In my years traveling and working in France, I’ve observed many Americans clumsily attempt to craft phrases in French while ordering in restaurants, purchasing museum tickets, or asking directions to La Tour Eiffel. Do the French turn up their nose? Do they walk away in a huff, disgusted by the American’s lack of linguistic finesse? Absolutely not! On the contrary, I’ve found that most French ... Read Full Article
Queen Paris
Other cities have their wonders, but for me, Paris is queen. Dazzling, compelling, impressive and sometimes infuriating (don't try to drive in that traffic!), the City of Light draws me back. On our latest trip, John and I stayed in the Latin Quarter at Hotel St. Jacques (see my last posting, "Paris Again," for more.) We explored the 5th Arrondissement and made it a point to eat in nearby ... Read Full Article
Exploring Provence for the First Time
Follow Linda and Dave Beach's story about their first trip to Provence: While we have been to France several times, neither my husband Dave, nor I had been to Provence, so it was new territory for both of us. We decided to rent a house for a week in the small village of Bonnieux and our subsequent explorations from there covered only approximately 50 kilometers and only included small ... Read Full Article