Médoc, Graves, Entre-Deux-Mers, Pomerol, Sauternes, Saint-Emilion…. What do these poetic-sounding names have in common? You are right of course if you answered Bordeaux, France - the greatest wine-producing region of the world!
Located in the Aquitaine region of south-western France, Bordeaux is one of France’s largest cities with a population well over 200,000. It lies thirteen miles up the coast where the Garonne and Dordogne rivers meet, and Bordeaux’s great harbor bustles with maritime traffic from all over the world. It comes as no surprise that the name “Bordeaux” literally means: “beside the waters” (au bord des eaux).
This is one region of France that oenophiles (wine-lovers) will not want to miss, for Bordeaux wines offer something for everyone’s taste: from light, sophisticated red wines to robust, full-bodied ones, from dry white wines to luscious sweet whites, even sparkling rosés and whites produced à la méthode champenoise.
Visiting the famous vineyards of Bordeaux is a must for the thirsty traveler and makes for easy day excursions as they lie all around the city: Pomerol and Saint-Emilion to the east, Entre-Deux Mers to the southeast, Sauternes to the south, Graves to the southwest and west, and the Médoc and the Haut-Médoc to the northwest.
A votre santé!
St Valentine’s Day in France is celebrated widely. From silly gifts to flowers/chocolates
/jewelry to exotic get-aways, the fête succitates joy, fun, and romance. Romantic dinners in restaurants abound, travel agents post signs of couple’s cruises, and lingerie shops have a field day. Whether one waits for it with great expectations (“What’s s/he going to do?”) or with trepidation (“What should I give him/her?”), St Valentine’s has a special meaning for each of us. The advice one gets in magazines in France is to not worry about it but…just participate. Here are a few paraphrased suggestions:
First of all, they suggest knowing what the other wants/expects. If you’re coupled up, one should be attentive to the needs and wants of one’s partner. Find out ahead of time what the expectations are; don’t be caught up short. It’s a bit like a mirror; one should reflect what the other is thinking/desiring.
There are always the classic gifts: perfume, jewels, flowers or plants, but also trendy gifts such as cooking or wine-tasting classes. It’s also an opportunity to take time out for the couple, to organize something you can do together…a nice dinner together in a special restaurant, a romantic couple’s massage, a spa day or weekend. And the small details count, as well: breakfast in bed, your turn to do the cleaning up or take baby out.
Most of all, St. Valentine’s should be fun and spontaneous. According to a recent survey, only 40% of French couples celebrate the day; the other 60% know that St. Valentine’s Day happens all year long.
Some recent figures:
-
58.4% of French live together as couples
-
39.5% of French couples celebrate la Saint Valentin;
-
30% of French men intend to offer a gift of between 60-100 E for Valentine’s Day ($85-$140)
-
8,7 = the number of times per month the French have sexual relations (both men and women)
Vive l’amour!
Daniel Auteuil’s 2011 French movie La Fille du Puisatier (The Well Digger’s Daughter) is to the South of France what Dany Boon’s Bienvenue Chez les Ch’tis (Welcome to the Sticks) is to the North. A remake of Pagnol’s 1940 film of the same name, Auteuil’s film was voted one of the ten most popular movies in France of 2011.
Just as Dany Boon, who is from the north of France, provided us with a glimpse into the quirky culture of Northern France in his blockbuster film, Daniel Auteuil, who grew up in Avignon, offers us the gorgeous landscape of the rural South and shows us the values of honor and integrity of the proud people who live there, in this, his first effort at directing.
Playing the well digger of the movie’s title, Auteuil gives a remarkable performance as a 
fiercely stubborn widower of a family of six daughters. Although marketed as a love story between his eldest daughter and the son of a wealthy shopkeeper who is called off to war, the film cleverly interweaves the themes of the complex bond between a father and his daughter, social inequity and class distinction, family honor, and the devastating effects of war.
If watching Bienvenue Chez les Ch’tis made you want to visit Northern France (le nord), after seeing this touching story you will want to discover, or rediscover, the golden countryside of Provence, with its sing-song accents, magnificent weather, rolling hills and generous bounty. In the meantime, you can always revisit Auteuil’s magnificent interpretation of Ugolin in Claude Berri’s 1986 award-winning films, Jean de Florette and Manon des Sources, which also take place in hills of Provence. Le cercle est bouclé. We’ve come full circle.
French teachers : a useful link for activities to use in class around this film: http://www.lafilledupuisatier.com/LA-FILLE-DU-PUISATIER_Dossier-d-accompagnement.pdf
La Chandeleur: February 2nd It’s crepe time in France! On February 2nd Americans have Groundhog Day; the French have…. la Chandeleur, or the fête des chandelles (candles) which translates as Candlemass in English, referring to the blessing of candles which traditionally took place on this day. For Roman Catholics, it’s the feast of the Presentation of the infant Jesus at the Temple, occurring forty days after Christmas. But the origin of the holiday is in fact pagan and today many traditions and superstitions are associated with it. Here are some fun things you can do to celebrate la Chandeleur with your friends and family (or French teachers: with your students!)
- Have a crepe party and try your hand at flipping crepes ! Faire sauter des crêpes is something of an art form in France. For good luck, hold a coin in one hand and with the other, toss the crepe into the air when it’s time to cook it on the other side. If you manage to catch the crepe in the pan you will have good fortune in the coming year!
- Enjoy the crepes with sugar, jam, chocolate, or Nutella.
- The traditional drink to accompany crepes is hard apple cider (which can be replaced by sparkling apple cider sans alcohol!)
- Create ambiance for this fête de la lumière by lighting candles around your house.
- Learn the French rhyme: "Quand la Chandeleur est claire, l'hiver par derrière; Chandeleur couverte, quarante jours de perte!" (If February 2nd is clear, no more winter to fear; if the Chandeleur is overcast, forty days of winter to last).
Bonne fête et bon appétit !
The north of France, specifically the department of Nord-Pas-de-Calais, has a character all its own. At least it appears that way to anyone who has seen the popular 2008 film by Dany Boon, Bienvenue chez les Ch’tis, whose title translates into English as Welcome to the Sticks. The movie tells the story of Philippe Abrams (played by Kad Merad), a post office manager in the glorious south of France, who gets caught impersonating the disabled in order to secure a cushy job on the French Riviera. As punishment, he gets transferred for two years to work in a small village in the north of France. Devastated by this forced change, Abrams, like most French southerners from the land of warm climes and rich cuisine, expects to find in the north a community of retarded coal miners existing in sub-zero temperatures who pronounce ‘a’ as ‘o’. He slowly warms to the dietary and dialectically challenged locals (notably Boon’s ingénue, Antoine) in this hilarious and tender comedy, which you will want to watch with subtitles in order to understand the northern dialect and accent. It will make you want to visit the north of France to see if it’s anything like the movie.
Actually, it is. The movie was filmed in the real village called Bergues, situated just a few 
miles south of Dunkirk. Here you can visit most of the places seen in the movie: the bell tower in the town square, the outdoor café where Philippe crashes his bike, the lingerie shop where Philippe runs into famous French actress Line Renaud (who plays Dany Boon’s mother in the movie), and the restaurant at which one of the funniest scenes in the movie takes place.
In this comedy about misconceptions, love and true friendship, Danny Boon gives us an enjoyable lesson in avoiding making assumptions about people. Boon himself is from this region and had wanted for years to display his home town as the warm, colorful region it really is. Just make sure to watch the movie first so you can learn a little about the local customs and get used to the dialect! The region is quite accessible by TGV (via Dunkirk or Lille).
The Mysteries of French language: The Subjunctive
If you’ve been struggling to learn French and master its many grammatical rules, take heart. You’re in good company. French can be a tricky language to learn, and even French natives make mistakes. There are rules, of course, but there exist so many exceptions that rules usually only apply about....80% of the time. Just when we think we have mastered, say, the order of multiple object pronouns, adverb formation, or how to form a question in French we discover, to our chagrin, a whole slew of exemptions and exclusions. What is a French learner to do?
Case in point: when to use the French subjunctive, le subjonctif? All agree to use the subjunctive after il faut que (it’s necessary that) and il n'est pas clair que (it’s unclear that) to convey obligation and uncertainty, respectively. In other cases, however, the answer is not so clear-cut.
For example, what about il semble que (it seems that) and il est probable que (it’s probable that)? Grammar books would say that while the former expression takes the subjunctive; the latter does not. But ask two native French speakers and you might get two different responses.
Avant que (before doing) and après que (after doing) seem to solicit the same confusion. The first expression is followed by the subjunctive; the second is not. However, time and time again the subjunctive can be heard after the expression après que, by native French speakers! On French television! Ciel!
To both native speakers and French-learners alike, many of these “rules” seem downright illogical. (Why on earth would the verb “to wish” in French take the subjunctive, but not the verb “to hope”?)
Since we are in the same boat, so to speak (dans le meme sac), perhaps we should simply appreciate this beautiful language for what it is: un mystère, and enjoy the journey.
Besides, you'll find that the French will very much appreciate your attempts to speak their language, for they know how slippery
it can be. And when you find yourself stumped over a certain “rule” in French, you might just look around, grin unashamedly, raise your shoulders and exclaim: C’est français!
L’Epiphanie
In France, once Christmas and New Year’s celebrations are over it is time to observe the feast of Epiphany (l’épiphanie). The official date is January 6th, but people in France continue the festivities until the end of January or so.
In a religious context, epiphany means “appearance” or “manifestation” and refers to when the baby Jesus appeared to the three Magi of the Christian bible: Melchior, Gaspar and Balthazar. For this reason it is also known as le Jour des Rois (Kings Day) and continues to be a religious celebration in the Catholic Church.
But as you may guess, Epiphany, or la fête des Rois is more than a religious holiday. Tirer les Rois is an important winter tradition in France! So, just what does it entail?
First of all, there is the galette des Rois, a delicious cake made of layered puff pastry and filled with creamy sweet almond paste (la frangipane) or occasionally apple sauce (la compote de pommes). A small figurine (la fève), said to represent the baby Jesus, is hidden inside the cake before baking. 
When the galette is cut and served to guests, the person who finds the charm in his or her piece is named King and gets to wear the paper crown which accompanies each Kings cake bought at the boulangerie (bakery). That person in turn may choose a “Queen.” According to some traditions the youngest person in the room hides under the table while the cake is being cut and, without peeking, calls out the name of the guest who is to receive each piece of cake (no doubt to avoid cheating!)
The fèves are made of plastic, porcelain or ceramic and are usually industrially made. However, some of these charms can be quite elaborately decorated and are still traditionally made in special ateliers (workshops) throughout France. It is not surprising that many folks in France are avid collectors, for not only are these dainty charms quite pretty, but they are supposed to bring good luck in the year to come.
Have a peek at a boulangerie in France preparing their galettes: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNVF1q8XPGQ
New Year’s Traditions in France
Celebrating the New Year is a little different in France than in the US.
Cards. French people don’t send Christmas cards; they send New Year’s greeting cards instead. So if you are sending cards to folks in France, you don’t have to rush. People in France continue to wish each other la bonne année throughout the month of January! No interaction is complete in France in the month of January without prefacing it with Meilleurs voeux (Best wishes)
Etrennes. It is a common practice in France to give gifts of money to people who serve you on a regular basis: the mail carrier, the concierge of your apartment building, your local firemen, even the garbage man (les éboueurs). It’s the equivalent of their 13th month, and the French tend to be quite generous.
Le Réveillon. Christmas Eve dinner is known as le réveillon … and so is New Year’s Eve dinner! To distinguish the two, the celebration on the 31st is called la Saint- Sylvestre, or le réveillon de la Saint-Sylvestre, simply because the last day of the year happens to be that saint’s feast day. The festive meal is similar to the one shared on Christmas – goose or turkey, oysters, foie gras – with the addition of champagne, bien sûr, and dancing and partying long into the night; it’s at least 4 hours longer, usually longer. Metros and public transportation in the large cities are free for the evening to discourage drivers from taking to the road in their cars after imbibing.
Midnight. At the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve, expect to receive kisses on both cheeks and a hearty bonne année! Fireworks have been surpressed in the past years, however, due to the dangers, so the evening tends to be a private one amongst friends.
Le Jour de l’An On New Year’s Day – le jour de l’an – parades fill the streets which you can watch in person, if you don’t mind the cold, or on TV from the comfort of your living room!
Bonne année à tous et à toutes!
French Christmas: Noel in France
Now that Christmas is finally upon us, do you know about these Christmas traditions in France?
- In some regions of France the Christmas season starts on December 6th, St. Nicholas Day, and is celebrated by exchanging gifts in memory of the historical 4th century saint renowned for his generosity.
- Most French people celebrate Christmas on December 24th with a huge meal eaten after midnight mass called le réveillon, which may include: goose, turkey, chestnuts, paté de foie gras (goose liver pâté), boudin rouge (blood sausage), or boudin blanc, oysters, and of course for dessert the bûche de Noël, a rich, creamy sponge-like cake in the shape of a Yule log.
- Tradition has it that on Christmas Eve in France, children would leave their shoes out (not stockings!) in front of the fireplace for le Père Noël to fill with treats and toys. In some regions, especially eastern France, le Père Fouettard (the “Whipping Father”) would come if children had been naughty, not nice.
- In the south of France, people in the countryside may leave a Yule log burning in their fireplaces during the Christmas season to ensure a good harvest.
- In Provence, the traditional meal ends with a parade of les treize desserts—the 13 desserts!
Most people in France do not decorate the outside of their homes; municipalities, on the other hand, adorn the public spaces with holiday lights and organize reenactments of the nativity story in town squares. - French families may set out a crèche, or nativity scene; in the south of France this includes santons (little saints) which are clay figurines depicting not only the holy family, shepherds and wise men, but the townspeople as well.
- Christmas markets are another holiday tradition in France, especially in
the Alsace region, where you can buy all sorts of special foods as well as arts and crafts typical for the season.
- At Christmastime you will hear traditional carols, both religious and non-religious, such as: Il est né le divin enfant, Un flambleau Jeannette Isabelle, Vive le vent (Jingle Bells) and Mon beau sapin (Oh Christmas Tree). They even have a version of Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer (Le petit renne au nez rouge…). And of course Petit papa noël sung by Tino Rossi is a Christmas favorite.
- The Christmas season ends in early January with the feast of the Epiphany and the Fête des Rois (Feast of the Magi).
Joyeuses fêtes à tous!
With a week left to go before Christmas, for those of you who are still scratching your heads for ideas for gifts, here are a few suggestions to give a French touch to your Noël.
- French music: how about the First Lady’s new album? Carla Bruni’s “Comme si de rien n'était” is soft and easy listening, or for a different style, try pop singer ZAZ, (album of the same name) whose sassy original sound has taken France by storm. Both available on Amazon.
- The best French umbrella made in Cherbourg: Available in different
colors and styles, designed to totally protect from wind and rain, made in the Normandy seacoast town that starred in the 1964 film Les Parapluies de Cherboug. www.parapluiedecherbourg.com.
- Escape to France vicariously every month with the stunning France Calendar 2012. 14 glossy photos of different towns and cities across the country. Days and months in both languages; French school and public holidays noted; forward planner for 2013. www.gbmags.com/calendar.
- A subscription to France Magazine (www.francemag.com) or France Today (www.francetoday.com) to keep up with French life and style every month; available in both online and in print format.
Signature French cocktails: try a French martini made with the incomparable black raspberry liqueur crafted at the Château de la Sistière in the Loire Valley. Mix 15 ml of Chambord, 50 ml vodka, 60 ml fresh pineapple juice. C’est merveilleux! www.chambordonline.com
- Or try Armagnac, the oldest brandy distilled in France. Originating in the 15th century, this unique eau de vie is produced through a single distillation of white wine and then left to age in oak barrels. www.armagnac.fr. Mix a Christmas cocktail: 50 ml Blanche d’Armagnac, 1 kiwi, liquidized; 1 TBL spoon honey; 2 spring mint (including stems). Pour over crushed ice, garnished with slice of kiwi. Mmm, c’est si bon!
- You can’t go wrong with a film starring one of France’s most popular actresses, Audrey Tatou: Venus Beauty Institute (1999); Amélie (2001); Dirty Pretty Things (2002); Priceless (2006); Coco Before Chanel (2009; Beautiful Lies (2011). www.amazon.com.
- Gift a week’s vacation in the south of France! Reserve time at a
private furnished townhouse with sweeping views of the Gorges du Loup near the French Riviera or an apartment in the quintessential Provençal town of Aix-en-Provence. www.greatfrenchrentals.com
- Alphabet chocolates from St-Rémy-de-Provence. Specialty chocolatier Joël Durand sends you the flavors of Provence—almond, lemon, orange, thyme, rosemary, chestnuts, honey, violets, even olvies—crafted into each letter of the alphabet and six punctuation marks. www.chocolat-durand.com.
- Any of the delightful gifts available from the boutique of the newly renovated Orsay Museum. www.boutiquesdemusees.fr