Aurevoir Ali est ici ...

Some of you, I'm sure many of you, noticed that I completely stopped writing this blog after my April post in 2010. Sometimes life is too difficult to imagine, and all the things we love and have hoped for are snatched away in the blink of an eye, without any warning and without preparing us for how we can carry on.

I am dedicating this blog, to the two precious children of my friends Karin and Ned, who have been my surrogate family here in Paris since I started my crazy new life back in 2007.

Albie and Esther joined us all for too short a time, and they brought so much joy to their parents and all the people around them, who love them. We will love them and miss them both, always ...

Albert Joe



11-December-2009 to 16-June-2010

Esther Mary Olga



21-April-2011 to 24-April-2011

En faisant les ponts!

Oh my, it seems May has rolled around again - I think I told you all last year that May is a month of long weekends here in France and many Parisians head out for short breaks away from the city, taking an extra day if they can. So last weekend I hopped on a Normandie-bound train with Karin and Ned and baby Albert, and Karin's parents for some seaside adventures!


Chez Nous

True to her legendary form, Karin managed to find possibly the most perfect country cottage to house us all at Géfosse Fontenay, a tiny little hamlet at the eastern end of Omaha beach - one of the D-Day landing sites.


Utah beach

We spent some time wandering along the coast to visit these beaches that were the scenes of such tremendous loss of life, and eventual victory for the allied forces in the second world war.


WWII tank

It's very hard to imagine that so recently this part of the world was in the grip of such chaos. The relics of war are still there to remind us.


American cemetery

And the memorials to those who were lost are fitting and sobering, and oddly beautiful and peaceful too.


Testing my boots


The French Farmhouse

It's no wonder the French are passionate about their country, when your GPS navigation system takes you on back roads that wind through countryside that looks like this, how could you not be?


Pour une randonée

And in the spring sunshine with fragrant blossoms on the breeze, well ...


Canola fields forever

... everything just seems perfect!

But of course, being just across la manche from England, this part of the world has seen battle before. We slipped over the frontier into Brittany to visit the mediaeval town of Saint Malo.


Pirates in the keep

Saint Malo is a gorgeous walled city built on a promontory, with a portcullis and even the odd pirate!


Les toits

I took the prettiest photos I could manage because in the way of the modern world, Saint Malo these days feels rather like a theme-park-come-shopping-centre.


Wooden doors

Tourist restaurants abound and all of the usual suspects in chain-store land are at street level for your retail pleasure. We stayed only long enough to find the ...


House of Butter!

... and offer praise at the temple of Jean-Yves Bordier. We left laden with beurre flavoured with algue, piment d'espelette, et sel fumé, some crème fraiche, some fromage pont l'evecque du region and some full-cream, unpasteurised, straight-from-the-cow milk!


Assorted delights de la mer

And perhaps to check out the local catch (not so much for me, but it did whet the appetites of other members of the entourage).

Hungrily, inspired by our shopping adventures, we set out for lunch at Cancale - following a tip from Mez, we reserved a table at Le Bout du Quai and dined quietly in style with a view out to Mont Saint Michel in the harbour.


Yes, it is foie gras

Always offered as an entrée at your finer dining establishments in France, and also locally grown - this foie gras came with pain de mie, a honey-flavoured bread that I would say is texturally somewhere between dense toast and cake, and, rather unknown to the average Australian palate, but in fact, delicious in this combination.


Ned's bounty

As you can see, Ned was very pleased when Jo wasn't able to polish off her box of fresh sea creatures - two entrées is just pure decadence!


Duck with blackberry sauce?

And how delighted was I with this dish?


Yes please!

Sadly, I actually failed to eat the aubergines - they were bitter and rubbery with tough skins, and simply inedible. And I've just become the obsessive fan ... tant pis, alors!


Verrine?

Ali: Verrine? Verrine?, Monsieur c'est pas une verrine! C'est un vrai BOL!

Translation: "Small cup-sized portion of delicious trifly-thing? Monsieur that is certainly not a small cup-sized portion of delicious trifly-thing! That is a horse-sized portion!"

Another dessert battle, another mediaeval fortress - we joined all the other pilgrims and hit the shores of Mont Saint Michel.


My travelling companions

From left to right my partners in touring are Captain Aubrey, Ned, Albert, Karin and Jo - check out how pleased Albert is to be related to all these people!


Weather permitting!

And I'm his favourite nounou - at least I better be!

It seems that arriving at 20h00 - as the tide starts to rise 'at the speed of a galloping horse' - is the perfect time, as the other tourists who have over-run this best-known, best-loved of all France's regional tourist destinations all day start to depart, and the quotidien takes over.


Bisous

We relaxed and wandered through the tiny, steep alleys up to the cathedral and pondered over how many centuries this fortified religious stronghold has held.


Mont St Michel

Leaving was magical as the lights came on and dusk was gently circling the island (isthmus I guess really) and we'd also all just seen our first ...


Omelette soufflé

... delivered to an eager table of hungry French folk. And the verdict from the chief diner? Pas mauvaise ... Not bad? The thing inflated like a helium balloon and wobbled like a jellyfish! Understaters par excellence, the French.

With legendary fresh seafood available at the coast, Karin and Ned made a market stop and brought home a box full of fish and shellfish so fresh they were still flipping and pulsing!


Best fish ever?

Now, as I said earlier, while I can't actually manage to eat the fishy bits, I certainly can appreciate when something has been cooked to absolute perfection.


Jo says yes

And Jo managed to pick this beast thoroughly clean - like a Tom and Jerry cartoon fish carcass!


L'agneau pré salé

For my part, I was more interested in tasting the lamb that feeds on the salty marsh plants along the tidal flats of Normandie - pre-salted meat! I think perhaps my palate wasn't sharp enough to really taste the difference? Or maybe it was too tied up with the flavour sensations in our potato and celeriac purée infused with 'seaweed' butter? Succulent and marvellous in any case.


Jetty du jour

Another little taste of sea air is required before heading back to Paris, surely?


On prend le chocolat chaud

And best experienced with a hot chocolate on a too-cold-but-sunny day - before we hit the last of our Norman adventures and visited the most famous tapestry in the world.


Bayeux tapestry

Being a stitcher of many years standing myself, and remembering with absolute clarity my very first European history lessons at Sienna College with Mrs Jansen - the Bayeux Tapestry is an historical object that I've wanted to see for decades. And it is absolutely magnificent.

It's astonishing that it has survived so long, in such a well preserved state. The colours are glorious, the images are sharp and clear - in places you can still see the original sketch outlines used by the stitchers as guides!

It's survived, fires, battles, looting (it was used as a tarpaulin on a cart of treasures during one episode), it has travelled all over France and the rest of the world. Napoleon exhibited it in Paris once in a propaganda move to try and gain support for an invasion of England, but the public remained unmoved.

And it was stitched in about 1070AD - that's nearly 1000 years ago - astonishing.


Bayeux cathedral

I was enraptured enough with the tapestry but to stumble upon the inauguration of the new bishop at the cathedral afterwards was an added bonus. A pomp-filled ceremony with processions and rousing ecclesiastical music set beside a beautiful and grand catherdral with a couple of delightful gendarmes available to tell you all about the event.

So a fitting end to an unexpectedly full and impressionant weekend.


Sunset over the beach

Best breakfast in Paris?

Still at my house!


Oeuf poché

Free-range, organic oeuf poché on rye toast with wild baby roquette and lightly roasted cherry tomatoes.


Ouahhhh........

And now that I've found a place close to my quartier where I can purchase the astonishingly magnificent butter of ...


M Bordier


Tomato concasse

My tomato concasse is something only dreams are made of ...

Where did the blog go?

The trouble is the blogger left the empty Sunday afternoon lifestyle behind when she left Syama over a year ago!

And there I was thinking that I could simply update everyone when I was at home over the summer, but it seems that no-one has an empty Sunday afternoon lifestyle any more - except for Uncle Trev who we all left behind at Syama!

So, before I get posting pics on the happy events that took me back home - I'm going to take you on a journey through the rest of my travels in '09.

As luck would have it when Paul cancelled our wine-touring weekend in favour of a fun run (!?!), I found myself freed up to join Miss Jane on another international women of mystery tour - this time en Maroc!


Djemaa el-Fna

First stop, a sunset stroll to possibly the most famous town square in North Africa, where the story tellers and the snake charmers and the...


orange juice men

... and the ...


dried fruit vendors

... and the ...


medicine men

... all gather in a sight that a traveller can only marvel at! A sight that has been visited by travellers and merchants for ten centuries, and seems to have stood still while the generations of visitors simply pass through like a saharan wind.


Food stalls

After sunset the food traders move into the square and start dishing up tagines, barbeques and trays of mechoui lamb for all those brave enough to pull up a seat and indulge - what could be better?


Date palm

In my usual style, not too much was planned before I headed off (talked with Jane on Sunday, booked my flight on Monday, boarded a plane on Friday), so how lucky did I feel when Hassan told us that we had arrived at the height of the date season? Honestly I couldn't have done better if I tried.


Hassan's pick!

Hassan (Jane's friend and our unbelievably generous and patient host) told me not to go crazy in the Djemaa el-Fna, that he had a source of dates that was of far superior quality and he didn't want us eating any second rate fruit. So, as any good host would, he arrived one morning with 2 kilos of the most astonishingly juicy, flavoursome, texturally perfect dates - AND - now that I live in Europe, the quarantine situation allowed me to enjoy the last of these little beauties for several days after my return from exotic northern Africa! Oh happiness!


Our terrasse

Jane had managed to find an apartment to rent for the week with a stunning terrasse, bigger than my Parisian living room in fact, where we indulged in some serious catching up and relaxing, whilst enjoying ...


Our view

... out across the palm wasteland at the end of town (if you look hard you can see the lushness vanishing from the palm tops in the background) - curious!


Arch

But no matter, as we had a medina to explore!


Dans les rues


Choosing headwear

And as women will, we had to find a few accessories appropriate for our stay - in my rushed preparation for the adventure can you believe I forgot to pack a hat? Unacceptable for an Aussie chick really - but, look at this funky number!


Barbouche du jour?

And Jane fell in love with these surprisingly comfortable, bling evening shoes!


Medina alley

Shopping and wandering the alleyways of the medina takes a toll, and it's nice to stop and take stock every now and then.


Riad tea garden

I love these internal courtyards, a fabulous architectural triumph to bring to the world. Inside the walls should always be a place of calm à mon avis!


Light my way

Honestly, it's all a little overwhelming. Jane and I have both been to markets in Africa and they are always slightly wild and frenetic. I read recently that the human brain has trouble making a choice when presented with more than 7 or so options, so how do you manage when confronted with the souqs of Marrakech that have dozens, nay, hundreds of shops, all selling similar products, all shouting similar promises of great bargains to be had?

Take a photo, find a cup of mint tea and clear your head!

Hassan had a real treat in store for us one evening, we'd seen an enormous palatial building, it's tiles sparkling in the sunshine, on the outskirts of town as we arrived in Marrakech on the train from Casablanca. Turns out that this building - a modern example of old-fashioned Moroccan regal architecture - was in fact ...


(Spicy) Chez Ali!

That's right folks, Chez Ali - home of the all-singing, all-dancing, gun-toting, horseback-riding cavalry, 1001 nights of Arabia dinner and spéctacle!


Settle in on that banquette Miss Jane!

We ate a sumptuous five course feast and discovered to our dismay, that velvet banquettes are not, in fact, the perfect place of repose in 37 degree heat!


Uulation please!

It was truly amazing, it has to be seen to be believed, especially the 21-gun salutes and the flying carpet finalé - go!


Petit dejeuner et thé à la menthe

Naturellement we trialed a traditional breakfast, and always interested in local flavours, we saddled up for a day of food shopping and cooking in the souqs. Jane had found us a cooking class that began with a tour of the street markets, buying the ingredients for a lunch feast that we would prepare over the course of the day.


In the souq

Look out, this is going to be fun!


Ah, oui oui oui

The grand épicerie at last! A few lessons from our spice trader in how to spot real versus fake saffron, amongst other things, and a bit of information about the use of different spices for different purposes (cuisine, medicine, household). It was like being with an old-time apothacary.


Pomegranate bounty

Then there were the other important ingredients to be found.


Market fresh


Tagine anyone?

And cooking equipment to inspect.


Cooking class

The course underway, we discussed and sampled about 10 different chermoulas for our 6 salads, two tagines and both savoury and sweet pastry creations - who knew you could chop parsley and coriander so fine?


How to chop an onion

And forget about it - onions, finely diced! So now I'm a complete convert - but do tend to use a safer technique when I get to the bottom of the bulb, necessary for me as clumsiness seems to be a family trait!


Salad fiesta

So, the verdict in? The zahlouk (aubergine and tomato) salad was my hands-down favourite (aubergines in this part of the world taste different ... better, definitely - I'm obsessed). Sadly the team are tired of doing that recipe although it's invariably the favourite with every group that comes through.


Riad Relaxo

And after all that? A tea break of course!


McArabia?

From one extreme to another! Why does everyone want a McDonalds in their country? And no, we didn't sample the tagine-flavoured (!) McArabia, although there was some interest from one or two other tourists we met - if you are on a mission to eat your way around the world, then I guess ...

On our last night we dined at El Fassia, the restaurant that continues to get the nod from the foodies in the know in Marrakech. Like any good place, it's hard to get a booking but we got lucky, and after all the lamb and chicken tagines, royal couscous and Moroccan salads, it was a real treat to taste at last the ...


Pigeon pastilla - part I


Pigeon pastilla - part II

Yes, that is a dusting of icing sugar and cinnamon on top of that deep-fried, pastry-encased mélange of pigeon meat, nuts, spices and dried fruit - joyous!


The grand minaret from the Mellah

So as the sunset over the medina ...


Champagne Jane

... and I contemplated what the future might bring for us as re-located Aussies with a thirst for travel and cultural exchange, as we said goodbye - for now at least - to a magical experience in a truly exotic place.


Secret passage