, Mike has cut out the middleman. The book can be ordered on Amazon, to be read on a tablet or consumed in book form, a modern form of buying novels that appeals to some more than others...

(more and video)