I was full of optimism that my mere presence in France would immediately bless me with a sense of style, that I would magically shrink to a size 6, and that I would master the pronunciation of the French ‘R’.
Positioned 20,000kms away from the Hexagon and a mere 1500km from the east coast of Australia sits an island. It has boulangeries, pâtisseries, and snorkelling that rivals the Great Barrier Reef. Its people speak the language of Voltaire, but their skins bake under the same intense sunshine that beats down on Queensland.
To drink a proffered glass of home-made calvados or ratafia, is to drink something that is made with love. It doesn’t always taste as refined or elegant as a bottle you can find at the supermarket but it always nonetheless tastes better.
Aujourd’hui, Kevyn a joué dans les films comme "Liberté" de Tony Gatlif, "Carmen" de Jacques Malaterre, "Tant que tu respires" de Fara Sene , "L’Age d’Homme" de Raphaël Fejtö, et "En Silence" d'Alexandra Jordana.
I met Kevyn Diana in a coffee shop in London in 2006, before I learnt French and when he spoke just a little English. At this time, our relationship was characterised by rudimentary insults in the mother tongue of the other.
The weekend of 15 août, a weekend to strike fear and loathing into the hearts of motorists. I didn’t know this at the time, my first summer road trip in France. It only took me half an hour to come to understand it, to begin to feel that fury myself.
Roger, une légende du village m'a accueilli avec quatre bises et un verre de champagne. Au cours des six prochains mois, j’aurai le privilège d'entendre ses histoires.//Roger, a village legend, welcomed me with four kisses and a glass of champagne. Over the course of the next six months I would be privileged to hear his stories.
An autumn forest is like stopping for lunch at a decrepit café at an Autoroute exit, only to find Joël Robuchon in the kitchen and views of Lake Lucerne from the terrace – the promise of little yet the offer of a reality infinitely more pleasurable.
I really like Belgian-inspired beers because all the products are complex, rich, well-worked. We have a white beer, a blonde beer and an amber beer. All are non-pasteurised and non-filtered. We don’t have spiced or aromatised beers, it’s truly the basic beers.
J’aime bien une bière d’inspiration belge parce que tous les produits sont complexes, sont riches, sont bien travaillées. On a une bière blanche, une bière blonde et une bière ambrée. Toutes sont non-pasteurisées, non-filtrées. On n’a pas les bières épicées ou aromatisées, c’est vraiment la base de la bière.
Come with us to experience French life beyond the cliché.
Magazine – Events – Experiences
Wherever you live, if you’re a francophile or French and you’d like to join our team of Contributors then we’d love to hear from you – check out our submissions page. We’re also constantly seeking savvy interns – please check on available internships
