Well, July 4th is behind us and that means only one thing: July 14th is just around the corner! Cocorico. Dust off your béret and French maid costumes... it's time to parté*!! I'll be updating this post as more events are announced but for now, here is a guide, in chronological order, to all things Bastille Day in Paris on the Potomac: FRIDAY, JULY 5-SUNDAY JULY 14 Bistrot Lepic is one of my favourite little French restaurant in the city and they're celebrating France's Fête Nat' with a special 3-courses $34.95 special menu the whole week leading up to le quatorze juillet. Chose from soupe de légumes et haricots au pistou (soupe de pistou is the best thing ever, trust me), pied de cochon ...
Vive la Revolution (Americaine)
Last year, I wrote a post for Borderstan on the 5 things everyone should know about France's national holiday, le quatorze juillet. The main things to take away from that post is don't call it Bastille Day (nobody in France does) and don't call it France's Independence Day. Because it's not. But you know whose independence day it is today? America!!! In honour of the US of A's national holiday, I thought I would return the favour and give you a few things that you should know about July 4th! Starting with why Americans celebrate their national holiday on July 4th. The answer isn't as straightforward as you would think... So the colonies (all thirteen of them back then) began to rebel ...
First Impressions ~ Decanter at the St. Regis
Previously home to Adour, Decanter is the St. Regis Washington, D.C.’s newest signature restaurant. Inspired by his childhood in Saint-Jean-de-Luz in France’s Basque country, Executive Chef Sebastien Rondier, (who worked with Alain Ducasse for more than 10 years), has designed a Mediterranean themed menu with delectable flavors from the South of France, Italy, Turkey and Spain. With so many new restaurants opening these days, Washingtonians have many different options available. But Laetitia and I share a love for good French food so we wanted to try Decanter right away... And I’m certainly glad we did! It was truly une experience inoubliable. Unlike the menu, the décor at Decanter remains ...
If D.C. were an ice cream, it would be chill. Capitol Chill.
Earlier in June it was announced that Ben and Jerry's would be churning up ice cream flavours to reprensent five different U.S. cities. Washington, D.C. was one of the chosen few and last week, we kicked off the show with the reveal of our very own ice cream flavour. Drumroll: Capitol Chill. As part of Ben and Jerry's City Churned Campaign, ice cream fan based in the district voted (sort of) to have the following represent us: chocolate ice cream (we're known as Chocolate City after all...) with Divine Chocolate corn-flake clusters, marshmallows and caramel swirls along with a Route 11 sweet potato chip. Sounds pretty good right? It was. Though you'll have to trust my word for it because ...
Tour de France 2013 & Biking in DC
The 100th edition of the Tour de France kicked off in Corsica today. It's the first time the peloton is riding through the "island of beauty" since the tour's inception in 1903 (yes, if you do the math that's technically 110 years, but the tour took some breaks during WWI and WWII.) Over the next 3 weeks, riders will pedal over 2,110 miles throughout the country before the maillot jaune and other cyclists' final sprint up the Champs Elysees on July 21st. To honour le tour, I thought I'd dedicate a post to biking in Washington. Earlier in the year, Walk Score ranked Washington, D.C. as the 6th most "bikeable" city in the country based on factors such as bike lanes, hilliness, road ...
La Fête de la Musique at Malmaison
Malmaison and l'Alliance Française teamed up again this year to host the 2013 edition of la Fête de la Musique. La Fête de la Musique is France's annual celebration of music that takes place on the longest day of the year. Musicians take to the streets (for amateurs) and to public stages (for professionals and more established artists) to give free concerts. In Washington, French establishments like the Sofitel Hotel and the French Embassy typically host events, as does l'Alliance Française. For 13 hours, 13 different artists took the stage and took Washingtonians on summer journey through many musical worlds. Here are a few pictures I took during the daytime portion of event at ...
Macarons Ice Cream Sandwiches
Imitation is the best form of flattery I guess... can you tell which is which? Both look pretty amazing for a hot summer day! ...
Save the date: French Baseball Appreciation Night
So I may hate baseball, but it looks like some Frenchies are into the bat-and-ball game. There's even a French Baseball (and Softball) Federation. Apparently, we even have a French national team. I guess you learn something new everyday ;-) So the French Baseball Federation wants to help baseball adverse expats like myself better understand America's (second) favourite sport. Next Tuesday (June 25th), the FFBS is welcoming us to "French Baseball Appreciation Night." The federation's president, Didier Seminet, will be there to explain the rules of the game for those who still don't get it while the Nationals take on the Arizona Diamondbacks. Pour plus d'informations et pour achetez ...
(Canned) Wine Wednesday
One of my guilty pleasures when I'm out "clubbing" is sipping on a can of bubbly Sofia Blanc de Blanc. I had to put clubbing in quotation marks here... I'm in my 30s and have been married for 6 years... clubbing pretty much means I'm out past midnight and there may even be loud music involved ;-) So I'm not opposed per se to the idea of drinking wine out of a can. I admit it, I've done it. I've even enjoyed it. I've also bought wine in a box, mainly for sangria-making purchases though. I'm just saying, I might be French, but I'm open minded. Well, sort of. All that wine was American wine and I'm not sure how I feel about French wine in a can. Good French wine. AOC* wine. In a can. French ...
Paris or DC ~ Cathedral Edition
"Il est venu le temps des Cathedrales Le monde est entré Dans un nouveau millénaire L´homme a voulu monter vers les étoiles Écrire son histoire Dans le verre ou dans la pierre." ~ Notre Dame de Paris One is one of the largest cathedral in the world, the other is one of the most famous Cathedral in the world. One is Catholic one is Episcopalian. Both have gargoyles, but only one of them has a grotesque sculpture of a Star Wars villain... Notre Dame de Paris vs the Washington National Cathedral ~ can you tell which one is pictured above? ...
