I did have one more Scent Adventure to publish after I returned from Europe last summer but the story was put on hold after some other priorities took over. I recently came back to my half-finished story and this is the posthumous recount of my scented tale from October 2012.

By the time I finished traveling along the Cote d’Azur, summer was already showing signs of its annual retirement and Paris offered me a cool hand in reception when I arrived from Nice. After two weeks of study at the Grasse Institute of Perfumery, it was time to make the gradual journey back to Australia. My route would take me to Paris and on to London before boarding a 24 hour flight to Sydney.

In Paris, I stayed with a close friend from New Zealand who is now living in London. We used Airbnb to find a cozy apartment in Le Marais, at the heart of Paris’ 3rd arrondissement. Airbnb is a great source of accommodation, allowing you to feel like you are living in a foreign city instead of living out of a suitcase in a hotel. Our apartment was typically Parisian with a large centre courtyard and a resident gargoyle, … Read More »

My adventure in the south of France began in Nice, one of the oldest human settlements in Europe. Whilst the old town emits a sense of antiquity, the new town that spreads back inland from the Promenade des Anglais is a compact modern city. There is still a tranquil mood in the streets as feet shuffle along the pavement at a provincial pace and the locals are generally warm and friendly people. As I had to make my way to Grasse my stop in Nice was brief. From Nice to Grasse I had two options; I could take a bus for 1 euro or a taxi would cost 110 euro (Sunday fares attract an additional tariff). Reason told me I should save my money for perfume shopping and before I boarded the Sunday morning bus to Grasse I had all of Saturday to explore the Riviera town for scented treasure.

After a croissant and espresso in the old town, I walked through the weekend market stalls. Stalls were filled with fresh fruit, vegetables, flowers, herbs and every conceivable product made from olives. One stall I passed glowed with the purple hue of lavender sprigs, a symbol of Provence. Earlier in the … Read More »

Nothing can prepare you for the assault on the senses that is Marrakech but it is the intrepid journey of peeling back the layers of this ancient city, which makes travelling in Morocco such a joy.

Last week I stayed in the city, experiencing Medina life and searching for olfactory stories to add to my collection of Scent Adventures. Marrakech may not be every one’s cup of tea and at times, the city is hard work. But if you have a taste for the exotic, it easily delivers. I was initially drawn to the city by the stories Serge Lutens told through his perfumes. His creations such as Ambre Sultan and Cuir Mauresque had played on my imagination since June of last year when I visited his boutique in the Palais Royale gardens of Paris.

My adventure began when I arrived at the riad with whom I had arranged my accommodation. Traditionally a riad was a home of Moroccan aristocracy. The opulent interior could not be detected from the exterior and many examples show, even the entrances were hidden.  Buildings in Marrakech are usually painted a uniform terracotta colour unless the building is a mosque. Islamic architecture in Morocco displays a modest … Read More »

Earlier this year I visited Auckland and I wrote about my search for beach cast ambergris along the shores of Auckland’s west coast. During last month’s trip, I was keen to gather some suggestions for perfume shopping in the city where I grew up. I spent 27 years living in Auckland so for me, it is a second home. Living in Sydney I am only a three-hour flight away and I usually travel back two or three times a year for work and to visit family. Each time I go, I see gradual change. Nightclubs I used to frequent are now basement discount stores. Cafes that were once places to go, to see and be seen have been converted into takeaway sushi bars. Even my old warehouse apartment on Hobson Street has been demolished and replaced with high-rises. Although evolution is inevitable and building facades change, I realized taking this scent adventure that if I looked hard enough, I could still find 27 years worth of memories scattered throughout the streets.

My scent adventure began in the city’s central business district. Walking down Queen Street, I headed to Britomart, a shopping district created from old warehouses above the city’s small underground … Read More »

For Australians, Thailand is a popular holiday destination boasting great food and beachside resorts. This trip wasn’t a holiday, I was in Bangkok for work meetings but I was fortunate enough to have a day set aside to explore the city before taking a flight home to Sydney. If you haven’t been before, there is a difference between Bangkok city and the island resorts splashed across the pages of travel agency brochures. Far from the tranquil beauty of these tropical vacations, Bangkok is a bustling paradox of congested traffic, modern glass towers and unkept cement buildings that show their age – no white sand or a palm tree in sight. My day began with an exploration of the shopping district around the city’s central Siam Station. Siam Paragon is one of a handful of western-style shopping malls that contain a variety of international brands. Hermes and Chanel both offer their exclusive line of fragrances in their Paragon boutiques and Paragon department store has a cosmetics floor dedicated to the expected names in perfume. At the entrance of the mall Shiseido was celebrating 40 years in Bangkok with a large display of their rose scented Eudemine Essence, a limited edition product … Read More »

In 2004 I reached a dead end with my life in New Zealand. I quit my job, packed everything into two bags and moved to Melbourne in Australia’s garden state. What attracted me to Melbourne was the city’s reputation for arts and culture. Also, Melbourne offered a more laid back approach to living, the perfect environment to set up a new life. For me, this move was a catalyst for many great things and although I now live in Sydney, Melbourne is like my second home.

For the past year I have been writing Scent Adventures during my travels abroad, so one of the things on my blogging ‘to do’ list is to write about my perfume adventures here in Australia. Naturally I wanted to start in Melbourne, the city that opened many perfumed doors for me.

Like Madrid and Barcelona or New York and Los Angeles, Melbourne and Sydney are always being compared. Sydney is bigger, it has some of the world’s best beaches in close proximity to the city and depending on whom you speak with, it has a better climate. Despite this, many Sydney residents make seasonal trips to Melbourne as patients of retail therapy. Melbourne’s eclectic mix of … Read More »

Although it is spring and you would expect to see new blooms, this Hong Kong adventure was purely nocturnal so the only flowers I managed to see on this trip was a cluster of lilies at Giorgio Armani’s (Fiori) florist near the city’s Landmark shopping precinct. By the time my daily meetings ended the sun had gone down and the city streets were alight with the neon haze of oversized billboards, backlight malls and luxury boutiques like the ones that line Canton Road, one of Hong Kong’s many shopping havens. This neon landscape really feels like something from Ridley Scott’s movie, Blade Runner. Retailers stay open as late as 11pm every day making shopping a favourite after dinner pastime for locals and tourists. It is an easy city to navigate and Hong Kong ‘s train system is one of the most efficient in the world; within minutes you can surface from the subway in a different part of the city.

I have my favourite spots I always return to and each visit I try to discover something I previously didn’t know. I start at Landmark, a shopping area adjoined to Central Station because this is one area that does not stay … Read More »

During my last visit to Europe I focused my writing on perfume shopping in Florence, Rome and Paris. This trip, I decided to focus less on shopping and write about some of the experiences I had, which inspired scent. I was here for two weeks during Paris fashion week and although I wasn’t directly involved in any of the shows it was fun to absorb the energy that surrounds the event, waif models in their tall stilettos who frequent all the right spots along Rue Saint Honore and the temporal white tents that appear and disappear around the city like mushrooms in the morning mist. Using Paris as a base, I spent my time moving up and down the country with a side venture to the charming coastal city of Venice.

My first week started on a warm Sunday afternoon. Arriving from London on the Eurostar I checked into my hotel near the Avenue des Champs-Élysées. I needed to get a few supplies and headed to Sephora. Tempted by Givenchy who were offering a complimentary bottle initialing service with every perfume purchase, I managed to resist, keeping to my shopping list of basic skincare supplies. Although it is very touristy, I … Read More »

This month on my way to Paris, I decided to stopover in London for a couple of days of visit friends and explore some of London’s famous perfumed shopping haunts. While England may not hold the same reputation for perfume as its neighbor France, the English still maintain a rich history in scent. A history that is told in the silage of cologne and aftershave that follow the city’s well-groomed men: lavender and moss, citrus and woods. With limited time and an ambitious agenda, my day began with a walk through Hyde Park. Following the running path down to Knightsbridge and on to Sloane Street I found a small café in the back streets to have breakfast and map out the day ahead.

My first destination was Harvey Nichols. The flagship was opened in the 1880s and today offers a well-rounded range of wares from designers such as Dries Van Noten, Alexander McQueen, Lanvin and Balenciaga. The perfume section hosts all of the main industry players as well as a small range of niche perfumes such as Diptyque and Miller Harris. The Tom Ford counter is heavily promoting the newly launched Santal Blush and Jasmin Rouge. The first is a gourmand … Read More »

Paris is perfume fan’s wonderland. While my purpose for being there was work I did manage to have a scent adventure over the course of the week and explore some of the city’s famous perfume houses. After two weeks in Italy the French culture took some slight adjusting to. The cool veneer of the Parisian way in comparison to the perhaps more sociable Italians can be like stepping out of a hot sauna and into a cold shower. But with a mindset adjustment you except this is their way and with a little conversation you can (usually) reveal a warm and inviting personality.

Before I set out to explore I decided to take the perfumed temperature of the city by a visit to Printemps. Although I prefer to visit the individual houses there are benefits in visiting a large department store where you can find everything in one building. For me the benefit was that less walking was involved after walking the streets of Rome the week before. The Printemps Beaute Maison did not disappoint. With a large assortment of the world’s most coveted brands both major and niche my favourite discovery was the newly launched Fougere Royale by Houbigant. Originally … Read More »