fever pitch

It seems like we are at the peak moment where the colors are so vibrant.  Little dots of fire are speckled across the hillsides. We took a stroll to Chamonix and had an amazing lunch on the Brasserie de l'M terrace. Even the vulgar service couldn't detract from the deliciousness of our meal, the Salade de l'M essentially a salade de gésiers, served with the biggest slab of foie gras and a sprinkling of rose salt. The presentation was beautiful.  And for dessert, since Clover was a little to antsy to stay on the terrace, we walked around Cham and stopped in for macarons.  A caramel au beurre salé marcaron was a perfect ending to a divine meal.  I love days like this - blissful family time, amazing food and ideal fall weather.

La fête de Toussaint

Yesterday, November 1st, was la fête de Toussaint, a Roman Catholic holiday, celebrating all the saints, known and unknown. People are encouraged to place flowers on tombs and spend time thinking and praying of all those that are deceased.

Coincidentally, this weekend we visited  la chartreuse du Reposoir, an abbey founded in 1151 by the order of the Carmel,  celebrating the Sainte Thèrese d'Avila and Saint Jean de la Croix. It's still a working monastary with about 20 nuns residing in the immense and immaculate grounds.  The Carmelites take an oath of silence that they will spend many hours each day in silent prayer. It certainly is a calm and peaceful place  surrounded by mountains, trees and alpine lakes.

It was a lovely adventure for a beautiful, fall day but in the sepia photo, a little spooky... kind of fitting with the Halloween holiday so close.

happy halloween!

photo credit - my mom

Clover is wearing his Halloween monsters t-shirt today, so he's taking care of the costume component for the holiday.  I can't think of a better way to celebrate Halloween over here than a special halloween sprinkle doughnut shared via email from abroad. (Thanks for thinking of us, Mom!).

lo-fi lately : Brigitte

 I am the type that falls in love with a song and listens to it on repeat, over and over and over again. But I sometimes change things up by listening to one album on repeat over and over and over again. I know, WILD, right?  lo-fi lately  posts are what's playing on our orange stereo or what I wish was...

My musical taste is somewhat varied but I have a soft spot for indie folk. Les Brigitte are delightfully balanced--two friends, one blonde, one brunette, both with beautiful voices. They sing sweet melodies and have witty lyrics, retro outfits and slightly, odd music videos. Listening to their album, Et vous? Tu m'aimes?, brightens my day but it isn't too over the top that the music can't fade into the background. One of my favorites is La Vengeance d'une Louve. Brigitte originally became known for their cover of NTM's "Ma Benz", fame which I feel is perfectly merited. (NTM is a legendary french rap duo, popular in the 90's and known for mostly violent, agressive lyrics and well, Joey Starr.) Another Brigitte song, "Je Veux un Enfant", describes beautifully and accurately the sentiments of a woman eager and impatient to start a family. Completely hypnotic. Hope you like them, too!