The French Countryside and City

Saturday, I woke up at 7 am with an energy that I never have when I have to get up for school on weekdays, because I was going to Lyon! Earlier that week a friend had invited me and a few other people to go with him to Lyon to visit the new mall, it ended up being Dorian, Matilde and me who were able to go spend 12 hours of endless walking, sightseeing, eating and shopping in the Capital of Lights ( a nickname given to Lyon for "La Fete des Lumieres").

Dorian and I were dropped off at the train station in St. Vallier, bought our tickets and hopped on the train. We were reunited with Matilde at the next stop because she lives in a small village further away. One thing that I love about Europe and I wish existed in the US is a good rail system. In the US, you're practically forced to use a car if you want to go anywhere and if you're not 16 you have to find someone to drive you; trains are better for the environment, let you be independent and connect small towns to big city centers, but it's all part of the culture. The train stopped right at the Part Dieu and we started shopping right away.

The Part Dieu is quite large, but it was hard for my friends to impress me by its size considering I'm used to The Mall of America, on the other hand I was impressed by the number of french bakeries there were. : )

France is known as a fashion capital, however it's the American flag that is in style right now in France. They have clothes, shoes, scarves, purses, earrings, and anything else you can think of with the American flag plastered on it, so naturally I decided to try on (practically) everything I could find with the stars and stripes.

After I was done looking like an American, we went to eat at another well known symbol of America. Mc Donald's. We didn't go to Mc Donald's for nothing; Matilde saw some Danish people and was able to chat with them for a while. Over the course of the day we of course heard lots of Americans and British people, and Matilde asked me if I wasn't ever excited to hear Americans in France, but I had to reply no.  Even if this experience is the best way to be immersed in a language English is everywhere, and is almost impossible to avoid. I find it both flattering, funny and shocking that sometimes when I'm introduced to people as an American that they will immediately try and say something to me in English. Americans are both blessed and cursed with English being a rather international language; we have the ease of traveling with the high probability that we will be able to communicate with others in English, but because of this many Americans have a " I don't need to learn another language because everyone else speaks English" mentality, which holds us back from many cultural experiences and communication in general.

My new friend.

I think we went into every bakery and candy shop Lyon had to offer.

We walked so much, just look at all of those stairs!

But it was worth the incredible view of Lyon.

If you remember my post about the opera in February, you'll remember that I mentioned the basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, well I finally got to see it!

Sitting on some Roman amphitheatre ruins with Matilde.

Just look at the line to get into Holister at the new mall.

Matilde showing off  her Danish pride.

After all of that walking we started to get hungry...

So, we ate some Italian at Viapiano. Yum!

Do what the sign says. Don't wait, go to Lyon!

Sunday, I did the exact opposite of my day in Lyon; that afternoon I went with my host sister, Sarah, Dorian and his parents to "ferme en ferme" which is a weekend where some farms decide to open their doors to the public to show them what and how they make their products. We saw; goats, bees and ducks and a lot of the countryside in between.

At the goat farm we tasted five different kinds of goat cheese, but just a warning, the one year old goat cheese is really strong.

The foie gras farm prided itself for being "factory free" because apparently they're able to force feed the ducks and geese more food when it's done by hand.

Future foie gras.

The last farm we saw was a honey farm and we were lucky because the only day of the week that the bees don't sting is Sunday.

I had a fun, busy and diverse weekend seeing both sides of France.

20 French Foods You Have To Try

Over the course of my seven months in France, I've tasted a wide variety of French foods, some have made me say "Oh la la" and others are better left on the plate. Before I came to France I was an incredibly picky eater, one of my biggest fears before coming was the fact that I'd be living with another family who would prepare foods I'm unfamiliar with and I wouldn't want to offend them if I didn't like the food. To my amazement there has barely been any food that I absolutely couldn't eat and in these seven months I've discovered new foods and rediscovered foods that I once refused to even taste. To my parents astonishment I now eat and love salad, it must be that French vinaigrette. Practically everyday, in France I have yogurt for lunch and dinner, but before I came I barely ever touched yogurt, much less plain yogurt. When I explained to my host family and friends that in the US I drink milk with every meal, the idea shocked them and maybe even grossed them out, in France they get their daily requirement of calcium from their after meal cheese/yogurt. My host family even has an entire shelf in their fridge dedicated entirely to yogurt and my host sister explained to me that she "can't imagine not having a yogurt after she's finished eating because a yogurt finishes the meal". Anyway, since "la gastronomie francaise" is a very important part of my life here I thought I'd tell you a little bit about some French Foods that deserve to be tasted.

 1. Quenelles

Quenelles come from Lyon and are therefore a specialty of my region, they are made from eggs, milk and flour and when eaten have a dough like texture. We usually eat them with a creamy sauce and although most people here have plain quenelles, they can also be made with meat.

2.Foie Gras

Foie Gras, or in English fat liver, is exactly that, it is the liver of a goose or a duck that has been specially fattened by the technique of force feeding. Around Christmas time and New Years the French eat a lot of foie gras, in only two weeks around the Christmas season, I had already eaten foie gras three times. The first time I had foie gras I didn't know what to expect, from it's color and texture it looks rather bland but as they say looks can be deceiving. It has a very, butter like consistency and practically melts on your tongue, I would also say that it's very rich, you can only eat a little before it's too much.

3. French Bread

Let's take a moment to talk about the cornerstone of France. Bread. I don't know what France would do without bread and frankly, how I've lived without it for 15 years. In my small French town of 4,000 there are 5 bakeries and 2 pâtisseries, which is a bakery that makes only cakes, pastries and sweets. I think that for almost every lunch and dinner that I've had in France, I've had at least one slice of bread, which means since I've been here, I've had around 430 slices of bread.... There is always bread at home and about once a day or every two days we'll get more bread from the baker. One bit of advice that other exchange students have given is "observe and copy" so I applied this bit of advice for eating as well; I use my bread to push food onto my fork, and to wipe my plate clean after I've finished (you can't even tell that the plate was used) just like my French friends.

4. Quiche

I hope all of you have already tried a quiche, but if you haven't it's egg batter baked in a pastry shell and can be mixed with everything from ham to spinach. I've noticed that quiche is a dish that's made when you have no idea what to do for supper, it's the basic go-to recipe for France and it's good both warm and cold.

5. Mascotte

Here's a photo of Jonnie (another exchange student from Australia who's now in the south of France) and me with our mascottes in front of the bakery across from the high school. Now what's a mascotte? It's a donut that will change your life. Who would have known that fried dough, nutella and powdered sugar would go so well together? The further south you go in France the more donuts there are and at the sea there are tons of donut carts that sell donuts right on the beach.

6. Raclette

Raclette is a Swiss/French cheese dish and is typically eaten during winter. Raclette is the name of the cheese that is melted  in a special dish (like the one above) and then eaten with a wide variety of foods; potatoes, lots of different types of sausage and lunch meat (called charcuterie) , pickles, radishes and onions. It's a great meal to warm you up on a cold winter night and is  usually a very social meal because everyone is constantly warming up their cheese and moving about.

7. Pâté en Croûte

Pâté en Croûte is  mixed ground meat and fat which is then mixed so that it can be spread. After it has been made  into a paste it is then baked with a crust in a bread pan. It's served cold becaue it's supposed to have more flavor after having been chilled for a few days.

8. Crème de Marrons

This is the jar of chestnut cream that I sent to my parents. It's a food specialty from l'Ardeche

9. Gratin Dauphinois

I've had gratin dauphinois since I was a kid, but there's a huge difference between boxed gratin dauphinois with dehydrated potatoes and fresh home made gratin dauphinois. This dish is made with sliced potatoes, cream and sometimes ham and then baked in the oven.

10. Escargots

Most snails that are eaten are first removed from their shells, served with a garlic butter sauce and then put back in their shells. The first time I ever had snails was on a cruise with my family and godparents and something cracked when I took a bite, so I was afraid to have another experience like that when coming to France. I must have just eaten a bad one because all of the snails that I've had in France have been delicious and have not made any sound.

11. Chocolate

I know what you're thinking, "chocolate can't be that different from country to country" but it can. I've noticed that French chocolate has more of a chocolate flavor as compared to American chocolate which is sweeter and in my opinion hides the amazing flavor of the chocolate. The photo I chose is of some Valrhona chocolate, their factory is a mere 20 minutes from St. Vallier and is simply amazing. Another thing that we always have at the house is chocolate bars; after lunch we'll usually have a few chocolate squares.

12. Pognes/St. Genix

These two cakes both come from my region or very close, in France you can go to two bakeries in two different towns right by each other and find completely different well known specialties because of France's history many different kinds of dishes and cakes developed right by each other and have stayed, for the most part, in their region or town. The St. Genix is a brioche with pralines and sugar on top. Pogne is a brioche made with fleur d'oranger which gives it a subtle orange flavor.



13. Ravioles

Ravioles come from Romans and are boiled in water and then eaten with butter and cheese, they can also be eaten in a salad. The only large differences between ravioles and ravioli is their size and that they are usually filled with eggs.

14.  Coquilles St. Jacques

Do you remember this photo? That's because I talked about, and ate, Coquilles St. Jacques for Christmas Eve. These scallops are usually prepared in a wine sauce and cooked very quickly.

15. Ratatouille

I'm guessing if you've seen the movie you know of the dish, but if you haven't I'll tell you why you should try it. Ratatouille has a really homey flavor and warms you up. It has so much flavor and is very healthy since it is made only from vegetables and spices.

16. Cheese

It's almost impossible to think about France without thinking about their cheese and I know it is impossible for the French to live without it. After lunch and dinner we take out the cheese plate from the fridge, which is always filled with at least four different kinds of cheeses. Some of my favorites are; Brie, Camembert, Chevre, Comte, Emmental and raclette. I've found that I prefer softer cheeses because I enjoy spreading it on my slice of bread. I can't really tell you which ones you have to try because every one's tastes are different but since there's more than 400 kinds of cheeses in France this might give you a nice starting point of some of the more well known cheeses of France.

17. Boeuf Bourguignon

Out of all of France's main dishes, I have to say this is my favorite. This is like a fancy version of beef stew, and the secret is red Burgundy wine and long cooking time to have tons of flavor and beef and vegetables that fall apart in your fork. If you're looking for a nice winter meal this is the one.

18. Coq au Vin

Coq au Vin is from the same region as boeuf bourguignon and is quite similar in that it uses the same wine, is a stew and has almost exactly the same ingredients. So if you're not in the mood for beef, why not make a yummy coq au vin?

19. Blanquette de Veau

This is one of the first recipes that I've made with the recipe written entirely in French with metric measurements and it worked!What makes this recipe interesting is that the meat is not browned, instead it is stewed in broth, you can eat a blanquette with rice, noodles and potatoes.

20. Desserts

I couldn't choose just one dessert to talk about because I like them all! And really what's not to like about French viennoiserie/patisserie? Here are some desserts that couldn't escape my sweet tooth and certainly aren't helping with the made up acronym of AFS (another fat student); creme brulee, tarte au citron, panni au nutela, mille feuilles, macarons, pain au chocolat, croissant, religieuse and so many others.