Bonus Post: Food, etc.

I am going to assume that this post will only be read by my most loyal readers since I'm not posting a link on my Facebook (I feel that more than one a day is gratuitous). But I forgot to talk about food! And I think it merits its own post anyway. I'll also add in whatever cultural observations pop into my head while talking about food, because it's all very interconnected.

To begin, my friends and I have been trying to keep our meals under 10€ because keep in mind that 10€ is about $14 right now and we're going to have to feed ourselves many many times over the next few months. And keeping it that cheap is much harder than it sounds! Pretty much everything good is 12€ or more. Usually at least 14€. So what are the things that you can get for under 10€? Well pretty much every single place that is that cheap sells: (savory or sweet) crêpes, panninis, pizza, and sometimes pizzaninis. Or you could go to a MacDo (McDonalds) or get a pastry from a pâtisserie (pastry shop). That's about it. We've wandered the streets for hours looking for other things under 15€ multiple times. But I suppose it's good we're getting the exercise!

Another thing: I mentioned in another post that the French love chocolate. But they also don't eat a ton of it. They only have a bit. And it's richer than the chocolate in the United States so you don't really want as much either.

Their mustard is also delicious. You can get good mustard in the United States, but here all the mustard is good. It's like whole seeds. Mmm. None of that yellow crap. They put mustard on everything here. And (like in Belgium) you put mayonnaise on fries. Well, there are lots of things you can put on fries here. Including mussels! It's so common that Stromae (my favorite singer! <3) has a song called "Moules frites" (fries with mussels).

But normally, they have fruit for dessert. Which so far has been more flavorful and sweet than American fruit, which is just big but has bad textures and doesn't taste like anything. My mother can vouch for the fact that I don't like oranges because of the white stuff, but I like them here because the rest of the orange tastes like something and cancels out the cotton-y nothingness of the white stuff.

Also French meals at home follow a certain pattern. They almost always are multiple courses, which can be simple. There's an appetizer (today was soup), then the main dish (today was chicken), then the salad with dressing, then cheese and wine, then maybe some fruit. And bread, usually a baguette (there are apparently many types), is eaten throughout the meal. It's used to mop up any sauces - particularly the salad dressing.

On the subject of bread - everyone is obsessed with it and eats it 24/7. I don't know if I'm going to fight it too much because A) I love bread and B) They are all in fine shape and I'll be walking all the time too. Plus I've been eating less in general. When food tastes like something, you don't feel the need to eat as much. But anyway, back to bread. Everyone gets really fussy about their bread and which boulangerie (bakery) has the best of whatever type (they're also super obsessed with their arrondissements and which is the best and has the best stuff, including boulangeries, and they get REALLY partisan about it - I am in the 9th arrondissement). It's all delicious to me so I can't really tell! My friend and I also noticed when they make sandwiches out of crusty bread it doesn't hurt your mouth like in the United States because it isn't as hard, but it's still crunchy. And it's less chewy. Basically it's just really good.

Also, dinner is late which I thought would mean that things stayed open late and people stayed up late. Not so! You eat at like 7:00 or 8:00 and then most people are in bed by 10 or 11. You have to be super quiet because the neighbors can hear everything. I'm afraid to even walk on the floor after 11 because it makes noise. Most stores are closed by like 6:00, although restaurants are open until 9 or 10 unless they're a "late night" crêpe or döner kebab place, in which case until like 12. Also, they love döner kebab and gyros here for late night food. There are lots of Arab, African, Greek, and Turkish people and restaurants. And some Indian. OH and also the métro closes at like 12:30 (1:30 on weekends). It's not what I expected from experiencing Greece! That's all for now. I might update later if other things pop into my head.

Bisous,
La vache espagnole

Edit: Duhh I forgot to mention that France is obsessed with salmon! They eat smoked salmon all the time on everything and it's cheaper here. But they also eat just regular old salmon. This country really gets me: salmon (especially smoked), cheese, wine, mustard, baguette, and chocolate. Yumm.