Bon Appétit

Bonjour from Toulouse!

I arrived here last night, and was met at the train station by the entire Hatcher family. What a welcoming committee! They're an American missionary family (friends of my friend Sarah), and I'm visiting them for the weekend.

The first thing we did when I arrived at their house was eat Thanksgiving dinner (leftovers). Especially since I didn't have a proper Thanksgiving dinner while in Le Mans, I was so happy about the meal!

Of course I've enjoyed the delicious French food I've been eating for the past month, too. :)

The French have a reputation for being serious about their food. In that way, I fit in quite well here. When I was in Le Mans, we ate lunch each day around 12:30 and dinner at 7:30. Both meals were sit down affairs that took time. We would have a main course, then a cheese and bread course, then dessert.

Crêpes are one of my very favorite French desserts! (We used to make them in my French class in high school.) I made crêpes one day with my friend Pauline...


Making crêpes in France = exciting times!!

I also went to a crêperie (a restaurant specializing in crêpes) a couple of times...

Nutella on the inside (yum!) and lots of whipped cream on the outside. :)

Thin buckwheat flour pancakes called galettes are eaten as a main course at a crêperie. I think of galettes as a non-dessert crêpe. They're especially popular in the Brittany region and are often served with cider.

This one had cheese & mushrooms inside, topped with sour cream. At a different crêperie, I had a galette with tomato & cheese. Liliane made galettes with eggs & ham a couple of times for dinner.

Just about every single day this month, I've eaten French bread, a baguette. At my homestay house, we usually had a baguette with wine and cheese. As Liliane said, "The bread, the wine, and the cheese--the three is happiness." :) It makes me happy whenever I see people walking down the street carrying a baguette in their arms.

Eating a sandwich made on a baguette with friends at the university in Le Mans. I sat in on a couple of classes at the university and really enjoyed meeting people there! :)

I've learned a lot about French cuisine in the last month, and will continue to enjoy eating it...