We visited Omaha Beach four years ago, and this is a condensed version of a blog post that appeared on my blog after the visit. It seemed appropriate for Memorial Day. A Germany that was humiliated and impoverished after World War I was ripe for someone as charismatic and patriotic as Adolf Hitler. On January 30, President von Hindenburg appointed Hitler… Read More
Reims, sometimes spelled Rheims, is the largest city in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France, and is pronounced similar to ranse (like dance). It was peopled with the Celtic tribes, called the Gauls, before the Roman conquest; and afterwards, the city name changed to the Durocortorum. But legend has it that the name Reims comes from Romulus’ brother Remus who founded ancient Rome. As… Read More
In the Champagne region of France, you can stroll through a forest of fairy trees, called the Faux de Verzy (pronounced foe de vair-zee). A “fau” is an old gallic (French) word for the beech tree. It’s now called a hêtre in French, a word which originates from German. A fau (or plural – faux) describes the dwarf beech, oak, and chestnut trees that… Read More
Troyes is pronounced like the French number three (trois) – twah. It’s in the Champagne region and the only reason we went there was because it was so close to our hotel. It ended up being my favourite place that we visited. Its greatest charm is that so many of the houses and businesses are in medieval buildings. The houses… Read More
Matthieu and I were invited by Travel Republic to glide around the Seine on a dinner cruise via Les Bateaux Parisiens, which embark at the foot of the Eiffel Tower. It was a Tuesday night – one of my craziest days – but it was the best day for the friend who was kind enough to watch our kids. So I had about 15 minutes to… Read More
On Saturday, I met up with a group of authors to have lunch in Paris. We went to the Café Delmas in the 5th arrondissement (2 place de Contrescarpe). The 5th arrondissement (near the Sorbonne) is so charming and quiet, and the café, cozy and inviting. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that gluten-free pasta was offered on the menu – rare in… Read More
