I love the fact that Baden, my little town in southern Brittany, has its own coat of arms (in French, le blason or les armoiries). Photo compliments of Daniel Dozier of Cinq&Co. The three shells on blue clearly represent the sea, whereas the black figures on the...
I have made a big decision: starting this fall/winter, I will start managing my Marais apartment myself. There were a number of factors that went into this decision. But above all, I miss having the personal contact with those renting my home. As many of you know, I...
I am still sorting through all my notes, photos and cartes de visite (business cards) from this summer's travels, but I will soon be posting four new weekend itineraries: The Marais Poitevin, La Rochelle and Île de Ré (4 nights) Belle-Île-en-Mer, Brittany (1 night)...
Mont Saint-Michel is one of the most visited sites in France, for good reason. If you are able, visit off-season, early in the morning, or in the evening when the crowds are fewer. But sometimes it's just not worth battling the crowds. Visiting Mont Saint-Michel is...
This summer, I started using MapMyRun.com. I had used it in the past to "map my run" but it had not occurred to me before this summer to use this tool for mapping my walks as well. This is the circuit I made, clockwise My first guinea pig was a walk in the Séné...
This summer, I discovered French beer. There's no pairing like a Breton beer with an apple & salted butter caramel crêpe! France is known for its wine, not for its beer. But there is a growing number of microbreweries in France and some produce beer that can...
One day soon after my arrival in Paris, a co-worker starting talking to me about "my banker". I remember thinking he was pretty full of himself. Sure, I had a checking account with Citibank in New York, but I didn't consider the representative who set up the account...
In France, Mariage Frères is synonymous with the art of tea. The brand is as well-known in the world of tea as Kleenex is for tissues. The Mariage family's first tea company was established in Paris on June 1, 1854, although the family's work in sourcing tea from...
This year, Notre Dame de Paris is celebrating her 850th birthday. France24 put together a wonderful video outlining the history of the cathedral and the birthday celebrations, including the behind-the-scenes work. To commemorate her 850, Notre Dame is receiving a new...
Last night, having missed the opportunity when I was about 30 years younger, my aunt and uncle took me to my very first circus. View out my living room window (left) / Lion sleeping (right) My interest in going to the circus started last month, when the circus first...
