This is what I love about life in France:
1. Adorable rues (streets) that veer off in every which direction and are never straight therefore, giving you the sensation that you’ve just stepped into a movie and you might possibly find a handsome European man that will sweep you away on a little vespa at any minute, but of course, before that there would be an excellent photographer who says, “May take fotograph of lovely American woman with (tall, dark and handsome) young man?” And he captures the essence of the lovely centuries old wall that you lean up against while the handsome young man perfectly positions himself to lean over you with one arm on the wall (you know what I’m talking about, right? That pose that you always see in the picture frames when you buy it.).
2. I’ve said it and I’ll say it again (probably until you’re sick of hearing it.) The food is AMAZING! I can’t think of anywhere else that I’d rather be in the world than just sipping a cup of café at a little café in France. I feel like I could be one of those chic, boho friend girls who would sip coffee and write a book or a poem or I could be a fashion addicted Parisienne who is also just as chic but in a much more done up way and of course both of these scenarios would have to include me being stick skinny, gorgeous and with a cigarette in my mouth (explaining why French Women Don’t Get Fat…). En fin, coffee anytime is delightful but at a corner café, ten times more wonderful!
3. Buying food from local vendors…if you haven’t noticed the trend yet, I really like the food here…but, yes, I love that you buy your meat at the boucherie and bread and pastries at the boulangerie/patisserie. I’ve even started to get to know my local grocers who all ask if I’m anglaise and I politely respond, “Non, je suis americaine.” I always get a bit of a response to this like “Ahh! so, do you like it in Nancy?” And of course I say “Oui, oui bien sûr”! I live in a Arabic area of town so they sell things like olives dunked in spices and couscous that you can get by the kilo and lots of Halal meat and lots of sweets like Bakalava that I tried out the other day and it was fantastic! Its no wonder that Organic food is weird to the French because their food already comes that way – I mean shouldn’t organic things be organic?
4. Brocantes! Last weekend I went to the old town to go antique/secondhand shopping with Siân and it was so fun to look at all the old French stuff. I got a ring and Siân two brooches that she’s going to make into necklaces and just all in all it was a lovely way to spend a Sunday afternoon…and then you can refer back to number two where we took a lovely cup of coffee in the plaza…
5. Old churches. They’re everywhere. I go to mass each week in the Cathedral that is just giant and I’m just kind of dazed each time that I get to celebrate mass there! Love it!
Bon weekend!
