Pesto in Bed. A delicious–and alluring–recipe!

Recipe for Pesto in Bed at the end of this post. TODAY'S WORD: Le Pistou     : pesto  ECOUTER/LISTEN – hear Jean-Marc pronounce these French words: Pistou Le pistou. La sauce au pistou ou tout simplement pistou est une sauce, équivalent provençal du pesto ligure, à base de basilic pilé, d'ail et d'huile d'olive. Pesto. Pesto sauce or simply pesto is a sauce, the Provencale equivalent … Continue reading Pesto in Bed. A delicious–and alluring–recipe!

French Toilet Paper and other disasters

I wanted everything to be perfect when Tess and the artists arrived. But when I went to check my appearance in the mirror, after greeting my guests, there was pink toilet paper stuck to my eyelashes!! Read on. TODAY'S WORD:le papier toilette     : toilet paper ECOUTEZ/LISTEN – hear Jean-Marc pronounce today's word: click here or here: Papier-toilette   A DAY IN A FRENCH LIFE… by … Continue reading French Toilet Paper and other disasters

Broken bones and Broken French

It was this… or a picture of a broken elbow. Read on in today's story column. And for more pictures of our garden, and these citrons and these guavas, join me on Instagram! TODAY'S WORD:le nid de poule     : a pothole, or pit in the road's surface Un nid de poule literally means "hen's nest" WHERE TO RENT IN FRANCE? Special thanks to our … Continue reading Broken bones and Broken French

To Get One’s Money’s Worth, in French + Downton Abbey

Join us for tomorrow's (October 14th) winetasting at 3pm. Or meet us October 19th.We would love to see you here, near Bandol! Email your confirmation to jm.espinasse@gmail.com (Thanks, Nick and Jill Cook, for this photo!) TODAY'S EXPRESSION"To get one's money's worth"     : en avoir pour son argent Mas de Perdrix. A home in France that artists and writers love to rent.  Work on … Continue reading To Get One’s Money’s Worth, in French + Downton Abbey

A rare tornado in France over the weekend!

A tornado on the outskirts of our village!  (filmed by firefighter John Liqr (c) photo copyright /Facebook) TODAY'S WORD: une trombe     : whirlwind, waterspout, torrent démarrer en trombe = to hurtle off, leave in a whirlwinden trombe = at full throttledes trombes d'eau = a downpour WHERE TO RENT IN FRANCE? Special thanks to our longtime sponsors–Marilyn, David, and Marianne–who have been a great … Continue reading A rare tornado in France over the weekend!

Betise: Our naughty visitors

Join us for tomorrow's wine tasting here near Bandol. If it's raining, we will sit around our kitchen table, warmed by the fire. Reserve your cozy seat at jm.espinasse@gmail.com TODAY'S WORD: une betise     : a silly, foolish thing dire des bêtises = to talk nonsensefaire une bêtise = to make a silly mistake ECOUTEZ/LISTENHear Jean-Marc pronounce these French wordsDownload MP3 or Wav Arrêtez de faire des … Continue reading Betise: Our naughty visitors