History and Good Eats: Mom vient en France

Mom came to visit me in Paris a couple weeks ago and it was chateaus and oreo smoothies and walking galore! She arrived in the morning on the 14th and we then left my apartment to explore Paris. I showed her Sciences Po, thereby proving to my parents that this whole exchange thing was not just a giant ruse to let me go chill in Paris for five months, and then we walked around the 7e arrondissement, stopping at le Tourville cafe for club sandwiches, pizza, and their famous oreo smoothies. Before dinner, we went to le Petit Journal, a jazz club near le Jardin du Luxumbourg where a jazz band from New Orleans was playing. We then dined at les Papilles (translation: the tastebuds) where I had probably the best meal, for me anyway, in Paris. They have a set menu that changes each night. On this particular night, they served cauliflower soup pour over bacon and cheese, a beef stew (there is a more culinary word to describe this), blue cheese and cherry jam (again, there is a more culinary word), and an apple cinnamon panna cotta for dessert. I felt like I was expecting triplets after that meal but it was sooooooooooooo good.

The next morning we got up bright and early to catch our train to Caen in Normandy. We got in around noon to a beautiful sunny but slightly cold day. We dropped off our bags at our hotel then explored the town. Caen was the city of William the Conquerer. We saw the fortress, Chateau du Caen, and the two abbeys, Abbaye aux Hommes and Abbaye aux Dames, he built around 1060. All remain intact and in good condition, surviving world wars, attacks by the English, and you know just a milleniums' worth of casual wear and tear. We also visited the Museum of Normandy which was kind of odd as they only featured Caen in the Stone Age and then skipped right to the Industrial Revolution. We also wandered along the river, watching sail boats prepare for the Normandy Channel Regatta. That night we dined on moules et frites and then waited for the bill longer than the time we had spent eating. Love French customer service!

Fortress of William the Conquerer

The next morning, we went to the Sunday market of Caen near the river. Mother was fascinated with the woven baskets and I got a cute beach onesie for my Greece and Croatia trip. We also snacked on crepes and picked up spices, baguette, and strawberries. After some struggles with the bus schedule, we managed to find the right bus to take us to Juno Beach. We visited the Juno Beach Centre, a museum built as a memorial for the Canadian soldiers that served in WWII and then took a tour of the beach, which included going into an old German bunker. It was so crazy to be at Juno beach and look out over the calm ocean and imagine that just over 60 years ago, the horizon was covered in military boats and the beach, with soldiers.

Juno Beach

That night I fulfilled my weekly seafood quota by dining on a seafood platter of calamari, mussels, and prawns. The following morning we packed up our things and trekked it to Bayeux (a small town about a 15 minute train ride from Caen) to see the famous Bayeux tapestry, a 70 metre tapestry which depicts William the Conquerer's conquering of England. We also checked out the Cathedrale Notre Dame de Bayeux, a lace factory, and walked around the entire town in about 20 minutes because it was that huge. For lunch, we had savory and sweet crepes and then we trained it back to Paris.

Bayeux

The next day was another bright and early morning at a train station, off to Tours for our tour of the Loire Valley chateaux. In the morning we visited Château de Chenonceau, a château built in the 1430s. King Francois I seized the château from the previous owner and upon his death, his son Henry II gave it to his mistress, Diane de Poitiers. When Henry died, his widow Catherine de'Medici forced de Poitiers to trade Chenonceau for another château and it became de'Medici's favourite residence. The castle straddles the Cher River and it's the second-most visited château in France after Versailles. Chenonceau's gardens were incredible and Mom was particularly impressed by the amount of gardeners they had on staff and creepily took a picture of them! Here are some pics of Chenonceau:

After Chenonceau we went to Château d'Amboise, a château in the town of Amboise on the Loire River. Fun facts about Château d'Amboise: This château was one of the first to showcase Italian Renaissance influences in architectural design. King Francois I grew up at the château; he became a close friend of Leonardo da Vinci, and in da Vinci's later life he lived and worked there. He is buried in a small chapel on the château grounds. In the 1800's, the château was used as home for the exiled Emir Abd al-Qadir, the leader of Algeria during the French invasion, and his family. Château d'Amboise pics:

We had lunch in Amboise and then we went to Château de Chambord, which is the largest château in the Loire Valley and was used by Francois I as a hunting lodge. It has been suggested that da Vinci designed parts of Chambord, such as the double helix staircase (basically two spiral staircases wrapped around each other). The château has 440 rooms, 365 fireplaces, and 84 stairs. The roof, especially, is quite intricate and almost has an art deco-like feel to it. FUN FACT (but actually I found this really interesting): During WWII, Chambord was used as a storehouse for various French museums' art pieces. During the lead up to WWII, French curators began to devise plans of how to evacuate and store art collections as they were worried about German pillaging, particularly of Jewish art. Chambord was one of eleven châteaux used as giant art storehouses. The Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo were even stored at Chambord at one point. Voici Chambord:

The last château we saw was Château de Cheverny, a slightly newer château than the previous ones we saw (it was built in the 17th century). This château had a more manor-like feel to it than the other châteaux . It's claim to fame is that it was the model for the Château de Moulinsart featured in the Tintin books. It also features the smelliest dogs in the world. The grounds house a cage of at least 50 hunting dogs and at first I was like "Oh cute, beagles" and so I went over to the cage and was met with the most repugnant smell of life, like wet dog x 50000 mixed in with the merde of 50 dogs. Unpleasant. Cheverny pics:

Mom got to experience a French impossible when we tried to return to Paris from Tours. There were strikers (but of course) on the tracks of Gare Montparnasse, the station at which we needed to arrive (but of course). So at first our train was on time, and then it was delayed, and then it was cancelled, and then it was delayed again. And they kept changing the arrival track so everyone was running up and down stairs, to and from various tracks. We did get back to Paris, only an hour behind schedule. I may have overreacted at one point (by freaking out that we would never get back to Paris and have to stay in Tours for the night) but really, I was just tired and hungry and could not wait to get back and eat the kraft dinner Mom had so kindly brought me. Yes, I'm surrounded by delicious French food every day but the thing I craved most for a month straight was powdered pasta. North American for life.

Mom's last couple of days in Paris were spent exploring the Marais and St. Germain, seeing Victor Hugo's house, visiting the Palais de Tokyo, failing twice to make it to Come on Eileen (how is it that when I want to go and show Mom all the amazing vintage clothes, they close for 3 days straight), attending the Lido cabaret, walking a ridiculous amount, and eating really good food. Peter was nice enough to grace us with his presence on Mom's last night in Paris and we went for dinner at Chez Janou, a typical French bistro such that you are literally eating dinner at your neighbour's table.

So all in all, it was a great week with my mother. I learned a lot about French history and she learned that 50 cents plus 50 cents equals 1 euro! and that a cent is 1/100th of a euro! Good for her!

Habits

French Habit that I support: Champagne Happy Hours

This past Thursday, I went to Regine Night Club, a club on a side street off of the Champs d'Elysées, where from 7 pm to 9 pm, they have champagne happy hour. For 15 euros, you get seven glasses of champagne. Judging from the crowd, it's where the Parisian young, vibrant, and working set heads post-work to let go. And boy do they ever let go. People were raging at 8 pm, ordering bottle service, dancing on tables, whipping off their suits and ties (maybe). Also at one point they played the French version of Under the Sea which was pretty awesome. In conclusion, champagne happy hours = two thumbs way up (just remember to eat dinner first).

North American Habit that I haven't been able to quit: Starbucks

France has taught me to appreciate espresso and the art of lounging at cafes. However some days, I do not have the time to lounge at a cafe. And some days, especially during my 8 am class days, I want to nurse a huge cup of coffee. Ever since my coffee machine broke a couple months ago (impossible) my Starbucks consumption has increased exponentially. It's slightly embarrassing (and expensive - Starbucks has the same absolute price in France as Canada) however there are times when a tiny cup of coffee will simply not cut it. So judge all you want, Parisians, I'm going to have my grande soy extra hot vanilla latte with an added shot of espresso and caramel drizzled on top and I'm going to enjoy it.

The Lido Cabaret: Parisian Elegance At It's Best

When my mom was in Paris last week, a couple of her bridge club friends were here too so they arranged for a night out at the Lido Cabaret. Le Lido, on the Champs d'Élysées, is one of the most famous Parisian cabaret and burlesque clubs. It's supposedly less risqué than other Parisian burlesque clubs such as the Crazy Horse which doesn't say much as the majority of the outfits worn by the dancers casually stopped before the boobs. Apparently the outfits of the Crazy Horse dancers just consist of accessories, like a bejeweled hat or feathered wings. Also, I guess dancers is somewhat of a relative term as the emphasis was placed on the glitz, glamour, and spandex and not so much rhythm, choreography, and synchronicity. Some of the cast certainly embodied the French attitude of not giving a shit and lifelessly flung the arms and legs in various directions somewhat on time to the music. One guy in particular was quite amusing - you could tell he was a cabaret dancer slash model (quite a common occupation I hear) and he would just pose instead of doing the steps. Having said this, it was a spectacular show, filled with more feathers, rhinestones, and glitter than an arts and crafts table, a Cher concert, and a drag queen's dressing room combined.

We went to the late show which started around 11:45 pm. We had our own table at the front of the second level of seating. Each ticket came with half a bottle of champagne so between the six of us, we were good to go. The show opened with the main singer (we'll call her head diva) being lowered from the ceiling in a white feathered sled thing; she then performed a song while the other dancers paraded around in elaborately feathered costumes. Each number had a theme to it - one was matrix themed, another cabaret themed, another east indian themed, another shopping themed, and another egyptian themed. My personal favourite was an obvious take on Cats but with more drag queen and tran-like cat costumes. The male cats especially were hilarious in both their costumes and their dancing. Another great moment was during a number involving various costumes from around the world and the dancers parading around the stage chanting "Je suis belle". It was during this number that I was able to spot the two men dressed as women amongst the dancers. Sure, they had boobs but their shoulders and adam apples definitely gave away their true gender.

Between some of the numbers, there were performances by a mime clown and this (not intentionally) hilarious man who did tricks with a diablo (spindle thing that one spins around on a string). His tricks were amazing but he obviously thought he was Fabio of the diablo world and after every big move he would slide out on his knees and fling out his arms, waiting for the applause. He also rocked copious amounts of guyliner and a suit that was possibly modeled after the outfits of Las Vegas Elvis.

Le Lido not only had elaborate costumes, but it also had extravagant stage set ups. For one number, an entire fountain was raised up through the stage. Another number was a figure skating number where the stage turned into a skating rink. Also they brought a live horse on stage. So basically the French can incorporate live animals, figure skating, and a huge fountain into a theatre performance yet they are still unable to solve problemes d'informatiques without shutting entire libraries down or allow me to deposit money in a bank atm thereby permitting me to pay my rent on time.

Il fait chaud part 2

When it's a nice night, there is nothing better than wine, friends, and chills along the Seine listening to impromptu music concerts by awesome street performers.

Il fait chaud part 1

When it's a nice day, there is nothing better than baguette, brie, champagne, and lounging in the sun with friends at the Buttes Chaumont.

Uno Mas

So the second part of my ash cloud travels trip was round 2 in Barcelona. Here are some things I did that I didn't get the chance to do the first time I was there.

Museo de Dali - It has a huge collection of Dali's lesser known work including tons of his sculptures. There was also an exhibit of photographs of Dali and a miniature of his fallas for the Saint Joseph festival in Valencia.

Barcelona Aquarium - the weather was gross on the first day I was there so we opted for inside tourism adventures. The Barcelona aquarium was cool but after the experiencing the joys of the Vancouver aquarium many a time, it really couldn't compare. The penguins were sweet though.

Tibidabo - An amusement part/cathedral on the hill overlooking Barcelona. The only rides that were open were a weird airplane thing and the ferris wheel, which Novack and I went on with a school trip full of children who could pose as an advertisement for birth control. Sweet views though.

Sea food place - I have no idea what it's actually called but it's a great concept! Basically you choose your food from an array of seafood laid out, pick how it's cooked, and then it's delivered to your table. There was tuna, prawns, lobsters, crab, mussels, shrimp, and other fishy stuff. we got mussels, prawns, and grilled calamari however we seriously underestimated the amount of seafood we needed to satisfy dinner hunger so we had to post-eat at McDicks. Sad face.

Arc de Triomf and Parc de la Citudella - The Spanish version of the Arc de Triomphe (more brick, less tourists) and a really sweet park with tons of grass, a huge fountain, and a sick pond for rowing.

Bull fight aka Ring of Muerte aka Advertisement for Vegetarianism - So I'd thought I'd immerse myself in Spanish culture by attending a bull fight. Maybe I'm just really ignorant but I never knew how brutal it actually is. First, they have the groupie matadors come out with pink capes. They try to stab it with these nun-chuck like things (see above). Two men then come out on horses and stab the bull with spears. After some of that fun, the chief matador comes out with a red cape. He teases the bull and that part is cool because it's kind of like a dance. However, after about 10 minutes, the band starts playing, signifying that it's business (killing) time. So the matador whips out his sword and tries to stab the bull in the head. The first attempt at stabbing may not kill the bull instantly so he has to take the sword out and try again. After the bull is killed, two horses come out and they attach a hook to the bull's horn and drag it out of the arena. AND THEY DO THAT FIVE MORE TIMES. After the fourth muerte de torro I had had enough and was ready to join the anti-bull fight protestors across the street from the arena. Also when we were leaving, we made the mistake of passing the slaughterhouse so I felt extra happy face. All and all, when it comes to Spanish culture, I'll stick to my tapas and my sangria.

Gaudí Batlló House - There's a couple of Gaudí houses on the Passeig de Gracia but for time and money purposes, we just went to the Batlló house. This house was built for the Batlló family in the early 1900s. There are no straight lines in the house and it's filled with amazing tiles, mosaics, fireplaces, and columns. Like a lot of Gaudí's work, it's very reminiscent of a ginger bread house.

Barcelona beach when it's warm out - Yeah, that was pretty nice.

Emma Makes a Scientific Discovery

After months of research across several countries, I have reached the following conclusion regarding the relationship between the price of wine and its quality:

The x-axis on this graph represents price of wine in euros while the y-axis represents quality of wine ranging from Good to Piss and/or Vinegar. As you can see, the quality of the wine rises as one approaches 3 euros however the quality drastically falls between 3 and 5 euros, reaching drinkable levels again around 5.50 euros. This relationship has been seen in France (4.95 euro bottle of rose which was disgusting compared with a more tolerable 3.50 euro bottle of rose), in Spain (where 0.84 euro bottle of wine actually tastes better than a 4 euro bottle), and Ireland (where an extra euro spent on a bottle of wine resulted in wine that was so aptly described as "containing Chilean animal feces").

So next time you're feeling classy and thinking about getting that 5 euro bottle of wine, remember this relationship. It's better to give in to your cheapness and buy the 1.95 euro bottle; besides, no one at the party knows how much the wine cost but they will know vinegar when they taste it.

* The same results have been seen in Montreal, however the price levels differ. The quality peaks at around $8 and falls dramatically between $9 and $12.

** This relationship is more certain for white wines than red wines, especially in the case of Montreal. I find that any bottle of red under $12 (besides L'Auberge) generally results in wine-shot taking as a tolerable drinking measure and a hangover whose pain rivals sitting through a 2 hour of lecture of Population Dynamics when the wifi has cut out.

Biking Through Bordeaux

After the Impossible of the train ride (see post below) we (my roommate Quade and I) arrived in sunny Bordeaux! Bordeaux is more like Paris than the French Riveria in that it has stone buildings and cobblestones galore. It also is a very pedestrian-friendly and bike-friendly city with tons of bike lanes and a long boardwalk along the river la Garonne. Which was perfect because in Bordeaux I tried out the bike taxi system (known as the VCUB in Bordeaux) for the first time! See, I had always been convinced that if I were to die in Montreal or Paris, it would be upon a bixi or velib due to the fact that French drivers on both sides of the Atlantic are crazy and my bike riding skills are such that I seem to have an internal magnetism towards cars. However, in Bordeaux, with the extensive bike network and it being a smaller town, there was limited exposure to cars and only the occasional risk of being hit by a tram. Biking was the perfect way to see Bordeaux especially as it was beautiful weather for the two days we were there.

The first day we biked around and saw the sights outlined by my France guidebook plus other things we stumbled across. We found an amazing park that reminded me of Stanley Park so we chilled in the sun and had ice cream. That night we went for french cuisine; I had confit de canard and tarte tatin.

The next day we went to the Bordeaux tourism office to try and book a wine tour. All of the formal tours were booked however the office was able to call up a winery close by and arrange a private tour for us. The winery - le Chateau Taillan - was about a 30 minute bus ride from Bordeaux and situated on a beautiful old estate. We got a tour of the cellars (the oldest cellars in Bordeaux - from the 1600s!) and learned about the wine making process before having a tasting of the Chateau's red, white, and rose. All Bordeaux red wines are fine wines - meaning that they are a mix of various grapes and never just a Merlot or just a Cab Sauvignon. It's funny - it turned out that the Chateau's biggest customer is Quebec, specifically the SAQ (liquor store of Quebec). However, the price tag in Canada (at $22) is quite pricey compared to my usual bottle of L'Auberge at $7 so I'll buy Chateau Taillan when I have the urge to splurge and show off my newfound knowledge about wine.

The rest of the day was spent doing more VCUB exploration and chilling along the river boardwalk before getting ready for our 10 hour bus to Barcelona. I'm really glad I got to see Bordeaux but I'll have to go back as the wine region is huge and there's many more Chateaus to see and wine to taste!

Also, my time spent in Europe has oddly been defined by understanding how various types of alcohol are made. There was the Heineken tour in Amsterdam, the scotch whiskey tour in Edinburgh, and now the wine tour. All I have left to do is find a vodka factory and all my liquids will be covered.

Cool Things I Did This Week Besides Teach French People How To Use Citations

Although I am halfway around the world from McGill, group projects continue to be the bane of my existence. Fortunately I only have one more week of class (and 129893284 projects and papers) so the end is in sight!

I could tell you about my wonderful time spent at the library this past week but as exciting as that may sound (and oh is it ever exciting) I'm going to tell you about others thing that I did (and they're centered around fashion and shopping, quelle surprise)

This past weekend I went an exhibit at the Musee des Arts Decoratifs called Histoire ideale de la mode contemporaine - basically an exhibit on fashion from the 1970s and 80s. The clothing was spectacular: there were the most amazing collections on display from Yves St Laurent, Cacharel, Kenzo, Karl Lagerfeld for Chloe, Issay Miyake, Comme des Garcons, Yohiji Yamamoto, Jean Paul Gaultier, Azzedine Alaia, and other designers I've never heard of. I really liked Lagerfeld's first collection for Chanel, the draping of Madame Grès, the fantasy and drama of Thierry Mugler's gowns, Issay Miyake's plastic bustiers, the architecture-like pieces of Sybilla, and the whimsical dresses by Christian Lacroix. As always, photography was prohibited but the link to the exhibit is here if you want to find out more: http://www.lesartsdecoratifs.fr/francais/mode-et-textile/expositions-70/actuellement-447/histoire-ideale-de-la-mode/

Since I hadn't been there in a while, I went to check out the vintage stock at Come on Eileen. They had a bunch of new stuff and I walked away with a white Marni sun dress, an emerald silk tank top, a silk Celine tshirt, and a black brocade skirt that would fit right in to any episode of Mad Man. Yay for more credit card exercises, sorry Mom. Too bad there's a gorgeous Christian Lacroix jacket there that would fit you perfectly so we'll be going back when you're here!

On Sunday I went to the Marche de Puces, which is a giant flea market of antique furniture, books, clothes, jewelry, knick knacks...basically antique everything. It's in a slightly sketch area (Saint Ouen in the 18e) and at the beginning of the market there are tons of stalls and people selling cheap shoes, souvenirs, fake bags, and really really ugly sequined clothing. It took us a while to get out of district tacky to find the actual antiques but once we did oh lordy it was amazing. and overwhelming. There was so much to look at; the stalls go on forever. I wish I had a (permanent) apartment in Paris so I could decorate it with beautiful antique furniture from the Marche de Puces. We spent a couple hours at the market and I got some scarves and antique keys but no way did we cover the whole thing so I will definitely need to go back. Here's some photos I took of random things I thought were neato: