Repas du Noël…

C’est déjà mi-janvier, je sais, mais j’ai promis des photos du repas de Noël ! Mieux vaut tard que jamais:

It’s already mid-January, I know, but I’ve promised photos from Christmas dinner! Better late than never:

delicious amuses-bouches

Happy Holidays!

Joyeuses Fêtes et une Bonne Année à tous, mes chers abonnés ! Merci pour tous vos gentils commentaires durant cette année. Merci pour la lecture.

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to you, my dear readers! Thanks for all of your kind comments throughout this past year. Thanks for reading.

Photos de Noël à venir. Si vous voulez, voici des photos du repas de Noël passé !

Christmas photos to come. If you’d like, here is some food porn from last year’s feast!

Ce week-end à Grenoble…

Equal Rights Collective

Santa, Place Grenette

Christmas Market Lamp Vendor

Nourriture de Noël / Christmas Food!

Voici quelques photos de la nourriture de Noël de cette année à Annecy!
Here are some photos of Christmas food from this year in Annecy!

seafood hors-d'œuvre

escargots

foie gras sur pain d'épices

bouchée à la reine

cardon et cerf / cardoon and deer

It’s Beginning to look a lot like Christmas…

mon sapin de noël / my christmas tree

Ça fait 10+ ans…

-que je n’ai pas eu un vrai sapin de Noël
-que je me suis senti “chez moi”

C’est la première fois…

-que j’ai fait du eggnog
-que j’ai organisé une fête de Noël

Parfois il faut changer de pays…

It’s been 10+ years…

-since I had a real Christmas tree
-since I really felt “at home”

It’s the first time….

-that I made eggnog
-hosted a Christmas party

Sometimes it takes changing countries…

chez moi

Avec mon adorable petit sapin de Noël, après d’avoir eu une merveilleuse fête de Noël (y compris du eggnog, ou en français, lait de poule), papillotes, après d’avoir envoyé des cadeaux et des cartes, décorations, lumières de Noël qui illuminent ma rue, après avoir eu plusiers verres du vin chaud (et aussi green chaud!) et après 3 jours de la neige… Ça commence à ressembler à Noël!

With my adorable little Christmas tree, having had a wonderful Christmas party (including eggnog, or in French, lait de poule), papillotes, after having sent out gifts and cards, decorations, Christmas lights illuminating my street, after having had many glasses of vin chaud (and even green chaud) and after 3 days of snow… It’s Beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

la bastille enneigée, 2011

Si la vie à la new-yorkaise était The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, la vie à la française est le je ne sais quoi qui rendre Noël.

If life à la New-Yorkaise was The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, it’s life à la Française is the je ne sais quoi giving it back.

photo from last year's Christmas; my first in France! (oui, foie gras!)

~

Il y a Un An d’Aujourd’hui (à Grenoble) j’étais ici:
One Year Ago From Today (in Grenoble) I was here:

…at the marché de Noël, 20/Dec/2010

...next to a llama! à coté d'un lama!, 20/Dec/2010

P.S.  !‫חנוכה שמח‬‎

Thanksgiving Getaway & the Marché de Noël

On Tuesday I called to make reservations at Pumpkins for their Thanksgiving dinner for a group of five. Booked. They told me to try Café Mari which was also doing Thanksgiving. Booked. Of course; there are two restaurants in anglophone-ridden Grenoble serving the T-day’s feast; best reserve at least a month or two ahead!

Then I thought of cooking a large stuffed turkey in haste… which didn’t seem like a good thing to try last minute. No luck finding an obese turkey anyway:

Just kidding... I know it takes more than the yellow pages to find a big mama turkey in France...

But, it ended up working out because I was then able to accompany the BF to Provence on Wednesday morning and stay in the South all through the weekend. I looked a little less odd while in the south speaking my French sud-Occitan mixed with American accent because ever’one be speakin’ with a southern twang. Three star hotel with breakfast included, sunshine, blue skies, no pollution, warm personalities, shopping, art history, new places to discover; ‘was a nice change.

Now, I have a LOT to update about. I just returned to Grenoble last night and have a lot of experiences and photos to share since Barcelona a few weeks ago!

But, if you don’t hear from me, it may have something to do with the marché de noël opening in Grenoble, which looks much bigger than it was last year! And I thought I didn’t like Christmas…

My 1st day back in Grenoble since Tuesday of last week.. Skipped breakfast and went right to the diot line for le déjeuner.

I must say, Grenoble’s Christmas market (over 120 vendors!) makes the one in Aix-en-Provence look pathetic. If you haven’t visited Grenoble yet, you should come this winter! Also, the Alps = amazing winter food! And Grenoble’s the Alpine capital!

A few posts I hope to get to soon:

Barcelona; photos (Flamenco included!)

Thanksgiving in Provence and the funny thing I ended up eating

Aix-en-Provence, highlights/recommendations

Weekend in Arles, Camargue & Saintes-Maries de la Mer

Weekend in Aigues-Mortes and Le Grau du Roi

Stuffed pepper recipe

Grenoble, Christmas Market photos &  highlights

The Ides of November: Bring out the Booze & the Christmas lights

It’s mid-November in France. The colors of the trees are fading away and now I’m dependent on my apartment’s heaters to keep me warm. If a sunny day comes along I try and make it up to the Bastille and Mont Jalla while it’s still nice. In all of the city centers around France men are setting up the Christmas lights, which will soon (and more importantly) be followed by the marchés de Noël.

Mont Jalla, November

Men setting up Christmas lights on rue de Bonne, Grenoble

MOST importantly, there’s something here called apéro: a house party involving all sorts of alcoholic beverages + food to pick at. Here in Grenoble: French and English languages flying around the room. More bottles of red wine, rosé, champagne and Ricard than you’ve ever seen before in your life.  It’s no longer warm enough to enjoy a sunny terrace, and my top-floor apartment is no longer too hot to have company over. Five months in, I now have enough chairs, glasses and plates to serve a large group of people. Up until the day of of my first-ever house party, I finally found two large pitchers (are pitchers not used in France?) to make classic and strawberry mojitos. I rolled enough bulgogi kimbap and California rolls to feed everyone and their moms. If you didn’t like sushi or mojitos before coming to my party, you do now.

morning after

Shucks, a fiesta involving Bread is Pain, Crystal, Laët and moi (among others), and all I’ve got is this lousy morning-after shot of my kitchen counter. (Sorry Keith)