What is it about the stubborn, enduring power of French stereotypes? Most people indulge in throwing them around from time to time. What American hasn’t […]
10 French Stereotypes & Myths About Parisians to Ditch Now
Around France
The Edmond Fallot Mustard Mill in Beaune: Where Tangy Magic is Made
On a recent trip to Beaune, France, I stopped by the one of the Burgundy town’s most-iconic sites : the Edmond Fallot mustard mill and […]
Brief History of Cannelés – & Some of the Best in Bordeaux
When visiting Bordeaux, Saint-Émilion and the surrounding region in southwestern France, you’ll likely see shop windows lined with little cakes shaped like large gumdrops or […]
Interview With Kerri Maher, Author of “The Paris Bookseller”
As someone who’s long been interested in writing a historical novel rooted in literary history, I was intrigued to happen upon a recent book centered […]
Best Things to Do in Strasbourg, France: A Beginner’s Guide
From Architecture to Food & Markets One of France’s finest cities, Strasbourg is so much more than the annual Christmas markets that have made it […]
A Short History of French and Dijon Mustard
From aristocratic extravagance to everyday condiment In 2022, French mustard shortages made the popular condiment scarce on supermarket shelves around the world, owing in part […]
Why is June 18, 1940 an Important Date in French History?
In France, June 18th is recognized every year as a solemn and important date in the nation’s history. But what makes the day such an […]
Annals in Weird French History: The Strasbourg Dancing Plague of 1518
Of all the plagues that hit Europe during the Middle Ages, the epidemic known as the “Dancing plague” of Strasbourg is certainly the strangest and […]
Lola Tillyaeva (Till)’s La Maison de l’Ouzbékistan is a Portal to Central Asia in the Heart of Paris
(Sponsored Feature) The French capital allows visitors to immerse themselves in fashion, art and culture. Galleries, museums, and boutiques representing cultures from across the globe […]
Paris Movie Walks: Explore Famous Film Locations in the Capital
Cinema buffs with a forthcoming trip planned to Paris will find a wealth of entertaining knowledge about French cinematic history in this relatively slim but […]
French Christmas Traditions to Enjoy at Home or Abroad
While many French Christmas traditions are ones that are shared by cultures elsewhere in Europe or even globally, some are a bit more distinctive. From […]
The French Revolutionary Calendar: An Odd Relic From the 1790s
One thing we take for granted, especially in the industrial era, is the keeping of time– and a stable, standardized way to measure its passage. […]
Can Space-Grown Vines Offer Clues to the Future of French Winemaking?
These France-based companies have teamed up to find out. It sounds like something straight from a sci-fi novel: scientists developing new techniques for growing edible […]
French Etiquette 101: Myths, Realities, & a Bit of History
Any basic web search on the rules of French etiquette can send you down a rabbit hole of exasperated forum posts on TripAdvisor or Reddit– […]
5 Classic French Desserts & Sweets for Christmas
As this goes to press, December has snuck up on us– and I find myself craving a few classic French desserts and sweet nibbles typically […]
Bordeaux’s Cité du Vin: A Modern Temple to Wine
It would take a 21st-century team of curators and wine experts for Bordeaux to get its Cité du Vin, a massive complex dedicated to wine […]
Lore & Legends: A Few Famous French Ghosts & Hauntings
Lore about ghosts and haunted places doesn’t figure prominently in French culture– at least not as much as it does in places like the US, […]
Voices from Drancy, one of France’s Most Important Holocaust Memorial Sites
In March of 2020, I made a short trip from Paris that was a long time coming. I boarded a train, then a bus, to […]
History of Champagne: How the English Helped Birth Bubbly, & Other Facts
There’s something deceptively timeless about raising a toast over a glass of champagne (or some other form of sparkling white wine). It’s easy to imagine […]
Why Brittany Butter is Salted (& Coveted): A Bit of History
My partner and I almost always have a block of salted Brittany butter in the fridge, and usually there’s a “backup” somewhere in the freezer, […]
