The Food Issue

This is the blog post that everyone has been waiting for.  French life is centered around the table.  Breakfast is modest compared to American or British standards—fresh bread, a croissant, butter and jam, yogurt, fruit, and maybe some muesli.  Lunches and especially dinners were elaborate three course affairs with plenty of wine.  We never went to bed hungry.  At CREA-Langues, we always had an opportunity to practice our French language skills, which seemed to get better after a glass of wine or two.  At Les Deux Vélos and Pyrénées Cycling Lodge, we discussed the day's cycling adventures and planned for tomorrow.

Meals are often served outside during the summer months in France, but May and June were unusually cold and rainy this year.  The photo below is from France 2017 at Les Deux Vélos.

The Monastère de Ségriès, where I took my intensive French language course, has a professional chef with a staff.  We were on the full pension plan—three meals a day.  Christophe, our chef, is an absolute artist.

Both Les Deux Vélos and the Pyrénées Cycling Lodge provided the usual French breakfast with a few notable additions.  Elma (Les Deux Vélos) gave us eggs and sometimes pancakes or French toast.  Mark's porridge (Pyrénées Cycling Lodge) was a big hit.  Rick, who ate a late breakfast on our departure day, said that he wanted porridge even if it was cold.  Mark made sure that Rick had hot porridge.  Desserts were fabulous.

At all three places, there was an honor bar stocked with wine and REALLY good beer.  As of last November, I am no longer eating meat (fish is okay).  All of my hosts took my new diet in stride.