Chez Voltaire

This is the house/mansion where Voltaire lived--I pass by it on the way to my French classes. A few days ago I stopped by to see what the interior looked like. Which made me wish I knew more about French philosophy, so that I could appreciate it more! But the gardens and sculptures surrounding the grounds were super pretty.

Antsy-Pantsy Annecy

A couple of Saturdays ago I headed to the city of Annecy with some fellow au pairs. We checked out the enormous outdoor market—I mean, stall after stall of fresh fruits and veggies, breads, cheese, meats, and other specialty items. Besides the food, there were some cheapish quality clothing items, mostly shirts and pants, but there were also tables of lacy lingerie out there in the open, should you wish to buy some while you pick up your food for the week ahead. Or you could even buy a mattress. Personally I wouldn’t want to, as they were lying on the pavement between the stacks of zucchini and bunches of grapes.

Of course we stopped by a cheese vendor in stocking up our provisions for a lakeside picnic. Our selections were the Bleu des Causses (a strong conventional blue cheese), alongside something that really caught our eye, for amongst the standard cheese shades of white and yellow, stood the bright orange Mimolette—a la classic Kraft macaroni-and-cheese orange. The neon intensity got my attention, because despite the enormous selection of cheese available in France, cheddar (or any cheese with annatto coloring) is next-to-impossible to find. Here is a picture so you can see the orange color for yourself:

Photo credit goes to Noah—an action shot of me in midst of eating some of the Mimolette

Post-picnic, we headed out to explore the city. Annecy is known as the Venice of France, and it’s not without reason…First of all there are the canals:

But it was the gelato that made me really feel like I was in Italy:

After a solid two minutes standing in front of the display case weighing the options (there were a lot of flavors to choose from!), I decided to try the Chocolat Noisette. So good, with crunchy chocolate-dipped hazelnuts. It was somewhat reminiscent of Nutella, but more refined.

Some other pictures:

View from the top of the chateau d'Annecy

Along the street canals

Road trip, cows, and castles

This weekend I went to France’s Loire Valley for a family reunion; they rented out a big huge country house and I got to come along to help out and watch the kids as necessary.

At first I was a bit anxious because we were taking the car. Which meant that I was in the backseat, between two kids, for five hours. But it really wasn't that bad, if not just a tad squishy for my legs. Plus I got to check out the insides of a French gas station for the first time. Yes, they sell baguettes and Camembert cheese for roadside snacks. And for two euros, you can get access to shower facilities, located next to the bathrooms.

So we finally arrived, and as picturesque as it was, there aren’t a whole lot of things there except for… cows. All-white cows, actually, which I hadn’t seen before. (I’m accustomed to the black-and-white spotted or brown-speckled varieties. Speaking of which, my personal favorite are the Oreo cookie cows—black head and tail, with a white midsection).

So basically, I’ve discovered that:

Loire Valley = bunches of cows, munching away on expanses of green grass fields + a stonehewn barn every couple of kilometers + the occasional herd of grazing sheep.

In fact, while we were in the car on our way there, we actually had to stop for a good three minutes to watch a herd of sheep, led by a tractor, cross the road. It was funny because it made apparent the difference between the slow pace of country living, to my habituation of constantly going, moving, rushing.

The trip also made for a nice change of scenery: flat terrain in which you could see acres of farmland for miles around—instead of the rocky mountains of France that I have grown accustomed to.

As lovely as it was to be putting the adjectives “bucolic” and “pastoral” to good use, the real highlight for me was the chance to see some French CASTLES, up close and in person!

Me, I think chateaux are SO cool. Part of it probably comes from my love of fairy tales, and also because that kind of history just doesn’t exist in the US—that is, constructions that date back to Roman and/or Medieval times.

What really impressed me was that these castles actually had MOATS. To me, moats were strictly the stuff of stories—nice to imagine, but not actually in existence. But there they were, with lily pads and everything:

Gruyeres

My first weekend here we spent a day in Gruyeres, the town where they make the famous (and delicious) Swiss cheese. It was my first introduction to Switzerland. Some highlights of the day:

The mountains, of course!

The dessert specialty of the region: caramelized sugar meringue, dipped into the smooth rich and creamy creme de la Gruyere, with a side of strawberry ice cream, and an espresso

A mini street concert of the traditional Swiss alphorn, like in the Ricola cough drop commercials!

Going up the mountain on the funiculaire, and then to the very summit on the telepherique

Breathtaking sunset once we got to the top!

Traditional cheese fondue for dinner

Now every time I see Gruyere cheese at the supermarket, I think about our little trip!