All posts tagged: france

The magic of meal time

The magic of mealtime

Growing up, I remember that my parents always made sure we ate at the table. Together. At least one meal and it was usually dinner. I didn’t really pay much importance to it till I grew up and moved on and out of home.  Now that I look back, I really appreciate that we all got together at the dining table every evening. It might not have been deep conversations all the time, but just the act of gathering at the table was something we followed pretty much every night. As was tradition, mom would cook, and the three of us would eat! I do remember trying to learn some culinary skills at a young age, more specifically baking, but for some reason my mom did always insist on taking charge of the kitchen and never really taught us how to cook. My sister, however, did go on to become a chef during the early phase of her grown up life, but that’s a whole different story.   As I moved on in life, I crossed …

Albi Chronicles: A tram ride to remember

As the noisy white tram clattered through the narrow cobbled streets, I am filled with wonder at the navigation skills of the driver of this rather clunky long vehicle. He’s doing very well and considering the train runs around 5-6 times a day, he can probably do this in his sleep. We’re in the town of Albi in Southern France and this tram proves to be a rather quick and easy way to get in a 45 minute glimpse of the city.  Though I’m using the term city rather loosely. It’s small as far as cities go and this is one place where you’d be hard pressed to get lost. The first morning here, I realized that all roads lead to the main cathedral. And you don’t really need GPS or a map after the first couple of hours—just check where you are in relation to the cathedral tower, which is visible wherever you go.  Located beside the Tarn river, the main attraction of Albi is the Cathédrale Sainte-Cécile. The outside walls of this imposing …