Monthly Archives: August 2025
🍁Les feuilles… déjà?🍂 🇫🇷🇬🇧
“Mid-August, and the plane trees are already shedding their leaves like it’s October. Blame the heat, blame the drought — but it feels as though autumn has slipped in early, right in the middle of a heatwave. Between the air-con, … Continue reading
European accent 🇫🇷🇬🇧🇩🇪
When a Hollywood cop described a suspect as having a “European accent,” I nearly spilled my café crème. From French chic to Scottish grit, Europe’s accents are as varied as its landscapes—yet somehow, we’re all lumped into one. A witty … Continue reading
Hot enough 🇬🇧🇫🇷
“When the thermometer hits 43°C and your wife’s birthday falls on the same day, there’s only one sensible thing to do: head for the coast, order dangerously pink cocktails, and let the sea breeze do the rest. Here’s how we … Continue reading
Le Prado 🇫🇷
“From childhood evenings at Marseille’s Prado to hitchhiking in the ‘70s — and even a chance encounter 6,000 km away in Philadelphia — the same street, the same family pharmacy, and the same whiff of pastis kept finding me. Some … Continue reading
The week that was 32-2025 🇬🇧🇫🇷
Quiet… Too Quiet?A week of long lunches, firefighting planes, accidental website deletion, and mountain detours—because even “quiet” weeks in my world come with Bourbon temptations, Top Gun moments, and the occasional digital catastrophe.
Massalia 🇫🇷
Marseille dans le sang, Paris sur la carte d’identité. Entre les étés ensoleillés chez ma grand-mère Alphonsine, les marchés parfumés, les après-midis à la Pointe Rouge et les histoires hautes en couleur de tonton Maurice, chaque souvenir est une bouffée … Continue reading
JJ vs. the Machines (I) 🇬🇧🇫🇷
When Technology Stages a MutinyBefore sunrise, three keyboards, two computers, and one overbooked morning decided to collapse in unison—forcing me into a pre-coffee battery hunt while a window cleaner waged war on my glass. Forget caffeine; nothing wakes you up … Continue reading
