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À TABLE EN PROVENCE:  WHEN THE WORKDAY IS LONG AND HARD, THE MEAL PREP IS QUICK AND EASY
Food The Modern Trobadors

À TABLE EN PROVENCE: WHEN THE WORKDAY IS LONG AND HARD, THE MEAL PREP IS QUICK AND EASY

The allure of Provence for many of us is its wonderful cuisine coupled with an unfettered life that we imagine...
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PRESIDENT HOLLANDE REINFORCES FRENCH CONNECTION TO AFRICA WHILE, HERE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE, ANOTHER CONNECTION TO AFRICA TAKES PLACE
Art Culture Events The Modern Trobadors

PRESIDENT HOLLANDE REINFORCES FRENCH CONNECTION TO AFRICA WHILE, HERE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE, ANOTHER CONNECTION TO AFRICA TAKES PLACE

The Modern Trobador is back at the keyboard after a brief hiatus to work on a photography exhibition in Portsmouth,...
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LE CASTELLAS ENCORE:  IT’S ALWAYS A WILD EXPERIENCE AT LA FERME DE CHÈVRE IN SIVERGUES
Food Places Restaurants The Modern Trobadors

LE CASTELLAS ENCORE: IT’S ALWAYS A WILD EXPERIENCE AT LA FERME DE CHÈVRE IN SIVERGUES

At Le Castellas, to guess who else is coming for dinner is always part of fun.  You can count on...
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VIBRANT MONDAY MARKET IN GIONO’S PROVENCE: THE FORCALQUIER MARKET
Markets Places The Modern Trobadors

VIBRANT MONDAY MARKET IN GIONO’S PROVENCE: THE FORCALQUIER MARKET

Sixty kilometers (38 miles) from Lourmarin, in the French department Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, lies Forcalquier where, every Monday morning, a lively market...
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FALL ALWAYS EVOKES THE START OF SOMETHING NEW:  FROM TEXT BOOKS TO TOUR BOOKS
Places The Modern Trobadors

FALL ALWAYS EVOKES THE START OF SOMETHING NEW: FROM TEXT BOOKS TO TOUR BOOKS

Family and friends be forewarned: I am planning a big rendezvous in Provence Fall, for me, always marks the beginning...
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LOURMARIN’S JACQUELINE BRICARD TO HOST “LE BINÔME,” AN ENCHANTING EXHIBIT OF NAΪF ART THAT COMBINES PAINTING WITH PHOTOGRAPHY
Art Events The Modern Trobadors

LOURMARIN’S JACQUELINE BRICARD TO HOST “LE BINÔME,” AN ENCHANTING EXHIBIT OF NAΪF ART THAT COMBINES PAINTING WITH PHOTOGRAPHY

If you have not yet received your invitation to the wedding of the year—Brad and Angelina, of course, who are...
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ENCHANTING EVENING IN PROVENCE: WINE TASTING AT CAVE AURETO AND DINNER AT “LE JARDIN DANS LES VIGNES” IN LA COQUILLADE  (AT AN ENCHANTING PRICE, TOO!)
Food Restaurants The Modern Trobadors Wine

ENCHANTING EVENING IN PROVENCE: WINE TASTING AT CAVE AURETO AND DINNER AT “LE JARDIN DANS LES VIGNES” IN LA COQUILLADE (AT AN ENCHANTING PRICE, TOO!)

We began at Cave Aureto where we met our friend Pierre Schott, the retail cavistes of the winery’s cellar. After a very interesting tour of their uncommonly modern winery and a tasting flight of their award-winning wines, we made our way to the
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ISLE-SUR-LA-SORGUE MARKET IS MY FAVORITE PLACE TO BUY ESPADRILLES
Markets Places The Modern Trobadors Things

ISLE-SUR-LA-SORGUE MARKET IS MY FAVORITE PLACE TO BUY ESPADRILLES

 I know, I know: it’s the antiques that draw people from all over the world to the Isle-sur-la-Sorgue market. This...
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NO NEED TO GO TO PARIS ANY MORE—I’VE LEARNED TO MAKE MACARONS!
Food Places The Modern Trobadors

NO NEED TO GO TO PARIS ANY MORE—I’VE LEARNED TO MAKE MACARONS!

MacaRONS versus MacaROONS First, let’s establish that I am referring the famous Parisian macaron that, in recent years, has become...
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11 SHADES OF ROSÉ….MUCH BETTER THAN 50 SHADES OF GREY
Events People The Modern Trobadors Wine

11 SHADES OF ROSÉ….MUCH BETTER THAN 50 SHADES OF GREY

We opened ten bottles of rosé within 24 hours last week. Good friends David and Mark were visiting their old stomping grounds here in Portsmouth. Since we had enjoyed so many rosés while we were together in Provence in 2008, we made those pink
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PÉTANQUE GOES WELL WITH PASTIS
Culture The Modern Trobadors Wine

PÉTANQUE GOES WELL WITH PASTIS

We played pétanque, drank pastis, and spoke a little French last weekend. The only sign that we were in Portsmouth,...
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LAVENDER FIELDS FOREVER?  NOT IF THE CICADELLE HAS ITS WAY
Lavender Places The Modern Trobadors

LAVENDER FIELDS FOREVER? NOT IF THE CICADELLE HAS ITS WAY

At the height of lavender season in Provence—the largest lavender- producing region in the world—the industry is worried. The iconic...
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ROSÉ, WHITE, AND BLUE ON BASTILLE DAY
Culture Food Restaurants The Modern Trobadors Wine

ROSÉ, WHITE, AND BLUE ON BASTILLE DAY

Yesterday was Bastille Day. I know I should have been thinking red, white and blue—thick swaths of each color—as I arranged our small French Tricolors around the dinner table, listened to French CDs, chopped fennel, onion and parsley for our soupe de poisons aux
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MILLE-FEUILLE IN MANHATTAN: PINCH ME ’CAUSE I THINK I AM IN PARIS!
Food Places The Modern Trobadors

MILLE-FEUILLE IN MANHATTAN: PINCH ME ’CAUSE I THINK I AM IN PARIS!

Serendipity, according to the Oxford Dictionary on my iPhone, refers to “the occurrence and development of events by chance in...
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11 Replies
LE CHATEAU IN LES CALANQUES: A WELCOME REFUGE ON A HOT DAY IN PROVENCE
Food Places Restaurants The Modern Trobadors

LE CHATEAU IN LES CALANQUES: A WELCOME REFUGE ON A HOT DAY IN PROVENCE

When the summer temperatures begin to rise in Provence, one of our favorite destinations for lunch is Le Château, perfectly...
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CARRIÉRES DE LUMIÉRES: A COOL PLACE TO VISIT
Art Museums Places The Modern Trobadors

CARRIÉRES DE LUMIÉRES: A COOL PLACE TO VISIT

The Carrières du Val d'Enfer--the quarries in the Valley of Hell--have provided limestone for over 2000 years. The Romans exploited...
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BEETS: CAN’T BEAT BETTERAVES CUITES FROM THE FRENCH MARKETS
Food Markets The Modern Trobadors

BEETS: CAN’T BEAT BETTERAVES CUITES FROM THE FRENCH MARKETS

I was in the Lourmarin market one Friday many Junes ago when I first noticed them. There, in the midst of the gloriously fresh produce—the bright green clusters of lettuce leaves, the plump red tomatoes, the huge heads of perfectly formed cauliflower, and an impressive pyramid of dazzling green cucumbers—were these dark purple bulbous things. The misshapen balls, each encased in what looked like a very thin and slightly shriveled leathery skin, appeared dense and heavy. The outside covering had wrinkled up just a wee bit on a couple of the balls to reveal a very pretty, glossy purple color, reminiscent of...
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THE STEINS COLLECT: AN EXHIBITION OF MATISSE, PICASSO, AND CEZANNE
Art Culture Events History People The Modern Trobadors

THE STEINS COLLECT: AN EXHIBITION OF MATISSE, PICASSO, AND CEZANNE

We had dinner with friends in Manhattan a few weeks ago.  The discussion naturally gravitated to what we were doing for the weekend.  Somewhere between the antipasti platter and my ragu alla Bolognese with fresh tagliatelle, I mentioned that we were going to see the New American Wing at the Metropolitan.  Suddenly, our friend Mary Bartos, a native New Yorker and art aficionado when not running her Upper East Side boutique Pan American Phoenix, sprang out of her chair, saying something about Gertrude Stein.  She was so excited that I couldn’t understand..
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LOURMARIN HAS A NEW FARMERS’ MARKET ON TUESDAY EVENINGS
Markets Places Restaurants The Modern Trobadors

LOURMARIN HAS A NEW FARMERS’ MARKET ON TUESDAY EVENINGS

If you love markets, now there is one more reason to love Tuesdays in the Luberon. I have already written about Tuesday markets in Aix-en-Provence, Cucuron, and Gordes and haven’t even had the chance to cover two other favorite markets that take place on Tuesdays in Tour d’Aigues and Vaison-la-Romaine. And now, I just found out about another Tuesday market—at least this new addition won’t put pressure on the vacationer to decide which one to...
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GORDES MARKET:  I DIDN’T WANT TO LIKE IT…BUT I DID
Markets Places The Modern Trobadors

GORDES MARKET: I DIDN’T WANT TO LIKE IT…BUT I DID

Gordes, the village, has never been one of my favorite places. Just a little too trendy for my tastes. From a distance, it is a picturesque hilltop village. It is a simply stunning sight as the sun sets and a golden hue is cast on the ancient stone dwellings that climb the hill. (As you approach the village on D15, pull over and get your camera out—it is a picture perfect shot of Provence.) So quintessential, it beckons you to...
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