merci manchester markets
15 Sep 2009 4 Comments
in food and drink, manchester Tags: baguettes, cheese, france, manchester, markets
I’ve written about the great seasonal Manchester markets in a previous blog post and was thrilled to find out last week that a French market was once again being held in St Ann’s square.
Salivating at the prospect of fresh baguettes, Chris and I set off for a visit on a sunny autumn Saturday morning on the weekend and we were not disappointed. Even though these markets tend to be small, they can be quite atmospheric. Stall holders shouted their “bonjour” and we were presented with an array of baked goods, cheese, olives, sweets and … errm… Peruvian woven clothing (no idea).
There was only one boulanger, one fromagerie, one stall selling soaps etc. This didn’t pose a problem, as each vendor had more than enough to offer foodies and Francophiles.
First up was a couple from Brittany selling biscuits pick and mix style. We loaded our bag with the gorgeous sweet treats and couldn’t wait to have some with une thé later on. I’m the one with a sweet tooth in our house, so was happy with the biscuit purchase, but Chris was disappointed. He did however like the lemon-flavoured petite Madeleine, a small, plump, shell-shaped sponge cake on the left of the picture below. My favourite was the deliciously jammy apricot-filled biscuit of which we also got a strawberry version (bottom right).
The fromagerie beckoned in all its smelly glory and while there were loads of seemingly delicious options, we quickly settled on a block of comte, an unpasteurised cow’s milk cheese from eastern France. It is nutty and mild, on the softer side of firm and rather impressive.
There was a pretty good saucisson stall with small pieces of sausages to taste. Unfortunately, nothing really grabbed our fancy. I tried both the venison and boar sausage and was tempted to buy some just for novelty’s sake, but because the taste was nothing special and their smell distinctly un-special, we passed.
It wasn’t all food – we skipped the dried fruit, olives, liquorice and fudge and stopped at a small stall selling wooden letters with wheels. Put together, with a wooden locomotive at the front, you could build a train featuring your name. We got one for my niece Mia.
But the piece de resistance of French markets for me remains the simple pleasure that comes from buying a freshly-baked baguette. These were perfect. Warm, crispy on the outside but soft on the inside, sumptuously sweet and satisfying.
We couldn’t resist getting a slice of vanilla custard tart for dessert. We bought a huge piece for sharing and agreed that its firm consistency was perfect and the vanilla hit all the right notes.
The walk back to the flat was heavenly – as if we weren’t in Manchester at all. The sun was baking down and we were biting off bits of delicious freshly-baked baguette with “merci” still ringing in our ears. We weren’t satisfied though – we went back to St Ann’s square the very next day for more baguettes, croissants and pain au chocolat for later and Monday morning.
Retour bientôt marche francaise s’il vous plait!!!
review – tout sweet: hanging up my high heels for a new life in rural france
11 Sep 2009 1 Comment
in books Tags: book review, france, karen wheeler, tout sweet, travel writing
Karen Wheeler and I share more than just a similar-sounding moniker. The truth is, this woman is living my dream life in some kind of parallel universe, and she has the audacity to flaunt her fabulous la vie francaise in a book that I just devoured.
Nearly two weeks ago I came across this article in the Sunday Times and promptly logged on to read Karen’s blog. A few days later, I ordered her book, Tout Sweet: Hanging up my High Heels for a New Life in Rural France, which I finished reading last night.
I know lots of people who dream about moving to a small village in France, doing up a maison and living off baguettes and red wine. But how many people actually ever take that step, especially before retirement age? And how many of those that do take the plunge actually go on to embrace the stereotypical French life to such an extent that their lives start to smell of freshly-baked baguettes, lavender and herbs de Provence?
I’ve never met Karen Wheeler, let alone sniffed her, but by all accounts she has done just that. Woman alone, she bought a bit of a dump in a tiny village in France and worked hard to create a home – and life for herself – with all the Gallic clichés: shutters, a wood burner, lavender in terracotta pots, fresh croissants from the boulangerie for breakfast and long, jasmine-scented evenings sipping rosé with friends.
That’s what I want! Fine, in my dream life my husband comes with me and there is less hardcore DIY and camping involved, but all the other elements tick the boxes of my ambitions.
What is more is that Karen is able to do her job – which sounds pretty perfect to me – from this rural idyll… Not only has she written this great book, but she is also a freelance journalist who pitches fashion and luxury goods articles and ends up meeting famous parfumiers and staying in five-star penthouse suites in Paris. Nothing like an injection of glamour to make even muddy walks with her dog sound fabulous.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to all Francophiles. It ends perfectly poised for a sequel to pick up where it left its readers, but in the meantime of course there is the blog to let me live vicariously through the other Karen W.
bargains for paris anniversary weekend break – c’est magnifique!
09 Sep 2009 2 Comments
in travel Tags: france, manchester, paris, travelzoo
Being a travel industry expert, Chris was quick to spot a bargain last week when Air France had some cheap flights available. We swiftly booked return tickets from Manchester to Paris for £79 pp (including taxes) so we can spend one night in Paris to celebrate our fourth year together.
This will be our first return to Paris since we had our very first mini-break as a couple there back in the early days of our relationship. That trip was my first visit to the city of lights and I instantaneously fell in love with all things French. We’ve since visited other parts of France as well, such as Provence and the Cote d’Azur, and I’m pleased to say we’ve come a long way in terms of travelling in style.
Chris and I at the Arc de Triomphe during our first visit to Paris
Back in 2006, it was all about being on a budget. Chris and I took a Eurolines coach from London to Paris which took about 7 hours. It was cheap as chips but surprisingly comfortable too, especially because we could disembark and walk around on the ferry when we crossed the Channel.
Our accommodation was also picked based on its proximity to Montmartre and – you guessed it – price. TripAdvisor’s reviewers will give you a good idea of what Friends Hostel was like. We were in a private room during our stay, with its own tiny shower room, so we enjoyed enough privacy and comfort. Besides, we were there to explore and enjoy Paris, so spent as little time as possible in our room.
But this time round, we will only be in Paris for one night and because we have now ticked off all the major sights from our to-see list, our priorities are slightly different. Enter the fantastic Travelzoo Top 20 (I’m biased because Chris works for them, but still). Thanks to this newsletter, we have now booked a great hotel for more than 50% cheaper than its usual rate. And wait for it… our room will have a view of either the Eiffel Tower or my beloved Sacre Coeur! A free Seine river cruise is also thrown into the deal – something we’ve not done before – so I’m even more excited now than before.
Sacre Coeur in Montmartre, Paris
This also means I’ve dusted off my teach-yourself-French kit and I’m newly inspired to impress on my next trip. J’adore Paris!
