blueVicar: It’s Beaujolais Day!!

November 19th, 2009

I have wonderful memories of enjoying the build-up and celebration of Beaujolais Day while living in France. So much hoopla–both positive and negative. And it was the occasion of making connection with others across the globe.

To reminisce about the excitement then, click on the links in the right column of this page. It was a year to remember!

madeleine: About visiting France

June 22nd, 2009

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Dear High School Pal,

Forgive me!  The time just flew by…and I have thought often of your daughter’s trip to France.  She will have a wonderful time.

The most important advice I would give would be to relax and enjoy her time.  Many people in France speak English so if the visitor is polite and respectful not speaking loudly (in an effort to be understood), communication usually goes well.  If your daughter could use a few words…like “bonjour, madame” or “bonjour, monsieur” when entering a shop or meeting someone…she will endear herself to most people she  
encounters.  A heartfelt “merci” when appropriate means a lot.

I found that the DK (Dorling and Kindersley) French Phrase Book was very handy with phrases that might be useful and a pronunciation guide.

By the way, what sort of trip is it?   How many will be traveling  
together? Will there be French speaking guides along?  I assume that  
someone has created an itinerary for the group?  That would be very  
helpful though being flexible is key…things don’t always go the way  
you want!

My second piece of advice would be to try to soak up the culture as  
much as possible.  While it is wonderful to see as much as possible,  
it is also wonderful to get a feel for the life there.  Tell her to  
be sure to go into a boulangerie (bakery) and pâtisserie (pastry  
shop) try out as many of the delights from as many different shops as  
possible as each one has a different take on the various specialties,  
even the omnipresent baguette. Go into a boucherie (butcher) and see  
how different the meat looks from the meat counters here.  Go into a  
pharmacie…they sell mostly prescription drugs and related  
products…little like a Walgreens.  Go into a fleuriste and see how  
the flowers are presented.  Go into a supermarché…the food on the  
shelves looks similar but different…and notice how many kinds of  
cheese and yogurt you can find and how few chips and soda.  And also  
a marché or outdoor market…so cool, so cool.  Go into a traiteur to  
see how the prepared foods look deluxe!  Go into a fromagerie to see  
the variety of cheeses (and smells).  Go into a chocolatier to  
see…well, guess!  Go into a cave to see the incredible diversity of  
wines…most from within France.

Again, to endear herself, she can say “bonjour” to the proprietor  
when she enters if it is a small shop and “merci, aurevoir” when she  
leaves.  It’s how it is done there.

And be sure to go into a cafe and just sit, preferably outdoors).  
Watch the people who also sit there and those who walk around.  Fun!

So each city she visits will have these same kinds of places…all  
neighborhoods have the same kinds of stores that replicate the idea  
of villages…but they will be different.  It’s great.

For her time in the French Riviera, I think if at all possible  
getting into Nice would be a wonderful experience.  Cannes is a great  
town (it has sandy beaches whereas Nice has stones), and it does have  
the big auditorium where the Cannes Film Festival is housed with hand  
prints of many famous actors through the ages on the bricks outside  
and it has a  cute street of shops (and an movie theatre that shows  
movies in English with French subtitles!), but it is a small town.  
Nice is a big city.  The Promenade des Anglais is the boardwalk along  
the beach (ah! I can see it now in my mind’s eye!), the Vieux Nice or  
Old Town with a flower market and winding narrow streets through the  
shops, the rue de France which is a fairly touristy but still  
fantastic street with no cars.  There is also a wonderful museum  
featuring the biblical paintings of Marc Chagall along the route up  
to Cimiez which has some Roman ruins, a monastery with gardens that  
overlook the sea, and the home of Matisse.  (I often tell people that  
Cimiez is a one-day wonder tour since it includes all of these  
features in a very small space…and it is beautiful!!)

Of course, if she goes to Nice, she can visit my old church, Holy  
Trinity Anglican church at 11 rue de la Buffa.  

Another possibility to get to from Cannes is Vence and St. Paul  
Vence.  They aren’t far apart and they are excellent examples of  
mountain towns.   They are used to visitors and there are buses up  
there.

I hesitate to give bus and train instructions, thinking that a guide  
will know more about how to work these things for the group.  I have  
just offered some thoughts to consider.  I don’t know specifics about  
the other cities but would suggest a good guide book!  It’s hard to  
go wrong!

If she would like phone numbers of an English speaker or two, I can  
offer those in Paris and along the Riviera…in Antibes (we lived  
there two of the four years) and in Nice (we lived there too).

Tell her to be sure to take a digital camera and take pictures of  
EVERYTHING!  I love looking at my photos even of the smallest details  
like door knobs and park benches.  It’s all wonderful.

I hope this helps…please let me know.  I’m sorry to have been so  
slow getting back to you.

I wish I was going along!

Ciao!!

Anne

What would you tell the daughter of an old high school chum who was about to visit France for the first time?


Remember, the madeleine is here to serve as a stimulus for you to write…right here, right now. Your jotting doesn’t have to be long…and you can write as many jottings on this topic as you would like. Just click below on “jottings” (they work like comments) to get to the entry box to post your writings. You can use any HTML characters that you like. Preview your work before submitting; return to the entry box to make any changes you desire before posting.

blueVicar: Loooonnnnngggg gaps between posts

May 16th, 2009

I seem to be distracted from blueVicar. Rarely does something remind me of France these days, though I think of it seemingly unprompted often…quite often. Saving this site for cross-cultural reflections, then, means I have little to say.

I haven’t given up, though. Think of it as a kind of pause as I wait to be reinvigorated.

Meilleurs voeux!!

Happy Easter!

April 12th, 2009

Oooohhh….I’m too late…he’s already lost his bunny ears…

Chocolate bunny

The tram is in place…and beautiful

February 28th, 2009

Place Massena tram.JPG

madeleine: So there

January 19th, 2009

madeleine-ONE.jpgMy biggest thought of France today was about food and was triggered by my nibbling on some decidedly bland chevre we have in the refrigerator. With that single taste, I realized that my ten day trip will absolutely, positively NOT be a time of dietary moderation.

Over the past months I have missed breads, pastries, cheeses, wines…well, let’s just say French food in general; I will not be curbing my caloric intake during my trip.

When I get home is another story…let’s talk about that then.

What’s your favorite French-specific munchy?


Remember, the madeleine is here to serve as a stimulus for you to write…right here, right now. Your jotting doesn’t have to be long…and you can write as many jottings on this topic as you would like. Just click below on “jottings” (they work like comments) to get to the entry box to post your writings. You can use any HTML characters that you like. Preview your work before submitting; return to the entry box to make any changes you desire before posting.

blueVicar: Back to France…for a visit!

January 11th, 2009

I’m starting to get excited about my upcoming trip. Two weeks from today I will fly back to Nice for a ten day visit. You may recall that I have participated in the planning and conduct of a series called “Transformed by Stories” sponsored by the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe. The third and final session will be held in Nice 30 Jan-1 Feb. How fortunate am I to attend!!

So, I’ll be thinking more about France, how it differs from the USA, and how glad I am to go. I hope as I get ready and get there, I will be able to post here more often. Anyone going to Nice end of January, beginning of February??

Time flies….

January 1st, 2009

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Christmas fruits

December 27th, 2008

cranberries and pomegranates

pomegranates and cranberries

Today while enjoying our annual pomegranate, it came to me how similar they were to cranberries, at least both are tart and red. And it occurred to me that both present a challenge to the first time eater. For example, I thought that if I did not have previous knowledge of a pomegranate, I might try to eat the white pithy inside and throw away the seeds. Surely I wouldn’t find it very fulfilling!

And cranberries, while full of potential, don’t offer much as a grab-a-handful-and-munch kind of fruit. If you didn’t know that they are better cooked with lots of sugar, the first bite might put you off of them for life. I wonder how many experimenters in lands where cranberries don’t grow have purchased them in our now international markets, gotten them home and been disappointed that they are seemingly inedible? Surely if they go to the trouble to buy them, they do a little research?

They do seem similar to me, though…and I’d never noticed it before. What do you think?

Christmas in Antibes 2006

December 24th, 2008

2006 Antibes

madeleine Music to my ears

December 4th, 2008

madeleine-ONE.jpgThe other day in the grocery store I heard French spoken three times. I was so amazed and thrilled that I inserted myself into each conversation uninvited. It was impossible to resist!

The first was a man who had shown J and me an apartment he had to rent in Boulder when we first arrived back from France. He was carrying on a political discussion with the butcher, a native Frenchman, when I overheard them. My French was horrible…limited vocabulary, terrible accent, atrocious grammar…just like when we lived on the Riviera! But my heart soared with enthusiasm to try so I butted in and started chatting away.

The second conversation was between the same butcher and a lady shopper telling him about her French speaking class. He was very kind and encouraging to her. She later told me that “his accent is perfect!” Yes indeedy; that’s what growing up there will do for you!

An the third, well I engaged the butcher at the meat counter myself initiating the discussion in French about the salmon. As with the other lady, he was kind and patient.

Oh la la…it was a good day à le marché!

Do you ever hear French in unexpected places?


Remember, the madeleine is here to serve as a stimulus for you to write…right here, right now. Your jotting doesn’t have to be long…and you can write as many jottings on this topic as you would like. Just click below on “jottings” (they work like comments) to get to the entry box to post your writings. You can use any HTML characters that you like. Preview your work before submitting; return to the entry box to make any changes you desire before posting.

Happy Thanksgiving!

November 27th, 2008

This Is My Song
Lloyd Stone, 1934
melody, Finlandia

This is my song, Oh God of all the nations,
A song of peace for lands afar and mine.
This is my home, the country where my heart is;
Here are my hopes, my dreams, my sacred shrine.
But other hearts in other lands are beating,
With hopes and dreams as true and high as mine.

My country’s skies are bluer than the ocean,
And sunlight beams on cloverleaf and pine.
But other lands have sunlight too and clover,
And skies are everywhere as blue as mine.
Oh hear my song, oh God of all the nations,
A song of peace for their land and for mine.

May truth and freedom come to every nation
May peace abound where strife has raged so long;
That each may seek to love and build together,
A world united, righting every wrong.
A world united in its love for freedom,
Proclaiming peace together in one song.

We sang this song at the Interfaith Service I attended in Boulder last night. I remembered the many times when in France I wondered why the sky was bluer on the Riviera than anywhere else on Earth. But since I’ve returned to the USA I often look up and think that it’s mighty blue here as well.

May there be peace in all the lands. Blessings to one and all as we remember to give thanks for what we have.

Anne

Oh my gosh, it’s Beaujolais Day!

November 19th, 2008

Thanks to the memory jog by my blogging pal, CL, I’m thinking about my first Beaujolais day in Antibes, especially the the last stroll around town…what an international, “it’s a small world” night!

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What do you remember?

Need I say more?

November 4th, 2008

I voted!

Eeek! We’ve got ghosties!!

October 31st, 2008

Halloween ghosties

Happy Halloween to one and all!!

madeleine: Messing with tradition

October 18th, 2008

white pumpkin

It’s pumpkin season again. This year not only are the orange globes available for home decoration and busy cooks, white pumpkins seem the rage. When I passed the pumpkin patch of the grocery store the other day (a concrete covered area just off of the parking lot strewn with straw), about half of the offerings were stark white. I looked back thinking the glare of the sun was interfering with my perception, but there they were, white pumpkins. They looked ghostly to be sure, sort of creepy, sort of like they forgot their pumpkin suits.

Later that night thumbing through a magazine, I saw that not only were natural white pumpkins being touted as options to jazz up the front of your house but the suggestion was to take white shoe polish to add a missing luster or sheen to your regular old orange fruits. It would serve as kind of patina of ghostliness.

I couldn’t help but wonder what our French friends would say to these new fangled ideas. Those folks weren’t too excited about the idea of pumpkins generally speaking. Oh, pumpkin soup was okay, but forget the idea of anything sweet like pumpkin bread or pumpkin pie. I twice tried to encourage a taste for pumpkin pie among our dinner party crowd. The first time my offering was met with polite condescension; everyone tasted about a teaspoon of the filling and smilingly refused more. The second time I was subjected to open ridicule as if I had chosen to make the dessert pie out of some obvious savory produce like chard or onions. We all knew each other better by then, but I still was shocked by the lack of interest in “new and different” since I consider the French palette much more extensive and diverse than those of Americans.

Pumpkins remind me that the seasonal food options of France make the cycles of the year feel real. For example, it should be just about time for the chestnut festival. Then will come the series of specialties over Christmas and the New Year. The time of the year can be pinpointed by what you find at les marchés, boulangeries, et pâtisseries.

Yesterday I finished Barbara Kingsolver’s, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. (You can read more about the book, its recipes and sources here.) She describes the year she and her family spent trying to eat homegrown foods enhanced by a few local additions. It is inspiring and reminds me much more of the culinary experience of southern France than the Front Range of Colorado.

So I’m wondering if I should send over to the Riviera the decorating tips for Halloween 2008. How would the idea of white pumpkins be received? Maybe pretty well if they aren’t baked into a pie…

What would white pumpkin pie look like?


Remember, the madeleine is here to serve as a stimulus for you to write…right here, right now. Your jotting doesn’t have to be long…and you can write as many jottings on this topic as you would like. Just click below on “jottings” (they work like comments) to get to the entry box to post your writings. You can use any HTML characters that you like. Preview your work before submitting; return to the entry box to make any changes you desire before posting.

madeleine: Different is good

October 11th, 2008

madeleine-ONE.jpgThis week I took K to the mall to see if a local store carried a jacket that she wanted to wear for Halloween. It’s not a mainstream store; it’s full of goth, emo, and a host of extreme attire.

She found what she was looking for and while she wandered the aisles, I examined the jacket. As I stood at the counter admiring the deep purple lining and the finished construction, a sales guy ambled up and stood next me. He was bald except for toot of hair that stuck out from the right side of his head. He had tattoos Continue reading »

Je voudrais présenter Monsieur Salem, notre chat!!

September 30th, 2008

our new kitty

madeleine: “Someone you met recently”

September 21st, 2008

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Today I attended a Free Writers group and was given the prompt, “Someone you met recently.” Here are my jottings…

K and I decided to go out to the place just to look around. We hadn’t visited there since long before we left for France and it had changed a lot. Everything was new and clean and BIG!! Swarms of people roamed around looking excited and enthusiastic. We joined their ranks and received permission to enter. We walked around inside slowly gazing at the faces. Finally, we decided to get someone to accompany us into one of the small rooms where we sat down on the floor and waited.

I was looking elsewhere when K suddenly jabbed me in the arm, “Mama! Look at him! Isn’t he handsome?” And he was. Medium build, big bright green eyes, black hair that was longish, but not shaggy. He held himself with aplomb. Seeing us, he strolled over in our direction, not too quickly but with purpose. K and I didn’t want to be overly anxious so we waited to see what would happen. As he got closer, I could wait no longer, “Hi, beautiful” I said, holding out my hand to him.

He sniffed my fingers then rubbed his face on my palm walking so that his body passed under my hand. I was thrilled.

He was a gorgeous cat and came home with us that day from the Humane Society. We are all adapting well.

Could we have done this in France?


Remember, the madeleine is here to serve as a stimulus for you to write…right here, right now. Your jotting doesn’t have to be long…and you can write as many jottings on this topic as you would like. Just click below on “jottings” (they work like comments) to get to the entry box to post your writings. You can use any HTML characters that you like. Preview your work before submitting; return to the entry box to make any changes you desire before posting.

madeleine: Learning critical thinking

September 9th, 2008

Conversation overheard outside of American high school classroom:

Before we go in, tell me: Do my eyes look better like this?
eyes looking to side

Or like this?
eyes looking up

Well?


Remember, the madeleine is here to serve as a stimulus for you to write…right here, right now. Your jotting doesn’t have to be long…and you can write as many jottings on this topic as you would like. Just click below on “jottings” (they work like comments) to get to the entry box to post your writings. You can use any HTML characters that you like. Preview your work before submitting; return to the entry box to make any changes you desire before posting.

expatriate