This past spring I had the pleasure of meeting Janice Chung in Provence. Jan runs the great website France Travel Tips, with information about things to see and do all over the country. I love reading her stories about hidden corners of France that most tourists never see. An example is this story about sculptured seaside rocks in Brittany.
If you aren’t already a subscriber to Jan’s website, you should be!
There are a lot of great restaurants in Provence, with Michelin stars galore, like Le Petit Nice in Marseille and Baumanière in Les Baux. But for my money, the best fine dining in Provence is at L’Atelier de Jean-Luc Rabanel in Arles. Val and I go there every year to celebrate her birthday and it’s always great.
Find out all about L’Atelier at The Provence Post.
It’s that time of year again, and what better gift than a copy of One Sip at a Time? It’s the perfect stocking stuffer for the francophile in your life! And it’s available from Amazon in paperback, Kindle or audiobook format—all under $10.
My best wishes to you and yours this holiday season.
Keith
Provence shares Christmas traditions with the rest of France, like sapins de Noël (Christmas trees) and Père Noël (Father Christmas.) But they also have unique ones of their own. Thirteen desserts? Little dolls that fooled the zealots of French Revolution?
Read all about it at The Good Life France.
San Francisco was known in its early days as the Paris of the Pacific. You might think this was because it was beautiful and sophisticated, like the City of Light, and you would be right. But it was more than that. It was also due to the city’s large French community.
Read about France’s outsized influence on early San Francisco at My French Life.
Imagine a chic Française sitting at a Paris café with her chic chien. Now imagine yourself there with your own dog. Impossible? Non!
As the world’s most dog-friendly country, France is full of dogs in restaurants, hotels, boulangeries, on hiking trails, the Métro — you name it. So how American dog-friendly are they?
Learn the secret of taking your dog to France at Frenchly.
Delicious wines, a gorgeous winery and a privileged location in one of the most beautiful spots in France: Château Romanin has it all.
It is also a place where wine, religion and mysticism have intersected for centuries.
Read about the history and mystery of Château Romanin at Perfectly Provence.
The French road system is excellent. The country is covered by a comprehensive network of autoroutes – similar to our Interstate Highway System – along with plenty of secondary roads. They are in uniformly good condition and are well-marked so you can find your way. If there is any downside to the French road system it would have to be…French drivers.
Find out why French drivers are NOT one of the glories of France at My French Life.
Everyone wants to go to Paris when they go to France. It’s one of the world’s great cities, with the Eiffel Tower, romantic cafés, great museums… what’s not to like? (Okay, the Parisians not so much, but the rest is great.) But you’d be wrong to put Paris at the top of the list. Instead, you should follow the insiders who know better and head south to Provence. Here’s why.
Read the rest of the story at Frenchly.
Patricia Sands is a wonderful author and an inspiration to all of us who write about Provence. She liked my book (I’m thrilled!) and I had the honor of being interviewed by her recently. You can read the interview on Patricia’s blog here.