Friday’s French – parapharmacie, paramédical & paramedics

December 19, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 4 Comments

I was doing a translation today and had to find a solution for the word parapharmacie. A parapharmacie is a shop that sells everything you would find in a French pharmacy except medication, and you usually pay a lot less.

From my FaceBook research today, it seems that there is nothing similar in the UK. I don’t know about the US. Parapharmacies also sell certain brands of dermocosmetics that are not sold in department stores or large supermarkets.

I go there to buy shampoo, skincare products, bandaids and make-up.

In France, there are no pharmacy chains such as Boots the Chemist although some pharmacies may use a central buying office. Most pharmacies are independently owned. The parapharmacies, however, are usually chains. The Leclerc hypermarket and supermarket chain has its own parapharmacie.

The suffix para comes from Ancient Greek παρά meaning beside; next to, near, from; against, contrary to” which means that there are a lot of very different words starting with para.

Take the word paramédical in French. It applies to healthcare professionals with the except of physicians i.e. ambulance drivers, nurses, nurse’s aides, dental assistants, chiropodists, dental technicians, physiotherapists, opticians, occupational therapists, osteopaths, dieticians, nutritionists, medical secretaries, medical reps, medical laboratory technicians and so on.

A paramedic in English however is a healthcare professional who works in emergency medical situations which means that most paramedics are based in the field in ambulances, emergency response vehicles and specialist mobile units. In the hospital, they may treat injuries. So not the same thing at all. Paramedics are all paramédical but not the opposite is not true.

Parachute, which comes from para and chute (fall) is actually a French word.

A parapluie keeps off the rain. When he was little, my son called it a rainbrella in English which we thought was very cute of course.

So, what did I do about parapharmacie in my translation? Since it was a didactic text aimed at instructors, I was able to explain the term then use parapharmacie in Italics, but it’s not always that simple!

Food, French customs, French language, Lifestyle, Weekly Blogger Round-Up

Weekly Blogger Round-Up – Getting Tough in French – Top 7 moments in France – A French library and literature

December 17, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 2 Comments

This week’s Blogger Round-Up starts with two expats talking about their experience in France. Wendy from Random Ramblings describes a major breakthrough in French while Bread is Pain shares her top 7 moments in France as part of the Expat Blog Award which I didn’t have time to enter this year. After you read her post, don’t forget to write a comment and help her win an award. Finally, Claire from Word by Word, source of many of the books I read, takes us around the media library in Aix-en-Provence and talks about the contemporary French literary scene. Enjoy!

Getting tough

by Wendy, an Australian Photographer and Psychologist living in Paris, enjoying life and working hard. Random Ramblings is where she shares a story or two.

Walking in the forest recently, I came across an elderly lady walking her dog. It was a little dog, playful and excitable a puppy perhaps. As the puppy ran towards me I bent down to pat it, to only hear the lady calling out ‘ne touchez pas’ french for don’t touch.

As I approached the lady she began to tell me the dog was young and needs to learn to not jump. I responded that I had thought she was telling me not to touch the dog. Read more

Top 7 “Moments in France”

by Bread is Pain, a 30-something American living in the Rhone-Alps, getting her master’s degree, learning French and slowly eating and drinking herself through the country

Being an expat has moments that are difficult, funny, exciting, even terrifying and no two countries are alike. Here are a few of the moments that France has to offer:

# 7: The Language Moment: The time you accidentally offend people.

Speaking in a different language is always complicated, no matter how long you have studied it. Every language has subtle nuances and phrases that are cultural not just linguistic. You may be able to understand every single grammatical rule of a particular language but still be lost when you are in a country that actually speaks it…and French is no exception. Read more

They’re Reading Thousands of Great Books Here, Cité du Livre – A Local French Cultural Centre and Library

by Claire from Word by Word, Citizen of Planet Earth, Anglosaxon by birth, living and working in France, who loves words, language, sentences, metaphors, stories long and short, poetry, reading and writing

Yesterday via a link on twitter, I read a provocative article in BBC News Magazine by Hugh Schofield entitled Why don’t French books sell abroad? It was an interesting, if superficial article, that made a few observations without going into any depth to understand the contemporary literary scene in France. It asked questions, reminded us of some old provocative stereotypes and did little to enlighten us on the subject of what excites French readers and why the English-speaking world aren’t more aware of their contemporary literary gems. Read more

Cooking, Food, Uncategorized

Fried Onion Rings on a 5:2 fast diet feast day

December 16, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 4 Comments

Apparently fried onion rings are an important part of Thanksgiving in America but most people buy them in cans which I can’t even begin to imagine. It would be like buying tinned battered fish surely. But I checked it out on the Internet and would you believe it, one of the popular brands is called French’s and they are called French fried onions which I have never seen in France …

I got the Thanksgiving information from the Bread is Pain Food blog but more importantly, I also learnt how to make them. Now in the past, this is not the sort of thing I would have even thought about making because of the calories. However, now that we practise intermittent fasting, I don’t have any qualms.

I want to give Jean Michel a surprise which is easier in a large house than in an apartment. He’s in the workshop trying to flush out the sludge from our in-floor heating system which has not been working very well this winter.

I’ve already prepared the baked vegetables – potatoes, sweet potatoes, sliced green pepper, parsnips, butternut pumpkin and beetroot. Yes, beetroot, bought raw and baked. I’d never heard of it until I had lunch at Susan and Simon’s from Days on the Claise. Delicious.

I’ve sliced the onion (you only need one for two people) and beaten the egg yolk and milk together in a soup plate. Bread is Pain’s recipe helpfully says “a little milk” so I put the equivalent of an egg yolk. I’ve put flour in another plate.

As soon as I hear Jean Michel raking the embers in the fireplace upstairs in order to grill the côte de bœuf, I put a centimeter of oil in a deep frypan (sauteuse) and turn on the heat. I dip the onions in the egg mixture and then roll them in flour after which I put everything in a zip lock bag and shake to get rid of any surplus flour as per Bread in Pain’s recipe.

When the oil is hot (I test with a small onion ring to see if it sizzles), I add a layer of rings to the pan. I turn them over and start to get a bit worried. They do not look like the photo in the recipe. I turn them again and lo and behold, they are starting to be golden. I had turned them too soon.

I scoop them all out when they’re done and put them on a paper towel then proceed with the next batch. This time, I am more expert. I try one. Out of this world! When they are all done, I take them triumphantly upstairs to an amazed Jean Michel. He doesn’t know they are onions and it takes him a couple to identify what they are!

I had thought they would be a bit greasy and heavy but they’re not. The taste is actually quite delicate. I’m going to make them for Christmas and stun the kids as well.

I love the 5:2 fast diet!

Closerie Falaiseau, Loire Valley

Photos of the week – Through my window in Blois

December 15, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 2 Comments

We’ve been having lovely weather in Blois – very cold, with minus temperatures at night and sometimes throughout the morning followed by bright sun and blue skies. The view from my office window is unfortunately marred by those horrible cables. They’re supposed to go underground in a couple of years’ time.

For more photos of Blois, you can visit my photo site Blois Daily Photo.

Accommodation, French language

Friday’s French – gîte

December 12, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 14 Comments

Even French people confuse gîte and chambre d’hôte. I know this for certain because when I tell people I have a gîte they often start talking about le petit déjeuner which, of course, is only served in a B&B.

Before it came to mean a self-catering cottage in the country, gîte, which comes from the verb gésir, derived from the Latin jacere (to lie down), meant any place to sleep either permanently or temporarily.

Offrir le gîte et le couvert, for example, means to offer board and lodging.

A gîte, I have just learnt, is also a resting place for hares. Ten points to anyone who knows the equivalent in English! I certainly didn’t. “Hares do not bear their young below ground in a burrow as do other leporids, but rather in a shallow depression or flattened nest of grass called a form. All rabbits (except the cottontail rabbits) live underground in burrows or warrens, while hares (and cottontail rabbits) live in simple nests above the ground, and usually do not live in groups.” Thank you Wikipedia. And thank you Susan from Days in the Claise who has posted a photo of a form.

A mineral deposit is also called a gîte, as in gîte de zinc but an oil deposit is a gisement de pétrole. And pétrole is not petrol as we say in Australia for gasoline – you fill your car with essence in France. Pétrole means oil or petroleum. Diesel engines take gas-oil or gazole (pronounced gaz-well, don’t ask me why!)

Gîte (short for gîte à la noix) is also a cut of beef corresponding more or less to what we call topside (UK) or bottom round (US). French and English butchers don’t cut up beef in the same way so quite often there is no real equivalent (entrecôte, côte de boeuf, T-bone, etc.), as you can see from the drawings. You can read more on the subject in Posted in Paris.

Another expression with the verb gésir is Ici gît le roi d’Espagne (here lies the King of Spain). Other examples are: un trésor qui gît au fond des mers = A treasure lying on the bottom of the sea and ses vêtements gisaient sur le sol, a somewhat literary way of saying that his clothes were strewn all over the floor.

So now you know the difference between a gîte and a chambre d’hôte – and a lot more useful things besides!

French customs, Germany, Italy, Paris, Uncategorized

Weekly Blogger Round-Up: A Provençal Christmas village – European Christmas Foods – The Notre Dame Christmas Tree

December 10, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 3 Comments

With Christmas approaching, the theme for this week’s Blogger Round-Up was easy to find! Phoebe from Lou Messugo takes us to the Provençal village of Lucéram famous for its Christmas cribs, while Carolyn from Holidays to Europe introduces us to various European Christmas foods; meanwhile Mary Kay from Out and About in Paris explains why the lights on the Christmas tree in front of Notre Dame are vertical. Enjoy!

Lucéram, the Christmas village

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.

In our quest to get into the Christmas spirit, we recently spent a day in Lucéram, a pretty medieval hill village north of Nice and less than an hour from Lou Messugo. Why? Because it comes alive in December with its “Circuit des Crèches”. Literally every tiny alley, every balcony, every doorway and every nook and cranny is decorated with pine branches, red and gold ribbons, and nativity scenes in every conceivable shape and size. These scenes (the creches) are made out of wood, paper, glass, pinecones, traditional santons (earthenware figurines), clothes pegs, matches, wool, twigs and even bread. They come in every size from minute tucked into holes in the wall to a 10m long replica of the village and everything in between. Even the village’s numerous fountains and old wash-houses are all decked out with their own floating creches. Read more

European Christmas Foods

by Carolyn from Holidays to Europe, an Australian based business passionate about sharing their European travel expertise and helping travellers to experience the holiday in Europe they have always dreamed of

The lead up to Christmas can be one of the best times to travel to Europe, not only to visit the amazing Christmas Markets that are held each year but also to sample the delicious food that plays a big part in the festivities.

Marrying into a German family many years ago, I’m now well accustomed to some of the German Christmas treats and I always look forward to indulging in my favourites when the festive season comes around. Read more

Love, tenderness, understanding and unity: lessons learned from the men responsible for Notre-Dame’s symbolic Christmas tree

by Mary Kay from Out and About in Paris, an American by birth, Swiss by marriage, resident of Paris with a Navigo Pass for the metro that she feels compelled to use

For a bi-cultural couple, celebrating Christmas and other holidays can be liking walking through a cultural minefield. Christmas stockings, decorations and traditional foods can all provoke heated debates. If your spouse is from Switzerland, he may claim that Baby Jesus delivers presents to the good little girls and boys around the world when you know for a fact that it’s a jolly man dressed in a red suit. As an American, I find it somewhat hard to believe that a tiny baby could handle the stress of landing a sleigh on a steep Parisian rooftop without bursting into tears. After all, Santa has a hard enough time maneuvering through the city traffic, and he’s a robust man accustomed to managing an entire village of elves. Read more

Food, Loire Valley, Restaurants

An Anniversary Celebration at La Maison d’à côté in the Loire Valley

December 9, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 10 Comments

Last year Jean Michel and I also celebrated the anniversary of our meeting in the Loire and were very disappointed with the restaurant we chose. This year, we were much luckier.

We arrived early too early for lunch at Montlivaut which is about 20 minutes from Blois in the direction of Saint Dyé sur Loire and on the way to Chambord so Jean Michel had the excellent idea of going a bit further on to Maslives where there is a shop that sells our favourite biscuits de Chambord. After stocking up, we went back to La Maison d’à côté (the house next door) in Montlivault and were the first patrons.

Jean Michel made his usual joke about reserving the whole restaurant, I took a few photos and we sat down. We admired the resolutely modern decor with its beautiful wooden beams.

We started with champagne, forgetting we were in Touraine (we should have remembered to order vouvray), but it was excellent and accompanied by some delicious little nibbles so we had no regrets. There is a weekday midday menu at 19.50 (dish of the day and dessert) but we were celebrating after all so we chose a starter, main dish and dessert for 39 euro. We had a choice of three dishes each time. You can also have a starter + main or main + starter for 29 euro or an Expression Menu chosen by the chef for 50 euro (including cheese) or 65 euro (including a second starter).

We were brought a patience on a cauliflower theme with an almond biscuit while waiting for our foie gras served with compote.

I then had veal with “forgotten vegetables” while Jean Michel had pintade (guinea fowl) with potatoes. Both were delicious. I chose a glass of local cour cheverny while Jean Michel had a glass of burgundy.

For dessert we had apple crumble and icecream and a lemon and almond dessert. Not very specific, I know, but unless I write them down (which I didn’t), I never remember the details.

In any case, everything was delicious. The products were of excellent quality and very fresh.

Madame Laurenty,the chef’s wife, told us that her husband buys from small producers all year round. We explained that as we are new to the area, we are still finding our way around. She recommended various markets, particularly Amboise on a Friday and the market at the Halles aux Grains in Blois on a Saturday and Montrichard.

When we talked about our difficulty in finding fresh foie gras to make our foie gras for Christmas while we are in the Loire this year, she suggested we talk to the chef. Ludovic Laurenty is passionate about his profession and generous in sharing his knowledge. He buys his foie gras from a producer in the south-west of France where they sing to the geese while they are force-feeding them so that they won’t be stressed.

We are going back to Montlivault next Thursday because Monsieur Laurenty is expecting a delivery of fresh foie gras and has offered to provide us with one. This year we want to try the coarse salt method so I’m hoping the Mesturet Restaurant will share its recipe on FaceBook. I’ll keep you posted !

La Maison d’à côté, 25 route de Chambord, 41350 Montlivault. Tel 02 54 20 62 30.

Closed Tuesday and Wednesday all year round. Open Friday evening, Saturday midday and evening and Sunday midday only from 17th November to 6th December.

Paris

Photo of the week – Autumn in the Tuileries Gardens

December 8, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp Leave a comment

Cooking, Food, French language

Friday’s French – raisins

December 6, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 18 Comments

I made my Christmas cake this week using the recipe handed down to my mother by her mother. For the last 8 years, I’ve been able to buy all the dried and candied fruit (peel) at my local market but the stall has closed so I’ve been chasing around Paris for such simple ingredients as currants and raisins. Not so simple in France however.

The word raisin is an interesting one. In French, it means grape and what we call raisins are raisins secs (dried grapes). However, in Australia (and apparently the other Commonwealth countries), raisin describes a particular sort of large dried grape.

The most common raisins secs in France are what we call sultanas in Australia, except that they are darker. However, you can buy sultanines here which are usually a golden colour and sometimes called raisins blonds.

Our currants, which are very small black raisins secs are raisins de Corinthe – currant is a degradation of the word Corinth.

As far as I know, there is no generic term in Australian English for dried grapes though raisin would seem to cover the lot in American English.

When hunting for my currants, sultanas and raisins, I came across other varieties of raisins secs: raisins de Malaga (in Spain), raisins de Muscat (like our muscatelles), raisin de smyrne, .

If you buy mélange de fruits secs, you’ll find yourself with a mixture of raisins secs and nuts, whereas dried fruit in English only includes dried grapes, figs, abricots, etc.

Now, that’s a word that doesn’t exist in French – nuts. You have to specify the type: walnut = noix, hazelnut = noisette , cashew nut = noix de cajou, peanut = cacahuète, almond = amande. They all come under fruit sec, but that’s not very satisfactory, is it?

Food, France, Italy, Paris, Weekly Blogger Round-Up

Weekly Bloggers’ Round-Up: How to make a Christmas log – Favourite places in the Marais – Limone in Piemonte

December 3, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 2 Comments

A little bit of Christmas to start this week’s Blogger Round-Up with a recipe for French Christmas Log from French Moments, followed by Paris Weekender‘s favourite haunts in the Marais. To finish off, fellow Aussie Chrissie from Riviera Grapevine takes us on a visit to Limone in Piemonte in Italy. Enjoy!

French Christmas Log – Bûche de Noël

by French Moments, a Sydney-based organisation with an international focus which promotes the French language and culture to English-speakers worldwide. Their French team is all about the language, culture and experience

A Christmas log is the traditional dessert for the French Christmas meal on the 24th of December. It is a rolled sponge / Genoese sponge in the shape of a log, most often with chocolate ganache inside or chestnut cream and icing on the outside to make it look like a log ready for the fire. In Provence there is an entire ritual revolving around a wooden log in the chimney that is carried three times around the table by the youngest and the oldest members of the family, sprayed with wine and meant to burn for several nights. It is believed the Christmas log is originated from this custom. Read more

The Best of the Marais (So Far)

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

It’s been a little over a year since I moved from Saint Germain to the Marais. Here is a sampling of my “favorites” so far. I admit they are a bit 4th arrondissement-centric, as that’s where I live! Read more

Warming up for Winter in Limone

by Chrissie from Riviera Grapevine, a Sydney girl living in Nice with an insatiable thirst for the wines of the Var, Alpes Maritimes and Liguria. She happily sells, drinks and blogs about wine.

Time to let you in on a little secret. If you’re a fan of the wonderful Italian region Piemonte, as I am, you don’t have to head all the way to Alba for your fix of Barolo, Moscato d’Asti and my personal favourite, Arneis (not to mention the food, THE FOOD!!). The closest corner of Piemonte is a mere hour and a half away from Nice, and has a cute-as-pie village centre with some great value restaurants. What’s more turns into a veritable winter wonderland come snow season.

Yep, I’m talking about Limone. More often referred to Limone, Piemonte, to avoid confusion with Limone, Lake Garda. Read more

Aussie in France