Basin de la Villette. Paris Tourist Office/Marc Verhille

The northeastern side of Paris is unknown to most visitors. Far from the center and not packed with 'must-see' monuments, this area is doesn’t make it onto many agendas. That’s a shame, because the 19th arrondissement is filled with lovely things. The wild and hilly Parc des Buttes-Chaumont is here, along with the Parc de la Villette and its many concert venues, film festivals, and exhibitions. But my favorite place to spend time is along the water.

As the Canal St. Martin travels north from trendy area around the Café Chez Prune at rue Beaurepaire, it widens into the Bassin de la Villette. The area around the Bassin has transformed dramatically in recent years and now hosts a pair of charming movie theaters, the northern satellite of Paris Plages, and a slew of cafés and restaurants. It also has beds – many beds. In recent months, two new options for accommodation have sprung up along the water.

On paper (or the computer screen) The White Hotel seems like a dream stay. It's on the avenue Louise with posh shopping, arty drinking, and good eating just a stroll away. It brings in recognizable design talent to color up its naked white rooms. Best of all, it's ridiculously cheap - 75€ per night. High expectations, however, can lead to a serious let-down.

When I arrived at the White Hotel, I smiled at seeing a pair of motorcycles available for daily rental at 18€. Things continued in a good vein as I checked out the lounge with its shelves of design books and deep booths with surf-ready laptops.

When I turned the key in my room, however, I was shocked to see a stark white room with no design elements at all. Wasn't that supposed to be the point?

Later on, when I descended to hand over the supplementary funds for wifi service, I asked the manager whether all rooms were like mine. "Some rooms have design, some do not," she barked. "You have to request a room with design (like the one below)." She went on to explain that not all of the rooms were finished, despite being open for more than two years. "Come back after our next 'Plastic the White Hotel' event," she told me. "More rooms will be done then."

A finished room at the White Hotel

In the meantime, a booking at the hotel is likely to land you a very white and undesigned room. My IKEA showroom surroundings included paper-thin walls and a shower that bubbled loudly whenever the neighbor flushed his toilet. This was pushing it, even for the low-low price of 75€.

A bright spot arrived the next morning in the form of a very sweet breakfast for no additional charge. The do-it-yourself espresso machine let me drink far more than my body needed, and the range of savory and sweet treats (including homemade cookies) was more impressive than I'd been expecting.

The bottom line: this will likely be, in the year 2010, a fully-designed design hotel. But in 2008, the White Hotel is more like a budget option with a good breakfast and a convenient location. Bring your ear plugs and low expectations.

The White Hotel; 2 avenue Louise, 1000 Brussels

Call us cheesy, but momondo has gone crazy for coagulated milk. We've given our writers the mission of uncovering 'le meilleur fromage' in Paris, 'il migliore formaggio' in Rome, the stinkiest cheeses in New York and the hands-down best cheeses in London, Madrid and Brussels. So grab yourself some bread and wine and join us on this tour of the best cheese shops in Europe.

Brussels 

After four years of living in Paris, I probably qualify as something of a cheese snob. But because French fromagers rarely stock foreign cheese, I'm also pretty ignorant to the traditions of other countries. During a recent jaunt to Brussels, I asked a food-obsessed local friend where I could learn more about Belgian cheese. He told me there was only one game in town: the Crèmerie de Linkebeek.

The Crèmerie de Linkebeek has been operating since 1902, making it the oldest cheese shop in Brussels. The epitome of old-school, the name Linkebeek comes from the nearby village where the original owners kept their cows. Today, after more than 100 years in business, the shop still has a very retro feel. Its future, however, lies in the hands of a young upstart couple.

Jordan and Laurence Greenwood took the reins four years ago, revitalizing the shop and turning it into a foodie destination. "We're trying to honor the shop's history while also putting our own personal stamp on the place," Jordan told me. You can buy raw milk in glass bottles here, just like in the old days, but you can now also pick up a bottle of wine and some fig balsamic condiment. 

As for their core business, Jordan and Laurence have sought out hard-to-find cheeses from small producers and have built the most impressive collection of Belgian cheeses to be found anywhere. Jordan explained that the main difference between the two traditions is that the French wash their rinds with with wine during the maturing process, and the Belgians use beer. That's because cheese production has traditionally taken place in monasteries – the same Abbeys that have been producing famed Belgian brew for centuries. In modern times, some beer companies like Chimay even make their own branded cheese. Jordan was explaining this all while illustrating with sample after sampe. I was in heaven.

Next up, I tasted some of the best-selling cheeses at Linkebeek - the Vieux Bruges, a hard cheese that seems the perfect partner for beer, and the Hervlon “extra piquant” double crème, a super stinky cheese that’s widely exported. Jordan said that the shop also carries a few cheeses that are on the verge of disappearing. Fromage de Bruxelles - a more pungent and salty version of fromage blanc - was devoured for breakfast by past generations of city-dwellers. Producers are dying off, so the older residents of Ste-Catherine flock to Linkebeek to get their fix while they still can. 

In helping his customers to choose the perfect cheese, Jordan switches seamlessly between French, Dutch and English. The English bears a slight Brooklyn accent because a portion of his childhood was spent in New York. The mixed heritage gives him a linguistic edge and, more importantly, his grandma Shirley's recipe for New York style cheesecake.

Some of his personal favorites at Linkebeek are the Fleuron de Bruges and the Lebailli - a nutty cow’s milk cheese that’s washed in wine. He also loves (and I agree) the Testun al Barolo. An Italian sheep's milk cheese that’s been rolled in the marc of Barolo wine – it was smooth and delicious, almost dessert-like. He's also a big fan of the herbed ham and other charcuterie that's available for takeaway.

For those (like hotel-bound travel writers) who can't do takeaway, the Crèmerie de Linkebeek operates a lunch table on the adjascent terrace. Without worrying about where to store the leftovers, the cheese-curious can order up a sample plate or a light tartine of fromage blanc, spring onion, and radish. I kept company on the sun-dappled terrace with a towering slice of of that New York style cheesecake. Made by Laurence using grandma Shirley's recipe, it was the best that I've ever had.

Crèmerie Linkebeek; rue du vieux marche aux grains, 1000 Brussels (Ste-Catherine)

When the tourists stagger out bleary-eyed from the Gare du Nord, coming from CDG airport or the Eurostar, they're often both hungry and exhausted. How else to explain the fact that the brasseries en face are nearly always full?

I walked past this restaurant row last night on my way to a new place. The barkers out front were in full swing, trying to seduce anyone with a suitcase or a square jaw. "My Miss - croque monsieur - we have!!!"

Declining this rare delicacy, I continued along my planned route to L'Ardoise Gourmande. Around the corner and less than five minutes from the train station, this is the better refuge. Open only three weeks, this place was already humming smoothly and has won my bargain-hunting heart.

The setting: a softly-lit dining room with slate walls and black velvet banquettes. Proper linens on the tables and a pair of chandeliers overhead.

All photos by Mu Foo

The service: perhaps the best I've ever had outside of a starred restaurant. Warm, knowledgable, and (maybe too) discreet - we almost wished they had rushed us when we realized it was 1:00 in the morning. This is most definitely the sort of place you want to bring someone for a lose-track-of-time tête à tête.

What I've told you so far isn't so out of the ordinary, certainly not in the posher parts of town. What makes this place special is that the sexy setting, kind service, and transport-friendly location are accompanied by a jaw-dropping €22 menu. Two courses (even at dinner) including wine. And we're not talking croque monsieur, either.

My friend and I both stuck to the menu (there are pricier options à la carte) and were very pleasantly surprised. Steve's entrée du jour was a pile of coppa (cured beef) with aged parm and balsamic drizzle.

The freakishly cold weather led me toward a camembert rôti sur mesclun. Not anything new, of course, but they were well-done and devoured.

Next up: an osso buco (the plat du jour) for me, and porc échinée à la sauge for Steve. Both came with fresh tagliatelli and shared the same glistening demi-glace, amped on Steve's plate by fresh sage. A half-bottle (1/4 per person) of very drinkable house red accompanied all this on the €22 menu.

While quite full from the generous portioning, we succumbed to the supplementary dessert carte. Always suckers for a cute name, we shared the pain perdu 'After Eight'. French toast and choco-mint ice cream were both tasty on their own without entirely working together. At these prices, one can be forgiving.

Sticking to the menu, a pair can escape here for an unheard-of €44. Throwing in a pair of Petit Chablis starters, a second half-bottle of wine, dessert and two coffees, our bill was in the seventies. Even so, that's still a deal and I will certainly be back. Hopefully before everybody else finds out about it...

L'Ardoise Gourmande, 12 rue de Belzunce, 75010

The Palais des Beaux-Arts opened eighty years ago in jaw-dropping Art Déco digs by Victor Horta. The first multi-purpose arts center in Belgium, it contained a concert hall, theater, bookshop, restaurant, and plenty of galleries. For decades it was considered as a beloved but hardly ground-breaking national museum. 

In 2002, however, the center got new leadership, a face lift and a sexy new moniker. The BOZAR is now positioning itself as a serious contender in the European contemporary arts scene. In trying to capture a more youthful audience, it's filling the program with edgy exhibitions.

The summer lineup in 2008 - the center's 80th anniversary - is no exception. "Opening Maps" (through September 21) highlights contemporary photography from Central and South America and the Caribbean, and the "Sony World Photography Awards" exhibit some of the best photos captured in 178 different countries (through September 16). The "PÔZE II" expo (through September 7) shows the winning self-portraits submitted by local inhabitants. Seen together, this "Summer of Photography" series offers a window on both Brussels and the world. 

As good as it is, the Summer of Photography has been seriously overshadowed by the hype-monster expo of the summer. "It's Not Only Rock'N'Roll Baby!" has drawn swarms of visitors (including yours truly) to the BOZAR since it opened on June 20. Curated by Jérôme Sans, whose stuff I'd seen when he was the director of the Palais du Tokyo in Paris, the show gives a platform to musicians who also see themselves as visual artists. 

Some of them - David Byrne, Yoko Ono, Patti Smith - are already well-established in both fields. But the visual side of musicians like Pete Doherty (Babyshambles, the Libertines) came as a surprise to me... until I saw the work. The contributions from this tortured prince of tabloids are pretty much exactly what you'd expect to see. In "The Red Portrait 2006," Doherty engraves the portrait of his bare chest with tattoos and drizzles the whole with his blood. It's blood and pencils again in “Look What They Done to the Boy,”  in which Doherty seems to view himself as a pure poet corrupted by the world. I found myself rolling my eyes, then feeling sorry for him, then wanting to save him, then feeling bored. 

“Look What They Done to the Boy" by Pete Doherty

Devendra Banhart, guiding light of the "psych folk" movement, is also working with overly self-conscious materials - several of his intricate drawings are composed on torn-out Bible pages. Fischer Spooner have filled a room with music and projected video collage (below), and Nick Zinner (Yeah Yeah Yeahs) is showing off photos taken on tour. 

Additional photography is supplied by the Kills, who contribute a pile of TVs playing their videos along with Polaroids of their famous friends. It’s certainly interesting in a "look, here they are with Jack White!" sort of way, but it seemed much more Myspace than art.

As fun as this exhibition is, it's not much more than a brazen (and ultimately shallow) attempt to seduce young people into the BOZAR. But is that really so wrong? It's summer, after all, and a little light relief is not unwelcome. Besides, all of the emo-loving kids crashed out in Brian Eno's installation might come back for more substantive programming in the fall. The BOZAR calendar, including theater, dance, music, cinema and literary events, is online here.

BOZAR; Rue Ravensteinstraat 23, 1000 Brussels, Belgium