I have spent the morning flipping through a 1929 European edition of the Chicago Tribune & Daily News billed as  “Europe’s American Newspaper,” that a friend found in their grandfather’s affairs. Except for all the ads for ocean liner’s to take you back across the Atlantic at the end of the season, it’s interesting to see how much has stayed the same.

Articles talk about visiting Mont Blanc and Amiens Cathedral, sites that have been popular for centuries. There are also ads for Hermès and Hotel de Crillon, although the Hotel at the Gare d’Orsay disappeared with the train station to become a museum. Of course they also talk about visiting Caen, Bayeux and Vichy, as well as German cities like Dresden and Nuremberg, which are about to get embroiled (and change dramatically) in WWII. It’s a glimpse of Europe between the wars where tweed is declared the new fabric for “travel togs,” and French stars are said “to prefer American Automobiles,” while “Doug and Mary” (Fairbanks and Pickford) arrive from London by plane. In an article entitled “Annihilating Time and Space” the rise of air travel is encouraged and we are reminded of the “thrill of viewing the landscape from above.” Something many of us take for granted these days. The article goes on to explain how cruise lines are offering connecting flights from port cities like Cherbourg to Paris.

I couldn’t help thinking of friends who actually took a cruise back to the USA last summer.  They were moving back to the East coast with an old black lab, young children and one very pregnant Mom, and realized that the boat was their best solution. And why not, with rising airline prices, the cruise ship might come back into vogue – given that you can take the time for the crossing which today lasts 8 days from Cherbourg to Manhattan on the Queen Mary 2. Now that’s nostalgia.

I have just returned from three nights on the Normandy coast where the weather went from sunny in the 70’s to rain and more rain. Fortunately, I was staying at the Grand Hotel (www.mercure.com) in Cabourg which, even when it’s cloudy, still has that old world charm. And yes Marcel Proust fans, I do know that this is where Proust came for the sea air but that’s not why I come. For me nothing beats breakfast in the main dining room overlooking the beach. Most mornings the harness racers are out for exercise on the flat sand revealed by low tide, some horses hooked to sulkies, some horses running alongside. The trainers take the horses right into the surf and it’s a beautiful sight.

I actually prefer coming to Normandy in September, the hotel prices go down, and they tend to get an Indian summer. Considering how awful August weather has been in France, Fall can’t be any worse. Cabourg is one of those pristine Normandy towns where flowers bloom everywhere and stately mansions still line the main streets. If the weather is bad you can head west (30km) to Caen to visit Le Mémorial de Caen, France’s best museum dedicated to WWII and the D-Day landings (actually they say they are dedicated to “peace” so let’s just say, it’s an educational experience) or east to Honfleur, with its picture postcard port and Impressionist, Eugène Boudin museum.

Official site: www.calvados-tourisme.com

On an August afternoon, looking for a little cool air (this was last week, it is now cold and rainy in Paris) I took three boys aged 11 to 13 to the MUSEE DU QUAI BRANLY. Paris’ newest museum is home to the African and Oceanic art collections, with some Native American, South American and Asian art as well.

The very modern, and air-conditioned, museum designed by Jean Nouvel and surrounded by a lush, bamboo-filled park is a perfect place to spend a hot afternoon. The collection of masks, including those from the Amazon in bright bird features is stunning. It’s also a great place to take children who will see everything from carved crocodiles, to a few decorated skulls, to warrior masks and shields. In fact, the collection is almost overwhelming. Unlike most of the visitors who begin at the top of the ramp with Oceania, we started with, and spent the most time in, Africa. The museum is laid out in an elongated circuit, so either way you miss nothing, but we had definitely run out of steam by Asia. Not that it matters this is the kind of museum you can return to again and always find something new. Especially if you want to take the time to watch the many videos and documentary films set into walls and tiny nooks throughout the museum.

**The museum has a garden-level café but it also has a restaurant – Le Restaurant les Ombres - open for lunch and dinner on the roof with views over the Seine and to the Eiffel Tower. Reservations are recommended (01 47 53 68 00). The restaurant has become very popular with Parisians. www.lesombres-restaurant.com

Musée du Quai Branly. Enter from the Seine-side (37, Quai Branly) or 222, rue de l’Université, 75007. Metro Alma Marceau or RER Pont d’Alma. Open Tuesday to Sunday 11am-7pm. Late night Thursday, Friday, Saturday until 9pm. Closed Monday. www.quaibranly.fr