Sweet Diversions

Gigetta appeared a few days ago holding a heart.  What an astute girl.  As I saw her, I smiled and let my mind and heart wander. Let’s see—Valentine’s Day, sweets, love, Paris. Ah, yes…  In my dreams or on film or in books.  What evolved was bookshelf perusal and armchair travel at its best.

If you, too, would like a little vicarious trip to Paris, here are some avenues to explore:

🇫🇷 “Call My Agent,” a Netflix series whose  final  season is accessible right now.  Filmed in Paris (in French, with subtitles available!), it tells the story of agents and their movie star clients.  Each episode features well-known French actors and actresses.  (One, however, has Sigourney Weaver in it, speaking French.)  We watched the final episode this week, feeling a little sad saying “au revoir” to characters we had come to know and enjoy

🇫🇷 David Lebowitz’s blog and instagram. This week’s blog (davidlebovitz.com) had a guest column that was all about Romance in Paris.  And I am still enjoying David’s most recent book, Drinking French, a fun primer of 160 recipes of “iconic cocktails, aperitifs, and café traditions of France.”

🇫🇷 Paris Sweets: Great Desserts from the City’s Best Pastry Shops by Dorie Greenspan provides a sweet (ha!) exploration of Parisian desserts, the shops that produce them and the neighborhoods surrounding them.  Very complete recipes abound and the lavender-hued watercolors by Florine Asch are light and whimsical accompaniments to this Parisian foray. 

🇫🇷 And for a slight variation on a theme, there is Edible French: Tasty Expressions and Cultural Bites by Clotilde Dusoulier with watercolor illustrations by Melina Josserand. The author explores 50 popular French expressions related to food…like “changer de cremerie”—literally, to change from one creamery to another; more broadly speaking, to take one’s business elsewhere when you’re displeased with the service.  Or how about this one—“avoir de la bouteille”.  It translates as “having some bottle” as in seeing the “value, experience and wisdom that a person gains with age (take that, ageism!)”  I like that!

All of these books are pure sweet diversions, inexpensive vicarious trips to Paris.  Why not! 

May your heart find your own kinds of sweetness and light this Valentine’s weekend. Happy Valentine’s Day!❤️