Today marked the first day of the annual Soldes d’hiver, which starts on the second Wednesday of January and runs for 5 weeks. There are two of these sales periods per year, one in the Winter (hiver) and one in the summer (été). One of my friends who went to an academic program for a few weeks in Paris years ago told us that the only word she remembered was "soldes" because it was EVERYWHERE. And yes, yes it is.
After reading through various blogs, websites and the French Wikipedia article on it, I still don't totally understand how it works, but apparently it's a government regulated (!?!) sales period where stores put things on massive discounts. Basically everyone buys their wardrobe, home supplies, and everything else during these sales periods.
As we already bought everything before we moved here (due to the dollar being weak against the Euro, and well, that Paris one of the most expensive cities in the world so of course everything's going to be more expensive) I don't think we'll be partaking much in the festivities. Well that and I detest shopping. But for those who enjoy it, this is the time to shop in Paris.
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
Monday, January 6, 2014
Galette des Rois (King Cake!)
Epiphany (A Christian event involving the revelation that Jesus was the Son of God, and associated with the "3 Kings" who came bearing gifts) is a fairly big deal in France. It's not a public holiday, but it is a commonly celebrated day, which always falls on January 6th, which is 12 days after Christmas (hence the song).
And as part of the celebration, eating King Cake is a standard tradition. I'd never heard of this until last year when one of my friends who grew up in New Orleans mentioned it, but the basic idea is that you eat a special cake on Epiphany and buried inside the cake is a little trinket (sometimes a tiny plastic baby (aka Jesus), or a small cartoon character, or sometimes just an almond) and whoever gets the slice that contained that trinket is king for the day.
We actually had then a Galette party at work then, and I managed to get one of the slices (out of the 5 cakes) that had the trinklet. It was a little ceramic scroll. They're also sold with a paper crown (think Burger King) so you have to wear that too.
So on the way home I picked one a Galette des Rois of my own so Kara and her family could try it out. They're a bit pricy but they do feed a decent number of people so I suppose it averages out. And some of them can get really fancy. Kara managed to find the trinket on the first slice!
The cake is amazingly delicious by the way, though Kara wasn't a fan because she didn't like the almondy taste. But I loved it. Apparently you can only get them around this time of the year though (or at least easily get them, I suppose like my difficult attempt to get Beaujolais right before NYE they're available all year just hard to find).
And as part of the celebration, eating King Cake is a standard tradition. I'd never heard of this until last year when one of my friends who grew up in New Orleans mentioned it, but the basic idea is that you eat a special cake on Epiphany and buried inside the cake is a little trinket (sometimes a tiny plastic baby (aka Jesus), or a small cartoon character, or sometimes just an almond) and whoever gets the slice that contained that trinket is king for the day.
We actually had then a Galette party at work then, and I managed to get one of the slices (out of the 5 cakes) that had the trinklet. It was a little ceramic scroll. They're also sold with a paper crown (think Burger King) so you have to wear that too.
So on the way home I picked one a Galette des Rois of my own so Kara and her family could try it out. They're a bit pricy but they do feed a decent number of people so I suppose it averages out. And some of them can get really fancy. Kara managed to find the trinket on the first slice!
The cake is amazingly delicious by the way, though Kara wasn't a fan because she didn't like the almondy taste. But I loved it. Apparently you can only get them around this time of the year though (or at least easily get them, I suppose like my difficult attempt to get Beaujolais right before NYE they're available all year just hard to find).
Sunday, January 5, 2014
NFL Playoffs
I ended up staying up really late Saturday watching/listening to the NFL playoffs thanks to Unotelly. Unfortunately since Sunday's games were on a different station, for some reason the website wasn't working for CBS, and then Fox doesn't stream the NFL online. Boooo.
Sunday wasn't terribly exciting, just cleaned up the apartment since Kara and her family get back from Italy tomorrow. I did finally finish sorting through the thousands of photos I've taken over the last few months, but still haven't finished uploading them all. It also makes me miss my home computer with the gigantic hi-res monitor and 16GB of RAM, since it makes editing photos so much easier. I'll have to go back and tweak some of my favorite shots, as some/most are just "snapshots" so I can remember a particular thing, some are "pretty snapshots", and some I actually would want to hang on my wall.
Sunday wasn't terribly exciting, just cleaned up the apartment since Kara and her family get back from Italy tomorrow. I did finally finish sorting through the thousands of photos I've taken over the last few months, but still haven't finished uploading them all. It also makes me miss my home computer with the gigantic hi-res monitor and 16GB of RAM, since it makes editing photos so much easier. I'll have to go back and tweak some of my favorite shots, as some/most are just "snapshots" so I can remember a particular thing, some are "pretty snapshots", and some I actually would want to hang on my wall.
Saturday, January 4, 2014
French Cheese
I've been trying various cheeses while we're here since the French are famous for them. The cheese section is quite large in all the stores relative to the US, and yes, some of them are quite stinky. I like the firmer cheeses, and beaufort is probably my favorite and easiest to find that I've found. And like other things, to be a beaufort cheese, it must be made in the Beaufort region. I also do like emmental is what they use in crepes and is quite tasty (and much much cheaper here).
And all the cheese makes me think of this Monty Python sketch I recently came across.
And speaking of crepes, our local crepe stand started carrying chicken, but unfortunately it's just like a pre-processed slice of chicken, so not that good. So I'll stick with the one by Montparnasse which not only has shredded chicken, but tomatoes and mushrooms.
I think I also finally can keep Montparnasse and Montmarte straight in my head. One of the many logical shortcuts I do when reading is just focus on the start of an unfamiliar word or name, and so I'd constantly forget which place was which. This is also why I hardly ever remember names in books since it's "that R character" and heaven help me if two of the character's names start with R.
Similarly I still struggle sometimes when Kara pronounces a place in the French pronunciation instead of my crazy English attempt at it. Though I've find myself doing the same thing now once I get used to it, since I mean it is what it's called after all. So it's "San Mishel" instead of "Saint Michael" and why don't our visitors understand us right off the bat, come on!! :)
And all the cheese makes me think of this Monty Python sketch I recently came across.
And speaking of crepes, our local crepe stand started carrying chicken, but unfortunately it's just like a pre-processed slice of chicken, so not that good. So I'll stick with the one by Montparnasse which not only has shredded chicken, but tomatoes and mushrooms.
I think I also finally can keep Montparnasse and Montmarte straight in my head. One of the many logical shortcuts I do when reading is just focus on the start of an unfamiliar word or name, and so I'd constantly forget which place was which. This is also why I hardly ever remember names in books since it's "that R character" and heaven help me if two of the character's names start with R.
Similarly I still struggle sometimes when Kara pronounces a place in the French pronunciation instead of my crazy English attempt at it. Though I've find myself doing the same thing now once I get used to it, since I mean it is what it's called after all. So it's "San Mishel" instead of "Saint Michael" and why don't our visitors understand us right off the bat, come on!! :)
Friday, January 3, 2014
BBQ in Paris
Having lived in Texas most of my life, and particularly having lived in Austin for 6 years, I love my BBQ. And that is just something that unfortunately is not really common in France. Did I say "not common"? I mean non-existent. And so in my searches for home sick food (like Mexican) I had looked up this BBQ place here in Paris called Blues BBQ but hadn't yet tried it. Until today.
It was actually quite good, particularly for being in the middle of Paris. I got the brisket sandwich, and while it's not the best BBQ ever (Franklin's is, BY FAR, the most delicious thing I've ever eaten in my life), it's quite tasty and I'd definitely come back. The menu is all in English (with French subtitles, which is very unique) and the owner is from Dallas (and friendly) so it really is real Texas BBQ. It is pretty pricy though ($22 for sandwich plus chili fries, plus $4.75 for a can of root beer (which is hard to find in France)). But then again, everything here is insanely expensive (thanks to being in a major city plus the Euro) so it's really not that bad comparatively.
But before my BBQ escapades, I did some work, and then I wandered around the 1st for a bit to then try to go up the Notre Dame tower (since it's the first non-rainy day in ages) but the line was crazy long and it looked like it was going to rain, so I headed home. And low and behold, it did end up pouring for like 15 minutes. Then I got some groceries from the Monoprix, and then went to go see a movie near Pigalle, which is where the infamous Moulin Rouge is just so I could say I saw the famous red windmill. It's ridiculously expensive so I'd never go, but it's an interestingly area.
Everytime I see French movie previews for French films it really makes me wish I understood French better! They have some really funny movies.
The subway rides also this evening to get the the BBQ place were a bit more notable than normal, thanks to a passed out homeless guy who seemed to have pooped in his pants and stuck up the train, and then after my transfer, some crazy guy yelling who knows what in French until I got off the train. This is definitely not the norm, but I suppose part of life in a major city.
Also today marks exactly 3 months until we leave. We're halfway done!!! I both can and can't believe it's already halfway over. It's gone by just as quickly as I thought it would.
It was actually quite good, particularly for being in the middle of Paris. I got the brisket sandwich, and while it's not the best BBQ ever (Franklin's is, BY FAR, the most delicious thing I've ever eaten in my life), it's quite tasty and I'd definitely come back. The menu is all in English (with French subtitles, which is very unique) and the owner is from Dallas (and friendly) so it really is real Texas BBQ. It is pretty pricy though ($22 for sandwich plus chili fries, plus $4.75 for a can of root beer (which is hard to find in France)). But then again, everything here is insanely expensive (thanks to being in a major city plus the Euro) so it's really not that bad comparatively.
But before my BBQ escapades, I did some work, and then I wandered around the 1st for a bit to then try to go up the Notre Dame tower (since it's the first non-rainy day in ages) but the line was crazy long and it looked like it was going to rain, so I headed home. And low and behold, it did end up pouring for like 15 minutes. Then I got some groceries from the Monoprix, and then went to go see a movie near Pigalle, which is where the infamous Moulin Rouge is just so I could say I saw the famous red windmill. It's ridiculously expensive so I'd never go, but it's an interestingly area.
Everytime I see French movie previews for French films it really makes me wish I understood French better! They have some really funny movies.
The subway rides also this evening to get the the BBQ place were a bit more notable than normal, thanks to a passed out homeless guy who seemed to have pooped in his pants and stuck up the train, and then after my transfer, some crazy guy yelling who knows what in French until I got off the train. This is definitely not the norm, but I suppose part of life in a major city.
Also today marks exactly 3 months until we leave. We're halfway done!!! I both can and can't believe it's already halfway over. It's gone by just as quickly as I thought it would.
Thursday, January 2, 2014
Salsa
I finally tried out the chips and salsas I bought at the Monop' the other day, and while it can't compete with what you'd get a Mexican restaurants in Austin, it' actually wasn't bad. "Se marché" as the French would say ("It works").
I also stopped by the local FNAC (essentially a French Best Buy+Barnes and Noble) to check it out since I hadn't really explored it. I ended up picking up some 365 day calendars (as I always have a Dilbert one) that have a photo of French villages, plus another that teaches an English word a-day. Or in my case, a French word a day.
Watching movies subtitled in French in the theaters has really helped my French vocabulary though. Unfortunately the a word is spelled and the way a word is pronounced is often far different. But it's helping. I've found I'm often even more amazed how much French I can read. For instance I recently ordered a new French SIM card for my parents to use while they're here, and I could understand the whole ordering process without having to use Google Translate.
I also finally was able to throw out our Christmas Tree today. I kept waiting for Christmas Trees to show up on Paris doorsteps, but it never seemed to happen and I didn't want to make a faux pas and just shove it out there. But this morning I woke up early and noticed there was another golden sack sitting out there, so I ran down and put our tree next to it, and a few hours later when I checked again, it was gone. I'm still surprised at the lack of Christmas Trees (sapin noël) that I see on the streets at night/morning, but somehow they disappear. Note that I would have recycled our Paris Christmas tree but as it was so heavily flocked, we had to throw it away as they only recycle "natural" trees.
Though I will say, I was impressed our Paris Christmas tree lasted 5 weeks without any watering. Maybe the French do know what they're talking about in that regard with the magic log.
I also stopped by the local FNAC (essentially a French Best Buy+Barnes and Noble) to check it out since I hadn't really explored it. I ended up picking up some 365 day calendars (as I always have a Dilbert one) that have a photo of French villages, plus another that teaches an English word a-day. Or in my case, a French word a day.
Watching movies subtitled in French in the theaters has really helped my French vocabulary though. Unfortunately the a word is spelled and the way a word is pronounced is often far different. But it's helping. I've found I'm often even more amazed how much French I can read. For instance I recently ordered a new French SIM card for my parents to use while they're here, and I could understand the whole ordering process without having to use Google Translate.
I also finally was able to throw out our Christmas Tree today. I kept waiting for Christmas Trees to show up on Paris doorsteps, but it never seemed to happen and I didn't want to make a faux pas and just shove it out there. But this morning I woke up early and noticed there was another golden sack sitting out there, so I ran down and put our tree next to it, and a few hours later when I checked again, it was gone. I'm still surprised at the lack of Christmas Trees (sapin noël) that I see on the streets at night/morning, but somehow they disappear. Note that I would have recycled our Paris Christmas tree but as it was so heavily flocked, we had to throw it away as they only recycle "natural" trees.
Though I will say, I was impressed our Paris Christmas tree lasted 5 weeks without any watering. Maybe the French do know what they're talking about in that regard with the magic log.
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
French Music 2014
Bonne année!!
Since I'm home alone (and no videogames either) I've had the TV a lot more than normal to provide some background noise. And because it's not the US, there are LOTS of music video channels. I don't know what it is, but every other country I've been to has at least 2 stations playing music videos all the time.
Anyways, some good new music for anyone wondering what you're missing out on:
One of my favorite artists ever, Stromae, has a new video for his song Tous Les Mêmes (All the Same) which he makes use of his androgenous body shape and plays both a man and a woman by turning around. Genius! And he's got 3 of the top 5 songs in France right now.
This Avicii song is on all the time and completely stuck in my head
And Pharrell Williams has the current number 1 song in France (and a LOT of other countries) with this catchy song, so expect to maybe hear it in the US soon.
And I just like this song, since the original "Kids" was one of my favorite songs (though the music video is one of the scariest I've ever seen and obviously the result of far too many drugs), and this remix is great:
Side note: It's a bit of a peeve of mine when people say MTV/VH1 don't show music videos anymore. They actually still do. Just not during prime time. But thanks to Tivo you can watch the several hours of music videos they still play ever night. I love you Tivo!
Since I'm home alone (and no videogames either) I've had the TV a lot more than normal to provide some background noise. And because it's not the US, there are LOTS of music video channels. I don't know what it is, but every other country I've been to has at least 2 stations playing music videos all the time.
Anyways, some good new music for anyone wondering what you're missing out on:
One of my favorite artists ever, Stromae, has a new video for his song Tous Les Mêmes (All the Same) which he makes use of his androgenous body shape and plays both a man and a woman by turning around. Genius! And he's got 3 of the top 5 songs in France right now.
This Avicii song is on all the time and completely stuck in my head
And Pharrell Williams has the current number 1 song in France (and a LOT of other countries) with this catchy song, so expect to maybe hear it in the US soon.
And I just like this song, since the original "Kids" was one of my favorite songs (though the music video is one of the scariest I've ever seen and obviously the result of far too many drugs), and this remix is great:
Side note: It's a bit of a peeve of mine when people say MTV/VH1 don't show music videos anymore. They actually still do. Just not during prime time. But thanks to Tivo you can watch the several hours of music videos they still play ever night. I love you Tivo!
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