07/14/13 by Paris-Travel | Blog | Comments Off on What is Bastille Day?
Have you ever wondered, “What is Bastille Day?”
It’s Le quatorze juillet !
To be honest, it’s only non-French people who call the 14th of July “Bastille Day”, so please don’t say “Happy Bastille Day!” to your French friends or other French people – ok?
I’ve lived in Paris so I am familiar with this day commemorating the French Revolution, but thought I’d get a Wikipedia explanation for you:
“Bastille Day is the name given in English speaking countries to the French National Day, which is celebrated on 14 July each year. In France, it is formally called La Fête Nationale and commonly Le quatorze juillet (the fourteenth of July).
The French National Day commemorates the beginning of the French Revolution with the Storming of the Bastille on the 14 July 1789, as well as the Fête de la Fédération on the 14 July 1790.
Celebrations are held all over France. The oldest and largest regular military parade in Europe is held on the morning of 14 July, on the Champs-Élysées avenue in Paris in front of the President of the Republic, French officials and foreign guests.”
If I’m lucky enough to be in Paris for le Quatorze Juillet (Bastille Day), I generally celebrate with friends by having a picnic or going out to dinner.
There will be plenty of restaurants open for this national holiday, but a make sure you BOOK IN ADVANCE so you will have a guaranteed reservation.
So now you can answer the question, “What is Bastille Day?” by saying, “It’s le quatorze juillet !”
Chatelle’s question: “How do I buy cheese in Paris?”
When Chatelle wrote and asked me about buying cheese, it brought back memories of the markets and the Fromageries (cheese shops) in Paris.
Teena, finally June 2013 has arrived and in 2 weeks I head for Paris. Cannot wait.
I do have, I suppose, a silly question: I will be wanting to purchase Baguettes and cheese.
How do I buy the cheese? do I ask for a portion, slice, or what.
Here in the USA I can order several at 1/4 to 1/2 pound. Pounds aren’t in France LOL.
Any suggestions?
Thanks for your reply! Chatelle
Teena’s answer
Hi there Chatelle,
OOOOooohhh how exciting! You’re almost in Paris!
Excellent question – (never silly!) and as with everything, there are several ways to do this.
One pound converts to 453 grams, but I take that up to 500 grams just to make it easy when I’m trying to calculate it in my head whilst shopping.
Roughly speaking:
2 pounds in weight is 907 grams, so close enough to one kilo
1 pound in weight is about half a kilo (500 grams)
half a pound is about a quarter of a kilo (250 gm)
If you’re comfortable with trying to speak French, here are some suggestions.
Your questions could be:
Converting as you go:
“A pound of cheese please (approximately 500 grams).” = “Cinq cent (500) grammes de fromage, s’il vous plait.”
“Half a pound of cheese please (250 grams).” = “Deux cent cinquant (250) grammes de fromage, s’il vous plait.”
“Quarter of a pound of cheese please (125 grams).” = “Cent vingt-cinq (125) grammes de fromage, s’il vous plait.”
If you’re not too comfortable speaking French, you could create some cards for your wallet, and write in thick marker pen, the amounts in grams, e.g. 100 grams, 200 grams etc.
Show these to the shopkeeper and point to the cheese (fromage) of your choice. You can also say the name if you can read it, and if you’re ok with that – Camembert, Brie, etc – they should all have their names written on them in the window etc.
I do hope this helps! I’m looking forward to hearing from you about all the things you love about Paris — wave to the Eiffel Tower and say hello from me, OK?
Bon voyage! Have a great trip!
Teena
Your Say
Got any tips of your own for the question, “How do I buy cheese in Paris?” Feel free to share – I’d love to hear from you :-)
The annual sales in Paris are held in summer and winter, and the dates are strictly controlled by the Government.
If you happen to be in Paris in June, as you walk around the shops and stores you’ll notice the word “SOLDES” everywhere — which means “SALE”.
When are the summer sales in Paris?
The 2013 summer sales begin on June 26th and go to July 30th, 2013.
When are the winter sales in Paris?
The 2014 winter sales in begin in Paris on January 8th and go to February 11th, 2014.
What’s on sale in these annual sales in Paris?
You name it, you can find it:
fashion
jewellery
clothing
shoes
handbags and bags
fashion accessories
just about whatever your little heart desires.
Where to find the Sales / “Soldes”
Walk along the popular streets and int he arcades, you’ll find so much being offered at a discount prices inshops and stores all over Paris, in large stores and small trendy boutiques, in department stores, little designer stores in the suburbs to major designer labels and internationally known designer stores.
Make a day of it – go with friends, plan where to have lunch (off the main streets to avoid the shoppers in crowds) and enjoy yourself whilst shopping the annual sales in Paris!
Walk around any Parisian street every morning of the year and you’ll see people in cafés, eating croissants, standing at the bar to drink their espresso coffee and others dipping their croissants into their thick creamy cafe au lait (milky coffee).
Every now and then when I’m in Paris I’ll have a change and order a non-croissant breakfast which comprises of a cafe au lait (milk coffee), a tartine (a piece of baguette) with beurre (butter) and confiture (jam).
In this photo above I was in a cafe in the 2nd arrondissement (le 2eme – “the Second”) and could watch the world go by while I took my time over breakfast. I’d be making notes and sketching in my trusty notebook and taking photos and videos with my iphone, relaxing whilst absorbing the bustling Parisian life around me.
I never ever tire of doing this – it’s a wonderful way to start the day, and to me, Paris feels like no other city or location I’ve lived in around the world.
Have you had the same feeling when you’ve been in Paris or anywhere else? I’d love to hear about it … comment below or click any of the buttons to connect with – better still, make a quick video or audio and email them to me, that’d be very cool :-)
Petit dejeuner in Paris … the ONLY way to start your day!
It’s a bit windy here today in Melbourne, and the temps are expected to be in the low 20 degrees Celcius, but we do expect rain. I’m looking at the weather in Paris and a “high” of 10degC is still a bit chilly, but from here on in it should start to get a little warmer in the lead up to summer for June/July/August:
Here are two little audio lessons I’ve made for the beginners:
“Bonjour mon ami! Ca va toi?” and “Croissant au beurre?”
[display_podcast]
My New Paris Photo Book
I’ve wanted to let you know that my book of Paris photos is ready, but in all honesty it’s taken longer than I wanted due to the move to a new city, yahda yahda (sorry for the excuses!), but it WILL be ready soooon, promise! I’ve now given myself a deadline, so fingers’ crossed!
Did someone send you this email because they thought you might enjoy it? That’s fantastic! Why not sign up for yourself, so you’ll receive it in your inbox too?
Teena Hughes, A-Night-in-Paris.com PO Box 111, Balaclava VIC 3183 – Australia Telephone Australia (+61) 0408-801-808https://a-night-in-paris.comI hope you enjoyed Postcards from Paris!
I couldn’t resist having these on my Paris website – everyone needs a sleep mask when they travel, and it’s not navy, black or brown so it won’t get lost :-)
To be honest, you don’t even need to travel to wear one of these – you can pretend you’re in Paris while you’re at home, put on some French music, get comfy, pop on your Paris sleep mask and let the lovely music massage your brain into sleeping. Dors bien! Sleep well!
Paris Sleep Mask $US10.99 + Shipping $US4.00
Black nose piece to limit the amount of light which tries to sneak under the mask
Comfy elastic strap to hold it in place
One size fits all
Machine washable
Dimensions (approx): 7.25” x 3.5”
Lime green with French words
**Please note payments will appear as ‘Abfab’ or ‘Absolutely’ on your credit cards and receipts.
Questions about the Paris sleep mask?
Please let me know asap and I’ll do my best to help you, thanks! Back to my Paris Store >>
11/12/12 by Paris-Travel | Website | Comments Off on Paris backpack with French words
This Paris backpack will hold all your stuff
This is a great sized Paris backpack for all your daily essentials while exploring. It holds a ton of stuff and is sturdy too. When I first visited Paris I had two backpacks – one large for everything I was travelling with, and one small for day use. I was always amazed at how much I could fit into the day use backpack, and it was great because it left my hands free for reading books and drinking coffees :-)
Paris backpack $34.99 + Shipping $10.00
Double zip closure
Elasticized mesh pockets at sides (for water bottle etc)
Not that you’d need to carry them, but it can fit 2 packs of A4 paper easily (500 sheets per pack)
Extra front compartment
Adjustable padded shoulder straps
Top hook
Approx. dimension: 11″(L) x 5″(W) x 15.5″(H)
**Please note payments will appear as ‘Abfab’ or ‘Absolutely’ on your credit cards and receipts.
Questions about this Paris backpack?
Please let me know asap and I’ll do my best to help you, thanks! Back to my Paris Store >>
11/11/12 by Paris-Travel | Store | Comments Off on Mini folding umbrella with French words
A mini folding umbrella – ooh la la :-)
I wanted to design a mini folding umbrella with French words all over it, in a happy bright colour to make a statement in the streets of Paris on a grey winter’s day. This is my first one:
Mini folding umbrella: $US29.99 + Shipping $10.00
Made from 100% polyester pongee waterproof fabric
Opens up to 41″ span
Can be reduced to a collapsed height of 9″
Each rib consists of 3-section aluminium for flexibility and strength
I had a prototype umbrella made and took it with me to Paris – here I am in the Place des Vosges just off rue St Antoine near metro Bastille. It was a grey day, and this design really stood out from the crowd :-)
**Please note payments will appear as ‘Abfab’ or ‘Absolutely’ on your credit cards and receipts.
Questions about my gorgeous Paris umbrella?
Please let me know asap and I’ll do my best to help you, thanks! Back to my Paris Store >>
11/11/12 by Paris-Travel | Store | Comments Off on Paris Shoulder Bag with car photo
A Paris Shoulder Bag with a very cool photo of Paris! (mine!)
The first of my new website products is a fabulous Paris shoulder bag which is large enough for a laptop, and strong enough to carry 2 reams of paper.
I chose this photo of mine because it brings together the old and the new – a Citroen 2CV car (the old) and a Velib bicycle point (the new mode of transport). I decided to colourise it and I’m very pleased with the way it turned out – do you like it?
Paris Shoulder Bag
$US39.00 + $15 shipping worldwide
Size 14″L x 12″H x 4.8″ deep
Black nylon
Secure Zip closure
Velcro outside closure
2 internal pockets
Adjustable LONG wide shoulder strap (27-52.5″ max.)
This is big enough for my MacBook laptop :-)
**Please note payments will appear as ‘Abfab’ or ‘Absolutely’ on your credit cards and receipts.
Questions about my gorgeous Paris should bag?
Please let me know asap and I’ll do my best to help you, thanks!
Mini folding umbrella: $US29.99 + Shipping $10.00
