Tag Archives: gigi’s french window

Food, France, Italy, Sightseeing

Annecy Adventures – Tapenade – The Shores of Lake Como

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A little late this week, but here is this Wednesday’s Bloggers Round-up, with an all Australian cast. Jill from Gigi’s French Window takes us to the beautiful town of Annecy in the foothills of the French Alps; Phoebe from Lou Messugo, who lives in Provence, tells us all about tapenade; while Andrea from Rear View Mirror, brings us some stunning photos of Lake Como in Italy. Enjoy!

Annecy adventures / Les aventures d’Annecy

by Jill from Gigi’s French Window, French ponderings from an Australian who must have been French in another life

pretty annecyA few years back, I spent 3 seasons in Annecy, France…yep, that’s right,
3 seasons, but it only took 3 days to do it….:).

It’s a gorgeous, ancient city, near the Swiss Alps, that I just fell for.

We stayed in Hotel Au Faisan Dore… which was a pleasant surprise when it came to  space, after all the prior shoe boxes.  Oohhh  sooo warm, as well, which turned out to be a lifesaver! Read more

Tapenade – a Provençal classic

by Phoebe from Lou Messugo, a traveller, francophile, expat, mum and foodie now living in Roquefort les Pins where she runs a gîte after many years of travelling and living in Asia, Eastern Europe and Australia

olives__tapenadeWalk around any market in Provence or the Côte d’Azur and you will see stalls heaped with glistening olive pastes and tapenades, usually next to an enormous array of different olives and other pickles.

Tapenade is a typically southern dish made with olives, capers, anchovies and olive oil, chopped finely or blended together into a paste.  Its name comes from the Provençal word for capers, “tapenas“. Read more

The Shores of Lake Como

by Andrea from Rear View Mirror and Destination Europe, a fellow Australian who, after 6 years of living in France, has given up herParis apartment to live a nomadic life slowing travelling around Europe, experiencing each destination like a local

lake-como-1I should know better than to book a popular tourist destination for mid-summer. I find it hard to get a feel for a place when there are crowds and few locals around and I usually end up being disappointed. Bellagio, Varenna and Como in Italy are massively popular destinations in July and August. Of course they are popular with tourists for a reason, I get that. They are beautiful cities surrounded by imposing mountains on the shores of Lake Como. Personally I’d much rather visit in the off-season but on this occasion I was meeting friends from Australia which made all the difference. Read more

Art, France, Paris, Sightseeing

Acting French in Paris – Creating the French look – Chateau de Mery and Auvers-sur-Oise

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On this Wednesday’s blogger round-up, we have Wendy Hollands from Le Franco Phoney giving us tips on how to make the most out of a visit to the Eiffel Tower, Jill from Gigi’s French Window giving her interpretation of French decorating styles and Abby from Paris Weekender describing a visit to Méry and Auvers-sur-Oise, where Van Gogh lived his last days before taking his own life. Enjoy!

Acting French in Paris

by Wendy Hollands from Le Franco Phoney, an Australian who writes about all things French in La Clusaz, Annecy and Haute Savoie as seen by an outsider by Wendy Hollands from Le Franco Phoney, an Australian who writes about all things French in La Clusaz, Annecy and Haute Savoie as seen by an outsider

eiffel_towerOne of the great things about living in the French Alps is that it’s so totally different to life in big French cities. When I go to Paris, I’m a tourist: loud noises grap my attention, the Metro is confusing, and I need a map to know where I’m going.

If this alternative angle photo of one of the world’s most recognised landmarks doesn’t already give it away, I spent the weekend in Paris with the French in-laws who live there. Read more

Creating the French look

by Jill from Gigi’s French Window, French ponderings from an Australian who must have been French in another life

french lookAt the moment I’m working my way through  a book  titled  Creating the French look by Annie Sloan, which covers eight different french decorating styles, inspirational ideas and 25 step-by-step projects. A great read.

I purchased it because I was curious to see which  would stand out to be MY  favourite style, but as  it so happens , I appear to have  a ‘mélange’ of french  tastes.  I should have known it wouldn’t be as clear cut as that! I mean to say, there are EIGHT different styles……and none are exactly what I would choose??? Let’s have a look together, and you tell me which style resonates  with you :). Read more

Château de Méry and Auvers-sur-Oise

by Abby from Paris Weekender, an American living in Paris who offers suggestions for Paris weekends, either staying put or getting out of town

Mery-AuversThis weekend, I was invited to the beautiful wedding of two close friends at the Château de Méry in Méry-sur-Oise, located about 30 kilometers or 45 minutes north of Paris on the SNCF (local train) in the Parc Vexin. With its traditional château and chapel and ultra-modern hotel on the château grounds, this made for the perfect wedding venue.  Congratulations, my friends!

As the wedding was in the evening, a friend and I decided to take advantage of the first sunny day in the Paris area in three weeks, so we headed to the Val d’Oise (Valley of the Oise River) in the morning.  After leaving our bags at the château, we walked about 15 minutes through the town of Méry and across the Oise River to Auvers-sur-Oise, famous as the residence and final resting place of Vincent Van Gogh and his younger brother Theo. Read more

Australian customs, Cycling, Food, French customs, Loire Valley, Paris, Travelling, Wine

Celebrating Christmas in France – Great Resources To Help Plan Your Bike Trip to France – Wineries/les vignobles

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My Wednesday’s bloggers’ round-up this week starts with fellow Australian Kathy Stanford from Femmes Francophiles who’s been having a holiday from blogging but after a recent trip to France, she’s fortunately back on the job. So I’m starting with her authentic experience of Christmas in France with a French family. Next Maggie LaCoste from Experience France by Bike lists resources to plan a bike trip in France, including my beloved Loire Valley. Jill from Gigi’s French window, also Australian, compares cellar doors in France and Australia. Nothing could be more different! Enjoy!

Celebrating Christmas in France

by Kathy Stanford from Femmes Francophiles, an Australian who an ongoing passion for France and the French language just back in Australia from two months in France

christmas_femmes_francophilesMy love for La France is intrinsically linked with my passion for food. I have been extremely spoilt in staying with Valérie who is a generous and wonderful cook. In France the main meal at Christmas time is usually on Christmas Eve. Valérie’s son Grego offered to prepare this meal. Having lost weight for a film role he had been dreaming about an extra special Christmas Eve dinner. He devised the dishes, bought the ingredients and then he and Valérie worked as a team to create the dishes.

We started with champagne, foie gras on toast, radishes, carrot, foie gras and fig macarons from Pierre Hermé. I was rather sceptical about the foie gras and fig macarons as I have only ever known macarons as a sweet rather than something savoury. They however worked very well. I even bought some for New Year’s Eve. Read more

Great Resources To Help Plan Your Bike Trip to France

by Maggie LaCoste from Experience France by Bike, an American who loves biking anywhere in Europe, but especially France, which has the perfect combination of safe bike routes, great food, great weather and history

usseCyclotourism is getting to be big business in Europe, worth somewhere around 45+ billion Euros per year to the European economy.  This is great for you and me because countries like France, (and Germany, Austria and Switzerland) want our business.  Their improving their marketing efforts and they are rapidly stepping up efforts to provide better information on major routes.  Don’t get too excited, this doesn’t mean that you will have an easy time finding information on all major itineraries.  But it does mean that access to better information is improving, more of it’s offered in English, and the result is easier trip planning. To kick off the new year and bike trip planning season, let’s take a look at several major websites to see how they can help you decide where to go and where to bike. Read more

Wineries/les vignobles

by Jill from Gigi’s French Window, French ponderings from an Australian who must have been French in another life

lulu coco gigi 165This year I have decided to search out and enjoy all sorts of ‘french experiences’ right here in the land down under…

I made a start last weekend by  visiting a local winery…well it was an hours’ drive away, but I didn’t have to take a 2 day trip across the world!

But first some ‘pics’ to compare….

Last May, the ‘travelling bridesmaids’ and I went for a beautiful Sunday stroll along the tiny winding roads of Cassis,  southern  France.  We thought we would try a wine tasting, have lunch..you know  how it goes….well the walk was fabulous, the scenery amazing…but none were open to the public!  It seems that tourism doesn’t come into play with french vineyards..(these ones anyway) .I think it must be all too serious a business for  that! Read more (and don’t forget to read the comments as well)

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