Jewish Food in France

A couple years ago, my friend Joan Nathan, a Washington, D.C.-based food writer and author, called and said she was coming to France, doing research for a new book. I snapped to attention, not just because I love Joan but also because I loved the topic: Jewish food in France. Joan was looking for cooks, stories, recipes, family lore, historical documents--anything that would help her piece

Passion! Ambition! Butter!

Tomorrow can't come fast enough for foodies here in the States, because that's when Julie & Julia comes out. The new movie has gotten huge press but if you haven't heard about the it, here's the gist. A young woman named Julie Powell, working in a depressing job in lower Manhattan and dreaming of becoming a writer, decides she's going to cook every dish--that's 524 recipes--in Julia Child's

Live and Learn

Tricia Harris hosts workshops in painting, drawing and French at Mas du Palmier in Paradou. The other day she dropped me a note to let me know about openings in upcoming classes...so of course I shook her down for discounts for my readers. Who loves ya?

First, the painting class. Led by Eyragues-based Canadian painter Catherine Schmid, the small-group class consists of three half days and one

Funny in French

I ran into an English friend, Matt Beer, the other day and asked how his French was coming along. Not so good, was the reply. It turns out that Matt, one of the funnier people I know, still finds it virtually impossible to be funny in French. Because I’m also one of the funnier people I know, I totally relate. I asked Matt to write a little something about that and here’s what he sent.

So the

LOST IN TRANSLATION?

I just happened on a wonderful new program called MeGlobe. (Register free at MeGlobe.com and choose a username and password.) It's basically a real time translator for instant messaging, which allows you to "chat" with people all over the world, in their own language. As you type, you'll see your original message as well as the translation of it, into the language of your choice. (There are many,