I sleep in oversized rock bands and music t-shirts: Metallica, U2, the Red Hot Chili Peppers… I have my collection of Hard Rock Café t-shirts I started in Beijing, in 1999. I also buy designers t-shirts online at Threadless, such this nice one and this funny one. I have blue, red, pink, yellow, black and green t-shirts, neatly folded in piles in my closet. You can never have too many t-shirts, can’t you?

In France, I bought a bunch of beauty products. In London, I found a t-shirt mecca at Camden Market. Originally a craft market, the Camden Lock Market is now a thriving shopping area and hundreds of retailers sell clothes and souvenirs. You can find pretty much anything, from your basic “I love London” t-shirt to trendier vintage clothes. I fell in love with the Funky Chameleon brand and bought a few embroidered tank tops.

It’s also in Camden Market that I fell in love again with my teenage years shoes: the famous Doc Martens shoes. The British boots have long been popular with punks and other subcultures and they were very trendy when I was in high-school. I actually went through a couple of pairs of the iconic Dr. Martens 8-eye boot in purple, and I even brought back to Canada the first pair I got when I was 12 years old. In London, I fell in love with the same pair of shoes, in cherry red this time — for £40.00, it was quite a deal.

You can follow our trip to the U.K here on Flickr: United Kingdom.

The Girl on a Swing T-shirt

Funky Chameleon

The Girl with Big Eyes T-shirt	Wounded Bear T-shirt
The Girl with Red hair T-shirt	My Red Doc Martens Shoes

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I do have a fondness for cream though. I probably got it from my mother who insatiably test and collect various creams, commenting on their textures and their efficiency. Putting cream on is comforting and their smell often remind me of places I’ve been too: for instance, I used the Olive Body Butter from Body Shop in Australia 7 years ago and to this day, it still makes me think of Sydney, Adelaide and Melbourne.

I don’t buy creams often but I’m always on the look for a great face cream which will protect me from our harsh Canadian winters. Last year, after completing an early morning exam at university, I walked through The Bay and sampled a few creams at the beauty counter — that’s how I relax. Pathetic, I know. One of the salesgirls must have sensed I was in the mood to spend money and she presented me with a few samples. I must have looked interested: she gave me a small white beauty case with two samples inside. “You will see”, she claimed. “You will come back to buy the cream in less than a couple of weeks”.

The cream she gave me smelled great. It felt great — the texture was soft and rich, yet it didn’t leave any oily film. My skin was glowing and it wasn’t so dry after a couple of days, which was no small miracle considering we were in February. One night, I looked that miracle cream up on the web, determined to go back to The Bay to buy it. I was ready to dig deep in my pocket. I wanted it badly.

I gasped when I saw how much it was. And that was the online price, in US$. Let just say I could have bought a very nice Ipod for the price of the small jar, and another zoom lens for my camera for the price of the not-so-small jar. Bah.

I felt like one of those people who are offered drugs at a party, got hooked and ended up selling their car for a few grams of crack or whatever is trendy these days. The girl at the counter had me hooked on the best cream ever by giving me a free sample. I decided to do the sensible thing: I just said no. I’m not spending that much on a cream, this is ridiculous, no matter how good it is.

During this trip to France, I went back to basics and shopped for creams and beauty products that are a great value and yet don’t break my bank account.

I bought:

• Les Gouttes Bleues (Innoxa, €4.50) : really cool eye drops that relax tired eyes and make the sclera looks very white.
• Argan Oil Cream and Oil (around €15 each): this nutritive oil is great to repair dry skin. The cream is moisturizing yet not oily.
• L’Occitane soaps (€9 for three soaps): for the longest time, I used liquid soap before I eventually realized it was expensive and I switched back to bar soap. L’Occitane, a company based in Southern France, has great products inspired from Mediterranean beauty rituals. These soaps smell good, are moisturizing and last me for quite a while.
• Pierre d’Alun (€7): Alun is a chemical compound that can be used for a variety of thing, including as a deo. I’m not a huge fan of North America deos, I find the smell strong and they tend to stain clothes. Funny thing, I heard a lot of Americans complain about French deo… I guess our bodies are just different! The Pierre d’Alun, a deodorant stone, is supposed to last for ages, just wet it a bit and rub on the skin as you would do with other deos. It works very well and has no smell.
• Nuxe Crème Fraîche (Nuxe, €22): this is one of the best face cream I know. I love Nuxe products in general, they are not too expensive and the quality is great. This cream smells good, moisturizes the skin yet doesn’t leave an oily film. Plus, it’s about €150 cheaper than the famous French cream mentioned above…
• Nuxe Honey Lip Balm (Nuxe, €8): I had to buy this one, the box stated it was the tests were conducted in conditions of extreme Canadian cold! It smells of honey and makes the lips super smooth.
• Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse (Nuxe, €10): this shimmery oil is truly multipurpose and can be used on the face, body and hair. It repairs dry patches and makes the skin glow.

Gouttes Bleues from Innoxa

Huile d’Argan Cream and Body Oil

L’Occitance Soaps

Pierre D’Alun (Natural Deo)

Nuxe Products: Shimmery Body Oil, Face Cream and Honey Lip Balm

Tests Conducted in Conditions of Extreme Canadian Cold!

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A lot of these stickers are given by far-left political parties, including the Fédération anarchiste and the Ligue communiste révolutionnaire, which are still quite active in France. Some are anonymous and quite witty. They promote social justice and oppose political and social establishments.

I also noticed quite a few stickers promoting Brittany’s independence and the use of the regional language, Breton.

You can follow our French trip here on Flickr: France (2010).

Consume, you will be a man

For your security, no more freedom

Police everywhere and no justice	Legalization of all illegals
Solidarity with Palestinians	Police everywhere and no justice
No Sarkozy day	Hunt them down! Out, fascists!
In Breton! Breton is a modern language! (written in Breton)	All together to fight back against the labour world
Unemployed people on strike, gathering every week	Privatizing the post office? You gotta be crazy!
Loire-Atlantique belongs to Brittany	Poster against nuclear weapons

Unemployed Strike Poster on a Staffing Agency Window (Nantes)

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People always ask me if I miss French food — honestly, I don’t. A lot of foreigners have such an exotic view of French cuisine that it’s hard to explain them French don’t always eat better than other cultures. Sure, French value food — but so do Chinese, Japanese, Argentinean etc. Daily meals do revolve around bread and butter and yes, there are cool pastries everywhere but most people don’t eat fancy stuffs all the time.

The only meal I sometimes miss is crêpes. Yes, it sounds a bit like “crap” but trust me, it’s really good.

Crêpes are Brittany’s specialty and crêperies can be found everywhere in Nantes. These very thin pancakes are made from flour, eggs, milk, butter, and a pinch of salt. Normally, crêpes are slightly sweeet and galettes are unsweetened: the first one is served as dessert and the second one is the main meal. They are traditionally served with very cold cider.

Common fillings for galettes include ham, cheese and egg, or even spinach, salmon, cream, artichoke, sausages… combination are endless! Traditional dessert crêpes are eaten with butter and sugar, and Nutella (the famous hazelnut spread) is also a favorite.

When I first took Feng to a crêperie, I figured nothing could go wrong. After all, he is not very picky and we had some weird food when traveling, so what could go wrong with a thin pancake and basic fillings such ham, cheese and egg? Well, the egg. See, French don’t cook eggs fully, so that the yolk can be mixed with the other fillings and the crêpe. Funny thing is, I always cook everything very well, especially meat and fish but for some reason barely cooked eggs don’t gross me out. I guess food is cultural!

You can follow our French trip here on Flickr: France (2010).

Two bolées of cider

Feng’s crêpe: mushrooms, ham and herbs

Cold Cider

Mine: egg, ham, cheese, onion and tomatoes

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And here is the last part of this year’s “hunting graffitis in France”. As usual, the translation is below.

• “Passons à l’offensive sans attendre” (“let’s take the offensive now”): a sticker found on the University of Nantes campus. They were on strike for a long time, I assume this is related.
• “BDDP Unlimited — Producteur d’idées et de médias”: I found this graffiti in Paris, near Barbès. The company, BDDP Unlimited (probably an advertising company) advertised they were “producing ideas and medias”. Somebody ironically wrote below: “in a word, a continuous flow of ideas… tell me I’m dreaming!”. And someone else added: “canned intelligence, probably…”.
• Signs nearby the Paris City Hall: universities teachers, researchers, staffs and students have been on strike for a while, against a umpteen university reform. Can’t explain the details, it’s very technical… anyway, as a sign a protest, they covered the City Hall with various banners, including some in Chinese and English to explain why they protest. They also walk in circle night and day (see their blog, La Ronde Infinie Des Obstinés).
• “Moi, c’est le geste qui m’intéresse” (“I’m only interested in the gesture”): I found this sign on the top of a very high wall. I had to squint to read… and I found it funny. The artist didn’t wanted to share his wisdom or his opinions like many of the graffitis writer, he just stuck a big sheet of paper on top of the wall.

That’s it!

We are back in Ottawa, it’s almost spring and… and I should sleep now.

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Last year, when I visited France, I had a lot of fun collecting all the graffitis and posters on the walls and posting them in Rebel France I and Rebel France II. And here is Rebel France III, with more political messages! These were collected in Nantes and in Paris.

Translation and explanations below…

• “Les patrons ont besoin de toi, tu n’as pas besoin d’eux” (“bosses need you, you don’t need them”): an old communist/ anarchist slogan.
• “Ni pauvres, ni soumis” (“nor poor nor subdued”): Ni Pauvre Ni Soumis is a committee which demands a guaranteed minimum income for those who can’t work because of a condition or a disability.
• “Le chômage c’est la misère, le salariat, l’exploitation” (“unemployment is poverty and wage system is slavery”): this slogan mostly denounces job insecurity. Unemployment is very high in France because of the economic crisis and a lot of people are underemployed.
• “Qui sème la misère récolte la colère” (“sow poverty and reap anger”): a slogan from ¡No pasarán!, a left-wing committee.
• “Casse-toi, pauv’ con — et c’est Nicolas Sarkozy qui le dit!” (“Get the hell out of here, jerk — and that’s from Nicolas Sarkozy!”): in 2007, Sarkozy, the French President I did not vote for, paid a visit to the Salon de l’Agriculture (a giant county fair held in Paris). He shook some hands in the crowd, surrounded by security. At one point, one guy refused to shake the President’s hand and said “don’t touch me” (can’t blame the guy, I wouldn’t like Sarkozy to touch me either). The President then aggressively barked: “get the hell out of here, jerk!”. The scene was captured on video and Sarkozy’s vulgar reaction got everybody talking (you can watch the 0:45 seconds video on Youtube here). Note that he since made an habit of it: for example, he recently stated that  Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero was not very smart…
• “Ni dieu ni maître” (“no god, no master”): the famous anarchist slogan.

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Weird Sign In Nantes

Each time I visit France, my friends all ask me if I miss it, and if I would ever go back there to live. In short, the answer is no. While I like the country, I must admit my life is much easier in Canada. I left right after high school and I never looked back, even though I enjoy visiting every once in a while.

Now, to each his own, and I’m happy to see expats and immigrants from all over the world (notably Barbara, Jennie, Lis, Emily, Sarah, Aimee, Princesse Écossaise and Tanya) having a great time in France!

There are things I miss, but there are also things I don’t miss. Let’s have a look…

First, what do I miss from my home country?

• Not having to drive everywhere, for a start. I grew up in the city center of Nantes, where the movie theater is a two minutes walk, where I had hundreds of restaurants and bars another ten minutes walk from home, as well as two nearby supermarkets and all the shops you can think of. The transit system is also pretty good, with buses and several tramway lines. In Canada, I live in a close suburb (about 10 minutes drive from downtown), but we rely on the car a lot to get around. City planning (or lack of in my opinion) is very different in North America and driving is a must.
• Having my family nearby, obviously. I have really good friends in Canada, but no family except for Feng and my in-laws.
• The art of hanging out in cafés: Canadians are pretty straightforward: if they want caffeine, they grab a venti coffee at Starbucks, Second Cup, Bridgehead, Timothys or Tim Hortons — to go. If they want to get drunk, they go to a bar. French, on the other hand, can linger for ages around a tiny cup of espresso or a beer. Plus, you can still smoke on terraces.
• French care about politics. Maybe a bit too much, considering demonstrating is almost a form of exercise. But I wish more Canadians care about national politics, which after all are important!
  
• Tip and tax included in the price. In Canada, GST and PST are never included in the price, nor is the tip in restaurants. I can never ever prepare my change at the cashier because I don’t know the final price. And I’m still not natural at calculating tips!
  
• The lack of political correctness: French are not too politically correct and I somehow like it. I feel that in North Anerica, there is always someone who is going to be offended by something!
• Healthier food: even bad food is somewhat healthier than North American’s bad food. Portions are smaller, food is less salty, less fatty and there is no “triple cheeseburgers with a side of onion ring, bacon, ribs” nonsense, like in the “land of plenty”.
• Historic cities: most cities are old and the heritage is preserved. There are tons of museums and everything is beautiful. Most cities in Canada are quite new and buildings are obviously not as pretty.

Now, what I don’t miss:

• Life is very expensive in France. If I was working (which is not a given considering the high unemployment rate), I would probably make between 1000–1500 € a month. Enough to survive and rent a small place, but I wouldn’t travel or go out much. I don’t make much in Canada, but I feel I can afford more: there are always cheap clothes on sale, entertainment like concert tickets are okay, eating out in ethnic restaurants is cheap enough etc.
• Renting a place can be a real headache: there is a housing crisis in bigger cities and finding a place can be tough. Plus, landlords are very picky and often demand a permanent job with a high salary.
• The bureaucracy. I feel things are relatively more straightforward in Canada: first of all, most of the info we need is often online. Second, there are 1–800 numbers (free) for everything. France is a bit backwards in term of government info on the internet and most contact phone numbers are over-taxed, not free!
• Stupid shop hours: in France, most places close at 7:00 pm (a bit later in Paris) and don’t open at all on Sunday. I never go to these 24 hours stores in Canada (well, I do, but not at 3:00 am!) but I must admit it’s very convenient to be able to go grocery shopping on Sunday and to have pharmacies open late.
• The health system. No, there is nothing wrong with it (other than its deficit). But what a lot of Europeans don’t seem to know is that our health system in Canada is not that bad. My French friends always ask me how we do to pay our health bills: well, we don’t have any. Everything but dental, eye care and medicine is covered by our provincial health system — not bad! Plus, in France, you have to pay first and you are reimbursed later. In Canada, our health card is just swiped and we don’t pay anything! Sure, there is a doctor shortage in Canada, and waiting lists can be long. But France also has waiting list for some specialties after all (see my post about both health systems, Sicko(s)).
  
• Lack of efficiency and no customer service: French are notorious for jumping queues, and it gets on my nerves. As for customer service… let’s just say it’s inexistent. Most people are very pleasant and polite, but this somehow change when they are serving you. I wanted to buy pens the other day in a store, but they were under lock and key. I asked the shop assistant, who sigh looking at me, and said: “can’t you get some other pens?”. Yep, that’s what I’m talking about…!
  
• Drunk kids in the streets: call my old-fashioned, but I hate to see young kids (I’m talking early teens) drinking in the streets and happily ordering Vodka in bars. Not to mention when they buy tons of liquor at the supermarket… I’m not stupid, I’m sure kids in Canada get drunk as well. But at least, the state doesn’t make it easy for them! I know, I used to think Canada’s attitude towards alcohol was a bit too much. Well, I changed my mind. I think kids drink too much in France… especially in Brittany, where I’m from
  
• Dirty cities: I find Canada amazingly clean compare to France. Dodging dog poo isn’t my favorite sports, and I hate seeing puke everywhere after the week end binge drinking!
• Lack of public phone booth: everybody has a cell phone these days in France. Now, when you are visiting, you have to rely on phone booths, but unlike Canada, they don’t work with coins but with phone cards, which you have to buy beforehand. Calling a cell is amazingly expensive (a 3 € phone cards to call cell phones lasted about 5 minutes), and even calling local numbers can be pricey. I like it better in Canada: 50 cents unlimited local calls and local cells! Plus, phone booths in France are heading towards extinction, and they can be hard to find.
  

So, what do you guys miss from home? What don’t you miss? I tag the French ladies mentioned above, plus:

• Los Zieglers En Canada (an Argentinian family who lives in Ottawa)
• Live From Waterloo (another Argentinian family who lives in Waterloo)
• Expat Travels (a Swiss who moved to Canada)

Have fun!

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Crêpes At The Market In Nantes

Crêpes (very thin cooked pancakes) are Brittany’s national dish. They can be sweet (crêpes) and cooked with butter, sugar, chocolate honey etc. Or, they can be salty (galettes) and be filled with ham, eggs, cheese, mushrooms, spinach etc. There are a lot of crêperies (crêpes restaurants) in Nantes, and they are even sold on the market!

French also like quiches (a baked dish in a pastry crust). The most common one is the quiche lorraine, with bacon and cream, but all kind of fillings are available, like tomatoes, cheese etc.

Nantes being close to the seaside, there are also tons of seafood. The most “French” may be the oysters and the Coquille St Jacques (scallops in a scallop shell). The sea-salt is hand-harvested locally.

Cheese is of course a French favorite, with hundreds of different kinds!

Crêpes In Montmartre, Paris

Making Crêpes

Quiche With Tomatoes

Quiche Lorraine

Cheese At The Market

Cheese With Spices

Oysters At The Market

Coquilles St Jacques

Local Salt

Sandwiches

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French Bread

France is of course famous for its food. There are “pâtisseries” and “boulangeries” everywhere, the first ones specializing in cakes and elaborate pastries, the second ones offering many kinds of bread and basic bakery products.

French eat pastries without much guilt: it’s just a part of every day’s life. Bread is essential as well: one baguette (bread stick) per meal for a family, sometimes two. And try walking back from the bakery without tasting a just-bought baguette… impossible! As for fresh fruits, they are always available at local markets, which are an important part of traditional French culture.

French Sliced Bread

“Miches” Of Bread

Croissants And Pains Au Chocolat

French “Pâtisseries”

Oranges At The Market

Fruits At The Market

Young Chefs

French Cakes

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Arc Of Triomphe

And here is the second part of our adventures in Paris.

We walked a lot everywhere: from Notre Dame to the Champs Elysées, from the Louvre to Place Vendôme, along the Jardin des Tuileries and all the way to La Défense, the business district. Phew!

Eiffel Tower

Concorde

The Pantheon

Walking Towards The Champs Élysées

Jardin Des Tuileries

Place Charles De Gaulle Étoile

La Défense

La Défense

On The Champs Élysées

École Militaire

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