Me and my Dad at the old port in La Ciotat
Today's phrase: prendre les choses comme elles viennent
: to go with the flow
Audio file:
Click here to listen to "go with the flow" in French
A DAY IN A FRENCH LIFE
"Call Me Flo"
At 3:30 this morning, au milieu de la nuit, we sat around the coffee table eating chouquettes and drinking coffee. Dad and Marsha were dressed for their flight home to Sun Valley, Idaho. We had spent the last two and a half weeks together, and yet we had not shown our American family all of La Ciotat.
We didn't go to Figuerolles and we never took La Voie Douce–the former railroad track which was now converted into a beautiful nature path for walking, cycling, and running… Ah well, there's always next time, la prochaine fois! Meantime, we ate, we swam, and we saw…. Here is a little of ce qu'on a vu…..
The charming "pointus" or wooden fishing boats at Port des Capucins, which we often passed on our way to the old port. This time of year the fishermen were painting and repairing the colorful vessels, a task that summed up my Dad and Marsha's view of La Ciotat in general: a clean, well-cared for city! My family was so impressed by the city's organization, by the clean streets, the urban renewal going on here at the moment, and by the kindness of the locals, including Sam who invited us over for un vrai festin (we thought we were coming for an apéro (drinks and cacahuètes), but this Algerian-born, former soldier in the Israeli army–who went on to become a bodyguard for a member of The Jackson Five–served us a rainbow of local specialties including pissaladière, anchoïade, and pastis. Sam represents just one in a colorful soup of characters who call La Ciotat home…imagine the myriad of stories that remain to be told by the rest of La Ciotadins!
Speaking of characters, the waitresses at Restaurant La Crique (what a find) have 'tude! They remind me of the take-no-bs servers from my American childhood (well, at least those on TV. Does anyone remember Flo, of "Mel's Diner"? While I'm here, I'll sidetrack to a nickname I've recently acquired, "Flo". It's short for "Go With the Flo" which is exactly why I did not keep up this French word journal while my Dad was here. I needed to put aside my rigid publishing schedule of the past 16 years–and chill!
It is important to point out these mirabelle plums, after we discovered two of these trees in our small garden (we suspected something was growing here, after seeing sticky prints on the ground when we moved here last August! The fruit has a delicious tartness which, when matured, is very sweet. We ate them like candy in between our aller-retours to town and to the beach…
In addition to the breathtaking Parc du Mugel, La Ciotat has an impressive municipal garden, somewhere near (over?) the underground parking lot. You can relax on a public bench and eat your sandwich… if you don't mind strangers wishing you "bon appétit". Swallow quickly and say "merci!"
Asked what was the highlight of their trip, and Dad and Marsha enthusiastically replied Plage du Mugel!…but at that point they had not seen another secret hideaway, farther up the coast. I'll tell you about that in the next post. It is time now to take a vacation from my family's vacation 🙂 I'm off to begin a new chapter in Ann Mah's lastest book, THE LOST VINTAGE, which just came out today. Please read along with me, order your copy here.
FRENCH VOCABULARY
au milieu de la nuit = in the middle of the night
les chouquettes = little round puff pastries with large sugar sprinkles
la voie douce = the gentle path
la prochaine fois = the next time
ce qu'on a vu = what we saw
le festin = feast (read this entry from the archives)
un pointu = old wooden fishing boat, read more here
la pissaladière = a kind of pizza without tomato sauce (only carmelized onion, anchovy and olive)
Relaxing with our grown-up kids and our adventurous guests, who have landed in Amsterdam, by now, and are getting ready to board their flight to Salt Lake City. Bon voyage, Marsha and Kip!
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Bonjour Kristi,
J’adore les photos de la belle Ciotat. quel plaisir de passer des moments agréable avec votre père et belle-mère.
Bon été!
Bonjour De Floride Kristin
Toujours pas allée à la Ciotat. Cela viendra!
Un plaisir de lire les coins à découvrir. Je vous souhaite un bel été
J’aime bien vos photos et vous demande si je peux utiliser celle des bateaux.
À bientôt
Christine B
Lovely post. You truly are a “Flo,” and how wonderful to see the family together. Living in uncivilized times here, the draw to your life in Ciotat is strong. Beautiful. Best to you.
Patty
Merci, Christine! Oui pour la photo ☀️
What a wonderful roundup of your family visit – makes me eager to return to La Ciotat!
Dear Flo!
Love YOUR new tude… very becoming!
Loved all the photos, especially that beautiful ‘table of blessings’ with three generations.
Merci for sharing the sunshine with all of us! 👌
I live on a farm in South Africa and have read your blog for years. I’m bringing my family campervanning in the south of France at the end of July and are so hoping to visit le Ciotat! We have bought membership of France Passion and also wondered whether you had any farms to cmrecommend visiting in the area?
Hi Kristi,
Love the photos of La Ciotat and your family! Looks like a wonderful visit and so glad you took a break to enjoy! 🙂
So happy to see your posting – I missed you and your lovely family. Looks like you all had a great time visiting – thanks for the pictures and giving me a trip to La Ciotat. Will check out the book.
Whew! You are back. Had me worried for a bit.. Beautiful photos of great times,and I HAVE to return to France soon. It’s killing me! Winter visit in March was too short!
I’m glad you decided to put aside your publishing schedule and enjoy family. That’s never a wrong choice. And tonight I’ll be opening my ebook to Ann Mah’s novel. Thanks for the alert.
So-o glad you put your loved ones before any rigid schedule! You deserve and they deserve the loving attention. Attention and companionship are a major aspect of what LOVE is…right?
Salut! I love your posts and look forward to reading them. How kind of you to invite us in for a peek at la vie francaise! My husband and I will be visiting Provence this Fall (staying in St. Remy-en-Provence); we hope to add a visit to La Ciotat. Merci encore.
Wonderful to see you enjoying your American family. I am sure they had a marvelous time!And you deserve a time to ‘chill’…Hugs
Kristin….. Family is everything and will always come first! I can see your Dad in you as will as.your Mom. What fun to show you Dad and Marsha around and know how much they appreciate your love and hospitality. Those plums look delicious and so beautiful…. someone should paint them in a still life. So glad to know you ‘went with the flo’! Judi Dunn, Tallahassee, Fl.
On a visite La Ciotat pendant deux jours et une nuit, il y a quelques ans. La ville est belle et très intéressante, mais je ne suis pas sûr du prononciation…comment on dit La Ciotat?? Merci pour votre reponse😌
Where is Smokey?
Hi, Paula, the pronunciation for La Ciotat is lah-see-oh-tah
Our dear Kristi(now aka our dear Flo!)
So happy to have you back,though even more happy that you enjoyed a much deserved time out(!),especially spending it with your loved ones.That you all are so close is nothing short of a blessing and a gift.
Such a wonderful post and beautiful pictures!
Thank you!
As always,you are an inspiration!
Love
Natalia XO
KRISTIN,PLEASE CONTACT ME.
What a lovely post, Kristi, and lovely family photo. I’m sure you enjoyed having a break from
your regular routine and we’re glad to have you back. You are really putting La Ciotat on the
map!
Biz
Love all the pictures and what a wonderful post. Time with family is priceless. And taking the time to enjoy them without deadlines is a must. Looks like everyone had a great time.
xoxo
Merci. I enjoyed les belles photos et j’ai appris qqs nouvelles expressions. Comment dit-on “chill?”
Smokeys at home with us now, after a 3 day visit chez Bianca (his girlfriend).
Welcome back! I so love your stories of all your fine times with your family. And, your photos are such a draw for me to want to come and see beautiful Ciotat in person! I’m glad you had such a good time!
Means to stop and completely relax… ahhh 😉. Also, ‘chill out’!
And, ‘don’t sweat the small stuff’!
Hi, Martha. The French actually use the term chill, borrowed from English! Otherwise, it is se defender or se relaxer.
Every one needs a break from the routine now and then. Glad to see you had special time with your family.
Hello, you’re painting a wonderful picture of life in La Ciotat.
thanks
Lovely post and thanks for the book recommendation, The Lost Vintage set in Burgundy. I live in Burgundy and will put The Lost Vintage on my “Must-Read list!”. Thanks again.