Une femme d’un certain âge

A while ago, I started following a blog by Tish Jett, A Femme d’Un Certain Age. Jett, a journalist, moved to France three decades ago. She met and married a Frenchman and established her life there. Over her years in la belle France, she made close friends with a number of Frenchwomen and picked their brains for their style and beauty secrets. Forever Chic is the result of Jett’s insider research and observation.

As the publicity blurb for the book says:

“For any woman who last saw forty on her speedometer comes a sparkling new primer for aging—the French way—with grace and style. Frenchwomen of a certain age (over forty) are captivating and complex. They appear younger than their years and remain stylish throughout their lives. They look at birthdays as a celebration of a life well-lived and perhaps a good reason to go shopping before they dress to perfection for a celebration of another anniversaire. American-born journalist and blogger Tish Jett has lived among the French for years and has studied them and stalked them to learn their secrets. Exploring how their wardrobe, beauty, diet, and hair rituals evolve with time and how some aspects of their signature styles never change, Jett shows how Frenchwomen know their strengths, hide their weaknesses, and never talk about their fears, failures, or flaws. After all, in France, beauty, style, and charm have no expiration dates!”

At first, I was afraid Jett was about to trot out the same old platitudes – quality over quantity, understatement over flash – but the book soon got down to business. Jett had plenty of fresh advice to share. Some of it was simple to implement and budget friendly; other advice was for those with substantially deeper poches than average.

Take some of those low cost ideas for starters: Jett recommends that you boil a loofah mitt before using it to soften the fibers. As one of the skin gurus she consulted in her research said, “skin only understands when you speak to it gently.” Jett also recommends using cornflower water as a gentle toner. To refresh tired eyes, soak cotton pads in it and then chill them before lying down with them on your eyes.

Some of the higher cost alternatives included a massage that has a list price of 1,100 Euros and that reduced Jett to tears. At one point, the masseuse put her fingers in Jett’s mouth and applied strong pressure to the roof of her mouth. Yuck! A more controversial recommendation is mesotherapy, a no-blade alternative to cosmetic surgery. Jett underwent tiny injections of hyaluronic acid and vitamins into the mid-layer of the skin in the name of research. She touts its ability to stimulate collagen and elastin production and says the results were worth it. As far as the medical community is concerned, however, this is a procedure to approach with great caution. It’s unregulated, and there’s no way of knowing what’s in the practitioner’s needles. There’s no clinical evidence of improvement in patients and some countries have banned the practice.

And, of course, no book entitled Forever Chic would be complete without a section devoted to fashion. I liked Jett’s recommendation (based on interviews with a host of chic French friends) to invest in a wardrobe that consists of 85% neutrals and 15% fantasy in color, cut, or details. Think of forever chic Frenchwoman and head of the International Monetary Fund Christine Lagarde in one of her neutral suits classic French outfit in grey or camel with a knockout Hermès scarf – the formula certainly holds true. I also enjoyed her account of a session with a personal shopper at that iconic Paris department store, les Galeries Lafayette. She asked the shopper to pull together outfits that would allow a woman to build a classic French wardrobe. The woman presented many variations of outfits on mannequins during her session with Jett. I’d never thought of using a personal shopper in this way, but I was intrigued to possibly try that myself someday.

So if you, like me, are une femme d’un certain âge (oon fam duhn serten asje), I think you’ll enjoy both Jett’s book and her blog for fashion and flair with a French touch.

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Le hangar des oubliés

One of our best memories of our late summer trip to Québec City was a free Cirque du Soleil event down at the harbor front. I’ve always wanted to see a Cirque du Soleil performance and here was a chance to do so for free. Founded in 1984 by a pair of street performers from Montréal, the troupe may be our best export since maple syrup. The concierge at our hotel told us about it and we were able to get there our final night. The concierge had told us to get there early, as there were no advance tickets and seating was first-come-first serve. We got there about an hour and a quarter prior to show time and the queue was already enormous, snaking on and on. At one point we noticed a curious break in the line. As we got closer, we saw that everyone was waiting politely so as not to block a sidewalk. It was a distinctly Canadian moment.

Looking at the length of the line, we wondered if we would get in. In the time that we waited for the show to open, the line grew and grew, probably doubling. Everyone was in a lighthearted, festive mood as we waited. Finally, the strobe lights came on, music began to play, and the crowd began to surge forward.

We hustled to the entrance, trying to keep a grip on one another so we wouldn’t get separated in the sea of people. (Have I mentioned that I hate crowds?) All of the 5,000 stadium seats were taken and we were urged forward, forward ever closer to the stage. At first, I wasn’t excited by my standing-room-only status, but then I realized that we were among the last people who had been allowed through the gate. Suddenly, I realized that I was one of the lucky ones.

The show was the penultimate event in a five-year contract between Cirque du Soleil and the city. Over 150,000 people had queued up to see the show just as we had in the summer of 2013, and about half as many again were turned away from the gate. It’s possible that a new contract will bring another spectacle back to the Vieux Port next year, but at a cost to the city of $6.5 million CDN a year in a time when budgets are being trimmed, this is far from a certainty.

The show was entitled Le hangar des oubliés (luh hangar dayz oob-lee-ay), which is translated as “the harbor of lost souls,” even though oubliés literally means "the forgotten." Frankly, the plot was a little thin but the show was spectacular. Our position on the ground was no hardship in terms of viewing the show. For each act, the focus of attention shifted around the auditorium, and many times it was up in the air as the acrobatic fantasy unfolded around us. I’d never seen, or even imagined, anything like it. The only thing we couldn’t agree on was which act was the best.

If Cirque du Soleil comes to town where you are, go, even if you have to wait for hours to see a standing-room-only show. Cirque du Soleil – World’s Away

Un/une faussaire

French artist Alfred Sisley was born in Paris on October 30, 1839. His parents were British, so Sisley had their citizenship, but he lived most of his life in France. His father was a wealthy silk merchant and his mother was a connoisseur of classical music.

His parents intended him to pursue a career in business and they packed him off to London. After four years, he returned to Paris where he enrolled at the École des Beaux-Arts. While there, he became friends with Renoir, Monet, and Bazille. All of the group that became known as the Impressionists experimented en plein air with the effects of light and shadow. What made Sisley different was the fact that he was financially supported by his father.

This level of financial comfort came to an end after the 1870 France-Prussian War caused the failure of his father’s business. Sisley went from comfort to penury for the rest of his days. Occasionally, Sisley picked up a sponsor, which allowed him to complete a series of paintings of the Thames that are considered to be as good as Impressionism gets. Sisley’s skies are considered particularly impressive.

Sisley applied for French citizenship but was refused. A second request was pending when Sisley died of throat cancer on January 29, 1899.

His paintings gained in cachet and market value after his death. Today, they are held by some of the top museums in the world, including the Musée d’Orsay. One of his paintings, Allée des peupliers de Moret, has been stolen three times from its home at the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Nice. Once it was recovered in the sewer; once the museum’s curator was conviced with the theft along with two accomplices; most recently, the police found it in a van in Marseilles.

His large body of work, about 900 oil paintings, and many pastels and drawings, has made him one of the most frequently copied artists by scammers who try to pass a work off as “newly discovered” Sisley. The word for a forger is un/une faussaire (uhn/oon foesare). It’s one of a small group of French words that can be either masculine or feminine. Forgery is an equal opportunity crime.

Alfred Sisley

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Le Faubourg

After our great crêpes at Le Billig on rue St. Jean in Québec, we passed a delightful afternoon exploring the other shops that line this charming street outside the stone wall of the Old Town. It feels a little like Soho in its bohemian days before the chain stores moved in. The entire neighborhood is named after the street and is known as Le Faubourg Saint-Jean (luh foe-boorg  sahn zjohn). A faubourg refers to part of a city on the outskirts. In this case, le faubourg is outside of the city wall. Rue St. Jean continues within the wall as well, connected to it by la Porte Saint-Jean but it’s le faubourg that is the more charming part.

Our first find was the Épicerie Européene, 560 rue St. Jean. If you want to pick up a reminder of your trip for yourself or a gift for a foodie friend, this is the place to go. The goods are enticing and the displays are perhaps even more so. Teas from Kusmi in Paris, exotic oils, and fleur de sel de Guérande are just some of their offerings. The business has been around since 1959, but moved to a larger spot on the street a few years ago. The shop gleams with abundant natural light and cheery yellow walls.

Brûlerie de Café de Québec, 575 rue St. Jean, is the place to go for your afternoon cup of pick-me-up. The beans are roasted on site in small batches and the selection is impressive.

My daughter is a petite grad student. She found plenty of interesting clothes for twenty-somethings at Boutique Séraphin at 738 rue St. Jean. It was at this point that my husband wore out and went back to the hotel for a nap. No stamina at all.

Jupon Pressé, 790 rue St. Jean, is a relatively new store featuring retro-style clothing for women, especially dresses, as well as accessories to wear and for the home.  They had a lot of fun merchandise and it was hard to resist temptation.

Finally, I really liked the boutique Esther P, 873 rue St. Jean. Housed in a beautiful building, this is an artfully curated collection of prestige brands, such as Equipment and Alice + Olivia. Accessories and shoes are on hand to complete the look.  I loved a beautiful cranberry cashmere robe. What luxury to snuggle by a fire wrapped in its cozy folds!

If you have the opportunity to visit Québec City, I hope you’ll have the opportunity to spend some time in le Faubourg Saint-Jean. We had such a delightful afternoon there, and I hope that you will too.

Frommer’s Montreal and Quebec City

 

Le Billig

I think our happiest food discovery while we were in Québec City was Le Billig crêperie, located at 526, rue Saint-Jean, just down the road from the Hobbit bistro. Our daughter, a foodie, found it on Yelp.com. We went there for a late lunch, but the unpretentious little crêperie was still quite full. The waitress pulled two little tables together on a perch a few steps above the main dining area to make a place for us.

I love crêpes. Crêpes in Paris. Crêpes in New York. Crêpes on restaurants. Crêpes from street vendors. But most of all, crêpes in Brittany, their true home. I love buckwheat crêpes, known as gallettes, used for savory, main-course crêpes. And I love dessert crêpes filled with fruit, or Nutella, topped with nuts. So, how to choose a crêpe from among the tempting options at Le Billig? I wanted a dinner crêpe AND a dessert crêpe. I choose a crêpe that mixed elements of both – sliced ripe black figs, mozzarella cheese, basil, pecans, and a drizzle of a balsamic reduction. Sincerely, it was one of the best I have ever had. My husband had the classic smoked salmon crêpe, finished with crème fraîche, capers, and lemon. I wasn’t surprised to learn that the chef was Breton. These crêpes were simply excellent and the price was extremely reasonable.

So my advice to you is that, if you are in Quebec City, venture a few blocks outside the encircling arms of the stone wall when it comes to meal times. The best meals we had were just outside of the highly frequented tourist zone. Within the walls, there were even crêperies where the staff was forced to wear embarrassing faux-Breton outfits. Why settle for faux when you can have a real Breton cook for you just a few steps away?

One question remains: what is a billig? It’s the name in the Breton language for the heavy, round cooking surface where the humble crêpe is born. In more traditional French, it’s a galétière, galettoire, or crêpière. Traditionally, the billig was placed on a metal tripod that allowed it to be placed right in the fire. And for another essential crêpe word, un rozell is the wooden blade that evenly spreads the batter across le billig for that perfect, crisp crêpe. And now I’m hungry for a crêpe. If only Le Billig was always around the corner!

Frommer’s Montreal and Quebec City

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Se reposer sur ses lauriers

Lately, I’ve been writing about our late summer trip to Québec City. You can’t think of Québec without also thinking of the Château Frontenac, the huge hotel that dominates the skyline. It was designed by American architect Bruce Price at the end of the 19th century. It was one of a series of hotels built to look like European châteaux by the Canadian Pacific Railway in order to encourage rail tourism by the wealthy. It has been expanded on over the years. The hotel was named after Louis de Buade, Count of Frontenac, a 17th century governor of New France. It was the site of a 1943 war conference between Churchill, Roosevelt, and Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King. A decade later, it was used as the location for a Hitchcock film, I Confess.

The hotel was sold to the Fairmont group in 2001 and the hotel was re-baptized Fairmont Le Château Frontenac. The iconic hotel was sold again in 2011 and a multi-million dollar roof replacement project got underway. The work was still in progress when we visited.

Over the years, going out for afternoon tea has been a special treat for our family and we thought that tea at the Château Frontenac would be a great way to mark our time in Québec. I must confess to being a little disappointed. The Café de la Terrace had a wonderful view overlooking the Terrace de Dufferin. It was, however, in need of restoration, although probably not as much as the roof. The banquettes were a little shabby and worn. I couldn’t fault the quality of the service, however.

Our waiter was most attentive throughout our tea time. He started off by having us inhale the fragrance of a dozen canisters of tea and talked about the attributes of each. The weather was cool and damp while we were in Québec, so opted for hot chocolate to warm myself up. That was my mistake. The chocolate wasn’t very good and it wasn’t hot, but my husband and daughter were pleased with their tea selections.

The tiered plate was layered with sandwiches below and then scones and tiny cakes and other sweet morsels above. The presentation was very attractive, but the flavor and freshness wasn’t always of the highest quality. The paté reminded me of Underwood’s Deviled Ham (yuck!) from lunch boxes of old. I felt like that the sandwiches had been prepared well in advance and left to dry out. The scones were quite delicious, but mascarpone cheese is not clotted cream! The bite-sized cakes were prettier than they were flavorful.

Frankly, I just didn’t think this high tea was worth $37 CDN a person. I’ve had far nicer teas for a much more reasonable price. It may be one of the most beautiful hotels out there, but I think they’re resting on their laurels a bit. This expression in French is “se reposer sur ses lauriers” (suh rep-o-zay soor say lor-e-ay). I had been really looking forward to a special event at this landmark property, and I’m sorry to give it such a tepid review.

Frommer’s Montreal and Quebec City

Le flétan poêlé (onequalitythefinest.com)

l’Escalier casse-cou

Lately, I’ve been writing about our trip to Québec City. Vieux-Québec is the oldest part of the city within the ramparts. The first time I visited it, I felt like I was in Saint-Malo, due to the stone buildings and narrow streets that wend their way through town. It’s no wonder it was been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Old Town is further divided into the Upper and Lower Town. The two are joined by l’Escalier casse-cou (les-kal-e-ay kass koo), or “Breakneck stairs,” so named for their intimidating steepness. There is, however, also a funicular if you don’t do stairs. Nestled near the Saint Lawrence River, the Basse-Ville, or Lower Town, is the oldest commercial district in the New World. This is where you will find one of the prettiest neighborhoods, le Petit Champlain, home to our favorite breakfast stop as well as many charming boutiques. (There are also a vast number of tacky T-shirt and souvenir shops, but they’re rather like fruit flies – pesky and prolific, and drawn to the sweetness of tourists’ wallets.)  You will also find the historic l’église Notre-Dame-des-Victoires (the church of Our Lady of Victories) on the Place Royale, the port, and a highly detailed mural of the history of the city.

Also in the Lower Town, but on the other side of the promontory facing the port is rue Saint-Paul. We liked it’s slightly bohemian flavor of independent coffee shops, antique shops, and artisans’ boutiques.

The Upper Town, or Haute Ville, was always the governmental and administrative hub of the city, due to its strategic perch high above the river. Probably the most famous and recognizable building in the city is the imposing Chateau Frontenac, a rather splendid historic hotel. I’ll talk about it in detail another day. The Terrace Dufferin is a broad boardwalk in front of the hotel that provides a wonderful vista over the river. Near the Chateau, on the other side, is the basilica Notre-Dame de Québec.

Around each corner, in fact, there is a pretty streetscape, a charming shop, or an enticing restaurant. Whether you visit in October for the fall color, in February for the festivities of Carnaval, or in summer to enjoy the long days before watching the moon rise over this 405-year-old city, I’m sure you’ll be as enchanted as we were.

Frommer’s Montreal and Quebec City

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