Bonjour a tous! A big hello to everyone!

Postcards from Paris

29th August 2010

Bonjour tous le monde! Hello everyone!

I’m behind schedule with my Newsletters and I do apologise – I’ve been working on too many projects at once, and Paris is always in my head, but I just didn’t sit down and type my cheery news to you … and I’m going to fix that right now :-)

I hope you’ve been having a faaabulous week, month, wherever you on this amazing planet, and I’m sending a hearty “BONJOUR!”

“So,” I hear you ask, “What’s been keeping you so busy?”

And a good question that is too :-)

One thing which I’ve been working hard on is the website redesign – you may not notice much of a difference, but I just needed to make the pages seem less cluttered, easier to find your way around, and pleasing to the eye.  I’d LOVE to know what you think if you notice the difference (pop down to the bottom of the newsletter and Add A Comment) – I’d appreciate hearing whatever you have to say. Anything you miss? Something you’d like reinstated or brought back? Something you;d love me to consider adding, which hasn’t been on the site before? Go ahead – let me know your thoughts :-)

Video Tip: How to make your own Croissants

If you’re an armchair traveller, and have little chance of tasting a real French croissant any time soon, why not make your own? Here are some simple instructions from a great chef:

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How to make your own French croissants >>

Video Tip: How to open a bottle of wine with a SHOE!

That’s right, if you forgot your bottle opener, try this! It really works :-)

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How to open a bottle of wine with a shoe >>

Video Tip: How to say I LOVE YOU in French :-)

Quick recap from recent months, for all those new subscribers (THANK YOU SO MUCH for signing up!) – a sweet quick little video with some words of love – mots d’amour – to try out as you whisper sweet nothings into your sweetie’s ear.

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after words of love, my thoughts turned to food, and I started reminiscing about …

My favourite delicatessen in Paris – Charcuterie – run by the Charcutiere

Last time I stayed in Paris I rented a lovely apartment in the 11th arrondissement, right at the Metro Voltaire.

This coin – corner – of Paris was fabulous and it was the first time I’d stayed around there. Each day I popped into the local shops, got to meet the butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker … well, no, not the candlestick maker – I couldn’t find one :-)

But I did get to know the owners of the deli who were absolutely delightful, and persevered as my rusty French came out of the closet in the early days and gradually improved over the 5 weeks I was there. My friend Sigrun from Iceland came to stay for a few weeks, and we spent many a lovely hour in the deli looking at all the wonderful food prepared by the owner. On many a day Sigrun and I would walk our little feet off as we explored and shopped and had a fabulous time, then we’d head home, grab some delights from the deli (cheese – fromage, pate, ham – jambon, salad – salades), grab a baguette from the lovely girl in the bakery, and we’d head upstairs to the apartment to make a picnic. Of course no picnic is complete without a glass of red wine – une verre de vin rouge, and before long we’d need to have a little siesta – un p’tit dodo – before heading out in the late afternoon or early evening to find a new place to have dinner.

Here are some photos of some of our lunches:

OOOhhh doesn’t that look delicious? If it wasn’t night-time as I write this, I might just duck out and buy some of these goodies right now :-)  Here’s another photo – this one has grated carrot – carotte rapée, vine-ripened tomatoes – des tomates, brie, camembert – les fromages;  ooh la la! It was divine!

Doesn’t that orange carrot rapee look so fresh and delish? The dressing was some kind of vinegar, not too strong, and really tasted delicieuse.

So are you wondering why I’m telling you about this little pique nique?

When you’re visiting a new city or holidaying somewhere fabulous, it is a great treat to get to know the local shopkeepers, practice your rusty French and buy some tasty delights for lunch or a light supper.

If you’re going to be out for the day, you can pop in and buy your goodies before you grab the metro or bus, just remember to take a knife to cut tomatoes etc, and perhaps a couple of paper plates.

Having a picnic in one of Paris’ many gorgeous parks is a delightful way to pass the time, and it will also save some money (which you can put towards a yummy dinner at Le P’tit Manger later that evening).

Or maybe you’ve decided to take my all-time favourite barge cruise for two and a half hours – perfect for a take along picnic! If you don’t want the hassle of cutting up the deli food, buy pre-prepared sandwiches baguettes – sandwiches made with baguettes – at the local bread shop or deli.

Think outside the box when travelling – don’t feel like you have to sit in a café for lunch every day (although I do love to do that – a LOT), try to have some picnic time and get to know the parks of Paris – you’ll have such a grand time, I’m sure of it!

If you’d like to know where my favourite deli is, here’s the address:

Ph. Ronceret
138 rue de la Rocquette
75011 Paris

Here’s the map – so if you come by metro, you need to be on the northern corner of Rue de la Rocquette where it crosses Rue Voltiare. If you walked west on rue de la Rocquette (to the left on the map), its about 10 minutes to Place de la Bastille (and it’s a very interesting walk, I love the quaint little shops in rue do la Rocquette):

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Speaking of French food :-)

I’ve just come across a quick little video online showing the treats inside a Parisian pastry shop – les patisseries – the pastries.

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Boulangerie = bakery

Patisserie = pastry shop

That’s it for today, hope you enjoy these little snippets, there’ll be more next week – I’m planning on catching up with all the great Parisian goodies I want to tell you about :-)

I’d LOVE to hear from you, clidk the ADD A COMMENT link below and post me a message :-)

Au revoir for now,

Teena!