Lunch with the Del Cano group

We all learned in school that Magellan circumnavigated the globe, right?  Wrong!  Actually, Magellan died in the Philippines in April 1521, and a man named Juan Sebastián del Cano took over command and completed the first circumnavigation of the Earth.  But, who’s ever heard of Mr. del Cano?  One might say he’s the poster child for unsung heroes.

Map of the Magellan (and del Cano!) voyage

So, we found it interesting that the British group of ex-RAF folks in Lyon was named Del Cano.  (David, the master of trivia, knew, of course, who del Cano was, but Anna had to admit she had never heard of him.)  If you think about it, every war has its share of unsung heroes – and, they are likely the very people who just get the job done.  That’s what makes Del Cano the perfect name for a group of ex-RAF members.  Even now people in France find remains of an RAF pilot or crew member from WWII, and a representative from Del Cano will be called upon to represent the British community and provide a Union Jack for the proper burial for yet another unsung WWII hero. 

Main dining area of the restaurant - the room Del Cano

meets in is actually an ancient cistern - through the archway

in the back.  That is the proprietor on the left, holding

coffee cups.

 

Anyway, the Lyon Del Cano group meets once a month, and we “colonials” have been graciously invited to join them.  We typically meet for lunch and sometimes a speaker at a restaurant in Vieux Lyon (the old part of town).  There was no speaker at today’s lunch which meant there were lots of interesting conversations – everything from bike riding in France to the current rail strikes to lack of parking in Lyon (a perennial topic) to the potential fallout from Obama’s speech in London re the possible “Brexit” to the US presidential race to past US presidents, etc., etc.  It is always a pleasure (and educational!) to discuss such a wide range of topics with people who speak English (sort of) and have a non-American perspective. 

We are already looking forward to next month’s Del Cano meeting.  You just never know what you will hear or learn!

Ensign of the Royal Air Force

 

 

Papilles en Éveil (awakening taste buds)

Through AVF (Accueil des Villes Françaises  - an organization sponsored by the French government to welcome newcomers and returning French http://avf.asso.fr/fr/lyon), Anna has joined a cooking group.  The group, called “papilles en éveil”, which is roughly translated as “awakening taste buds,” was started by an incredibly enthusiastic lady named Brigitte.  Brigitte’s idea was for eight women from all over the world to get together on a monthly basis to prepare and enjoy dishes that reflect the hostesses’ home countries and to make new friends in the process.  As you can imagine, the logistics were pretty daunting at first.  But, Brigitte managed to launch what has become a very popular group.  In fact, “papilles en éveil” has become so successful that Brigitte now has two groups meeting monthly.



Our amazing leader, Brigitte.

Anna joined “papilles en éveil” in 2010, when we were in Lyon for a year, and Brigitte was just starting up the group.  Fortunately for Anna, Brigitte has welcomed her back into the group when we have returned for our shorter stays. 

Anna was a participant in a luncheon just last Monday when seven women descended chez Nadda at 10AM to prepare and consume a delicious luncheon.  As usual, the group represented a mini UN:  Nadda is Thai, Maria is Spanish, Lisa is American, Pauline is French, Ying is Chinese, Fontine is British, Brigitte is French, and, of course, Anna is American.  This particular group was unique in that almost all spoke fluent English.  In fact, Brigitte, taken aback to walk into the kitchen where several English conversations were in progress, announced, “Seulement français dans la cuisine!”  And, so they were back to French (with a few English side conversations).



L-R:  Anna, Nadda, Pauline, Maria, Fontine, Ying, and Lisa
(with various ingredients for lunch on the table)

As hostess, Nadda had planned a delicious meal of Khao Phad Sapparod (riz à l'ananas, poulet et crevettes or rice with pineapple, chicken, and shrimp) and Tam Yam Koung (soupe epicée aux crevettes et la noix de coco or spicy soup with shrimp and coconut). 



Maria, ready to eat Khaao Phad Sapparod  

And, Lisa contributed a delicious dessert of Gateau d'Orange avec le sorbet d'ananas (orange, flourless cake with a sorbet of pineapple).  “Many hands make light (and very pleasant) work”, and, under Nadda’s and Lisa’s direction, lunch preparation was soon underway.  The results were both delicious and quite attractive, as you can see.

Gateau d'Orange avec le sorbet d'ananas 

It is always interesting to see how a group of people from a variety of countries, with little in common other than membership in the Lyon chapter of AVF, can genuinely take pleasure in each other’s company and work together to prepare and then enjoy a lovely meal.  After a leisurely lunch and many fun conversations, the next luncheon was planned, and it was time to clean up the kitchen and lunch dishes.  Working together, even this task was pleasant, but finally it was time to give Nadda back her home and head back to the apartment. 

Anna arrived home around 4:30 PM.   (And, David got an exotic dinner of leftover Khao phad sapparod!)

 

Dinner Chez Aubry (Lyon)

We first met Roger and Dominique when we became their tenants in the apartment on rue Moncey in Lyon.  Actually, David met Dominique “virtually” when he researched apartments and then contacted Dominique by email to negotiate a year-long rental (July 2010 – July 2011) of the rue Moncey apartment.  A total leap of faith on both their parts!  Anyway, a friendship grew out of our landlord-tenant relationship.  And, it’s a darned good thing, too, since they sold “our” apartment just before our current stay in Lyon.

(Quick aside:  Dominique and Roger did contact us to let us know that they had sold the apartment AND had negotiated with the new owners so that our usual terms and continued use of the storage area in the basement would remain.)

Now, back to the actual subject…we have hosted dinners at the apartment each visit, and David has brought Dehlinger Pinot Noir from our cellar at home to serve with dinners we’ve prepared.  Roger became a fan of this wine pretty much from his first glass and has mentioned to David that it would be definitely be appreciated if the Dehlinger would continue to be served chez Aubry.  (Actually, one time David brought Dehlinger Zinfandel, also a favorite of ours, and Roger let him know how very disappointed he was.)


David uncorking the Dehlinger Pinot Noir

All of this is simply leading up to a dinner at our apartment on April 19^th.  It was the night before Dominique’s birthday which added to the festivities including card, present, and singing of the birthday song.  

Getting ready to enjoy the dinner.

Anyway, here’s the menu:

• Appetizer:  Hot Spinach-Artichoke Dip served with baguette slices and corn chips along with Pouilly-Fuissé, a white wine from southern Burgundy.
• Main Course:  Duck Breasts with Raspberry Sauce on a bed of mixed rice, with sautéed mélange of mushrooms, and, of course, a fresh baguette along with 2009 Dehlinger Pinot Noir – Altamont Vineyard, Old Vines.

• Followed by a mixed green salad and more baguette
• Dessert:  Apple Crisp à la mode

Then we left the table for more comfortable seating and some delicious Macarons from Sève that Dominique brought as a hostess gift (including Anna’s personal favorite salted caramel ones) and glasses of L’Oisellerie Pinot des Charentes, a lethal mix of brandy and partially fermented grape juice.

Around 10:00, Dominique and Roger decided to call a cab rather than deal with the metro and treks to and from the stations.  Needless to say, a good time was had by all. 

(Thank you, Roger, for the pix!)

Picard Surgelés

One of Anna's very favorite places to shop in Lyon is Picard.  And, fortunately, there is a Picard very close to our apartment.  Picard is a shop that sells frozen food – just frozen food.  (Well, okay, they do have a variety of crackers by the cash register.)  But, this is not your average American-style frozen food.  We have to admit that American frozen food has improved a lot since we were children, but as you will soon see, it has lots of room for improvement.

For example, let’s put together a dinner:

For starters let’s go with some little sandwiches made with a variety of breads and filled with yummy things like cheese, salmon, and foie gras.  Just 5.95 € ($6.70) for a box of 12.  We took a box of these to a dinner recently, and they were a huge hit.  Just thaw and serve.

Now, let’s move on to the main courses:

How about pavés de bœuf marinés à l'échalote (steaks in a shallot marinade).  A package of 2 is 5.95 € ($6.70)  Just pop them in a fry pan, and cook them as much as you prefer.  We have had these, and found them quite tender and good.

For starch let’s go with gratin dauphinois.  What?  You can’t find your mandolin and don’t have time to make béchamel sauce?  Picard to the rescue!  Just pop this in the oven, and, voilà, no one will know you haven’t been laboring on this dish all afternoon.  2.60 €  ($2.93) for 450 g (1 lb)   We’ve fixed the mini-individual version, and they are quite tasty.

Now, a vegetable.  How about poêlée aux pointes d'asperges vertes, aux cèpes et aux morilles (lightly fried  asparagus tips, with mushrooms and morels prepared with cream, garlic, shallots and pine nuts)?  Just heat and serve.  We had this just the other night.  It comes in a 450 g (1 lb) bag and costs  6.40 € ($7.21).

And, finally, dessert.  There are lots and lots to choose from, but we’ve picked a perennial favorite:  profiteroles.  Just thaw and serve.  The package of two boxes you see below costs 3.20 € ($3.60).

 

Not a bad dinner – don’t you agree?  Sure beats “peel back foil to expose tater tots”!

So what do we do in Lyon?

People often ask us what we do while we are here.  Since we are usually here for three months at a fime, we are not in a tourist-frenzy to see all the many sites.  Although, we do enjoy wandering around the Parc de la Tête d'Or, strolling along the riverbanks, and checking out places in Lyon.  And, we do fit in some sight-seeing from time to time and take some side trips, but most of the time we are just happy to be “Lyonnais.”  In fact we’ve sort of become a part of the neighborhood; we have already been welcomed back enthusiastically by one of the servers at Mons (the best fromagerie or cheese shop around), by both our usual checker and the security guard at the Monoprix around the corner where we often buy groceries, and by the beautician at the corner beauty shop where we get our hair cut, etc.  So we do feel a part of the ‘hood.

And, we belong to AVF, the organization created to welcome foreigners and returning French and to help them become comfortable in today’s France.  In fact, last night we braved a downpour to go to a Beaujolais tasting at AVF.  It was fun to see so many people we know and learn more about the wines of Beaujolais.   A social time with a sampling of wines from the region and various munchies followed the presentation.

Today we enjoyed lunch at a local brasserie with our French daughter, Estelle.  It’s always great fun to see Estelle and catch up on family stuff and other things.  And, of course, the food was quite good.  We all chose the same “plat dejour” which was tender morsels of pork cooked and then served in a sauce and presented on a bed of pasta.  Ah, those French sauces!  Then, after Estelle went back to work, we walked back to our apartment, and Anna went to the boulangerie across the street and got a fresh baguette (still warm from the oven).  The amazing thing is that neither of us seems to gain weight while we are here – go figure!

So what else is going on?  Well, we will likely fit in some classes and “field trips” through AVF, David and some friends are talking about going for bike rides, there are more delicious wines and meals awaiting our attention, more friends to reconnect with, and Anna may just have to check out some clothes in the boutiques nearby.

So that’s our life in Lyon in a nutshell.

Back in Lyon again!

We arrived in Lyon March 31^st after what became an extra-long day of travel.  Our flight was great; we even caught a tail wind so that our plane got in about an hour early.  Then we went to check on our TGV connection.

The TGV is the fast train that gets us from Paris to Lyon in only two hours. This connection is really convenient and easy – normally.  The train station is right at CDG airport, and the French do a wonderful job of posting information for travelers.  There are display screens located throughout the station showing train numbers, destinations, times of arrival and departure, and the specific track where the train will arrive.  Outside, on the platforms, displays show exactly where your train car will be so that you can get on and find your seat as soon as other folks have gotten off the train.  There are TGV employees on the platform to assist passengers and hurry folks in and out of train cars so that the train can leave quickly.  

A TGV at a station

David wondered why our train never showed up on the screen so he went to the information booth where a man told him it would be ~ 2hours late.  A delay like that is really quite unusual.  Then a nice gentleman sitting near us told us there was a strike in progress.  Lovely!  Our train never, ever showed up on the screen so David went into the ticket office to find out what our options were.  There he learned that there was a train coming that would make a stop at Lyon Part Dieu (our destination), and that we should just get on it.  And, so 4 ½ hours after our arrival at CDG, we, along with a bazillion of our nearest and dearest brand new friends, squeezed ourselves onto an already-full train.  Anna actually ended up in a seat, but David sat on a suitcase in the aisle.  The aisle soon became pretty crowded with people standing and sitting throughout the train car.  Everyone was quite pleasant and went out of their way to help folks get by, move their luggage, etc.  There was a sort of "we're all in this together" atmosphere on the train.  Needless to say, no one came through to check our tickets.  We arrived at Part Dieu at 1610 (our reservations would have gotten us in at 1400), and we were greeted by LOTS of people waiting to get on the train as soon as we got off.

After a short walk from the station to the apartment, we retrieved some of our stuff from the basement and were pleased to see that Roger and Dominique, our friends and ex-landlords (more on that later), had brought over some things we had stored in their garage along with a nice bottle of wine.  We made a quick trip to our local Monoprix for milk, eggs, and a few other things, unpacked the bare necessities for the night, and crashed.  We were both asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillow. 

Definitely an interesting trip, but all’s well that ends well!

Ah,  Lyon!