French Handwriting

When I took French in school, I remember asking my teacher if their handwriting was much different than Americans.  She pulled out a postcard she had from friends in France, and it was amazing to me how different their penmanship looked.

With such a rigid school system, handwriting is still an art form to master in grammer school.  I remember practicing cursive in elementary school, and even though I hated it, how I wish I was forced to have such beautiful script....

Les Fleurs

Parisian flower markets.  Just because. 

Le Goûter

The French don't snack.  Another thing I need to add to my list entitled "huhh?"

You eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner ...and that's it.  However, there is something known as "le goûter" a snack or small meal you eat around 4pm.  My research has proven different as to who enjoys what I think will be a life saver pour moi.

A frenchman I have been consulting has told me you only eat a goûter if you're under the age of 12.  I think it usually consists of something like a piece of bread with nutella.  Other resources have informed me, that anyone can take part of this late afternoon nosh session.  I would imagine that I will be eating a daily goûter since the French don't eat dinner until about 8pm... That's going about six to maybe eight hours between meals.  Mon Dieu!

The official French stand on snacking is that it's bad for your health... snack food advertisements are required to have a warning (not unlike their cigarette packaging ) that mentions the health risks involved with snacking.

There have been lots of books and articles written about how superior French parenting is to our own.   I believe there is a chapter in "Bringing up Bèbè" that talks about how we Americans are always giving our kids snack*.  Going to the Park?  Better bring a snack.  Taking a long car ride?  Grab a bag of gold fish.  And Jesus, Mary, and Joseph... don't forget the juice cup.  I don't have an opinion on this yet, since I have successfully  used snacks to quiet fussy and cranky children.  And haven't the French heard of food bribery?  Seriously, a kid will do anything for a cupcake.  I even use it myself.  In college, I would reward myself with *three* cheezits for every page of a reading I was supposed to get done. This no snack thing is also in direct conflict with my idea of healthy eating which is basically to eat all day long without ceasing... that way your metabolism doesn't stop.  Right?



*Okay, I haven't read that book yet.  There is like ten holds for it at our library.  

Les Bons Mots

I had a post planned today for more phrases.  But then I talked to a real French person, telling him about all of the obscure French I have been teaching myself...  He didn't understand anything.  Err....

After telling him about all the reading I've been doing to educate myself in the ways of "Les Français" he said to me, "well, I'm sure there are tons of things that are in your books that won't prove to be true.  You're just gonna have to see for yourself."
At this point, I don't know if he imagined me across the Atlantic ocean looking like Barbie up above, or if I just want to be French Barbie (well, who wouldn't?).

Alors!  My new French phrase I learned from a real Frenchmen, not a book...

Putain
fuck. 
My Larousse translates this as "whore."  Not unlike one of my favorite Italian dishes "Pasta Puttenesca" which basically means Slutty Spaghetti.  But this words meaning has been transformed into the ever loved F*@$!

Upon researching (I know, who researches foreign explicatives?)  I found this funny video.  Enjoy!

Les Macarons

Before the idea of moving to Paris even entered my mind, it seems like the entire world was going crazy for  les macarons.  Brides were incorporating them in their wedding cakes, books were being published solely about these pretty little cookies.  I was tempted to buy a print of one and I've never even tasted them.  Luckily, I am about to move to the city that is the mecca of macarons: