Winters As They Were Meant To Be

Lunch on the slopes

What a difference a week makes.  Two weekends ago, temperatures in the 15C-16C range with brilliant sunshine in Aix on Saturday and sitting on the beach and relaxing Sunday.   Fast-forward one week and while the sun continues to shine brilliantly day after day, it’s gotten cooler with morning temperatures as low as 2C-3C and daytime highs of only 10C-12C.  While many brave souls continue to spend a few hours daily basking in the sun on the beach and some braver souls still take daily dips in the sea, for us this is perfect weather for some skiing in the Maritime Alps in the town of Auron just under 2 hours from Nice. 

Nice eh?

The drive to Auron through the Mercantour valley with endless twists and turns and mountains on either side was quite beautiful, even more so given I didn't have to drive.  Poor Nancy and Maddy were nauseous the entire ride but fortunately the gravol did its job!

With Simona’s cast coming off there were no more excuses and no time to waste.  With an all in ticket price of 28 euros per person including lift ticket and return bus trip from Nice, there really was no reason not to get out and do some skiing before our big trip to Val Gardena in the Dolomites in a few weeks.  Nancy didn’t ski at all last year because of her broken foot and with Simona’s arm just barely on the mend, understandably there were some nervous nellies that had to overcome their fear.  After a few tentative runs they both let loose and got into the groove.

Located in the heart of the Mercantour mountains, Auron is a small town resort without the big name draw or prestige of Chamonix-Mont Blanc, Tignes,Val d’Isere etc.  Sitting at about 1200 meters with slopes rising to 2550 meters it certainly makes anything we’ve been on pale in comparison.  It’s a great family resort with more than 130kms of pistes for all levels of skier and certainly is a step up from skiing Blue Mountain at 250 meters!   It felt so great to do runs that last more than 2-3 minutes.  Halfway down one long run Madeleine yelled out to the rest of us “there’s more”?   

At times we felt as though we had the mountain all to ourselves and certainly did not miss having to wait in long lift lines.   For Nancy and I the highlight was sitting in lawn chairs enjoying lunch in the bright warm sunshine.

The past few weeks brings to mind what Patrick, one of my cycling friends, always likes to remind me of when we are out on a ride.  “Il ya la mer, le soliel e la montagne....what else can anyone really ask for"?  Hard to disagree with him as this really is the beauty of being in this part of France.  For anyone who enjoys being outdoors and active year round, the sun, sea and mountains offer no shortage of things to do.   Skiing, cycling and sitting on a beach enjoying the sun all in the month of January is the way winters are intended to be enjoyed.  

  

It’s lunchtime.  Gotta run and pick Maddy up from school for lunch break.  We are off to meet Nancy on the beach and have lunch.  How Nice!!

Sal

  

Culinary Rant!!

We're hungry, where are our frites?

Please forgive me but can someone tell me where we can have a decent (I said decent, not great) meal in France without breaking the bank.  I mean isn't French cuisine world renowned?  Or is this simply a myth?  Ok maybe I’m being a bit harsh but seriously, I’m starting to believe that French cuisine is nothing more than brilliant marketing by the Michelin guys. 

Delightfully delicious

Now before going to far on this rant, I should give credit where credit is due.  The French know how to make some damn good desserts and they know a thing or two about cheese, the smellier the better.  Now some might suggest I forgot to include baguettes to my list and while a French baguette stacks up well to Wonder bread so do many other breads so as far as I’m concerned it doesn’t make the cut.  

Delectably to die for

Last Saturday we went to Aix en Provence for the day and were all geared up for a wonderful lunch.  It was 16C, the sun was beaming and we had the best seats in the house on an outdoor patio.  The place was jam packed and the setting was perfect.   Once again almost 100 euro later and we were so disappointed at how awful our meal was.  Seriously it was just barely digestable.   Maybe it’s just us.  Maybe we just seem to always pick the wrong place or maybe we need to frequent places where a family of 4 has to drop more than 150-200 euro.  

I can’t begin to tell you how many times we’ve been utterly disappointed at eating at restaurants here in France.  Perhaps Parisiens would say that if you want to experience great French cuisine Paris is the place to do it but even in Paris we had meals that were at best ok!  Nancy and I had a similar experience 6 years ago last time we were in Paris.  We were simply not impressed at most if not all the meals we had.  (There was one exception in Aix last time we were there 6 years ago.  We had a memorable meal at a place called Le Formal.  It was closed last week but we will go back as it was excellent even though it cost us a small fortune).   

  

Enjoying Aix en Provence

Back to my rant though.  Seriously, steak and frites ain’t my idea of great cuisine!  The Keg does steak and frites and does it well and yet The Keg isn’t viewed as haute cuisine.  And yet it seems that no matter what restaurant, bistro, brasserie one goes to in France it’s always more or less the same offering.  Meat and frites.   Hey I enjoy a great cut of meat as much as anyone else but seriously sticking a piece of meat on the grill, turning up the heat and smothering it in sauce can’t be deemed great cuisine no matter how good the meat is.   And what’s with the frites as every side dish?  Like seriously get over it.  Find something else to pair the meat with.  We’ve been so underwhelmed at the lack of variety of offerings.  When we were in Paris back in November we ate at 3 restaurants, 2 of which came recommended.  While neither can be classified as Michelin rated, top-notch, haute cuisine restaurants, they weren’t inexpensive greasy spoons either and both set the 4 of us back a pretty penny (sans vin!!).  At best, they were ok and yet again it seemed that beyond the usual canard and foie gras (which I quite enjoy) the menus were littered with different cuts of meat and frites.  Where’s the variety and creativity?  As I said above maybe we just have a habit of picking the wrong restaurants or maybe we need to open the wallets a bit wider and really go upscale but good French food seems to be so elusive.  I look forward to receiving your recommendations.

Yum these frites are pretty good.   Someone please pass the mustard.  :)

Sal

Another Great Weekend

Cours Mirabeau

Realizing we are almost half way through our wonderful year away and still so much more of France we want to see, we decide to take a day trip to Aix en Provence last Saturday.  A beautiful sunny day without a cloud in the sky makes it a perfect day for exploring the city, just under 2 hours away.  Although Sal and I had visited Aix on our last trip to France, it certainly was much more captivating this time around.

Place Albertas

Aix is an elegant, modern, city with narrow streets that open up into beautiful squares.  We enjoyed strolling and shopping on the Cours Mirabeau dubbed the "Champs D'elysee" of the south. The wide tree-lined boulevard was a beehive of activity and the restaurant patios overflowing with patrons enjoying a meal or a drink in the spectacular January sunshine.

The lively vieille ville was a delight to meander through with lovely shopping, cafes and no shortage of street entertainers. It is certainly an alive and youthful city and droves of people were out in full force on this Saturday afternoon.  Place Albertas with its greenery and cobblestone road is one of the more unique and quaint squares we have seen in France. Hotel de Ville (Aix' city hall) was a beautiful and stately looking building overlooking a charming square.  LaRotonde, a large central waterfall and statute seemed to be the hub of the city, from which several roads emanated.  Madeleine got a kick out of seeing Eglise de la Madeleine which incidentally is where Cezanne was baptized. 

We could certainly see why Aix is a favourite destination for ex-pats.  Enjoying the city as we did, we couldn't help but wonder whether we would have preferred to live in Aix instead Nice.  We all agreed that Nice was the right choice for us since we love being so close to the ocean and its proximity to Italy. 

Fun in the sun

Last Sunday reinforced that sentiment, with bright sunshine and16C we decide to spend some time on the beach, as did many others.  It was a great day to enjoy the sun, listen to the waves and just hangout on the beach.  The kids skipped rocks, played cards and dreamed of the day when it would be warm enough to go swimming again.  In fact there were some brave swimmers out there, but for mid-January we were just content to be able to sit out on the beach. There is something so peaceful and relaxing about being close to the ocean.  I am convinced there are definite health benefits to these moderate winter temperatures and abundant sunshine people enjoy here. 

More fun on the beach

With weather like this we often wonder how we will manage another cold snowy Toronto winter.  Fortunately we don't have to worry about that until next winter.  In the meantime, we will continue to enjoy our winter here, where the only snow we see is far off in the Maritime Alps.

Nancy

January sunset in Nice

Tombola

Galette des Rois

Last Friday night we went to an Italian bingo night called tombola with some Italians who we have made friends with and are also living here in Nice.  The evening was at an international school where  the kids spoke only Italian and French and there was no English spoken throughout the whole night, yet I was able to understand both languages.  We had lots of fun and there were many kids. There were lots of prizes, one of the prizes was a big proscuitto.  Unfortunately I didn't win anything, but Simona won a big gift basket from Sephora. 
The event was in celebration of La Befana. The tradition of La Befana started when baby Jesus was born and the three wise man came knocking on an old woman's door asking for directions to see baby Jesus.  The old woman did not understand them, so she wasn't able to help them. Before she closed the door the wise men asked "would you like to come with us?"  She said "No I'm too busy."  After the wise men left the woman realized she had made a mistake and set off in search of the kings.  After searching for a few hours without any luck she stopped each child she saw and presented them with a gift because she felt so bad she had missed the opportunity to see the baby Jesus.
So from then on La Befana is celebrated throughout Italy, with La Befana coming to each child's house on the night of the Epiphany leaving candy for good kids and a lump of coal for those who are naughty.                    

In France, instead of La Befana they celebrate Le fête des Roi and instead getting candy, children get a chance to be king or queen for the day.  Boulangerie windows are filled with "galette des roi", each  come with gold crowns.  Inside each cake there is 1 little figure, like a baby Jesus or a king. Whoever finds the figure in their piece of cake gets to wear the crown and be the king or queen for the day.


Madeleine 

Art Classes

When Madeleine and mom started taking art classes last fall I had not one bit of interest in joining them. I instantly changed my mind when they both came home with two beautiful paintings making me want to own a masterpiece just like theirs. We take art in a small studio close to our apartment with a couple of seniors that awkwardly enough sing while they paint. 

I wasn't going to rush to try and paint a Picasso right away, and so I started with drawing simple still life pears.  I sat down with a blank canvas, a picture of two pears and my palette all ready to go......but I had no idea where to start.  Our instructor Pierre showed me how to start and how to center the pears properly. I was instantly drawn into painting and my class went by so quickly that I wanted to paint all night long. I had an amazing time. I didn't think I would love it but I was wrong.

Not bad eh?

I surprised myself with what I had done, not knowing that I had some artistic talent in me. I now realize how hard it is to do a painting that looks so simple and that it takes lots of time to perfect.  I appreciate the effort that daVinci, Picasso, Van Gough and Monet put into their art to make such lovely paintings we can enjoy.

Mom's brilliance

I can't wait to get back to painting once my arm heals.   Now dads got the painting bug.   


Picasso, ah I mean Simona

Maddy's masterpiece

Another by Maddy

Inter Milan vs Napoli

Weather-wise 2011 has not started well here. It's been damp and wet and the past two days a blanket of cloud and fog has covered the coast. Nancy urged me to stay put but hardwired as I am, I decide to jump in the car and head to Milan to watch Inter Milan host Napoli at San Siro stadium in what should be a great match. Inter, last year's Seria A champs, Champions League winners and world club champs started poorly this year but have been on a tear of late. With a win tonight Napoli can keep pace with the leaders AC Milan and take command of second place with Juventus having lost earlier in the day. 


Its January 6th, the Epiphany, the day the friendly Italian witch, La Befana, brings Italian kids gifts and a national holiday in Italy. A full slate of Seria A games are being played and I'm hoping La Befana brings a bucket of goals and a big win for the visiting Neopolitans. Its a three and a half hour drive to Milan and having never watched a match in Italy, I couldn't pass this one up no matter how crazy Nancy thinks I am. Unfortunately Simona and Maddy have school so Nancy and the girls stayed in Nice and I am on my own. 

I arrive at the stadium which is just on the outskirts of Milan in the middle of nowhere 3 hours before kick-off, buy my ticket at the box office and join 50, 60 thousand 'friends' for a good-old fashioned tailgate party, Italian style. Food vendors of every kind along with vendors of souvenirs, team jerseys, scarves, hats and other paraphenalia are everywhere. I grab myself a pannino, hot chestnuts and a drink and befriend a mixed group of fans who are debating how this game will end. Just like every passionate Canadian hockey fan, these fans are all experts on every aspect of soccer endlessly debating every last detail. There are busloads of people, predominantly Inter fans, streaming in from as far south as Naples. With temperatures just above freezing and a light mist in the air, describing the atmosphere as electrifying would be an exaggeration as excited as I am to be here. I came fully prepared with ski gloves, hat and layered up and yet I could barely feel my toes after a few hours. 

There are no bad seats in San Siro with excellent sightlines of the pitch no matter where one sits. Sitting in the second level towards one end of the field I have a spectacular view and I'm entertained all night by the Inter fans behind one of the goals who sing and chant derisively at the Neopolitans all game long. Not yet 5 minutes in and the stadium explodes in cheers as the home side finds the visitors napping and take the early lead. "What a great start" I say to the Inter fan next to me explaining that this should put the offensively minded young Napoli team on the attack in search of the equalizer which finally came just before the half hour mark. I leapt in the air in celebration to the displeasure of most Inter fans around me and was half jokingly told by one guy that I should find myself a new seat somewhere else. 

As always in Italian soccer, a match between a team from the north and a team from the south is far more than a sporting event. Just beneath the surface ready to explode in riots are the social and political tensions between north and south that have existed since Italy's unification in 1861, (incidentally 150 years ago). In many matches, this one being no exception, fans from one city or club are not allowed to buy tickets to a game in a visiting city unless they have been pre-cleared and authorized in an effort to control the idiocy of hooliganism. Once the sole domain of English football, it has now become a far to common part of the Italian soccer scene as the unemployed and politically motivated use the soccer stage to vent their frustrations and anger. Thankfully as a visitor with my Canadian passport I have no problem buying a ticket. 

The teams return to the pitch for the second half as me and my new found Inter buddies deride one another and place friendly wagers on the outcome of this one. As hard as the visitors pressed, the home side put this one away early in the half with a pair of goals before it was 20 minutes old. I spent the rest of the half sucking up the friendly abuses from those around me and enjoying the singing and chanting of the Inter fans as they mocked the visitors with the all familiar ole, ole every time Inter touched the ball. 

Regardless of the outcome, I had a blast and am looking for the next Seria A game to attend.

Sal 

Me and My Arm

Wow it’s been four months already; time flies by so fast and before I know it I'll be back home. I remember crying for hours in bed at night before we left convincing myself that I was gonna have an awful time here. I used to think about how many exciting events and activities I would be missing out on at school.  Would my friends still like me when I got back?  Would I make any friends in Nice?  Well, I was wrong. I have had an amazing experience so far and I have made many new friends. I like the change and my new surroundings, but I want to return to Toronto when the time comes, not now, but in six months. 

I like my new school in Nice for so many reasons.  Maybe it’s because I’m older but it seems like I have more liberties.  The classes are much bigger and there are six grade six classes which gives me more opportunities to meet new people and make new friends.   My school is divided into two large buildings separated by a big wide playground.  I haven’t found school to be difficult in terms of academics, although I do have difficulty understanding French in certain subjects like history, science, technology, and French. The hardest part is when my French teacher asks us to come up with a two page story and I am stuck on how to translate what I want to say into French. Along with having trouble with writing stories in French, it's also been quite a challenge for me to read French novels. Over the Christmas holidays my French teacher, Mme. Menant, asked us to read "Gilgamesh" and to answer questions on the novel. Gilgamesh was a historical king of Uruk in Babylonia, on the River Euphrates. He lived about 2700 B.C. He was two thirds god and one third human and he tyrannized all of Uruk. 

The week before Christmas Madeleine invited a friend over and we went down to the Christmas market in Place Massena.  Mom said that we could either go on the ferris wheel or go bungee jumping. We chose to go bungee jumping, which wasn't the smartest move. I decided that I wanted to do a flip in the air, but my arm did not agree with me and it twisted it's own way. Next thing I know, I end up in the hospital. It is only slightly broken and I got a green cast which will be removed in three weeks. I hope I am still able to ski when we go skiing in the Dolomites in the middle of February. I guess I won't be trying that again. On the bright side, at least I don't have to wash dishes for the next three weeks.

Happy New Year!


Simona