TGIF in Normandy

It's weird - when I'm in Paris, I feel like I'm in New York in the 1980s and now that we're in Normandy, on a Friday night in the 'sticks', I feel like I'm back in Paris - but of course that's because we're with Parisians - delightful, wonderful, fun-loving, chic, intellectual - oh yes, dear State-Side friends, Parisians have gotten a bum rap. Parisians are a wonderful people. Especially when you meet them for the first time in the countryside. But due to such friends being low-key, I will stop my praise here - and move on to the Norman countryside, a town called Cormeilles in particular.

Cormeilles is not exactly a typical farm town. To begin with, it has antique shops (and any town or village in France that has antique shops isn't quite what you'd call a farm town. But leaving aside the antique shops for a moment, `its merit - from the Parisian standpoint is its great fish market, butcher shop, epicerie and bakery (several bakeries). The crowning glory is an excellent gourmet restaurant (sadly, the chef is passing along the baton to a new owner at the end of this month) but we are reveling in one of his last meals before the changeover.

Friday night, yes definitely, a full house, and a very chic set. Yet, we're nowhere near Deauville. There's a good 40 to 50 kilometers between here and the seaside resorts, and yet the Coquille St. Jacques tastes every bit as good as you'd expect from a Deauville seafood restaurant.

You notice I haven't mentioned the name of the restaurant - I'm holding my breath until the changeover has taken place - and will refrain from yeahs or nays until the new couple gets a chance to get into the groove of things.

In the meantime, we've been frequenting the Cormeilles Friday market which has plenty of goodies for cooking at home. One of my favorite stands is the guy who sells mountain cheeses (yes, in Normandy, buying mountain cheese may sound ridiculous - unless you just like moutain cheeses).

Friends often ask us, 'So, what do yo DO in Normandy?'. If the sun is shining, we do anything that allows us to stay outside as long as possible. And when it rains, we'll probably be playing 'Scrabble' en francais, bien sur! Bisous.