Say No to Fajitas in France

by Adrienne Wilson on

Here’s a funny food read on a couple that tries to put their So Cal Mexican food jones to rest in France. Amy and her boyfriend’s tale starts shortly after their afternoon French class when they end up at Susan’s Place. The restaurant serves Tex-Mex in the Latin Quarter, but before they actually got their dishes they received a real, live Texan from the maitre d’. Yee-haw! That’s what I call service. I’ll let this piece found in the LA Times finish up the details.

It’s a cute read in which we all can relate in some point in time. My suggestion to Amy and her amigo, skip the Latin-Quarter next time and try making the fajitas at home. Here’s one of many fajita recipes I happened to find.

Views of the French

by Erik Olsen on

I generally don’t go in much for culture-bashing. The whole French-US cultural disconnect has always seemed a bit petty to me. From Freedom Fries to the boycotting of McDonalds it all seems more like children’s antics than anything. After all, Paris and New York are both amazing cities…perhaps the two best in the world.

But I have to say I read with some amusement this piece on how the rest of Europe views France (hint: not good). Or at least this is one poll’s results as to how they are viewed by their neighbors. The French, the author states, are “crazy drivers, strangers to customer service, obsessed by sex and food and devoid of a sense of humor.” Devoid of a sense of humor?! What about Jerry Lewis! But more, say the Germans, the French are “pretentious, offhand and frivolous”. AND, say the Swedes, they are “disobedient, immoral, disorganized, neo-colonialist and dirty”. Disobediant?

Anyway, even if you don’t care much about such name-calling, at least it’s nice to have the spotlight, if just for a moment, shined on someone else.

French Travel Posters

by Erik Olsen on

A bit esoteric, but very cool.

This site, travelbrochuregraphics.com has got beautiful old travel brochures and posters from much of the world. Here, they feature posters of France, which are really gorgeous. And there are oodles of them. It’s an odd site full of aracana, but one that is weirdly compelling. A boon for design fans and nostalgic travelers.

Gift Idea: Cooking Lessons in France

by Erik Olsen on

Here’s an idea for a great gift this holiday season: cooking classes in France. This place, located about half an hour from Aix-en-Provence, provides five days of gustatory instruction in how to prepare Provencal cuisine. Lessons are held in the “newly renovated Provencal kitchen on a beautiful wine estate”, and are limited to no more than eight people….which is key if you’re like me and tried to take Italian cooking classes here in New York and there were like 30 people enrolled. Not good. Cost is about $1600….so not exactly cheap, but I guess you can factor in the cost of meals. Still not cheap though.

Here’s another in Provence that offers programs in May, June, September, and October. There are three double guest rooms each with private bath. Limited to 6 guests a week.

And if Bordeaux is your destination, take a look here where you get four nights, four lessons for about $1300 per person.