Oui, le vin est bon!

The room was packed, and people of all ages crowded on benches and leaned on tables. The smell of couscous and lamb mingled with the aroma of wine and sweat and rain. The band played over the laughter and conversations, and suddenly I heard the beginning of Chevaliers de la Table Ronde, a song I actually knew (courtesy of Madamoiselle Sullivan and my high school French classes in Colorado).

From the first verse:

Chevaliers de la table ronde/ Knights of the round table
Goutons voir si le vin est bon/ Let's taste and see if the wine is good
Goutons voir, oui oui oui/ Goutons voir, non non non/ Goutons voir si le vin est bon

through the tenth and last:

La morale de cette histoire/ The moral of this story:
C'est à boire avant de mourir/ Drink before you die!
C'est à boire, oui oui oui/ C'est à boire, non non non C'est à boire avant de mourir!

the crowd of people at the open house of a neighborhood winery sang, and drank, and laughed, and danced, and at one point (in between singing the "oui, oui, ouis" and "non, non, nons"), I looked around and just marveled at what I saw, the people, the music, the laughter, the wine. It all seemed so...French... and so very, very fun. I wished I could somehow bottle up that one moment and take it home with me, because it captured so much of what I have loved about our time in France -- friends, food, joy, wine -- and although we tried to get some pictures, I think we will have to rely mostly on our memories most for this one.

It was a great weekend from start to finish. After my quick market morning, we spent Saturday afternoon celebrating Penelope's 2nd birthday at our house. Kate and Liv absolutely adore Penelope (and Jack loves playing with her big sisters, Lauren and Claudia) and they had decorated the house with balloons of every color. After a few years of being the youngest, I think they are VERY happy to have someone else take on that role; they proudly showed off their mature, nearly-five-year-old-girl skills (like helping Penny put on her shoes, and picking up whatever she dropped).

And all five of the kids spent part of the visit trading Pokemon cards (Jack, Lauren and Claudia most seriously, although Kate and Liv got into the game). This is a mixed bag for a parent... the next morning, Katie proudly showed me a card and said "I traded my strongest card for this one because it's just so cute!" Hmmmm... she was happy, so that should have been fine, but we are wondering exactly how you teach a child to barter, bargain, and bluff, too (Jack had no trouble learning these skills). Not an easy task!

At any rate -- after the gouter (snack) and delicious birthday tarte, we all headed to Claire Naudin's, of Domaine Naudin Ferrand in Magny-les-Villers. The local winemaker, a friend of Franck and Laura's (and mother of a classmate of Jack's), was holding the annual winemaker's "open house" in the next village just one kilometer away.

As usual, John and I had no idea what to expect. And as usual, we had greatly underestimated just how great it would be. I think I had pictured it being a time to sample a few kinds of wine, and then we'd eat mediocre food prepared for the masses.

Instead, we arrived to a room filled with wine, yes (from seven different winemakers) but also crafts, locally grown food and specialty items (homemade jams, spice breads, salt), hot crepes, music (the band played off and on the whole evening and into the  night), and a craft corner and facepainting for children. The couscous dinner was delicious, and the wine was, of course, divine. We saw many people we knew -- one of the perks of living in a small village! -- and had dinner with Geraldine and Thomas as well as the parents of Laurie, a "big girl" who Katie has labelled as her best friend.

 

And the music and singing really capped the whole fun evening off. Aside from a Christmas carol or Auld Lang Syne on New Year's Eve, I can't recall a dinner where people starting singing (with great enthusiasm) drinking songs! Clearly something else we might need to bring back to Canada...

We all slept in on Sunday (which means til about 8 a.m.!) and although it wasn't officially Mother's Day here (in fact, it seems I will miss Mother's Day this year... it is at the end of May in France, was in March in England, and was yesterday in North America), John and the kids doted on me all morning, bringing coffee and food to bed, and leaving me alone to indulge in the weirdly addictive Twilight Series (why oh why did I start these vampire tales?).

We took a walk after lunch and came back to prepare a tarte aux fraises (strawberry tarte) for the gouter with my host parents, Denys and Christine. They LOVED the village and our France home, and marvelled at the beauty that surrounds us. Liv seemed to instantly bond with Denys, and spent much of the visit on his lap. I had asked Christine if she would bring her recipe for my favorite gateau au chocolat, and she took me through the process, step by step.

This is what we ended up with. Pas mal, n'est pas?

Denys also brought with him a painting he had done of me, from a picture I had sent them 17 years ago. It is black and white watercolor, and just amazing to see in real life. I am amazed at anyone who can create things with their hands (art, music, food) and will treasure this gift always.

And we returned back to regular French life this morning, with school for the kids and a work trip for John. The kids and I stopped for croissants on the way back from the train station since we were a bit too early for school, and I had to brush the crumbs off all three before sending them into their classrooms. They certainly have taken to French bread (big surprise there, eh?)

This afternoon, the girls (for who knows what reason) asked to hear the lyrics of O Canada on the computer. That led to a good half hour of listening to national anthems from around the world. If you find yourself with a bit of time, it's pretty interesting to read all of the lyrics as well as listen to the songs. The U.S.'s anthem, besides being r-e-a-l-l-y difficult to sing (Livie was NOT impressed with my "lan-and of the freeeeee!"), is SO focused on battle. I rarely thought about that when singing it growing up -- it just always did and still does give me chills when I hear it -- and often makes me cry. But I had never spent much time actually listening to the words (and who knew there were four verses?). Anyway... my other problem is that I always want to end it with an enthusiastic "Play ball!". I wonder if that instinct will ever go away!

France's anthem, La Marseillaise, always brings to mind that wonderful scene in Casablanca, but I had never read the English words until today. It is also a very bloody, bloody song. As the national anthem website explains:

The lyrics, speaking of bloody battles and a call for citizens to take up arms, have been debated endlessly whether to alter the words to suit the more peaceful times that France currently enjoys, but the original words, capturing the spirit of the French revolution, remain. This is probably due to the fact that "La Marseillaise" is now inexorably linked to France in the mind of the world.

The first verse of England's anthem is all about the Queen (later verses touch on everything from confounding the politics of its enemies and frustrating their knavish tricks). Croatia's is all about the land. Poland's anthem speaks to its tumultuous history of partition and preservation (Poland has not yet Perished). And Canada's anthem, which is so wonderfully easy to sing, has such different words depending on if you're singing it in French or in English.

Such interesting stuff.

Tomorrow should be a good day for Kate and Liv -- their class is going to ride ponies. And it will be a stressful (but hopefully satisfying) morning for me -- another haircut. Fingers crossed that it goes as well as the first one!

A family recipe

Still no official word on what the mystery plant may be. Might be reason to come back to Burgundy some spring in the future just to research more!

But... my dad did ask me to pass along his special "anti-skunk" recipe to my amazing in-laws after reading about our faithful hound Kaia's encounter with a skunk earlier this week. I did. And then I realized that since I often post or link to recipes (for things like tarte au chocolat or tortillas, true), maybe someone out there might be helped by my dad's surefire way to get the skunk smell off of a dog.

From the all time skunk trapper of Teller County, Colorado: Mix together one quart of 3% hydrogen peroxide, 1 teaspoon of mild liquid dishwashing detergent and 1/4 cup of baking soda.  Before bathing your pet, put cotton balls in his ears and a drop of mineral oil in each eye to prevent the mixture from irritating the eyes.  Rub the mixture through your pet's coat and brush it through with a soft brush, then rinse well.  You might have to repeat it until the odor is gone, but it really does work.  This is my long time remedy from Heloise.  When a skunk sprays the yard, I use a spray bottle and spray it around and it gets rid of the odor.  Poor Kaia.

Are skunks a problem in France? I can just imagine the conversation with Geraldine and Thomas (who patiently answer all of my random French questions) -- it's sure to be a good one!

In completely non-smelly other news... the kids and I are surviving John's absence for a work trip (we finished day four today -- hooray!), and we couldn't have made it through today without Lauren, Claudia and Penelope (and their parents). I was running low on patience this morning, and had a long list of shopping to do at both the Beaune Saturday market and the regular supermarket to prepare for my mom's visit. The kids do NOT love going to the market with me. They love the carousel there, of course, and John always takes them to it on any market morning. But going from stall to stall while I buy vegetables and cheese and chicken has never been their favorite activity. And with all of the tourists coming to town and the market more crowded than ever, it would have been even less fun.

So Alli kindly offered to have me drop the kids at her place and sent me on my way. What a friend! I had a great market morning -- a few of my favorite vendors passed along little extras today, some breadsticks and a few extra flowers -- and you will be shocked to hear I bought all of my favorite cheeses -- but this time for selfless reasons! My mom and Sharon can't eat gluten -- when I explained that to different vendors they gave a look of recognition (they had clearly heard of a gluten allergy) and then all of them, every single one, gave the saddest face ever at the thought of being unable to eat French bread. So I figured what they will miss in bread we will make up for in cheese! How very, very noble of me, I know.

The kids had a blast playing with the May girls. Kate and Liv adore anything that the nearly two-year-old Penelope does (and Penelope loves having them as adoring fans). Jack, Lauren and Claudia traded a few Pokemon cards while they were at it. And when I returned with my final haul, all the kids (and moms) walked back to town to get an ice cream cone -- a perfect end to a day that could have been so stressful and frustrating for all four of us. I did get a bit misty as we walked and I watched Lauren hold Kate and Liv's hands, and Jack take Penelope's while talking to Claudia... because it is clear how lucky we are to have such good friends, and how sad we are to be getting to a point where we can count down how many more market mornings we'll have. That's just not something I want to think about too much.

So... to avoid any more weepy eyes, I'll just say the kids and I returned and started getting ready for Mom and Sharon. John will pick up them up tomorrow night in Lyon after having made a whirlwind trip to Paris and Barcelona (again, I am struck by how much cooler than sounds than making a whirlwind trip to, say, Calgary and Winnipeg). And hopefully, at this time tomorrow night, I'll be saying bienvenue maman!

I never thought this day would come...

...but it has. Today marks the first day that I have officially had my fill of French cheese.

It took coming to the French Alps (through the Jura, home of the stinky and wonderful Mont D'Or) to get to this point. But the home of fondue, raclette, and tartiflette (which my friend Geraldine wrote about, in English, on her blog) has led to this sorry, sad state.

To counter all the deliciousness of this region, John and I did the only thing we could think of doing when given the chance to go out to eat tonight while Kathy and Alex watched the kids. We headed straight for a Japanese restaurant.

And it was great. I don't think miso soup has ever tasted as good as it did tonight, after spending a few days under the spell of the Savoy region's specialties, which seem to have been created to eat after days of hiking and skiing (and not just meandering around town, walking to an awesome ice cave, or taking a tram -- pictures to follow after we get home tomorrow).

And as I happily plucked pieces of salmon with soy and ginger with my chopsticks (snitching bites of John's sushi from time to time), I felt like things had come full circle. In Japan, given the chance I headed straight for the wonderful French restaurant across the street. Now in France, given the chance (and at last too much cheese), I returned to Japan -- at least for one night.

A visit from a good friend -- w/PHOTOS ADDED March 30

The kids have been literally bouncing since the arrival of Elise, a French woman whom we have known since the summer of 2006. She had come to Lethbridge to attend the wedding of a great friend (whose family members are great friends of ours) and she stayed on two months to see more of the U.S. and Canada, practice her English, and help us with the kids. Now a professional technical writer and translator, and fluent in three languages (French, English and German... Katie pointed out that she can count to ten in three languages -- French, English and Japanese, which is practically the same thing), Elise stopped by Burgundy en route from Austria to her family's home in Brittany for Easter.

Everyone is thrilled.

I don't know how much the girls remember her -- they were just one the summer she stayed with us -- but they warmed up to her right away and all three kids have been fighting over who gets to sit by her, who gets to hold her hand, who gets to hug her. It's pretty wonderful to see.

We decided to celebrate by visiting a chateau this afternoon, and picked the one John ran by in his race -- Le Chateau du Clos du Vougeot. It is home to amazing winemaking equipment, including two 500-year-old ENORMOUS wine presses. According to the chateau's website, the château and its vineyards were the property of the Abbey of Cîteaux (which we visited with John's parents in February) until the French Revolution after which they were considered "state property". In the 1800s, the chateau passed from one owner to another, until 1944, when it was sold it to the organization Société civile des Amis du Château du Clos de Vougeot ("Friends of the Château du Clos de Vougeot"), which gave the Confrérie des Chevaliers du Tastevin a 99 year lease on the property.

It is a beautiful chateau, and Kate and Liv spent a lot of the time when not peering down a well or snooping in the former monk's dormitory pushing Fou-Fou across an old stone table in the castle close. Jack was at school and so missed this one chateau, but he and Elise got to take a walk up to Les Chaume before dinner and so had their own special outing, too.

You can also check out the tarte aux pommes I made for dinner, courtesy of Laura's family recipe.I seem to be having more luck baking (at last) now that I am sticking to French recipes. Later this week -- tarte au citron (I hope!).

And I just added more pictures -- but my computer is still being cranky. They are a bit out of order and won't stay centered... but hopefully you can get the idea of the fun we are having!

 

A French fiesta

We had a great dinner last night with Thomas and Geraldine, their kids, and their friends Muriel, Sylvie and Jeremie. Geraldine had wanted to introduce Muriel to John as she has ties to one of the local Buddhist communities.

So we cracked open the Coronas and lime, offered fresh salsa, guacamole, (super-super hot) marinated green chilis and homemade tortillas and nibbled while the enchiladas finished cooking.

Everyone enjoyed it thoroughly, although it was probably the least French-like meal to be found in all of Burgundy last night, with a few small exceptions. I had to use shredded emmenthal and fresh mozzarella for the enchiladas as there was nothing close to sharp cheddar or Montery jack cheese (still tasty, though!), and instead of trying to make a traditional Mexican dessert (sopapillas or fried ice cream), I instead opted for a tarte au chocolat (with a dash of cinnamon).

And I was hugely relieved that the tarte turned out. Maybe I just needed to make a French recipe for my French baking skills to actually result in something edible? At any rate, I used Laura's wonderful and easy-peasy recipe for the pastry and found a French recipe for the chocolate part online (only to find out Geraldine has a recipe for tarte au chocolat on her blog that I should have turned to instead. Next time, I'll go there first!)

On the health front -- Katie showed no more signs of illness, thankfully, although she did take a BIG nap yesterday afternoon. So while Jack and Liv crashed before the party ended, Katie stayed awake til the end, and at midnight she was munching on chips while watching us clean up. What a party girl.

Here are a few photos of our fiesta. The first two are evidence of successful tortilla making:

Sorry about the bad shadows on the next two -- but I wanted to show off the tomato-and-(canned)-corn salsa (lots of garlic and cilantro, too) and the limey-guacamole:

The kids set the table and were happy to have their own small kids-table. In the second photo, Jack is making name cards:

I forgot to take a picture of the beer or the enchiladas -- you'll have to trust me that they were all tasty. Here is everyone at desset, and a close-up of the tarte:

And finally, a photo of the beautiful orchid Muriel and Sylvie brought us.

The French seem to have a wonderful talent for bringing the most thoughtful gifts when coming to your house for a meal. We are now the happy owners of this amazing orchid -- and, from Thomas and Geraldine, a terrific cookbook... on French cooking, of course.

Merci mes amis!

Twenty-seven tortillas, one jar of "le cumin", and six Coronas later...

No, I haven't had the Coronas yet, but I did have much more success at the grocery stores today. I stopped by a different one (which proclaimed it was "the better market" -- a title which turned out to be true this time around) and quickly found "le cumin". I am now fully prepared to make loads of Indian food, too, with my big bottles of cumin and tumeric!

And I also found what I *think* could possibly maybe perhaps turn out to be something close to cream cheese. I shelved all of my pride, searched for what looked like something that resembled cream cheese, and approached the cheese counter for a hilarious conversation that essentially confirmed that I had indeed found a soft, bland, tasteless processed cheese that children like to eat. Perfect. I think Kraft and Philadelphia Cream Cheese company will soon be incorporating that definition into all of their marketing and promotions!

For the record, it was pas-de-probleme to make the tortillas yesterday, although I stopped at 27 and picked up a bag of store ones (for the kids, I told myself) in case we run out.

And... I found a six-pack of Corona at the store. Hooray! John did wonder a bit at the wisdom of paying top dollar (or euro) for mediocre Mexican beer. I convinced him it would add a certain je ne sais quoi to the celebration. We'll see what everyone thinks.

One small glitch... we got a call from school today (no one likes those) saying Katie had been sick and would we please come and pick her up right away. She also threw up on the way home. Since then -- she's been fine.

So...I left a message with Geraldine and Thomas  letting them know (and had to contemplate the following before calling: "hmmm, what is the past-participle of 'to vomit'"? Elle a vomi? Elle est vomue?") and hope the dinner is still on. We also learned, when picking Kate up, that there is one other case of a gastro-illness in class and both head lice and chicken pox are going around. Nice to know some things about preschools are the same around the world (and I am quite thankful our chicken pox drama is behind us).

Well, I'm off to pick Jack up at school and finish the party prep. I'll try to remember to take pictures of our Mexican feast (French style).  

Bon appetit!