Alive and Well & Living in France, now Italy!: June 2008

Sunday, June 22, 2008

Le Café

The café - a place to take a coffee or drink and have a pause.... from the daily grind. One can idle for hours at an outdoor café here and never worried about being asked to leave. I love to people watch and no better place to sit and watch the world go by. The other morning on my way to school I saw the garbagemen (who were doing their route) taking a pause at the local café to take a coffee. Not worrying one bit about the time on the clock or whether it was okay to take a break. This is what one does here - it's normal!!. The French definitely appreciate the time they take for themselves and don't worry about production time lost - everything gets done in due time......

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

ATTACK of the Self-Cleaning Toilet

Yes, this is exactly what happened, to poor Rachel that is. The French have designed these great automatic self-cleaning toilets that sort of reassure you that it is okay to go in and use one of these sidewalk toilets because they are cleaned after each use. However, they are not designed for more than one person at a time, where one person goes out and the other one is left inside, only to be completely sprayed from all sides with water and cleaner (and frankly who knows what else). Rachel came out of one of these dripping wet, crying and laughing at the same time, trying to explain what happened. She was a complete sport about it, but you couldn't help but laugh with her!!I could very easily see this happening to me.

So beware la toilette automatique in France.....

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Foie Gras in the Cantine

The girls and I enjoy some good albeit interesting lunches at times. It is quite different from any school lunch we are accustomed to. We always have a starter and bread of course, followed by a main dish and then cheese and bread and of course yogurt, fruit yogurt, flan, chocolate, yogurt with sugar, you name it, we have had it!!

One Friday we had foie gras for our starter!! The children actually spread it on the bread and then eat it. Even the two year olds were given this. I guess that's one way to introduce the palette to different tastes at such a young age. Did Rachel and Isabel eat it? What do you think???!!!

A La Marché

I love the markets and the girls do as well. We pull our cart up to the market, yes, we have one of those "old lady carts" and savor what vegetables and fruits are in season. We have our "favorites" - we visit the same fruit and vegetable stand every week and when they see us coming, they always try out the little bit of English they know on us. The jolly old cheese man who gives the girls endless samples of his yummy cheese, the "chicken man" who has the best tasting poulet roti I have ever had, even the women who sells children's clothing is always eager to help us find exactly what we are looking for. These vendors take pride in their wares and take the time to ask you when you will eat the fruit, ensuring they pick the best one for that day. The customer service at these markets is probably something French people take for granted and just assume it's the norm, however for us, it is a nice change of pace to know you can purchase something and it has truly come from the heart.

You Are Charging Me How Much???!!!

7,50 euros for an application of mousse!! That is what my itemized bill said after I dared to look at it upon leaving the hairdresser. I feel certain I have paid for the entire case of the stuff for a month. For every bit of extra service one needs, you pay for it. I cannot figure out if our prices in America are so inflated that we don't even know we are paying exhoribitant prices or the French are nickel and diming every foreigner they can to get back at their own government for the high taxes they must pay.

Its All Relative

The living situation in France bring a whole new meaning to the word "small". Obviously people are smaller in both size and stature here, and their defination of "personal space" is completely opposite of mine, but come on!! 140 cm for 2 people. Basically this is the size of an american twin/double. I told my husband he better stop making extra trips to the bakery or we are going to have to get an extend-a-bed to fit him!!

I am still trying to imagine how anybody over 170 pounds fits in these french tubs. If you have wide hips, forget it. I am sure the pompiers have been called on more than one occasion to yank someone out of the tub. I do like the fact the toilet area is separate from the "douche" room, however, being the claustrophobic I am, have the toilet in a space the size of a closet just doesn't go over well with me. Even when you are there for just a bit, there is no ventilation, thereby causing one to continuely keel over from the sheer odor. I am sure my whole family will be diagnosed with some form of rare cancer from all the "odeur de maladie spray" we use everytime we exit "the closet".

Nothing Seems to Work Properly

Not even the liquid soap works correctly. I was warned about things not working well and the level of service one expects from living in the states. I am confussed why everything I have purchased thus far has broken or failed to live up to its expectation. I am trying to rationalize whether one pays a high price for each item they want just so they can have the thing live on way beyond their lifetime. This way, indeed they can pass on that foot pedal trash bin onto their children and even grandchildren if they are lucky to have it endure for that long.

My children are lucky, I think..... our 50 euro trash bin complete with a foot pedal broke after a month. They'll be able to put in for the "upgraded" model and the foot pedal won't get kicked around the kitchen floor all day long.

Many of the items from France are shipped from China, (Gasp) but the route is shorter. Maybe the items going to the states have an opportunity to ferment longer at sea, thereby creating a more rugged product. By the time the product reaches America, that liquid soap can handle lots of pushes. The route from China to Europe is much shorter, leaving me to believe not enough salt air has aged the product.

Le Bisous

Instead of a hug, one greets their friends, lovers, male, female etc with one kiss on each cheek - really almost an airbrush kiss. It takes some coordination to make sure the kiss lands on the cheek quickly as before you know it the person has turned their head to have the other cheek kissed. I have to admit I like this greeting. It is a bit more personal and takes some getting used to, but it is a very sweet way to greet or say goodbye to someone. However, one has to know when it is appropriate to use "le bisous". I wait for someone to initiate it as I am not sure if or when I should even be initiating this greeting, for fear of appearing over eager. Now, not everyone is the reciprocal of "le bisous". There is sort of an initiation to being on the receiving end of a kiss. It appears that one must have made your acquaintance at least a few times before, or just a "bonjour" or handshake is given. On that note, I'd say make lots of friends and give lots of bisous!! Remember one has to kiss both cheeks, if just one is done, it could be construed as the "kiss of death"!!