Postcards & confessions

 POSTCARDS from France....

Erzo's birthday present was a trip to Chateau La Tour de By in Bordeaux

A dramatic sky over the vineyards & the "Tour" in "Tour de By"

Mt. Saint Michel in the background - where we spent the night...

On the beach near Bordeaux - if you look closely you'll see some serious waves in the background for the surfers.  Luckily, there were some slightly smaller ones nearby for us to play in all afternoon.

We also failed to take pictures in the city of Bordeaux, a truly elegant city I highly recommend.  Unfortunately, we visited for only one evening, just long enough to eat --- which brings me to

CONFESSIONS...

I don't like French cuisine....not even a little...

Let's be clear - I love France, where the landscape, the cities and the people are so beautiful.  I'll return any time I get the chance.  The bakeries are mouthwatering, and the people watching is mesmerizing, so it'd be worth a trip just for these.  But I might pack a lunch... and dinner.

While driving through France, we treated ourselves to dinner out several times .  We had some beautifully prepared and presented meals.  More impressive, the kids tried everything put in front of them, and Frans declared every last bit of it "good".  We knew from prior trips to France that escargot and frog legs were not a huge hit for us (the Dutch term for frog legs translate as the unappealing "little frog butts"...), and so we skipped these and sought out new dishes.  But try as I might, I could not work up enthusiasm over my salad plate without greens.  Instead, picture corn kernels in gelatinous aspic.

Julia Child makes it all look so appetizing, and I am first to the table for profiteroles, crepes or the savory french pies and pastries that turned up as hors-d'ouevres.  But I must admit, I was longing for some simple pasta and sauce, or just a leafy green or two...  Or perhaps if one could just eat breakfast all day and wine and cheese for dinner...:)