Couleur Café…

About a month ago, I was nominated by the fabulous and witty new-yorkaise, Miss Ella Coquine, to partake in Travel Supermarket’s Capture the Colour Photo Contest. Ella’s blog is so funny and addicting that I await her posts like I await the next episode of Breaking Bad. Je déconne pas ! If you have not yet stumbled upon her blog, you are in for a treat! Merci beaucoup Ella ! Gros bisous !

This is the coolest thing that I’ve been nominated for since joining the blogosphere, as it involves: 1.) Photography! 2.) Colors! 3.) Money! 4.) an iPad3! Oh yeah… That’s why I’ve managed to return to this blog and interrupt my August canicule coma-like state to submit my entry before the August 29 deadline! I also get to nominate 5 fellow bloggers (sorry for the short notice) of whom I’m confident have insanely gorgeous and colorful photos themselves.

How to enter:

• Publish a Capture the Colour post on your blog with images for all 5 colors if possible. Bloggers who don’t have photos for all 5 colors will still be in with a chance of winning the iPad category prize but to be eligible to win the £2000 overall prize your blog post should feature photo’s for all 5 categories.

• Nominate 5 fellow bloggers to take part in Capture the Colour at the end of your post and notify them via Twitter or Facebook

• You have until the 29th August 2012, to let them know you’ve entered by either:

1. - Linking to your blog post on your Facebook wall mentioning Capture the Colour.
2. - Linking to your post via Twitter including @travelsupermkt and #capturethecolour in your tweet.
3. - Emailing your entry. Send your link, name, email address and phone number to capturethecolour@travelsupermarket.com.

Basically, choose your best, most original photo/s that represent 5 different colors — if possible 1 or more of the colors blue, green, yellow, white & red. For more info be sure to visit their website and see their Terms & Conditions page.

Alright, all this text colors me the wrong way. Let’s get to the pictures, shall we? Allez c’est parti !

*be sure to click on images to see them larger!

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BLUE

Essaouira, Morocco – 2012

This gorgeous city of artisans, situated on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, contains a remarkable amount of blue: from the sky, the water and of course the buildings that all have a touch (or more) of sky-blue paint. Essaouira enchanted me with a feast of blue incomparable to anywhere else in the world that I’ve visited; a sensory experience of which I will never forget. The 3 hour bus-ride from Marrakech was well worth it, and I would highly recommend it to others.

GREEN

Grenoble (quartier Saint-Laurent), France – 2012

Green was a particularly difficult selection for me to make. Living in the French Alps, I have so many photos with green in them: from the grass, plants, trees, de la Chartreuse and, ya’ know, the enormous, lush green Alpine mountains that I’m surrounded by here. I followed the judge’s advice and went with a photograph of mine that portrayed green in an atypical way — a photograph that shows a sense of my signature style and technique. A photo that I had fun taking. I started pursuing photography in my early teens and my family’s cheeky felines were my first models. This photograph makes me think back to Grenobloise at 14 years old, in New York, capturing the dramatic light and color on my white Bengal kitty, Hagi, with my new (and first!) digital camera that I had recently received for my birthday. I hope you enjoy this picture as much as I do.

YELLOW

lac d’Annecy, France – 2012

Okay, yellow was the other tough one. Tougher than green. I immediately thought of food and I really wanted to find an interesting picture of chicken tagine with pickled lemons from Marrakech, or secondly, a photo of mine of a bright yellow flan on a purple tablecloth from Barcelona. But, my yellow food pics didn’t quite work artistically. I spent hours searching for yellow in a unique way — a photo which sparked within me familiarity and joy. Hélas, I found this shot of mine from Annecy, the birthplace of mon chéri barbu — a fellow Alpine city that I am lucky enough to visit on a regular basis. If you don’t know already, Annecy lake is one of the most beautiful lakes in the world, and the cleanest one in Europe. It happens to be right next a picturesque, medieval town appropriately known as “The Venice of France”. Peddle boats (called les pédalos in French) are always seen on Annecy lake, but not so often singled out nor accompanied by a crow in place of human tourists — so this photo takes the cake pour moi.

WHITE

Edinburgh, Scotland – 2012

As my loyal readers may already know, I was away on vacation in Edinburgh for the first week of this month. One of the first things I noticed about this place were the clouds. They were large, numerous and fluffy, a bit more of what I’m used to back home on the islands of New York (Manhattan, Long and Fire, if I’ve sparked your curiosity!). I suppose due to the flat land, proximity to water and the wind. Then, there was a second familiarity: seagulls. Everyone seems to hate them due to their loud cries, but I just cannot. I’ve been surrounded by them my entire life; like deer and racoons, they are too engrained into my visual vocabulary — c’est-à-dire my nostalgia from back home — to dislike them. This photo is clever because of the successful overlay of white-on-white, and I’m quite impressed with it! And, to add a bit of a Royal Scottish twist, this photo was taken at the Edinburgh castle!

RED

Le marché aux épices, Marrakech – 2012

Let’s hope that I’ve chosen a Red photo that would make Mark Rothko proud! This was the easiest color of this competition. I fell in love with this photo the moment I took it. I had a blast speaking with this man and buying all sorts of Moroccan goodies from him! What can I say about this photo that you can’t experience for yourself?! Régalez-vous bien !

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Now here are my nominees (hurry up, you have a week)!

Du Coté de Chez Laët

Emilie and Léa’s Secrets

Books, cupcakes and cats chasing chipmunks

Trying to be Concious

Life in Marakesh

Good luck les filles! I hope one of us wins!

Grenobloise est Versatile !

Many moons ago (that is, January 2012) I was nominated for The Versatile Blogger Award from one of my favorite bloggers, Bread is Pain. She is the only other American-blogging-from-Grenoble that I know of! We are two rare dauphinoise-américaine gems! Thanks Bread is Pain; hopefully you don’t mind my réponse tardive ! I was probably distracted by ravioles, reblochonade, learning cheeky French slang words instead of proper vocabulary, skiing, sledding, green chaud, Génépi, the flirty ol’ Frenchmen who work at the marché as well as having to run around my apartment to keep warm all winter as the heating system chez moi is probably not much younger than the apartment. Oh, and I must not forget to mention my February trip to Marrakech (photos still to come)!

As many of you reading this may know by now, when awarded with The Versatile Blogger you share 7 facts about yourself and pass on the award to fellow bloggers.

Instead of sharing random facts about myself I am sharing my top 7 favorite lunch spots in Grenoble!

my lunch to go from OBIOXO

1.) OBIOXO: I go to this place almost everyday. The wraps are amazing; I usually get a chicken wrap with lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, hummus, persil and sunflower seeds with a light sauce (EUR 5,20). There are cheese options too. For a lunch complet I also get a piece of their gâteau marbré or a fromage blanc. They also have delicious salads, tarts, shakes (with soy or cow milk) and more!  Everything is 100% organic and the woman who works there is welcoming and a joy to talk to. You can eat there or take your food to go (the Jardin de Ville is nearby if you want to picnic!).

The sushi train @ La Gallery

2.) La Gallery: une rue gourmande avec sept espaces de restauration (source)! From sushi, to sandwiches and salads, soups, a wok bar, pasta dishes and a variety of French desserts, La Gallery is a like an underground street dedicated to Lunch! A Grenoblois lunch experience you must not miss! À ne pas louper !

3.) The Sushi Shop: this is another spot I frequent for lunch, especially when I desire sushi to go (it’s to go or delivery only). Their lunch special comes with two sides (IE: miso soup + cucumber salad) and their sushi is delicious. I must also mention the handsome young men who work there who are very friendly. We end up chatting about France and/or New York for 5-10 minutes every time I am there. And they always remember my name (the way a Frenchman pronounces my name is like music to my ears).

Pho!

4.) Restaurant Vietnamien DÂU: I discovered this restaurant about a week ago and I’ve been there 3 times already. That pretty much says it all. I’ve heard from people who have been to Vietnam that this is authentic-tasting Phở. You can get a large bowl of this luscious Vietnamese soup for a healthy, filling lunch (EUR 7,50). There are also many other delicacies to try on their extensive menu. If you’re into Asian cooking there’s a great supermarket for it right across the street.

A Magical week in Marrakech

I am back from an unforgettable week in stunning, lively, warm Marrakech. I wish I was still there! May I return soon, In shaa’Allah. I came back to a tight deadline so I don’t have much time to talk about things and add pics (nor write in French), but here’s a little taste. Also, I bought a Moroccan tea set after spending much time bartering down prices to 70% off and introducing myself as Anna smeeti Fatima (my name is Fatima), but it was worth the hassle! Grenobloise = no discount. Fatima = local price!

Moroccan Mint Green Tea with my teapot and cups from rue Riad Zitoun El Jadid

I drank a lot of Mint Tea in Morocco, unsurprisingly, but being a green tea lover as well (and wanting a bit of caffeine) I was really drawn to Nora’s Moroccan Green Mint Tea with Sugar recipe (you can follow the same recipe but just leave out the green tea part for Mint Tea). I made it for the first time today (with less sugar) and it was incredible! Her blog Life in Marrakesh is wonderful by the way!

I’ll leave you with a few photos from the past week:

Lovely storks on the walls of Palais Badi

Koutoubia garden

Tasting my first (& delicious) "mixed" tea @ Café Arabe (184 Mouassine) while my man takes advantage of being able to order an alcoholic beverage

a camel in Essaouira

Yesterday, my first day walking around Grenoble since my return, I paid a visit to rue Chenoise which has a lot of North African businesses (which I often felt to be rather mysterious and unwelcoming — now I can’t wait to experience them) including a Moroccan restaurant, tea and hookah cafés, and tagine/ceramic stores where I recognized some items that were being sold at the souqs. I already go to Aux Bonnes Épices (1 rue Madeleine) right nearby for my curry/spice powders. I also walked past a couscous place on rue de la Poste (near Victor Hugo) and it had méchoui (quite expensive, of course)! My first meal in Marrakech was méchoui (why not start at the top?!), which was eaten on humble, cozy terrace on lamb alley overlooking place Djemaa el-Fna as well as a view of a neighboring terrace that had a goat (why not?).

…You know what this means, not only a petit Marrakech guide is in the air for this blog (the Grenoble guide is still in the works!), but where to find good Moroccan cuisine in Grenoble! The best Green Mint Tea in Grenoble is definitely to be found chez moi, just to be clear! Stay tuned…