Life at the speed of light: delicious

And so, we, english assistants in France, find ourselves already in the month of February, time speeding full-force ahead and leaving us with little over 12 weeks left of our contracts.  While many of us will travel in Europe and elsewhere long past this date of departure,--therefore making use of every last day of our Schengen visas--we are plagued with momentary lapses into panic over the thought of parting from our lives in France.  I, personally, have seen so much since Christmas alone, that every time I sat down to record the experience, I found myself overwhelmed by the string of events that I had failed to record, and ultimately gave up on the attempt, leaving the duty of recording to my memories and pictures.

In attempt to register on paper some of the many events, I propose a quick recap...

Patou and Roland lighting candles in the chapel.

Following a whirlwind of a trip in Budapest, Christmas in Sospel was very much the sanctuary of which I had been dreaming.  It was a perfect Provençal Christmas, complete with a crêche of santons, a candle-lit gathering at the St. Joseph chapel chez Pavia-Orengo, (interjection of a reading of "The Night Before Christmas" preformed by the two traveling americans), and a sumptuous feast which commenced with oysters.
The 13 desserts were heavenly, not to mention the rest of the 4 other courses and the Bûche de Noël. The feast fit for kings finished around 1am and was subsequently followed by coffee at the neighbors'.  I thought it was a joke until coats were passed around and cookies were boxed to accompany the late night conclusion of festivities.  We talked of our hopes for the coming year and ended the evening somewhere around 2h30 in drowsy merriment.

From there, Kelly and I regretfully packed our bags once more and headed north to Paris for a few last days of seasonal tourism.  She flew home and I stayed in Paris until the passing of the New Year, discovering new museums (and making use of my awesome Carte Professionelle---Teacher pass), and indulging in delicious french bread and Parisian culture.  I made some new friends including a street artist whose work I had admired since discovering him on the banks of the Seine when I was in Paris in the spring, and became reacquainted with fellow assistants, passing New Years Eve with the lively bunch of them and their french friends.

Back in Lorgues, the students arrived back at school surprisingly refreshed and excited to begin new semester.  I discovered that my quietest students had the most to say, for a change, and I felt inspired to continue to meet their enthusiasm with that of my own.  It was as though the rest they had been granted over the break allowed all the information to soak in, and they were eager to ask the questions that had been plaguing their minds all vacation long.  As nerdy of a student as I was in high school, I don't quite remember being nearly so excited to go back to school after vacation; and so, as a teacher, I never took for granted the unprecedented enthusiasm of these lycéens.

The enthusiastic return to school was only the start of the exciting month of January that followed.  We Lorgues-inhabiting assistants held many a "girl's night", got a taste of some delightful live jazz in Vieux Nice, and even built a snowman!  Madame la Snowman was either being caught by the police for doing some illegal, or was saving Le Petit from being hit by the police vehicle... the jury is still out on the story.

January also holds the title of Month of Most Food Tasted.  Traditional French foods now added to the list are as follows:

• Oysters; I ate my OWN plate of 7.
• Unshelled shrimp; yes, it was my first time de-shelling them... 
• Un chapon farci; a castrated rooster, stuffed and roasted
• The 13 desserts; actually my first time eating dark nougat, dried dates and figs, and fugaces d'olives (my favorite!; a type of bread made with olive oil but tastes more sweet than savory!)

• New Zealand carmels; brought back from Kiwi land by Lucy---such flavors as malt, mint, and eggs & cream 
• Socca; a traditional food of Nice---a savory crêpe made from chickpea flour, eaten with salt, pepper, and olive oil (of course!)     

• 1)Gallette des Rois et 2)Gallette Provençale; traditional cakes eaten in January to celebrate the 3 wise men that visited Jesus;---1) a tarte made with a layer of marzipan in the center 2) a provençal brioche topped with real "fruits confit" (stewed/candied fruit) 

• ===The tradition is to hide a santon or some small figurine in the cake as well as a bean. When the cake is cut and distributed, the person that finds the santon has good fortune all year, while the bean brings bad luck.                                                
• Cassoulet; a traditional food of the Southwest of France---a bean dish made with every part of the pig imaginable, as well as traditional sausage from the region and duck confit

• Dès de fois gras dans bouillon aux épices; a soup of pan-seared fois gras in bouillon infused with chinese spiced tea
• Chou Farci; cabbage stuffed with beef and sausage, then covered with cheese and baked till crisp
• Liver; served floured and pan-fried---perhaps not a tradition, but definitely something new for me!
• L'andouille de Vire---Chitterings in the form of a sausage from Vire (in Normandy)
• Caillette---Stuffing (composed of meat, herbs and spices) in the form of a roll and baked to perfection... like the french version of meatloaf
• Croustade aux pommes à l'armagnac; crispy apple tarte made with phyllo dough
• Espouma de fois gras aux 3 epices; a fancy spin on the already-fancy fois gras---a sort of mousse or whipped cream of fois gras topped with allspice

• Kir suédois; a drink made with champagne and syrup of "sureau" (elderberries)
• Pousse-rapière; an aperitif made with white wine and liqueur à l'Armagnac 

C'EST BON D'ÊTRE GOURMANDE!