Hiver
Bonjour les étudiants,Winter Greetings and Happy New Year!
Do you know the French smartly send out their Bonne Annee Cards in January after the frenzy of the holiday season? Starting off this new year, Bill and I had the good fortune to spend a week in gorgeous Guadeloupe at Club Med. My cousins planned a reunion there. Little did they know that since childhood, I dreamed of experiencing Club Med. Club Med was founded in 1950 by Belgian entrepreneur Gerard Blitz. On the verge of bankruptcy in 1961, Club Med was saved by the 35 year old Baron Edmond de Rothschild who had enjoyed his stay at one of the resorts. Today there are over 70 all inclusive Club Med resorts in more than 26 countries around the world. Originally a popular place for singles, young couples, and honeymooners, it is now a destination for family holidays. Guadeloupe, located at the center of the Caribbean Islands is a French Overseas Territory. French is the official language. The islanders vote in French elections; the currency is euros. As most of the guests and the staff at the club speak French and very little English, I was in seventh heaven. The cuisine, a melange of classic French and zingy creole, makes for delightful savory meals. If you want to read more about our time there, check out my blog at frenchpressjourneys.blogspot.com.
If you would like to brush up on your French for an impending holiday or just because, please note that I offer individual and small group private instruction at my home in Beaverton and on Zoom. Tuition remains $60 per hour.
In April, the French Conversation Group will meet again for a 5 week session on Wednesdays April 2, 9, 16, 23, and 30 from 10 A.M. -11:15 A.M. at my home in Beaverton. Students receive short articles and videos to discuss each week. Spontaneous conversation and laughter abound. Tuition: $70 Checks to Giselle Bawnik, 5380 SW Elm Ave, Beaverton, OR 97005 by March 1.
Our lovely house in Monflanquin, France is available for rental. For more information, visit sayitinfrench.com.
What I am reading: Mortelles ambitions, Les enquetes de Dimitri Boizot by Patrick Philippart. There are about 15 in the series, affordably priced on Amazon. Fun detective novels.
What I am watching: The Art of Crime in French with English subtitles on Amazon Prime. A stunning crime show based on art theft. The show takes us to museums all around Paris including the Louvre.
Be well and take good care of yourself.
As always, thank you for your support. Vous êtes formidable!
Giselle Bawnik
For recipes, fun insights and stories please visit my blog!
MY LITTLE FRENCH VILLAGE is now available on Amazon for $15 which includes shipping and handling.
Recommended Picks:
Cooking Programs
French Cooking at home on the Cooking Channel
Recreational Reading
We've always had Paris and Provence by Patricia and Walter Wells
All You Need To Be Impossibly French by Helena Firth Powell
How Proust Can Change Your Life by Alain de Botton
Into a Paris Quartier by Diane Johnson
Un aller simple by Didier van Cauwelaert
L'elegance du herisson by Muriel Barbery
Malaussene Saga by Daniel Pennac
• Au bonheur des ogres
• La fée carabine
• La Petite Marchande de Prose
• Monsieur Malaussène
• Aux Fruits de la Passion
Cooking
Nuts in the Kitchen by Susan Hermann Loomis
Gorgeously written new cook book by one of our favorite cooks living in France. How to add nuts and nut oils to your cooking in delicious creative ways.
The Little Paris Kitchen by Rachel Khoo
Grammar
Practice Makes Perfect Series includes books on French Vocabulary, French Pronouns and Prepositions, and French Grammar
Dictionaries
The Firefly Mini French/English Visual Dictionary
French Films
Romantics Anonymous
Paris, Je t'aime
Mon Meilleur Ami
Apres vous
Monsieur Ibrahim
Les Choristes
Please send us your favorites and your recommendations and we will include them!