Loriol: Because we’re worth it

On July 4th we left Parma and drove west across Northern Italy, over the Alps (actually “through” them, thanks to the 12km Frejus tunnel), and returned to France to spend two weeks with Jean-Claude (Stephanie’s Dad) and Sabine in their…

Bourgogne and Auvergne

From Loriol, we went on a road trip though Stephanie’s family tree. In Burgundy we spent two nights at her aunt’s pre-French Revolution farmhouse (it had been 20 years since Stephanie last visited). In Auvergne we visited the family of…

Des haricots verts

During our visit with Stephanie’s cousins, we got into a discussion about how to pronounce des haricots verts (some green beans). Haricots Verts by Dominique Sanchez There’s this thing in French called a liason where the eerily silent letters at…

Ocre en Provence

I thought I had a pretty good feel for Provence (thanks in part to Peter Mayle). I did not expect to stumble upon, literally, ocher. Northeast of Apt there’s this funny little area known as Colorado Provençal, just outside the…

Off we go again

A year ago (on Monday) we set out on our big adventure. Today begins the final chapter of that journey. We’ll be returning to the United States the same way we left: by container ship. Hanjin Palermo photo © Klaus…

Crossing the Atlantic

When we boarded the ship, Stephanie was almost overcome with emotion. She said it felt like she “was home”. And not because we were on our way home—because she was back “on a boat”. There were a few subtle differences…

Arriving in New York by container ship

My alarm went off at 5. I woke up, rubbed my eyes, and looked out the window. Lights! Land! The captain told us that we’d be passing under the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge (which connects Staten Island to Long Island) sometime between…