Next stop: Hanoi

In a blink of an eye, it seems, my month in Europe is over. Tomorrow, I fly out of Paris into Hanoi, Vietnam. This will be my first stop as I meet up with a 20 day tour that will take me through some very interesting cities in SouthEast Asia. We will be taking trains and private buses along the Vietnamese coast, eventually making our way into Cambodia and Thailand. Rough itinerary looks like this:

I am looking forward to this relative complete change in language, culture, and food. I do find it funny that I am leaving France to go to a country that still shows much French influence from colonization. What I'm not looking forward to so much is the weather, as it is currently monsoon season in much of Vietnam, with daily highs often reaching past 95 degrees. 

I leave France with many fond memories; it has been a delight to be able to explore without feeling the usual tourist time constraints. Paris is a wonderful city to explore on foot, with its small winding streets and old intricate architecture. There is so much to see (and eat); I could be here for a year and not experience it all.

What I may remember most though isn't necessarily the fancy stuff. There were a few relaxing afternoons where I bought some bread, and headed to a park for some reading. Sitting in the shade (Paris has fantastically comfortable chairs in the park, perfect for a nap), I looked up every once in a while to enjoy the view. Ah, until next time, Paris!

Au revoir!

In Bruges

No, I haven't seen the movie. :P

In any case, I capped off my European travels with one last trip north... to the Belgium city of Bruges. Here's a handy map to see its location in comparison to Paris:

Once again, I joined a tour bus for this journey which was about 4 1/2 hours away. I kind of wish I splurged on a train for this one, because it would have only taken about 2 1/2 hours that way (with one connection in Brussels). I am really going to miss these high speed trains when I leave Europe. They are so fast and so convenient!

Bruges is known as an idyllic, picturesque city and it certainly did not disappoint in that regard. The combination of blue skies, red brick, and gentle canals was wonderful to see in person. It's also fun when the scenery makes it easy to take really impressive pictures. :)

One of the included amenities on this tour was a 30 minute boat ride through the canals. Seeing everything at water-level was, if possible, even prettier!

We caught a glimpse of a dog sleeping the morning away by the window. Isn't he lucky?

In respect to food, there were dozens and dozens of chocolate shops, and restaurants serving moules frites (mussels and fries). I briefly contemplated getting mussels for lunch, but ultimately my cheapskate tendencies won out. Instead, I visited a cute fast-food style place and got some grilled shrimp with fries for less than half the price of mussels. It was fresh and delicious; I picked a curry ketchup to have with the fries, which was interesting and tasty too.

I definitely enjoyed myself in this quaint little town. However, I do wonder if I'm getting jaded. So much of the small city catered to the tourists, and everything once again had a slight 'Disney' feel to it. I really couldn't get a local vibe at all. Even most signs were written in three languages to facilitate business (Dutch/French/English?).

I feel like I'm being nitpicky though; Bruges was definitely a very pretty city, and I'm glad I got the chance to visit!

Awash in Art

I think I have just gone to my favorite museum in France today, the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. The space is beautiful, and was originally a working train station. So walking around felt like being inside one huge art piece even without perusing the paintings and sculptures.

Unfortunately pictures were not really allowed in this museum, so I am sorely lacking in visuals for this post. But I did snap a shot of the museum space. It's huge, with translucent ceilings that let in soft filtered light and a feeling of openness that actually helped highlight the art.

The art pieces were predominately from the mid-late 1800s, and covered everything from paintings to sculptures to furniture. Many of the artists are among the best known in the world, so it was really a lot of fun to be able to compare and contrast their work (Van Goh and Monet probably being the most recognized).

I ended up grinning like a loon through some of the exhibits, and I have to blame a book I recently read. Christopher Moore's Sacre Bleu featured many of these artists as characters in a fictional plotline, and I almost felt like I was visiting some old friends (Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec! That short bawdy fellow; he CAN paint after all!). I also found a new appreciation for George Seurat's pointillism work, which is composed of thousands of tiny precise dots of color.

My favorite piece of the day ended up being a new discovery for me though. François Garas was technically an architect; little is known about him except that he sketched some pretty fanciful works. Although I believe this piece dates to about 1900, it looks so much like science fiction cover art from the 1980s, no?

Title: Temple of Thought

Eventually, I made my way up to the tower level, where the giant clock allows you to peek out at the city below. This was a fantastic museum to visit; one that I will actually look forward to returning to next time I'm in Paris!

Chocolate tastings

I have been lucky enough to have tasted many different kinds of chocolates in the past few years, from locally made, US-based, to European-based types. And while I don't like to generalize, French chocolates typically get very high marks from me.

(As a side note, one of my least-liked questions is when someone asks me "What's your favorite food?" or "What is your favorite chocolate?". I have a different favorite depending on the situation and price point. Do I want a traditional ganache? Something with a modern flavor profile? Fruit? Nuts? It all depends on context.)

In any case though, if you were to twist my arm and I was allowed to choose one chocolate to have for the rest of my life, it would be the Rigoletto by La Maison du Chocolat. It has a complex caramel-y flavor but the chocolate remains the star: smooth and velvety. The chocolate is light on your tongue, but not so airy that it tastes insubstantial. And so it is the chocolates from La Masion du Chocolate (hereby known as 'MDC' to save myself the typing) that I use as the standard when I judge my chocolate tastings in Paris.

Ironically, many online chocolate fans consider MDC to be inferior. The chocolates are made in bulk, since there are quite a few stores worldwide, and are not deemed to be as fresh and tasty as some smaller Parisian chocolatiers. Well, that is absolutely something I had to investigate, and so I trekked myself to a chocolate shop today.

My online research pointed out well over a dozen different shops for me to try. My wallet and waistline unfortunately would not be able to take that strain, and so I have to content myself with picking out a few fan favorites. Jean-Paul Hévin is mentioned a lot on these lists, even though he also has a few branches out of the country (mostly in Asia). I bought a nice little sachet of 12 chocolates to try, for about $13 USD.

Looks tasty!

For my tasting, I used a knife to cut half of each chocolate to try (the other half will be for tomorrow. How's that for moderation and portion control?). Once again, I won't bore everyone to death by describing each chocolate in detail... here are the ones that I found most interesting. The poor chocolates got a little roughed up during the trip home, so they aren't as pristine as the ones in the store.

The Adamantin featured an almond praline covered with dark chocolate. I usually find hazelnut praline in desserts, so the almond provided a slight but welcome variation. The praline had a fantastic texture; any nut/crispy bits were tiny, and helped showcase the smoothness of the ganache.

Adamantin

The name of the chocolate below is "Woman". I wonder what the Jean-Paul Hévin is trying to insinuate? Anyway, this was an interesting flavor combination. Green tea ganache, with a bergamot marzipan layer. First note I tasted was the tea, then it becomes more floral as the bergamot takes over. I found the marzipan texture distracting. I can't say that I liked this, but this was a very strong flavor profile that I don't think I have tasted before.

Woman

I couldn't find this chocolate on the website, so I will dub it "Parfume d'Orange". A soft orange ganache is coated in milk chocolate. The orange note was very fragrant, it was almost more of an aroma in my nose than a flavor in my mouth. I liked this classic combination a lot.

Parfum d'Orange

And then there's Jean-Paul Hévin's version of Maison du Chocolat's Rigoletto. I need to get one from MDC for direct comparison! The Manon was good, but I actually thought the chocolate flavor got lost in the stronger caramel. I want to say that the MDC version is a little more balanced.

Manon

So what's the verdict? This is very good French chocolate. All of the ganaches were completely smooth and everything melted in my mouth. The flavors were mostly strong and straightforward, although I didn't love a few of the combinations. My one issue is that the chocolate had a very acidic aftertaste; I wonder if that is due to where he sources his chocolate from. The shop also offers other delights like caramels (which are supposed to be outstanding), chocolate-based pastries, and macarons. Parisians are most certainly very lucky to have so many options around.

Lille, France

So far, I have traveled east (Strasbourg), south (Lyon), and west (Mont St. Michel, Blois) from Paris. This week then, will be all about heading north. Today, I start by going to Lille, a city near the Belgium-France border.

This was a super fast trip; only 1 hour away from Paris. While most of the city is very modern, there are still some neighborhoods that offer a look at Belgian-inspired French architecture, including lots of brick-work. Beautiful cobble-stone streets set off these brightly colored buildings well, so walking through the old neighborhood was utterly charming.

The neighborhood spanned quite a few streets, which were all winding and small. So it was easy to get immersed in them and wander for a few hours. On the whole, a lot of big brand retail stores have sprouted up, but some smaller local ones remained and those were fun to window-shop at.

For the afternoon, I stopped by a huge Walmart-type store that was located right in between the two main train stations. Holy cow, there were AISLES devoted to snacks, and it was a lot of fun to see how differently French people shop (lots of patés, pickles, sweets).

A whole wall of olives!

These crackers are delicious! The 'Monaco' style is buttery like a Ritz, with some Gouda cheese on top. The 'Fromaggi' has a very sharp and strong Parmesean powder on it. I can't decide which one I like more!

Salty snacking

These gummies are my new favorite candy of the summer so far. These have been available at some vending machines around town, but a bigger bag was available at a cheaper price at the supermarket and I had to get it. Haribo does make some great flavors, and their whole sour gummy line has not disappointed me so far!

Sour Orangina gummies

And my non-new favorite candy! :) I guess the best American equivalent for these are fruit roll ups... but SO MUCH BETTER. I love the natural sweetness and slightly chewy texture. I haven't been able to find my favorite flavor (cassis), but most of the others are pretty yummy too.

A five-pack bag!

I had a few more places in mind to visit, but unfortunately Monday closures took them out of the running. It probably worked better for me anyway, as I could take my time and enjoy a pretty day in a pretty city.

Strolling like royalty

Ahhh, a Sunday of rest. It is much needed, and much enjoyed. I got lazy last night and got home late, so I waited to update yesterday's little trip.

My very thoughtful sister decided to get an early birthday present for me, and sent me off to Versailles for a special evening viewing of the gardens. This was an elaborate 2 hour affair, filled with water fountains, special lighting, and classical music. Of course, it gets dark late at this time of year, so when I arrived at 8:30pm, it was still light enough outside to grab some pretty photos of the palace and grounds.

Sculpted masterpiece

Palace reflected off setting sunlight

Fit for a king!

As 9pm approached, the grounds filled up with people. Soon, we were all strolling along the tree-lined pathways, like children finding their way through a labyrinth. At the intersection of many paths, differently shaped fountains and statues stood guard.

One of many many many fountains

This one danced to the music!

Out on the main stretch of grass, jets were set up that spouted fire in rhythm to the music. It was fun to watch, as the jets spanned across a line that must have been over 100 yards long. I have to say, the little bursts of fire were nice and warming, and I took advantage of them by buying an ice cream cone to enjoy as I stood nearby.

Imagine roasting marshmallows on these!

As the sky slowly darkened, the mood only became more magical. The fountains were colored in all hues of the rainbow, and it was easy to imagine that they held magical waters to be made into elixirs and potions.

Fountain of... youth?

Statues looked like dancing fairies

A full 2 hours was alloted to exploring the gardens; the time went by really quickly as there was so much to see. One section even included fancy smoke machines and lasers in addition to music. I felt like I had been dropped into my own version of the movie "Labyrinth" (where's David Bowie???).

Patrons started lining up for the 11pm fireworks show pretty early. This was actually very impressive, as it was choreographed really well, with the music, fireworks, and special light/water/fire effects all working in tandem. I thought they had a nice variety of differently-shaped fireworks too; my favorites are the ones that sparkle and glitter for a few seconds after the initial burst. Unfortunately, there was no way to get a good picture of anything... it all ended up looking fuzzy:

This was a very unique experience to have; I got to explore some magnificent gardens, and the view of fireworks being reflected off the windows of the palace is definitely something to remember. Thank you, Pui and Germain!! :)

Say "Blwaaahhh"

Today's trip was to the small town of Blois (see title for pronunciation, no kidding!), which is located roughly 100 miles from Paris. There are no high speed trains to this small town; I had to take a slower local one that took about an hour and a half. Blois is situated as one of the gateways into the Loire Valley region, which is filled with many beautiful châteaus. My aim was to go see Chambord, one of the largest châteaus in the area.

Unfortunately though, my plan for the day didn't really come off correctly. I couldn't find the bus from Blois to Chambord, and by the time I walked over to the Office of Tourism, it had started to rain. My feet were chilly and wet, and there was conveniently another smaller chateau nearby. So here's a picture of what I was going to see:

Chambord

Instead, I visited the Château de Blois, which has a very long history of its own. The one-time abode of several French kings, the château is separated into several distinct buildings that span several architecture styles. While not as gaudy and huge as Chambord, Blois had a charm of its own.

Dramatic open spiral staircase, part of the
Francois I wing in the Renaissance style

The Gaston d'Orleans wing, in the French
Classical style

Chapel in the Louis XII wing, in the
Flamboyant style

All of these buildings are connected to the same courtyard, so it was like seeing a property that had self-identification issues. There was also a wing that featured predominately Medieval structures, so it was most interesting to wander around and get a very different feeling from each part of the château.

The State Room, from the Medieval Wing

My favorite room ended up being the Queen's Gallery; while it is completely not my personal style, I thought that it was completely over-the-top and fun.

Different patterns! Everywhereeee!!

I always thought that gargoyles were supposed to look menacing while perched on a building. These definitely were not.

He's saying "Blwaaaaaah"

"It's a TOUCHDOWN!!!"

"Whoa, duuuuuuuuude."

I don't think cello lessons are going well for this little stained-glass cherub. Maybe he wants to learn the harp instead?

"This is NOT going well."

There was impressive furniture everywhere; I always wonder how many man hours are needed to create these things back then.

A harpsichord

Fancy dresser... walnut, I think

It was fun to take my time and see this château. Best of all, I was able to take an earlier train back to Paris! Frankly, this week has left me really tired... definitely going to sleep in tomorrow!