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Release of the reMarkable Paper Pro
Updated in April 2025: read my full review here I’ve written several articles about screen. (which many of you enjoyed) and everyone is asking me what I think about the new reMarkable Paper Pro. For now, I haven’t gotten my hands on this tablet yet, but here’s the info I’ve gathered about it: Do I plan to buy the reMarkable Paper Pro? I had set aside a fairly large budget to get a Lenovo Yoga Book to read poorly scanned PDFs that require a lot of light; so I plan to use that budget to instead get the reMarkable Paper Pro plus a powerful but cheaper computer. I love companies…
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Diary of a GR20 Trek in Corsica
Last April, my brother sent me the following message. Last October, we had done together the Everest Base Camp trek in Nepal. But this time, it’s a whole different story: the GR20 is known as one of the toughest treks in Europe, and for the past few months, Vincent has taken up trail running! There was already a clear gap in fitness levels working against me. Now it’s not just a gap, it’s a chasm! After some hesitation and after making sure Vincent didn’t mind dragging a dead weight around for two weeks, I agreed – it was now or never! The GR20 is a trek of about 180 km…
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My September 2024 Reads
Whenever I go back to France or Vietnam, I have a long list of paper books to read. I can’t take them with me when traveling, so I read them when I have access to them. They’re either unavailable as ebooks or were bought as collector’s editions. And I prefer not to read on ebook when the collector’s edition exists and belongs to me. Animal Farm by Suntup Editions The first one I read quickly was “Animal Farm.” I had never read this book, but I had read two graphic novel versions and knew the plot. I only had time to read the introduction written by Orwell’s son. He explains…
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Two days in Amiens (France): following in the footsteps of Marcel Proust
Isn’t it funny? John Ruskin writes a book about Amiens Cathedral called “The Bible of Amiens.” Proust follows in his footsteps and finds the same beggars Ruskin pointed out, arriving from the south side just like Ruskin did. And here I am, following Proust… I’ve trailed him to Illiers-Combray, Cabourg… and now I’m back in Amiens. Part 1: Travel JournalPart 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel Journal Amiens isn’t unfamiliar to me; I went there once during our tour of France, and returned a second time for a few weeks in winter when we stayed in an Airbnb a bit far from the center. This time, I’m back with my…
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A Day in Cabourg (France): On the Trail of Marcel Proust
Any reader of In Search of Lost Time is bound to want to visit the Grand Hôtel de Balbec, or Balbec itself, sooner or later. This dream has stayed with me since I read Within a Budding Grove, where the plot takes place mainly at the Grand Hôtel de Balbec and the surrounding area of Balbec. Part 1: Travel JournalPart 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel Journal Balbec is always associated with Cabourg, even though Marcel Proust tried to incorporate elements from other regions to throw people off the scent. And Marcel Proust himself spent several summers at the Grand Hôtel de Cabourg. It’s now a hotel owned by the…
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[Reflection] #14: My entrepreneur friends
In recent years, I’m not quite sure how, I’ve managed to build very strong bonds with people I admire, who share the same values and mindset; most of them are entrepreneurs or about to be. I really enjoy talking with them because there are so many concepts they already know (FIRE, ETF, leverage, flashcards…), I don’t waste time explaining them, we just brainstorm brainstorming on how to make our dreams come true, we support and encourage each other. And when I feel a bit lazy, chatting with them really motivates me because they’re always full of projects, ideas, and interesting reflections. This article is a brief summary of what we’ve…
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[review] World Biennial of Art Bookbinding 2024
I wasn’t supposed to go to the World Biennial of Art Bookbinding in 2024 because I was staying in the northern suburbs of Paris and had to go all the way to the end of the RER B line to attend. But a Vietnamese bookbinder won a prize and a mutual friend put us in touch. I went mainly as a favor. I did enjoy it a bit, but I’m glad I combined the trip with another event in Paris because 3 hours round-trip for that alone would have put me off. It’s a bookbinding competition open to everyone: professionals and amateurs. Everyone has to bind exactly the same book…
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A Summer in France (2024): DIY, Gifts, and Luxury
It’s becoming almost a habit: every summer, we look after my sister’s cat(s) while she’s on vacation. We make the most of our time in France to: When I came back from Vietnam, I brought back a ton of leatherworking tools. Honestly, as I was storing these tools in my sister’s basement, I wondered what had come over me to buy so much. But then, when I started making my second and third leather bags, these tools made my work so much easier that I no longer regretted buying them. Since we had to go to Paris three days a week for the Olympics, I worked on my leatherworking projects…
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Meet Amina Chevaillier from Ak Yol Atelier – Luxury Leather Goods
I’ve known Amina virtually for several years. I was lucky enough to stumble upon her Instagram as soon as I got into luxury leather craftsmanship. It was under the Parisian rain that we met in person for the first time. Our beautiful hand-stitched bags in luxury leathers (alligator, novonappa, shell cordovan) were thankfully not mistreated 😀 A big fan of leather, Amina first trained in leather crafting on her own. To perfect her skills, she joined the Hermès house, which is constantly looking for skilled artisans for their workshops across France. Out of 3000 candidates, after a 4-month selection process, only about twenty were accepted, and among them was Amina.…
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DIY Leather Yule Log Bag – Hand-stitched with a Saddle Stitch – Advanced Leathercraft
A few months ago, I stumbled upon these two videos while looking for a design for an aunt. Since then, I’ve been dreaming of a round bag. See this post on Instagram A post shared by HIND • 하인드 (@hind_workshop) The drawings are numerous because I have no idea how I’m going to assemble the bag, how I plan to make the straps, whether I’ll use snap buttons or magnets, or if I’ll add metal feet. Up until the last minute, I wasn’t sure about the dimensions either. Once in a blue moon, I make a paper prototype to validate the dimensions, since I have access to a cutting machine,…
