Halloween?

I'm eagerly awaiting to see how, if at all, the French celebrate Halloween.

So far, there's virtually no sign of it. I saw pumpkins on sale at a farmers' market last weekend, labeled as "Halloween squash," and this morning there are flyers up advertising a midnight-to-noon Halloween party tomorrow night at a club I've never heard of.

But that has been it, so far. No decorations, no costumes on sale, no candy corn (thank God!).

Stay tuned ...

Voulez-vous pacser avec moi?

Unlike some other European countries, France doesn't have gay marriage, yet. They do have civil unions, which are known here by the acronym "PACS." This in turn has become a verb, "se pacser," which means "to get oneself PACSed."

The cake decorators of Paris are a bit ahead of the laws, however, as shown by this sight from a neighborhood bakery:

Election Fever

Seen on a Frenchman's car today:



And later, on the train, a woman was reading a French magazine with the headline: "The World Waits for Obama."

Nine days to go ...

Exploding Myths, part 3

French fries -- Are just called "fries" ("frites") here. Very common, but as with many other things they are subject to unwritten but elaborate rules. Duck legs are served with french fries; duck breasts with mashed potatoes. Plain grilled steak with fries; steak with a sauce, like steak au poivre, without. And so on.

French press -- Many people use these at home to make coffee, but at restaurants and cafes it is almost always espresso-style.

French dressing -- I actually was served a salad at lunch today that had what Americans would describe as French dressing on it. But that's the first time in the nearly 3 months I've spent here. Basic vinaigrette is far more common.

Frenching -- Butchers back home tend to automatically cut the meat off the bones of a rack of lamb for a nicer presentation, but I haven't seen any "frenched" chops here. The French tend to be a bit frugal about food and this technique does tend to waste it.

French kiss -- Yes, they do it here too. But not, so far, to me.

Ode to the Cafe

The more time I spend here, the more I fall in love with cafes.

Not any one cafe in particular -- although this one in my neighborhood is one I regularly visit -- but the institution as a general concept.


Let's start by defining a cafe as a place that's open from early in the morning continuously to late at night, as opposed to a restaurant, which only opens at mealtimes (typically 12-2:30 and 7:30-10:30). It serves coffee, alcoholic drinks and light meals.

Let's further note that many cafes, as defined above, call themselves "brasseries" but really are cafes. Brasserie literally means brewery, and in days gone by, brasseries were restaurants that served beer and Alsatian or Belgian food. These days, the word is more likely to mean a cafe with a good selection of beers.

A good cafe -- and I've found several, both near home and my office -- evolves as the day goes on. In the morning the regulars come in and have their coffee, and maybe a croissant or tartine, standing up at the bar. It's cheaper that way and, at that hour, more social. A good counter man gets to know his customers' drinks and starts preparing them as soon as the customer walks in. (It took only about a week for the guy at the cafe near my office to learn mine.)

Most cafes serve a standard menu with several types of salads, sandwiches, croques monsieur and madame, sausages and one or two other things. They will also usually have a hot dish of the day or maybe two, a full meal with meat, starch and veg. And this is lunch for many Parisians. Perhaps with more coffee, perhaps with some wine.

Although you can get coffee at any time at a cafe, during the afternoon and evening most of their business is done in wine and beer, as groups of friends or coworkers drop in for a drink between work and dinner. Food is still available, but people who are hungry in the evening tend to go to a real restaurant rather than eat cafe food.

Almost all cafes have outdoor seating facing the street, and peoplewatching is a chief feature of time spent at a cafe:



Many cafes have heat lamps to make the outdoor seating comfortable at this time of year. But even if they don't, people will often sit outside in their overcoats:



New York sidewalk cafes -- where the seats face each other rather than the street -- just don't compare, particularly when they are actually restaurants that want to sell you a full meal to justify the real estate you're taking up. Being able to sit down and get drinks or a snack with your friends at any hour like this is something I'm really going to miss.

The Colors of Autumn, part 3

Still not a North American autumn, but I'll take what I can get:





These scenes are from Parc des Buttes Chaumont, in the northeastern part of Paris (the 19th arrondissement). It's way off the tourist track but a lovely place, landscaped even more vigorously than Central Park and with a nice view of Montmartre.

It's also supposedly plagued by gang violence between Jews and Arabs, but we didn't see any evidence of that on Sunday, just families out picknicking and enjoying the brilliant fall weather:

A Street Name for the Neighborhood

Greenwich Village in Manhattan has a "Gay Street," but here in the Marais they've got a "Street of the Bad Boys" ...