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Month: January 2021

Through the eyes of a prince

by: Stephanie Horsman
20/01/2021

Prince Michael of Yugoslavia has combined his love for Monaco and passion for photography in one exhibition titled ‘Promenade dans Monaco’ at the Banque Havilland Monaco.

Prince Michael of Yugoslavia has worn many hats in his life. He has tried his hand at careers as diverse as investment executive, real estate broker, socialite and philanthropist. But his true passion is photography.
Using his love of the medium combined with considerable talent, he joined with Banque Havilland Monaco to organise an exhibit of his works “inspired by life in the Principality”.
Promenade dans Monaco is a series of snapshots of life in the Principality featuring unique seaside perspectives, iconic landmarks and beautiful landscapes to portray the country in all its diversity.
“I am happy to present my exhibition Promenade dans Monaco held at the Bank Havilland in Monaco,” Prince Michael said on his social media page alongside sample pieces from the event.
The exhibition was made possible through Banque Havilland’s programme to promote local artists and personalities.
Son of Prince Alexandre of Yugoslavia and Princess Maria Pia of Savoy, Prince Michael cultivated a passion for photography in his childhood and has participated in several exhibitions both in the US and across Europe. He credits his love of art to his mother, who had an excellent eye.
“Since we were not rich, rather than buying, my mother was often changing the placement of furniture (in our home). Volumes and perspectives were always evolving,” he says, reminiscing on his entry into the world of visuals.
As a young man, his royal family was forced to live in exile. As a result, he spent a lot of time travelling and this is where his appreciation was cultivated further. “On each trip I would visit art fairs. I was reunited with a whole group of friends in all these large cities. During these years, I would sharpen my look on art and paintings, but also on photography.”
Prince Michael’s style has been called “well-groomed and rigorous, where every detail is thought of” allowing people to see Monaco with fresh eyes and new angles.
The exhibition began on 1st January 2021 and will run until the end of April at Banque Havilland Monaco on Boulevard des Moulins. Visits can be made by appointment only.
 
Photo © Michel de Yougoslavie
 
 

New official photo of Princely family

by: Cassandra Tanti
20/01/2021

The Prince’s Palace has unveiled the new official portrait of the Princely family for 2021, and there are some cute similarities between the generations.
The photograph was taken inside the Palace and features Prince Albert of Monaco wearing a blue suit and tie, a look replicated by his young son Hereditary Prince Jacques.
Clutching his hand lovingly is Princess Charlene, dressed in a floor-length white dress accentuated by a large necklace. Sporting the same bob and bangs is little Princess Gabrielle, who is also being embraced by her mother.

The Princely Family, by Eric Mathan / Prince’s Palace

The portrait, taken by the Palace’s official photographer Eric Mathon, is now on sale in the Principality’s Souvenir Shop, on Place du Palais at the entrance of the Louis II tunnel near the Yacht Club.
Profits from the sale of the photo will be donated to humanitarian works in the Principality.
 
 

New Covid resident death in Monaco

by: Cassandra Tanti
19/01/2021

The government has reported the death of an 87-year-old woman with Covid-19, marking the ninth coronavirus fatality in Monaco since the pandemic began and the sixth since the start of the new year.
The official Covid count on Tuesday 19th January revealed that 28 additional people had tested positive for coronavirus, bringing the total to 1,240.
One of these patients was a young child at the Stella School. As a precautionary measure, the government has chosen to temporary close the entire kindergarten class until Monday 25th January inclusive. It follows news that another kindergarten student had tested positive at the Stella School on Monday, forcing the closure of that separate classroom until Sunday.
Health authorities also reported the death of an 87-year-old patient who had tested positive for Covid-19. The woman marks the ninth resident death related to Covid-19 since the pandemic began, and the sixth since the beginning of the new year.
As of Tuesday, there were 36 people being taken care of at the Princess Grace Hospital Centre. Of those, 16 residents were hospitalised and four residents were being treated in intensive care.
Meanwhile, there were 114 people being followed by the Home Monitoring Centre which supports people with mild symptoms.
 
Related stories:

Classroom closes after child tests positive

 
 

Antonio Salvatore awarded Michelin star in first year

by: Cassandra Tanti
19/01/2021

Monaco’s Antonio Salvatore has gained a Michelin star for the five-table fine dining restaurant he created less than 12 months ago in the middle of a worldwide pandemic.

Despite criticisms that this year’s Michelin Guide should not go ahead, the adapted 30th annual award ceremony was livestreamed from the Jules Verne restaurant on the second floor of the Eiffel Tower in Paris on Monday.

The awards for the 2021 Michelin Guide for France were based on reviews of restaurants that have spent a large part of the past year completely closed by some of Europe’s strictest lockdown measures. In fact, the guide said its anonymous reviews were squeezed into a six-month period between lockdowns in France.

“It’s an important decision to support the profession despite the context, and maybe even because of the context. It was necessary to maintain these announcements,” Gwendal Poullennec, international director of the guides, said during the ceremony broadcast on Facebook. “It’s an occasion to shine a spotlight on all these talents, to encourage them and to keep restaurant patrons motivated.”

Antonio Salvatore opened his fine dining restaurant in the middle of a worldwide pandemic, telling Monaco Life in September 2020: “A very small number of people in the world were brave enough to open a gastronomic restaurant during Covid, and I was one of them.”

Well it certainly paid off. The intimate five-table restaurant, situated in the basement below its more famous sister-restaurant Rampoldi, was awarded a Michelin star within the first 12 months of opening – an incredible achievement in itself.

La Table d’Antonio Salvatore

Michelin had promised no three-star chefs would be demoted this year because of the health crisis. As a result, Le Louis XV-Alain Ducasse at the Hôtel de Paris and Menton’s Mirazur have both kept their three stars.

Any stars removed were for restaurants that had closed or changed dining concepts.

The year’s only new three-star chef was Alexandre Mazzia for his Marseille restaurant AM, featuring compositions such as algae popcorn, smoked eel and chocolate, and raspberry sorbet with harissa.

Michelin also noted the success of the “culinary jewels” Mazzia has been offering from a food truck during the pandemic, with meal baskets sold for just €24. “The idea is to not be a victim of this lockdown, to keep your head above water and keep the fire alive – it’s like training, even though the game is different,” he told AFP last year.

Michelin also promoted two restaurants to two stars: Helene Darroze’s Marsan in Paris, and La Merise, an Alsatian restaurant near Strasbourg opened by Cedric Deckert and his wife four years ago.

La Table d’Antonio Salvatore was one of five new restaurants to receive their first star in the Côte d’Azur region. The others were Les Agitateurs (Nice), Colette Hôtel Sezz (Saint-Tropez), Louroc – Hôtel Eden Roc (Antibes) and L’or Bleu (Théoule-sur-Mer).

First Michelin starred vegan restaurant

Chef Claire Vallée, head of ONA (Origine non-animale) was awarded the first Michelin star in France for a vegan restaurant. The restaurant, in Arès, Gironde, was established in 2016 through a crowdfunding campaign, helped by honour loans and an ethical bank (La Nef) because traditional banks did not believe in the project. Featuring on her seven-course gourmet menu is, notably, ‘fir, porcini, sake’ and ‘celery, tonka and amber beer’. The chef was also awarded a green star, introduced last year to reward establishments for their eco-responsible approach to food.

Six Michelin restaurants in Monaco

Antonio Salvatore’s award brings the total number of one Michelin star restaurants in Monaco to five. The others are Vistamar, Le Grill, Yoshi and Le Blue Bay. Le Louis XV is the Principality’s only three star restaurant.

Photos courtesy La Table d’Antonio Salvatore

Related stories:
Monaco’s new intimate fine dining experience

Ticket sales for Rolex Masters postponed

by: Cassandra Tanti
19/01/2021

Organisers of the 114th Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters are “hopeful” the event will go ahead in April, despite delaying ticket sales for the popular tennis tournament.
The Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, a yearly staple of the spring sporting season in the Principality, is scheduled for 10th to 18th April.
In a statement shared on its social networks, the Monte-Carlo Country Club said the tournament will have “undoubtedly limited public access” this year.
It also said it had to delay the opening of its ticket office because of the “current unfavourable health situation”. Tickets for the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters were due to go on sale on Tuesday 19th January.
Though no new date has been offered, the organisers have said: “We hope to be able to give you more positive news very shortly, and at present encourage you to consult our website and social networks for updated information.”
Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters past champions include Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Fabio Fognini. Winners enjoy prize money in the vicinity of €1 million, and even the runner up pulls in almost €500,000 making it a big draw for top players from around the world.
“We remain hopeful that we can welcome you to the Monte-Carlo Country Club as of 10th April 2021, for the 114th edition of the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters,” concluded the tournament organisers.
 
 

Female skipper takes the win

by: Stephanie Horsman
19/01/2021

The first regatta of the year in the Principality was won by an Italian team captained by Claudia Rossi on the Petite Terrible-Adria Ferries at the Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series.
The Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series ended on Sunday 17th January, and after three tough days of racing, the Petite Terrible-Adria Ferries led by Claudia Rossi took home the top spot.
The weather was not as cooperative as it could have been during the races, but in spite of that, Rossi and her crew handily won two of the five races held over the course of the series.
No stranger to the top three, Yacht Club of Monaco (YCM) member Giangiacomo Serena di Lapigio on his boat G-Spot took the 3rd place. He was five points behind the Swiss team on Jerry who also won the Corinthian amateur category ahead of YCM’s Ludovico Fassitelli on the Junda and Cesare Gabasio on TinnJ70.
A total of 21 teams competed with starts and mark roundings going off virtually without any trouble in all five races.
This race also marked the first one of the season for France of the combined classes of boats.
The next race is scheduled for 4th February where the Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series continues before heading to the grand finale for the 37th Primo Cup-Credit Suisse taking place from 4th to 7th March.
The series has been around since 2013 and has proved to be a popular event with over 350 sailors from around Europe coming to compete each year. Most teams who come set up their winter training bases in the Principality to prepare for the season’s biggest races.
 
Photo source: Yacht Club of Monaco