Archive for 2008
Guest Blogger: Robin of My Mélange
A hearty welcome to one of my favorite bloggers, Robin of My Mélange! In this guest post, Robin does a great job of letting you know who she is, what she does, and why she does it, so I’ll just let her get on with it. Thanks so much for writing Robin!
P.S. Be sure to come back tomorrow for an exciting contest announcement!
—————
Imagine yourself gliding along the azure blue water in a gondola, pulsing up and down with the to and fro of the wake along a quiet side canal in Venice. Ducking under a footbridge while the clip-clop of pedestrian heels permeate the silence, ocher and putty plaster worn away from old facades lining the canal, colorful laundry blowing in the breeze overhead and glorious red geraniums blooming on tiny iron balconies, while you are sipping Prosecco.
What about twisting and turning through the dusty, narrow, Tuscan roads graced with tall green Cyprus trees standing like soldiers guarding the fertile soil and protecting the vineyards and grapes, sampling the fruit of Tuscan labor, at an ancient stone winery, set high atop the lush green hills of Chianti.
Or strolling the quais of the Seine in the dark of night, crossing the Pont des Art, resting my arms against the cold iron railing, staring into the black water, watching the glowing reflection of the streetlights and backlit historic monuments stare back at me. They appear before me like a painted canvas, the center of the portrait, the sepia-toned star in the Paris night sky, the Eiffel Tower, dazzles with its hourly show and leaves me speechless.
As the clouds roll in, mist falls gently onto the cobblestones, I tighten my Chanel trenchcoat and fluff the scarf around my neck as I walk slowly toward a welcoming sidewalk café for shelter and to grab a ringside seat on the covered terrace. From my tiny marble table and caned seat, I sip a cup of strong French coffee to take the chill off my bones while I settle in to watch the rest of the scene further unfold around me.
Hooked? Yeah, I was too. Still am.
When I close my eyes, these are the images and videos that flood my mind’s eye and the memories that come rushing back when I think of Europe; of my twin passions: Italy and France.
I have developed a passion and deep abiding love for these countries that now hold a piece of my heart, and won’t let go.
I am reminded of the moment I first stepped foot on the terra firma of Italy. It was a life changing moment. Something unexplainable came over me. My heart felt full and my spirit alive. For the first time in my life, I felt like I was home, right where I belonged. And like Cinderella’s slipper or meeting your soul mate- it just felt right, comfortable, a perfect fit.
You see, I didn’t plan to fall in love with them. In fact, I have no roots in Italy or France. My ancestors are Irish and German. Before I took my first trip to Europe, I had no strong desire to spend time there. Didn’t see the point. We can thank Frances Mayes and the movie industry for turning that around.
From the time I returned from that first trip, and each subsequent trip, I missed every second that I was away. In fact, aside from living there, which with any luck and hard work will happen within the next five years, I was determined to find a way to adopt many of things I loved so much, and introduce them into my daily life. I realized that though I wanted to live there, it was not necessarily about the location, as much as it was the lifestyle.
So, I made it my quest to find ways to live life like a European.
I began by tossing out the Mr. Coffee and Maxwell House and bringing in the Bialetti and espresso, replaced my Pottery Barn furnishings with Euro-trash style flea-market finds, stocked up on cookbooks with authentic French and Italian recipes while experimenting with new dishes, drinking wines from across the pond, seeking out imported products, reading any Franco-Italian memoirs I could get my hands on, played lots of Bocelli and Charles Trenet on the CD player, and I perused my photo albums for inspiration when I was feeling, well, homesick.
I started feeling like I could help others find the same love and passion that I have for Europe. So, Mélange was born. Mélange, which is a French word that means a mixture, was not only the perfect name for my endeavor, but would become a multifaceted way for me to share my passion, harness my creativity and show people how you can either travel to Europe or bring bit and pieces of the culture into your everyday life, so that you could feel like you were enjoying the European lifestyle–on a budget, of course.
Because I get bored easily, and don’t like to put all my eggs in one basket, I had always imagined Mélange to consist of many things: travel planning and consulting, a flea market selling small European finds, photo cards (coming soon!), a blog, and have kept an open mind to whatever else might present itself. Perhaps freelance writing and intimate seminars.
I started the blog, My Mélange, in December of 2006, not knowing much about blogging or writing or where it would take me. Almost 2 years later, I consider it my baby.
It is a way to connect with people from all over the world and talk about my twin passions with them. I share my favorite stories and photos, hotel recommendations, restaurant suggestions, my trials and tribulations about learning the Italian language and it allows me a forum to suggest ways to create some European savoir-faire in your own life. And travel, lots of travel! Travel tips, travel gear, and travel destinations. You can even submit your favorite travel photos to be featured for Travel Photo Fridays!
I now appreciate that my blog is a helpful resource for those who prefer to plan their own trips or those looking for information and inspiration. However, I also enjoy being the person who is there to plan a customized trip or itinerary for those who don’t have the time or desire to go it alone.
So whether you live in Europe or elsewhere in the world, have a love of France or Italy (or both), dream about traveling there or just want an armchair tour, want a new French recipe or learn a new Italian word every day, then grab a bowl of café au lait and head on over to My Mélange, settle in and take a good long look around. Hopefully you’ll find something that inspires you, and if I have done my job well, when you are finished, not only you will share my passion for the European culture and lifestyle, but you’ll run right out and book a trip of your own!
And until my body gets to live where my heart and soul already does, I will rely on my dreams, my imagination, my blog, my work and I will live vicariously through ex-pat friends, like Michelle, to get me through.
Thanks Michelle!
four things to do this friday
I. Enter Alex’s La Cucina Italiana Contest
(for which I will be a recipe tester):
II. American cooking is back!
Check out Mary’s Potato Salad at Flavors of Abruzzo:
III. Celebrate Susan’s One-Year Blogiversary at
Sticky, Gooey, Creamy, Chewy:
IV. Tell me about all the fabulous things you will or won’t do this weekend!
Me?
After a very full work week, I plan on reading, writing (old NaNo novel!),
and generally relaxing with P and the pooches.
Buon weekend!
love thursday:
love in the leaves
When I first started doing Love Thursday, I wasn’t sure whether I’d be able to keep it up. How could I possibly, continually find signs of love?
Well surprise, surprise–nearly two years later, and I simply can’t stop finding them. Everywhere I go I see hearts or other shows of our greatest, most powerful emotion. And it’s such a wonderful reminder that if you’ll only pay attention, love truly is all around.
Some of my favorite hearts are those found in nature; here are some examples of leafy love throughout this past summer:
Don’t you just love naturally-occurring love?
Happy Love Thursday everyone!
what’s cooking wednesday: pepper steak over white rice
I *loved* my grandmother’s steak hoagies. They weren’t exactly Philly cheesesteaks–they were better. Yeah, I said it.
The thing is, though, she used “Minute steaks,” which we don’t have here. Do you know them? Frozen, really super-thin slices of meat? Yes, it’s one of those things you can kinda sorta substitute, but still . . . it will just never be exactly the same.
Anyway, I made today’s What’s Cooking Wednesday recipe based on my grandmother’s original recipe, and we’ll get to that in a moment, but for those interested, let me tell you quickly how she made steak hoagies (no measurements because that’s the way she rolled):
- Steam broken up pieces of Minute Steaks in a pan, remove and cover them.
- Heat olive oil and butter in a pan and sauté peppers, then add onions as well.
- Add meat and sprinkle everything with garlic salt.
- Add a small can of tomato sauce and let cook until tomatoes no longer taste raw.
- Stir in cheese (she used slices of Kraft American).
- Serve on a big ole Italian roll. YUM!
Now, fast forward to my craving steak and peppers one night but having no tomatoes (fresh or sauce) or rolls in the house. This is what I made, a simpler, healthier, but still delicious version of an old classic:
Pepper steak over white rice
(serves 2)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3-4 thin steaks, in bite-sized pieces
- 1 green pepper, cut into strips
- 1 medium onion, cut into strips
- a few shakes of garlic salt
- 1 cup prepared white rice
1. Prepare rice according to package directions.
2. Heat two tablespoons of olive oil in pan, and then add meat, cooking until brown. Remove from pan and cover.
3. Add other tablespoon of olive oil and peppers. Sauté for a few minutes until starting to become tender and then add onions and sauté until tender.
4. Add meat and sprinkle everything with garlic salt, combining well.
5. Let flavors mix together for a minute or so, and then serve over white rice.
Buon appetito!
Whatever You Do, Don’t Eat the Free Figs
The other day I came home and found this on my doorstep:
When P came home, I told him, but we still didn’t know the identity of our Fig Fairy even though I had asked around the neighbors.
P told me: “Don’t eat the figs!”
Because, um, we live in medieval times in which our nemici might foil our dastardly plans with tainted figs left outside our house? Please.
Needless to say, I ignored him and ate three of them later that evening.
And then was awake most of the night with a stomachache. Gah!
I pretended like I had no idea what I could’ve eaten to cause the discomfort as I certainly couldn’t tell P I ate the figs.
Thankfully, the pain passed and the next morning, before I discarded the figs, I ran into a woman who owned up to being our Fig Fairy. I breathed a huge sigh of relief as she’s certainly one of the nicest signore around–yet another one of my nonne in the village.
And only then did I tell P the full tale of the figs, which he, of course, found hilarious.
I’m thinking I’ll just listen to him next time — just in case.
Michelle Kaminsky is an American attorney-turned-freelance writer who lived in her family's ancestral village in Calabria, Italy for 15 years. This blog is now archived.
Calabria Guidebook
Recipes
