Alesia: Investigating the Roman Conquest of Gaul in Burgundy
The Battle of Alesia of 52 B.C., the last major stand of the Gauls, led by Vercingetorix, against the Romans, led by Julius Caesar, is one of the most famous battles in the history of the territory that would become France. Yet until recently there was little a visitor could see, even at the very site of the battle in Burgundy, to help understand the logistics of that great confrontation.
Paris Award Ceremonies Honor French Excellence, Heritage and Savoir-Faire (Part 2 of 2)
Awards and award ceremonies tell a lot about a country, if not always about the nation that it is then at least about the nation that the award-givers want it to be. Part 2 of this two-part series concerns Pelerin Magazine’s Un Patrimoine pour demain (A Heritage for Tomorrow) and Cigale TV’s Trésors vivants de l’artisant (Living Treasures of Craftsmanship).
Black Diva and the Roman Theater of Orange
I don't often show pictures of myself with celebrities, artists, winegrowers, chefs, politicians or other living icons that I meet in the course of my work, but that’s the best way to introduce the beautiful local Diva that I met the other day while in Orange, in the Vaucluse area of Provence.
Miss Mimosa and the Big Wheel Over Paris
An encounter with Phileas Fogg in Paris on his way the winter festivities on the Riviera: Mandelieu's Mimosa Festival, Nice's Carnaval, Menton's Lemon Festival.
Drome Provencale: Eat Like a Sixth Grader, Drink Like a Wine Enthusiast, Part 1...
Part 1: In which the author has lunch at a middle school cafeteria in the Provencal town of Nyons, realizes that he can’t remember anything from sixth grade and goes to talk to the principal.
Drome Provencale: Eat Like a Sixth Grader, Drink Like a Wine Enthusiast, Part 2...
In which the author takes a tasting class at Wine University (Université du Vin) in the medieval castle of Suze-la-Rousse, reflects on whether or not he's a wine enthusiast, and wonders if it's true that "there is no pleasure without knowledge." (This 3-part article received the 2013 GOLD AWARD for best culinary travel article written for the internet, awarded by the North American Travel Journalists Association.)
Drome Provencale: Medieval Towns, Castles, Olives, Lavender and Silk (Part 3 of 3)
Some impressions and practical information concerning the area covered in Parts 1 and 2 of this award-winning series about Drome Provencale, including Nyons, Taulignan and Grignan and featuring olives, lavender, silk and Madame de Sévigné.
Radiating from Paris: Our Glorious Ladies of Gothic Architecture (Part II: Reims, Amiens, Practical...
France Revisited pays homage to that great Gothic monument at the center of the capital and to four other Gothic Notre-Dame Cathedrals within 100 miles of Paris in a two-part article. Part II below concerns Notre-Dames of Reims and Amiens and includes practical tips for visiting all five. Part I concerns Notre-Dames of Paris, Laon and Chartres.
Radiating from Paris: Our Glorious Ladies of Gothic Architecture (Part I: Paris, Laon, Chartres)
April 16, 2019. In the wake of the fire that destroyed the roof and steeple of Notre-Dame to Paris, we republish this article paying homage to five glorious ladies of Gothic architecture, written in 2012 as Paris prepared the jubilee celebration honoring the 850th anniversary of the start of construction of the "new" cathedral of Paris.