The French “diss-connection”

PARIS

My brother Dan and I spent several weeks in Europe in May of 1999. We had made plans to start our adventure in France and meet up with my friend Amber, from Australia. She was attending the Sorbonne University at the time, taking French language courses.

We had a fantastic time that week exploring the beautiful city of Paris, with her abundant gardens, creperies & café’s, museums and the diverse culture. Every day was a new gastronomic experience as we sampled Pan Au Chocolate, Coffee, crepes, and among our favorites…cheese. All different kinds of it; Hard, soft, imported, local, with crackers, bread, fruit, you name it, we tried it!

One evening, Dan and I decided to splurge and go to a restaurant called Le Retonade, and we ordered the Menu du Jour. We enjoyed each course as it was served and relaxed in the leisurely atmosphere. For dessert, there were two selections. I ordered the chocolate mousse and he ordered the Frommages Blanc. What he thought he was getting was some kind of cream cheese type dessert. What he actually got was a large wooden tray of 4 huge blocks of various cheeses. We went ahead and sampled them all and ended up eating alot of it. The waiter returned to collect the tray, and looked both shocked and disgusted when he discovered that we had eaten most of the contents. Hey! We didn’t know that you were supposed to sample each and it would get passed on to the next table to do the same! Needless to say, due to the large volume we ate, what do you think we craved in the next few days? More cheese of course.

So, a few days later we stopped into another restaurant, and were seated outside on the patio overlooking a French cobblestone alley with picturesque historic buildings and store fronts. We settled in and were handed our menus. When the waiter came to take our order, we had rehearsed ahead of time in our limited French, and so we ordered two Bubbly waters and a Cheese plate.

What happened next took us both by surprise.

“No, No, NOOO!”, the waiter exclaimed and he got louder and more animated with each word in his thick accent, “You order appetizer, entrée, fromage (cheese plate), dessert, …No, no, NOOO!” By now his face was bright red and he was quite loud and dramatic. We were completely caught off guard and embarrassed needless to say.

So, quite upset at the awkward encounter, we got up and left. As we huffed down the street, I was furious at the perceived rudeness of the French, and was ranting and raving about it to my brother.

Finally after several moments of walking in silence, he says, “Well, (in somewhat defeated tones)… I still want some cheese.” “Me too” I sniffed. We walked around until we located a little grocery store, where we went in and bought some cheese and bread, and after indulging in our gourmet treats back at our hotel, somehow we felt like we still won!

The next day, when I mentioned the previous day’s episode to our friend Amber, she exclaimed, “Oh! Oh my! That is simply not done here.  You don’t just go and order cheese only! THEY consider that very rude.”

Guess we didn’t see that mentioned in the guide book. Hah! Oh well. Take note if you travel there.

Stat: The Paris region receives 45 million tourists annually, 27 million of whom are foreign visitors. (Source: Wikipedia)

Fanatical foodie

Borscht

Pan Au Chocolat

Learning to appreciate cultural cuisine

Recently, I watched a culinary travel show called Bizarre Foods. The American hosts job was trekking around the globe in search of bizarre and tasty food adventures. Along the way, he met some interesting guides, saw beautiful scenery and sampled delicious and sometimes strange local fare.

Watching the show brought me back to my many trips abroad in my teens and twenties. I too have been fortunate enough to savor some amazing meals, meet some fabulous people and see some truly spectacular sights.

From the melt in your mouth Pan Au Chocolat pastry in Paris, to the spicy rich Indian food in Kuala Lumpur, to the Beet borscht and crisp bread with the chewy center in St. Petersburg, I remember many good bites.

This is not really all about the food.

Actually I guess it is a little. Most importantly though, it’s about exploring different cultures and what makes them distinctive.

One plane ride away from your native shores, you will find yourself in a world full of unique customs, unusual dishes and indigenous people.

Having been born and raised in the U.S, and growing up in the Midwest, where meat and potatoes are standard fare, I never knew there was so much out there to eat! And so much to see! There are certain things that make each culture exclusive and knowing what is unique to them can do much in allowing you to make new friends.

As a Christian, I have made many friends thru showing an interest in their culture, their food, and really, just in their way of life.

Just about everyone loves to talk about themselves. So if you start asking the right questions, you will learn plenty about what they are about, where they are from, and, along the way, you just might gain some valuable keys to reaching them for Christ.

Back to food though because it is one thing that is more important than you think! Appreciating a countries cuisine is a rudimentary but often imperative place to start in my view. Why you may ask? Because, it is a common fact that you will be eating every day, simply put.

I have seen fellow travelers with such a big heart for people absolutely offend their host by their refusal to eat the food that is placed before them or by whipping out a snack they brought instead of tasting what was being served to them.

By being impolite, sometimes they lost their opportunity to secure a relationship which could have benefited both of their lives in some way.

So, here are some practical ways to work on being more diverse in your appetite even before you travel:

1) Read up

Find out what food is popular in the place you plan to visit. What is their specialty? What are they known for? Try that!

When I was in Ireland, it was Fish & Chips wrapped in paper. In Germany it was their many types of sausage and bratwurst. And in Rome, it was their amazing pasta and pizza.

Every region and country has their specialties so take the time to find out what they are and embrace it.

You might say, “Hey, I am a picky eater. There is no way I am trying Blood Pudding in England. Yuck!”

Some things will be harder to stomach than others, I agree. The point is to be willing. I was surprised to find that those endless cups of Chai that I sampled in Nepal are now a favorite tea choice for me still today. Many other things I have tried are now a part of my favorites list.

2) Eat out

Go to ethnic places in your town and sample some of the fare you will be eating abroad. This is not always possible and if not, you can typically find specialty markets where they have imported goods you can buy.

Do your homework and give it a try. I just had Korean food not to long ago for the first time ever and it was delicious.

3) Be adventurous

You may find by doing a little exploring or by befriending people from other cultures that you like some of their cuisine more than you think. Don’t instantly turn your nose up and say no. You never know what you might like until you try it!

My husband and I were invited to a clients’ house 3 or 4 years ago for a big Iranian feast. We knew no one except his client however the group welcomed us gladly. They had prepared an amazing feast with trays of Persian food and by the end of the night they were like family. Because we showed such eagerness to taste everything, they were delighted to keep feeding us! And I can tell you that I had some of the most incredible food that night, and a full stomach too!

Every year or so, I have a Fig Newton. What’s the big deal about that you may ask? Well, for starters I don’t like them! But I still have them every so often just to make sure that I still don’t like them. Sounds funny but it’s a simple reminder to keep trying things. Because I have purposely cultivated my taste buds to many different flavors, I can (mostly) enjoy a variety of flavors and cuisines. Sure, there are some I like more than others, you bet! But my list of things is growing all the time. Oh, I don’t like kettle corn either but I still keep trying it.

I encourage you to never stop trying things no matter how old you get!

No experience in my life has brought more diversity and appreciation for the many other cultures out there than travelling extensively to over 20 nations and meeting many friends along the way.

From the incredible hot dog stand in Cartagena, to the Roasted Pumpkin & Lamb with mint jelly in Queensland, and many tasty bites in between, I feel that I have matured in my view of the world and all of the rich diversity in it. And much of it stemmed from my willingness to try regional cuisines.

So, Bon Appétit! And, I hope you will go into all the world too!

Cartegena, Colombia

Dessert Soufflé’s and…. Hairy Legs

SALZBURG, AUSTRIA

My brother and I were in Europe for several weeks and took a train to Salzburg to visit a friend. We had read in our trusty guidebook on Austria that there was an incredible dessert soufflé that was a local favorite. So we decided that we HAD to try it.

“Created in the 17th century by Salome Alt, the mistress of the archbishop of Salzburg, this soufflé is formed to look like the three hills that surround the city (Mönchsberg, Kapuzinerberg and Gaisberg). Many variations abound, but a few secrets help ensure a successful outcome, meaning you can get this soufflé to the table and serve it before it falls. It also tastes very good.” 1

As we walked through Salzburg, we became obsessed with finding this dessert. We went to restaurant after restaurant searching menus, having our friend ask if anyone knew who made this! People looked like they didn’t have a clue what we were talking about!

Finally, we found a place that offered it.

We sat down and ordered the now infamous dessert and eagerly waited to see if it was really that fantastic! It takes around 30 minutes for them to make it.

Finally, the waiter brought it over to our table and my, oh my, it was worth the wait! It was creamy and rich, and then we topped it with a tart berry sauce. Every bite was pure vanilla heaven on a plate.

This dessert is pretty well known so the only thing I can think is that we weren’t pronouncing it right and they had no idea what we were talking about! Oh well, our persistence eventually did payoff.

On that same visit, we became acquainted with a rag tag, hippie looking couple named Robert and Ruth who we just fell in love with for their eccentric and humorous company. Both had long hair and looked like they had just stepped out of a seventies movie.

One evening we were hanging out with them and several fellow Americans, sitting around listening to Robert’s funky 70’s and 80’s records, someone was strumming a guitar, others were eating, conversations were going on simultaneously in English and German.

I was not privy to the German conversation of course so I wasn’t really paying much attention to what was being said. Somewhere in the evening, Ruth and our friend Charity began discussing body hair and how the need to shave or not was different in each culture.

All of a sudden, she whipped out a very hairy leg and put it on the table…. and before I knew it, my eyes became as big as saucers and I literally gasped out loud in horror! It looked like she hadn’t shaved in months.

Now, if you know me, I am extremely expressive and it is hard to hide what I am thinking. This was especially bad because I would never intend to hurt someone’s feelings in this setting but when caught off guard, well, you get what you get I guess!

Thankfully, she had a great sense of humor about it.

Apparently, not everyone shaves their legs or armpits for that matter. Or so I learned! And really, who cares?

We found Salzburg to be picturesque and unforgettable, with the outdoor cafes everywhere, old men playing chess in the city square, breathtaking views from every corner and perfect gardens where the Sound of Music was filmed, it truly was a trip to remember.

Source:

1 ) http://germanfood.about.com/od/germandessertrecipe/r/salzburger_nockerln.htm Review by Jennifer McGavin, About.com Guide