Author: Darlene

I’m not French, but I love French language and culture, and France, in general / je ne suis pas française, mais j’aime la langue et la culture française, et la France en général

First Decathlon Superstore in United States Opens in Emeryville, California

I learned about Decathlon during my involvement with the Bastille Day SF 2018 event. I volunteered at the Kids’ Playground area, where the youngest guests got to play with Decathlon products, like Turnball, soccer balls, and badminton racquets. The giant sporting goods retailer, which opened its first store in 1976 in Lille, France, recently welcomed … Continue reading First Decathlon Superstore in United States Opens in Emeryville, California →

You Need to Try These Black Raspberry Cocktail Recipes I Found

Hat tip to Carolyn of Hawkfeather Stories for inspiring this post! (I enjoy her blog and I'm sure you will, too. Check it out: Hawkfeather Stories) This week's Wednesday Postcard was from the commune of Chambord, France. It had not occurred to me that Chambord could be related to the black raspberry liqueur of the … Continue reading You Need to Try These Black Raspberry Cocktail Recipes I Found →

Wednesday Postcard: Chambord, France

Bonjour! I got this week’s carte postale from a local used-book shop. Photographer Yvon (Pierre Yves-Petit 1886-1969) made gelatin silver prints into postcards. I tried to capture the sheen of Yvon's gelatin silver print postcard of Chambord, one of the Châteaux de la Loire: The year 2019 marks the 500th anniversary of Chambord. Until the … Continue reading Wednesday Postcard: Chambord, France →

Wednesday Postcard: Néris-les-Bains, France

Bonjour! This week’s carte postale is one I picked up during my visit to Néris-les-Bains, France: During my international volunteer project in Hérisson, France, my team and I visited another workcamp (as these projects are sometimes called) located in the old spa town of Néris-les-Bains. I remember spending a lovely afternoon at a park, then … Continue reading Wednesday Postcard: Néris-les-Bains, France →

Public Solidarity Concert for Notre-Dame de Paris at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco

On Monday, April 29, 2019, I attended a free, open-to-all Solidarity Concert for Notre-Dame de Paris that was held at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. Along with the City and County of San Francisco, the French consulate in San Francisco, and Grace Cathedral, Ghiberti Center for Culture organized the event following the April 15, 2019 … Continue reading Public Solidarity Concert for Notre-Dame de Paris at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco →

You Can’t Spell Melodramatic Without “ME!”: Taylor Swift Speaks French in New Music Video

Taylor Swift is back with new music today (April 26). She released the song, “ME!” (feat. Brendon Urie of Panic! At the Disco) along with its music video, which is, at times, dreamlike and melodramatic! Directed by Swift and Dave Meyers, the video begins with a pink snake slithering across a brightly-colored cobblestone road. Like … Continue reading You Can’t Spell Melodramatic Without “ME!”: Taylor Swift Speaks French in New Music Video →

Wednesday Postcard: Marseille, France

Bonjour! I got this week’s carte postale from an online shop. Located in the South of France, Marseille is the second largest city in France after Paris. One of the things it's known for is bouillabaisse, a Provençal seafood stew. The postcard depicts La Canebière (or La Cannebière), the main street that runs about 1 … Continue reading Wednesday Postcard: Marseille, France →

Wednesday Postcard: Notre-Dame Cathedral, Paris, France

Bonjour! This week's carte postale is one I picked up during my visit to Paris: Notre-Dame de Paris is a medieval Catholic cathedral that was built in the French Gothic style during the years 1163 - 1345. With over 13 million visitors each year, Notre-Dame is the most visited monument in Paris. Notre-Dame suffered major … Continue reading Wednesday Postcard: Notre-Dame Cathedral, Paris, France →

500 Likes

Thank you for reading my blog! While I still believe it's not all about the numbers, I wanted to share this badge because I literally couldn't have reached this milestone without you! Thanks again! ⭐️

Brassaï Photography Exhibition at SFMOMA

Gyula Halász (1899-1984) was an Hungarian-French artist born in Brassó, Hungary (now Romania). He gave himself the name Brassaï because it means “from Brassó." What I found fascinating about his black & white photography, recently featured at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, was how Brassaï captured many not-so-pretty parts of Paris in the … Continue reading Brassaï Photography Exhibition at SFMOMA →