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Thursday, January 6, 2011

Ten things I love about France

1. Like blogfellow Catherine H said, the wine is cheap enough to bathe in. And it’s good.
2. Serious, serious chocolate.
3. Fresh food at the farmers market. Not cheaper, but far better quality than at the supermarket, and more of what you spend goes to the producers. At least I think so; there are certainly fewer middlemen. And there’s a market somewhere in town every single day of the week.
4. 5 weeks vacation (8 if you add all the holidays and time off in recompense for working 39 hours a week instead of 35) that you’re expected to take.
5. Trains!
6. From here, it’s just a few hours drive to Spain, Italy, and Switzerland. A bit farther to Portugal, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands, but they’re still right next door. Or you can take the train there, to spend some of that vacation time. In California you’ve got to go for hours just to get out of the state.
7. Rugby. I adore rugby and my town has a good team with affordable tickets. Allez l’ASM!
8. Raw stuff. Raw-milk cheese, carpaccio, smoked salmon, tartare - delicious, all of it.
9. People travel, a lot, and they don’t have that frequent American attitude that other countries or cultures are not worth bothering about. They participate in the global village instead of trying to dictate how it should be.
10. Galette des Rois. Three Kings cake for the Epiphany, available from mid-December to the end of January. A delight of flaky pastry and frangipane, often served with cider or champagne. I wish they made it all year!

9 comments:

Reya Mellicker said...

OK. I love France, too. Oh man.

Titus said...

Je t'aime. C'est tout.

steven said...

sign my name to the transfer sheet tout de suite! oh man i love food and tasty drinks and special places and cake of any kind any time...... steven

nuts4fruits said...

Been dreaming about France for many years. Are you looking for a roommate? :) We could go on train trips all the time.

NanU said...

Although having a guest in the extra bedroom would be neat for a while (that is, not much more than a week), I do love having my rather small house to myself. If you're passing through, or near, do let me know!

Rachel Fox said...

How lovely you make it sound (and taste and smell...).
x

shabby girl said...

Wine, chocolate, other countries at your doorstep!!! Awesome!
I have to look up that cake! I can see why you love it!

Unknown said...

The chocolate is devine....... thank you once more...... the memories of the chocolate is almost just as devine.... I love France too, for many of the same reasons. I know the backward thinking politicians here in Canada never consider train travel (and oh, do they need to!). And like you Nancy, I love learning the nuances of other cultures. Barry has a cousin in St. Nauphery. Maybe I should plan a visit. Except, it's hard to leave Lindsay. She has lost three caretakers this year.
I don't like to leave her.

mrsnesbitt said...

We love touring France on our motorbike - complete adventure - we just drive all day then stop where we see a nice place to stay - hot shower followed by cold wine & good food - could there be anything better?

Denise