voters need a new vision from the mainstream left for improving their lives
The Bourgogne-Franche Comté regional express train from Paris takes just 74 minutes to reach Joigny on the banks of the River Yonne in northern Burgundy
the fringes of the capital’s commuter belt meet the countryside among the narrow streets of half-timbered houses and medieval churches
surrounded by fields and the Côte Saint-Jacques vineyards
the largely agricultural area has been fertile ground for many shades of the French left – the Resistance and later the Socialist president François Mitterrand were rooted in Burgundy
Today it is where French socialism just about stops the slide of grassroots support to the far right
France’s centre-left Parti Socialist (PS) was the driving power in French politics: it had a president
François Hollande; a majority in both houses of parliament
the Assemblée Nationale and the Sénat; and control of most of the country’s major local authorities
less than two weeks from the first round of the presidential election
trailing in the latest polls at 1.5% (lower than a sheep farmer called Jean Lassalle and the Communist party candidate Fabien Roussel)
the mainstream left is in an electoral black hole leaving its voters facing what they call a casse-tête – a major headache
Do they vote for a leftwing candidate on principle even if opinion polls suggest none stands the slightest chance of getting through to the second round (except perhaps Jean-Luc Mélenchon, a charismatic figure of the hard-left currently polling in third place but considered too radical by many)? Do they vote for Emmanuel Macron to hold off the far right’s Marine Le Pen
Or do they stay at home and not vote at all
View image in fullscreenA campaign poster of France’s president and La République En Marche
(LREM) party candidate Emmanuel Macron in Paris
Photograph: Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty ImagesSitting in his mayoral office overlooking the River Yonne in Joigny
Nicolas Soret is resigned to his party’s presidential defeat
I can only observe that winning this election does not seem possible,” he says diplomatically and
can be congratulated for pulling off a political feat that has proven impossible at a national level: in the last municipal and departmental elections
he united a range of leftwing candidates – including Greens and Communists – to see off the far right
“We realised that if we didn’t join forces we could only lose,” Soret says
“So we got together and agreed on a local programme
based on local issues and local knowledge and that’s why it worked
I really don’t think it would be possible at national level
the voters are still here and the elected officials are still here
We have shown there are leftwing voters out there
Sometimes you have to dig a bit deeper to find them
Joigny has become the symbol of La France péripherique
a term used to evoke the territorial fracture between city and countryside whose populations have been left behind: excluded from jobs
access to high speed internet and – as they are more reliant on cars – among the worst hit by the soaring cost of living
It was one of the first places Hidalgo visited on launching her campaign
rural and semi-rural France full of people worried for their futures in a way those from the cities did not understand
“The factories and businesses have closed and not been replaced
youngsters no longer find work opportunities and their parents are worried,” she said afterwards
“It was all done without any consultation with us,” Soret says of the administrative changes
We were the town that was hit on the head over and over again
“Ten years ago we were on our knees and we’re only now slowly getting back on our feet
But it has led to a certain fatalism among the population that has nourished the far-right vote.”
View image in fullscreenAccording to the latest government statistics from 2019
about 29% of Joigny’s population lives below the poverty line
Photograph: Sylvain Oliveira/AlamyMarcel Reynaud
which has supplied high-quality pigments and oil paints to artists – including Salvador Dalí – for 112 years
says he hears a lot of local talk about supporting Le Pen’s far-right Rassemblement National (RN)
“In the routier [truckers’] cafes it’s all about how they will be voting RN because they feel their social protections
because these are traditional leftwing voters
It seems they no longer believe in the sincerity of the PS or
“These people voting RN are not ‘fascists’; they are voting RN because they don’t feel the PS have protected them or improved their situation.”
inequality and the undervaluing of essential workers such as nurses and teachers
He supports the idea of a universal minimum revenue – the Socialist candidate’s key pledge in 2017 – but says he is not sure who he will vote for this time around
View image in fullscreenMarcel Reynaud
a Beaux-Arts trained painter and Joigny resident
Photograph: Kim Willsher/The GuardianWith the presidential campaign so far hijacked by the far right and its obsession with the three “i”s – Islam
Immigration and Integration – moderate leftwing voters feel politically orphaned and there could be worse to come
If Hidalgo fails to reach 5% in the first round
her campaign expenses will not be reimbursed by the state
leaving the PS in afinancial crisis just before the legislative elections in June
Political analysts say the left in France, like elsewhere in Europe
has suffered from a tectonic shift to the right driven by populism
For the mainstream left – sometimes called the “government left” – the spiral began during Hollande’s 2012-17 single term in office
when he was accused of damaging the party’s credentials with a neoliberal agenda
when the PS candidate failed to make the second round – a disaster also suffered by the centre-right Les Républicains – it was clear the mainstream left had lost the working-class vote to the far right
the radical vote to Mélenchon and the moderate left either to Macron’s new centrist party or the Greens
argues Mélenchon made a “monumental error” after it was clear the PS vote had scattered
gathered everyone on the left around him and rebuilt leftwing unity behind him
he radicalised it and lost the moderate left
everyone was asking Mélenchon to do this and he sent them packing in no uncertain terms.”
View image in fullscreenFI presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon delivering a speech during his campaign meeting in Marseille on 27 March 2022
Photograph: Alain ROBERT/SIPA/REX/ShutterstockManon Aubry
the co-chair of The Left in the European parliament where she is an MEP
and campaigner for Mélenchon’s La France Insoumise
believes the PS is at the end of its political life and it is time for the French left to regroup around a new more radical vision
That Mélenchon is slowly rising in the latest polls suggests some voters agree
“For people of my generation the PS has nothing to say or offer
We are in a turning point for the left in France
This doesn’t mean socialist ideas are dead but they have to be reborn in a new political force,” Aubry told the Guardian
“Our message for this election is we have to eliminate the extreme right in the first round
then we can have a proper debate about two completely opposite visions for society
that of Emmanuel Macron and that of Jean-Luc Mélenchon.”
is still mulling over who to vote for in the first round
“To me it’s not a question of right or left
it’s about addressing the issues that concern people
namely poverty and the future of the planet
How can we be living in a country with people who have such wealth
while there are those on the streets with no homes over their head
nothing to eat … that’s what I want someone to answer.”
Find holy history and heavenly vintages in the northern reaches of this celebrated French wine-making region
sensory charms begin a long way north of the Côte d’Or
or “Golden Slope”—and the road is paved with stories
The monks who first tended Burgundy’s vines were focused not on the pleasures of the table but on the immortality of the soul
If sacramental wine was to become the blood of Christ during mass
why not make it transcendentally delicious
The landscape was molded in the image of the church and well-marked pilgrimage routes still characterize the region
a different kind of pilgrimage became popular: Parisians drove south
in search of sunshine and all that it brings
Springtime has average temperatures of 68 degrees Fahrenheit; summer can top 86 degrees; and autumn offers colors and flavors of the harvest
The Yonne region is named for the river that flows through it
The small town of Joigny sits on its banks.Most visitors to Burgundy focus on the famous stretch below Dijon
I’m taking things slow to savor the region’s twin preoccupations
writ large across the land: dinner and eternal life
But the wider world knows this region better for Chablis
flinty yet delicious style of Chardonnay that goes beautifully with oysters
Pico has abandoned the easy route of spraying chemicals
despite the work and risk of organic agriculture in inconstant northern temperatures
The result is a wine tasting of lemon and cream
the two-star kitchen is under the toque of his chef nephew Alexandre Bondoux
(The extortion plot that shook France’s wine country to its roots.)
The Route Nationale 6 runs past the hotel’s door. The Lorain family built a passage beneath it so guests can enter the small town of Joigny more easily by foot. In keeping with my slow mission, I stroll into the nearby Eglise Saint-André, with its medieval Pietà
an image of Mary clutching her crucified son
I find another church via an archway hewn from the region’s distinctive grey-white stone
Saint-Romain, a rural section of Burgundy’s Côte d’Or, is seen from above.I marvel at the precision and detail of the Église Saint-Jean—set high on a hill with superb views down to the Yonne—built in the 13th century
16th-century marble sepulcher with seven life-size figures gathered in mourning around the dead Christ
My 10-minute walk back to the hotel passes yet another church
where guilty townsfolk were once placed in the stocks to be pelted by their righteous neighbors
she took a break from battling the English to pray here in 1429
(These six French UNESCO sites are among the country’s best.)
That’s what Joan was fighting for; that’s what the monks devoted themselves to
learning the differences between each tiny plot and nurturing the vines accordingly
there’s a local story that says they used to lick the soil to understand the difference in flavors in this
This earth is what these buildings are hewn from
too: this calcaire d’Auxerre rock is the same limestone found in the soil
the villages with their pale stones glow like ghosts
A tourist explores the Cathédrale de Saint-Étienne in Auxerre.Burgundy’s iconic glazed tiles adorn a roof in Dijon.These grapevines predate the monasteries; some possibly predate Christianity
since they were already being regulated on the orders of the Roman emperors in the first century A.D
when a monastery was built and the pious began donating vineyards to ensure their place in heaven
that the town of Chablis and its surrounding lands became synonymous with superlative white wine
(Climate change is changing the flavor of French wine.)
and the delicately sculpted marble tombs of two long-dead noblemen
I pause to think of the monks sitting down in their refectory after a hard day’s pruning and praying
lifting a cup of wine to their lips with the same sense of anticipation we feel today
my leisurely pilgrimage brings me to the Côte d’Or proper
as I contrast the gentle tilt of these south- and southeast-facing vineyards with those of the cooler
Change happens slowly here, if at all. The purchase of the 18th-century Château de Pommard
with its 50-acre single plot (unusually large for this region)
by American tech entrepreneur Michael Baum in 2014
He is certainly changing things: the courtyard is a morass of mud and noise as workers convert the outbuildings to a 28-suite luxury hotel
(Visit these 5 beautiful cities in France to avoid Paris crowds.)
Burgundy was never just the domain of monks
as large and immortal as their stories have become
The heady tapestry of vines and churches woven across the fertile region always stood to elevate the general population
too—as well as the travelers who pass through it
As I sip heavenly wine and note the passing of time by the bell clanging in Saint-Aubin’s tiny
I give thanks to the land’s custodians—and perhaps a higher power
I wonder if there can be anything more miraculous than tasting a great wine in its birthplace
I’ve journeyed from Saint-Jacques to Saint-Aubin
and if neither martyr would’ve approved of my focus on temporal pleasures
they at least would have agreed that these wines linked heaven and earth for pilgrims of all kinds
Nina Caplan is a journalist writing about travel, wine and art. You can find her on Twitter.
Slawek Kozdras is a London-based travel photographer and travel writer. You can find him on Instagram.
This article is adapted from a story published in the November 2021 issue of National Geographic Traveller (U.K.).
Slawek Kozdras is a London-based travel photographer and travel writer. You can find him on Instagram
This article is adapted from a story published in the November 2021 issue of National Geographic Traveller (U.K.)
Nina Caplan is a journalist writing about travel, wine and art. You can find her on Twitter.
An unconventional handmade aesthetic is emerging
challenging the predictability and sameness of contract furnishings
By: Jaxson Stone
the Krujok Café captures the essence of baking through design
tables and chairs appear to have been rolled
and pinched into doughy forms for guests to savor
A similarly amorphous beige chandelier hangs in the lavender-hued space as if the chef had lost control and flung dough into the air
The purple velvet–upholstered seating evokes melting glazed sugar
while sculptures on the wall resemble the caramelized popcorn chefs use to decorate the café’s multicolored pastries.
Through the use of handmade, one-off accents and furnishings, Russian architect Eduard Erumchuk and designer Katy Pititskaya set out to create an interior that feels like the “inside of a donut.” But while this café encourages a childlike experience of space through the senses
it also points to a larger movement among millennial designers who are rethinking narratives of craft in commercial interiors.
Some have described this new expression as “ugly design,” “trash aesthetics,” or “sloppy craft.” But you know it when you see it
Perhaps it’s Thomas Barger’s bubble gum–pink chairs made from found objects and paper pulp
Katie Stout’s “Lady Lamps” collaged together out of ceramic fruit
or Diego Faivre’s cardboard stools covered in glossy
the style promotes a playful organicism that leans toward the grotesque and figurative.”
the emerging style promotes a playful organicism that leans toward the grotesque and the figurative
It moves away from traditional means of furniture design and production
and toward experimentation in material and method
subverting function in favor of emotion.
Writer and historian Glenn Adamson first introduced the idea of “sloppy craft” in a 2008 article in Crafts magazine
noting that craft’s appeal has long lain in its irregularities and imperfections that remind us that we are human
the aesthetic is linked to the rise of the DIY movement that “penetrated art-school culture” and encouraged a post-disciplinary shift in art and design pedagogy
which has since been perpetuated by social media
For Brooklyn-based designer Ellen Pong
“Ceramics is definitely not the best way to make furniture
but it is a way.” With a background in art history
When she started experimenting in hand-building with clay
From thorny massage chairs to tissue boxes covered in lunch meat
Pong’s work often layers mundane objects with absurd humor and subtle pop cultural references
I think there are a few reasons why this aesthetic is having a moment,” she explains
“I see it as part of the larger movement away from the rationalism of Modernism towards the irregular
bricolage nature of this aesthetic is the exact opposite of the Modernist “truth to materials” narrative so often touted by interior designers when discussing craft
Take the work of Paris-based designer Faivre
Faivre makes objects using his performative and iterative production system called Minute Manufacturing
in which every minute of production is equivalent to one euro
and other interior objects by covering waste materials such as cardboard and plastic boxes in colorful air-dry clay he calls “Diego Dough.” The result challenges value systems and serves as a critique of industrialized processes.
Faivre’s work inevitably recalls Maarten Baas’s self-described “spontaneous and naïve” The CLAY series from 2006 (an example Adamson also cites in his account of “sloppy craft”)
Baas hand-covered steel armatures in Plasticine
creating wonky furniture that looks like it belongs in Wallace & Gromit but now appears in the collections of major design museums throughout the world
the concept of “collectible design” has grown substantially
further blurring the lines between fine art and an emerging collectible design market.
“Beyond the saccharine colors and clumsy forms
there’s almost something kind of dark about it all.”
Erumchuk’s doughnut shop provides an example of how this aesthetic is slowly moving out of private homes and design galleries and into the realm of everyday interiors
Whether it’s Chris Wolston’s Terracotta Plant Chairs in Kelly Wearstler’s Santa Monica Proper Hotel or Barger’s installation at Gachot Studios’ now-closed Glossier Manhattan flagship
the desire to include handcrafted objects within commercial interiors is growing as brands seek to differentiate themselves and their spaces.
It’s a phenomenon that goes hand in hand with the move toward more hybridized spaces—from social media pop-up experiences to shoppable hotels to residential showrooms. According to Stephen Markos, founder of digital platform and nomadic gallery Superhouse
young furniture designers can partner with a hotel or shop
where the design has the ability to enhance the products being sold
but also give people a unique perspective on the furniture
People are seeing it and potentially buying it.”
“beyond the saccharine colors and clumsy forms
there’s almost something kind of dark about it all
The work signals a playfulness that is appealing because most people’s everyday lives are otherwise predictable and underwhelming.” Design can challenge that.
Would you like to comment on this article? Send your thoughts to: [email protected]
The Amsterdam-based designers create furniture and objects that explore industrial production and waste narratives
The adaptive reuse market designed by Clayton Korte and Emmer & Rye Hospitality Group aims to create a sensory (and low waste) grocery experience
JFAK’s Homeless Navigation Center blends modular housing
dignified alternative to traditional shelters
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Thor Hushovd hit his opponents with a hard reminder that he is a sprinter to reckon with by taking..
Thor Hushovd hit his opponents with a hard reminder that he is a sprinter to reckon with by taking victory at the end of 193 kilometres into Joigny
The 29 year-old Norwegian benefited from the work of teammate Julien Dean and went long to overtake Robert Hunter (Barloworld) and Oscar Freire (Rabobank)
"It was very fast with big roads at the end," noted Hushovd at the end of the day
The sprinters' teams had sucked in the escape of Matthieu Sprick (Bouygues Telecom)
Sébastien Chavanel (Française Des Jeux) and Christian Knees (Milram) that had been clear since 25 kilometres into the day
The race-conclusion saw Sprick bolting free at eight kilometres to go as the peloton was only 30" back
The Frenchman was clawed back 4.8 kilometres from the finish and the way was clear for a sprint-fest
"My team did a lot of work for me with riders such as Sébastien Hinault and William Bonnet helping a lot," Hushovd continued
Dean was the star domestique when he personally escorted me in the crucial closing metres
I stayed on his wheel and he started the sprint very strongly with about 450 metres to go
He led me out and then I jumped with about 200 metres to go."
Hushovd rode the New Zealand express through the gentle right-hand bend and then launched off to the lead-out man's left
Hushovd led from what appeared to be a long 300 metres to go
using the power that gave him four stage wins and one Maillot Vert to hold off Robert Hunter (Barloworld) on his right
"This win is very good for me because I didn't have a very good start to the season
I prepared the season to be good in the Classics
but I fell sick the day before Milano-Sanremo and I didn't do well in the Classics
It is great to win a stage because of that and I am very happy
I hope the rest of the race goes as well as today."
Hunter continues to improve and makes well on ASO's invite of the Professional Continental team Barloworld
"I wasn't too happy when I crossed the line because I don't like to lose but as I told you this morning I am feeling good and I am ready for a big result," noted the South African to Jean-François Quénet
"I was trying to get into the right position but I was a little way back because of a Lampre guy
Had I been closer to Hushovd it could have been a different story
I was sprinting faster than him but I came from too far back
It's the way it goes; it's the Tour de France
But I am slowly closing the gap to the first win of my career at the Tour de France."
Spaniard Oscar Freire (Rabobank) made the top-three followed by Erik Zabel (Milram)
Robert Förster (Gerolsteiner) and Steegmans' teammate Tom Boonen
"The last kilometres were very chaotic," Boonen noted after his eighth place
There was a corner at five hundred metres and that is where it went wrong
When Thor Hushovd went we had to brake and that is where it happened."
maybe because he had lost the sprint but maybe it was because stage 2 winner Steegmans finished ahead of him to take some of his precious sprint points
Boonen continues to hold the sprinter's Maillot Vert by 12 points over Zabel and 14 over Robbie McEwen (Predictor)
Fabian Cancellara (Team CSC) retained his race leader's Maillot Jaune as he finished safely in the group in 47th
The winner of the prologue in London and yesterday's stage to Compiègne holds 29" over Hushovd and 33" over Andreas Klöden of Astana
The Swiss cronoman has no illusions of holding the Maillot over the Alps
"When the mountains are coming it is 'game over' for me," stated Cancellara
"My other job will start; I will look out for Schleck and Sastre
I want to repay those guys for what they did for me."
For his efforts Sprick was given the Prix de la Combativité for most aggressive rider
The prize is awarded at the end of each stage by a panel of judges including Tour Director Christian Prudhomme and journalists
187 riders headed out from the birthplace of Count of Monte Cristo author Alexandre Dumas
and rode into some into unseasonably cool weather - a dramatic difference from last year's scorching temperatures in the Tour
the first action of the day was an early category four climb
where Alexander Kuchynski (Liquigas) took the maximum points ahead of David Millar (Saunier Duval) and Stéphane Augé (Cofidis) - two of his breakaway companions from stage one
The first attacks began ahead of the 30 kilometre mark
and the successful break of the day was launched by Matthieu Sprick (Bouygues Telecom)
He was joined by Juan Antonio Flecha (Rabobank)
Sylvain Chavanel (Cofidis) and Christian Knees (Milram) to form the day-long escape that would take all of the intermediate sprint bonuses and mountain points
With Chavanel protecting the polka dot jersey of Augé
and none of the men up front threatening the points jersey of Tom Boonen (Quickstep)
it was up to yellow jersey Fabian Cancellara's CSC team to control the pace yet again
and kept the gap to a maximum of four minutes with occasional help from Quickstep and Predictor-Lotto
Chavanel mopped up the points in defense of his team-mate's polka dot jersey while Flecha came second ahead of Verdugo
Flecha then went on to take maximum points at the first intermediate sprint in La Ferte-Gaucher (km 69) in front of Chavanel and Sprick
As the peloton worked to close the gap to the leaders
a crash in the back of the peloton felled Rémy Di Grégorio (Française des Jeux) and Xabier Zandio (Caisse d'Epargne)
The latter would immediately abandon the stage
finally chasing back on 12 kilometres later
The crash split the peloton into three groups
causing a little panic for the Discovery Channel team
who had to work hard to bring white jersey holder Vladimir Gusev back to the front
Averaging just over 40 kilometres per hour
the peloton held the breakaway at a near steady three to four minute lead for the majority of the day
The second intermediate sprint in Soligny-Les-Etangs was taken again by Flecha ahead of Chavanel and Milram's Knees
The lead began to sink as the breakaway headed up into the hills above the Yonne River valley
where they tacked the third category four climb of the day
the Côte De Galbaux holding just two minutes' advantage on the field
and as they headed toward the Côte De Bel-Air
causing a little pause in the break's efforts
A crash in the field slowed the chase when Cofidis' Staf Scheirlinckx ran into some cars on the road side
Verdugo had just rejoined his companions before the GPM line when Knees attacked to take the points
beating Sprick and Chavanel as the chase behind began in earnest
Just ten kilometres down the hill into Theil-Sur-Vanne
the breakaway reached the final intermediate sprint while holding just over 90 seconds advantage on the Quickstep-led field
all the while knowing the sprinters' teams were barreling down toward them
Flecha again took the maximum points while Chavanel and Verdugo came second and third
and then it was time for the five men to gather their wits for the struggle ahead
and fell below one minute with 25 kilometres to go
and while the other four did not let him go
the increase in pace allowed the break's advantage to dangle at the one minute mark for a suspenseful seven kilometres before more teams lent their strength to the chase
but Sprick wasn't going to take defeat lying down and launched an attack with 8.5km to go that was marked by Flecha and Knees
but spelled the end of Verdugo and Chavanel
When a slight lull in the pace proved unsatisfactory to Knees
while Flecha held on for a few more kilometres
But Flecha and Knees were no match for the sprint-hungry peloton
and they finally gave up with 7 kilometres to go with a sportsmanlike shake of hands
Quickstep and Predictor-Lotto all vying for control
the lead in the final kilometres changed again and again
Even within the last kilometre there was no clear grip on the front
and the opportunists in the peloton fired off surge after surge
it was the perfectly timed lead out of New Zealand champion Julian Dean which launched his team-mate Thor Hushovd to victory ahead of a feisty late charge by South African sprinter Robert Hunter (Barloworld)
Oscar Freire rolled in a disappointed third ahead of Erik Zabel (Milram) and Lampre's Danilo Napolitano
Starting in the town famous worldwide for crisp white wine
after five days of racing in the 2007 Tour de France
stage 5 contains some serious racing on a winding
rolling parcours with eight categorized climbs
A break will certainly get away and in the second half of the stage
the road ascends to the windy roads of Morvan Plateau before a final ascent of the Cat
3 Côte de la Croix de la Libération with eight kilometres to race
which could make the difference for the race winning move
Climbs: Km 39.5: Côte des Grandes-Châtelaines: 1.5km climb @ 6.7% avg
Km 52.5: Côte de Domecy-sur-Cure: 1.3km climb @ 6.2% avg
Km 58.5: Côte de Champignolles-le-Bas: 2.0km climb @ 6.5% avg
Km 86.5: Côte de Coulon: 1.0km climb @ 6.2% avg
Km 98.5: Côte de Saint-Maurice: 3.0km climb @ 5.2% avg
Km 119: Côte de Château-Chinon: 2.5km climb @ 3.8% avg
Km 135.5: Haut-Folin: 12.9km climb @ 3.7% avg
Km 174: Côte de la Croix de la Libération: 3.4km climb @ 5.4% avg
Sprints: Km 36: Avallon Km 88: Montreuillon Km 145: Bibracte-Mont-Beuvray
Why we should approach America with the humility of a good international reporter
Sign up for The Media Today
It can perhaps be best summed up as: Why don’t Americans believe us?
The forces that brought us to this moment are powerful and complex and beyond the capacity of individual journalists or news organizations to resolve
We still have a critical role to play.
I’ve spent a lot of time over the years with foreign correspondents
Those who travel to new places but cling to their preconceptions
isolate themselves from the people they cover
They often rely on Western embassies and senior government officials for information
Then there are those who immerse themselves in a different culture
guided by humility and curiosity and a desire to understand rather than judge.
The latter represents the best kind of journalism and
In the days after the election I called a number of former and current foreign correspondents to ask for their views
In Georgia—the state—I spoke with Margaret Coker
who spent twenty years traveling the world and served as Turkey bureau chief for the Wall Street Journal and Baghdad bureau chief for the New York Times.
Coker moved back to the US to write a book
a beautiful city of quiet squares and historic homes that is smack-dab in the middle of a news desert
was gunned down while out for a jog near Brunswick
Outraged and concerned by the lack of accountability journalism, Coker gathered up a group of friends and decided to start a nonprofit news organization, The Current
it reaches about sixty thousand civically engaged coastal Georgians each month through its website
and thirty thousand additional readers via newsletters and text messages.
It covers health, education, and the environment, and when it delves into national politics it does so in a nonjudgmental way, like a portrait of a local barber who is an avid Trump backer
The Current does not publish any editorials or opinion columns
“There’s so many places where you can be immersed in the politics of outrage,” Coker says
While Coker has made the transition to local reporting
she continues to draw on her roots as an international correspondent
“The best foreign correspondents have always been humble,” Coker pointed out
“You have to get immersed in the culture in order for someone to really trust you and for you to really be able to tell behind-the-scenes
That is what I tried to do as a foreign correspondent
That’s definitely what we’re doing here locally.”
Suzy Hansen has written a book about her own experience covering Turkey, Notes on a Foreign Country
It’s a critique of the role of the traditional foreign correspondent—but also an affirmation of the power of discovering a new community
I asked Hansen if anything she described in her book could be applied to the current reality in the United States.
she “had not done enough examination of my own biases and prejudices and this kind of arrogance that one can have.” Her goal in writing the book was to try to break down the role of journalists as figures of authority
“If you are feeling self-congratulatory in any way
when you’re going into trying to understand something
“You have to keep pushing deeper and deeper and deeper into understanding while remaining open-minded to the possibilities.”
I spent a decade at the beginning of my career as a freelance journalist in Mexico and Central America
There was so much I didn’t know and understand about the changing world around me
always told me she wanted the “chicken’s-eye view.” I was under no illusion that anything would change as a result of what I wrote
The work felt incredibly vital and important—and fulfilling.
I also spoke with several reporters who have covered the US as foreign correspondents
a reporter for The Guardian and former correspondent in Washington
has now lived and worked in the US for fifteen years and writes for The Guardian US
But he tries to maintain a kind of radical openness as he travels around the country
McGreal spent the six weeks leading up to Election Day in Saginaw
a deeply purple bellwether district in a crucial swing state
He arrived believing that Kamala Harris and the Democrats had an advantage in a community with a sizable working class
along with significant Black and Latino populations
Union leaders and others told him that Harris was not speaking effectively about economic issues and that the relentless ads attacking Trump weren’t landing
Women voters told him they cared about reproductive rights
but felt patronized that the Democrats would assume they were one-issue voters.
Another revelation came in the waning days of the Trump campaign
when a comedian at a Trump rally in New York described Puerto Rico as “a floating pile of trash.” The Harris campaign trotted out celebrities who expressed outrage
But Latino voters in Saginaw shrugged off the insults
“It didn’t make a blind bit of difference to them,” McGreal said.
The Guardian US newsroom has a staff of more than a hundred reporters
It reaches more than forty-seven million readers every month in the US
some segment of the American public appreciates The Guardian’s approach
It’s less connected to US centers of power
and—because it seeks to inform not just Americans but global readers—it often highlights aspects of US society that are overlooked in other outlets
told me that Trump’s victory sparked an intense newsroom debate in which journalists spoke about the collapse in trust that had turned a good portion of the American public away from fact-based journalism
and it commands our attention,” Pilkington said.
said he tries to maintain a self-reflective and critical outlook
But he has not internalized the criticism that the election of Donald Trump somehow represents a media failure
“I’m no more responsible for that than I am for the election of Benjamin Netanyahu when I was reporting from Israel,” McGreal told me
And the great American public is going to vote.”
Declining power and influence is not the only way that journalism will change under Trump
There will be greater hostility toward journalists in the streets and online; legal harassment will likely increase
Here too the experience of foreign correspondents is instructive
US journalists may have to manage greater risk and report with more courage and determination
there are challenges in terms of our changing relationship to our audience and to the people we cover along with the environment in which we work
Has America ever needed a media defender more than now? Help us by joining CJR today
Louise Hampson works for The University of York
She receives funding from the AHRC and this work on which this articlke is based arose from a government-funded project
own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article
and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment
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On the last night of Hanukkah 2023, a service was held in York on the site of the 12th-13th century Jewbury cemetery. The event was led by Rabbi Elisheva Salamo
the first rabbi to live in York for over 700 years
Prayers were said and 150 candles lit for the people known to have died in the pogrom at Clifford’s Tower in 1190
In the history of England’s Jewish communities
York is forever linked with this period of murderous antisemitism
After attacks in London around the coronation of Richard I in 1189
a mob instigated by Richard de Malbisse had laid siege to the castle in York
in which the local Jewish community had sought sanctuary
Those sheltering were told to choose between forced conversion or death
But when the few who did emerge to convert were immediately slaughtered
the remaining captives elected to commit mass suicide and the castle was set alight
One figure in particular stands out: a French rabbi and noted scholar
Yom Tov (or Yom Tob) who moved to York from Joigny in France in the early 1180s
and whose writings are still widely used today
The first references to a Jewish community in York date back to the 1170s
Property deeds held in York City Archives and Durham Cathedral Archives refer to two very substantial properties
Historians have usually placed Josce’s house and synagogue on Coney Street
Our research has shown this oft-repeated assertion to be false
based on a misunderstanding of the charter evidence
Benedict lived on a corner plot at the junction of modern Colliergate and St Saviourgate
probably around the site currently occupied by the Fossgate Tap and Blue Bell pubs
Josce and Benedict’s community was established in York from Lincoln in the wake of a revolt against royal taxation in 1174, at the pleasure of the King Henry II (1170-1183). In keeping with the walled and gated seigneurial holdings in which Jewish communities lived in France and northern Spain
it is likely that Josce and Benedict both accommodated several families on both their sites
Josce was wealthy and well connected, eager to ensure his community’s religious orthodoxy. At some point in the 1180s, he wrote to the Jewish community in Joigny
asking for a scholar to be sent to York to teach the community
It is here that Yom Tov would have preached his sermons and debated the interpretation of the law with other learned men of the community
Yom Tov remains unique among medieval rabbinical scholars for two of his works still being used regularly
Rabbi Eli Brackman, director of Chabad of Oxford and the Oxford University Chabad Society, has shown that both Askhenazi and Sephardic custom accept Yom Tov’s contribution to the Shulchan Aruch (the code of law)
Yom Tov said that it was acceptable to allow a gentile into a Jewish household on Chabbad (the Sabbath) for the purposes of the lighting a fire
It is tempting to think this was a pragmatic response
inspired by his experience of having lived through a winter in York
the poem is favoured for its insistence that only God can rescue humanity
Historical chroniclers do not agree on whether Yom Tov lived permanently in York, as the city’s rabbi, or whether he was simply a frequent visitor. They do agree that he was involved in the events of 1190. According to the historian Barry Dobson
he called on his congregants to die at their own hands
in “the heroic tradition hallowed by Hebrew tradition”
describes Josce and Benedict’s “stone palaces” as “[attracting] the attention of their Christian neighbours”
In an antisemitic attempt at justification
he implies that their lavishness inspired envy and contributed to the “cause” of the pogrom
Research shows that the massacre was, in fact, a way for the heavily indebted local gentry and citizenry to erase the evidence of their debts to the Jewish community
by burning the properties and the financial records and by killing the people to whom they were indebted
Chroniclers put the number of victims between 50 and 500 people
Charter evidence suggests around 150 people died – likely
Following the expulsion of the Jews from England
there would be no Jewish presence in York for 600 years
a small community fleeing the pogroms of eastern Europe arrived back in the city
One Jewish woman married a local Christian joiner and a small synagogue was established above the man’s workshop on Aldwark
Census data shows this group never counted more than 120 congregants
But as numbers dwindled in the later 20th century
the synagogue finally closed in 1975 and the sacred scrolls returned to Leeds
A new chapter of English Judaism in York opens
Three family beauty businesses—Superga Beauty
and Alfaparf—create a consortium to take over Eugène Perma in receivership proceedings
WHO: The Eugène Perma group was founded in 1919 by Eugène Sutter
the hairdresser and inventor of the permanent wave
He bought the men's brand Pétrole Hahn in 1998
Didier Martin joined the company in 1984 and became its CEO in 1995 before becoming its majority shareholder
The brand's portfolio consists of Pétrole Hahn
Alfaparf Milano is an Italian group that distributes hairdressing and beauty products in more than 120 countries via around 20 subsidiaries
Naturopera was founded in 2013 by Kilian O’Neill and Geoffroy Blondel de Joigny and has seven socially responsible
Naturopera products are sold in over 20 countries
WHY: The company was placed in receivership on August 1 by the Paris Commercial Court
At the time the group said it has been "weakened" by "a succession of crises since 2018 after a supply chain problem" which was followed by "the health crisis and then inflation," all leading to "significant debt and deterioration margins." At the end of 2022
Eugène Perma "launched a process of seeking capital partnerships," but "last May
tensions with certain creditors" led to a breakdown in ongoing discussions
IN THEIR OWN WORDS: “Naturopera is writing an exciting new chapter in its history
It is with immense pride that we welcome the emblematic brands of Eugène Perma
This takeover marks a major strategic step in our commitment to innovation and quality
strengthening our position as a leader in “made in France” perfumery hygiene
combining sustainability and excellence to offer our consumers an unrivaled experience in the world of hygiene
beauty and hair care,” said Geoffroy Blondel de Joigny and Kilian O’Neill
three family businesses guaranteeing sustainability and aligned with the values of the Eugène Perùma group
We are aware that significant work will need to be done on the three activities to restore momentum and dynamism to the group
The fact of acting as a team is for us a guarantee of resources and success: each trade is entrusted to dedicated experts who have made the commitment to invest themselves completely in the pursuit and maintenance of each of the trades," explains Leslie Bréau Meniger
“The Superga Beauty group is carrying out an ambitious project
our strength as well as our desire to transform a brand factory into a subcontracting factory
while preserving French know-how in cosmetics
This takeover will allow us to instantly increase our production capacities for care and hygiene products and to develop our know-how in coloring and stressed hair care," Meniger said
"I deeply believe in the success of this project
We demonstrated our commercial strength with the Cosmeurop takeover project
I believe in subcontracting and its development and in the desire of our customers to develop French manufacturing."
Feast your eyes on vases baked like an obscure Swedish cake
and more at Design Academy Eindhoven’s 2018 graduate show
Peruse the shelves of any shop and you’re likely to encounter products made from a very short list of techniques: injection-molding
These processes have been optimized over time for efficiency and cost effectiveness and a lot of what we buy has become uniform as a result
Not so at the 2018 Design Academy Eindhoven graduate exhibition
Students developed creative fabrication techniques that yielded brilliantly weird
The pieces frequently addressed the pitfalls of mass production
railed against the environmental effects of consumerism
these techniques might just end up in products we purchase for our homes
Spettekaka cake, a Swedish dessert, translates to “cake on a spit” and it’s usually made by drizzling batter on skewer that slowly rotates over an open fire. Designer Erika Emerén riffed on this technique to produce one-of-a-kind clay vases with tactile surfaces and vibrant glazes
“Why not approach high-end design as a delicious treat?” she posits
Roseanne Ahyi wondered about all the shapes in 3D modeling libraries and how these predetermined forms affect final designs
So she created abstract sculptures using 3D-printed parts
Using different materials offered a bit more randomness in the end result
“It’s about the desperate human need to interpret everything we see,” she commented in her artist’s statement
When Elissa Sophia Assaf looked at photographs of mountains of trash in Lebanon—which is undergoing a waste crisis—she was fascinated by the colors and forms she saw and used that to inform a ceramic piece about bringing “something we prefer to shut out back into our surroundings.”
Mining is an incredibly wasteful and environmentally destructive process. Generations of gold prospectors—from the age of Conquistadors to today—have flocked to Colombia in search of riches. For his graduate project, Medellin-born designer Simón Ballen Botero explored how the waste products from gold mining—like heavy-metal sludge—could be diverted from rivers and used to make glass products
Labor ends up being the most expensive part of manufacturing
which is why industrialists invented the assembly line and automated production and why unique handmade goods are so expensive
Diego Faivre staged an interactive project called Minute Manufacturing
Using waste materials like cardboard tubes
he designed and built furniture and covered it in colorful air-drying modeling clay
But there’s a catch: Participants had to pay for the pieces using Diego Coins (bought for one Euro each) and Faivre would only work on a project for one minute per Diego Coin he received
“This challenges the traditional way we value an object,” he said in his artist’s statement
“It is a reaction to the rise of mass production and a lack of individual expression in what is made.”
Taste is a complex sense: Over 11,000 aroma molecules help trigger flavors
designer Alexandra Genis created 3D models of spices’ molecular compounds using cocoa butter
When millions of people logged into their Microsoft operating systems
they all saw rolling green hills and a blue sky peppered with fluffy clouds
While this represents a platonic ideal of a beautiful landscape
Designer Millie Herpin subverted this “perfect” image by distorting it and printing it on fabric
creating a product for people who think perfect is mundane
3D printing is often heralded as a more efficient and less wasteful type of fabrication. Problem is, most of the extrusions are plastic—one of the worst materials for the environment. Designer Beer Holthuis wondered why there isn’t a mass market printer that uses paper
The pieces it prints are beautifully marbled
Exploring how digital manufacturing could yield unique objects, Studio Jochim-Morineau created ceramics using a machine that drips porcelain onto a rotating mold
The designers control what the rough shape of the ceramic will be by programming code into the printer
“We live in an era where matter is controlled, passive, and obedient, formed by moulds and coated to the point of perfect smoothness, regardless of its own texture,” designer Elissa Lacoste writes about Grotesque Matter
a series of domestic objects that look droopy
and marred—created by free-form molding and sculpting
the design-oriented exploitation of materials and landscapes is an omnipresent condition of human society
following rational rules determined more by capitalism than anything else.”
In our output-obsessed society, fatigue is perceived as a weakness. Designer Léa Mazy thinks otherwise
Inspired by ink cartridges on their last leg—a symbol of working even though something is tapped out—she created a pixelated gradient pattern for ceramics
When designer Lukas Saint-Joigny embarked on a furniture project
he didn’t want to be constrained by the expectations for how pieces should look
He also wanted to demystify how they were created
Paper can only be recycled five or six times so mills end up with a lot of fibers that can’t be remade into traditional paper products. Designer Timothy Teven took this rejected material and compressed it to create building blocks for furniture
Still lifes have a long tradition, from Renaissance paintings to all those composed grain bowls flooding Instagram. They’re typically perfect assemblages of shapes and colors. Designer Janne Schimmel flipped that expectation in Out of the Ordinary
a series of still life sculptures made from 3D prints of everyday objects he encounters
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President’s handling of Benalla scandal met with anger and disappointment outside Paris
The tricolour was still flying in the villages around the commuter belt town of Joigny in celebration of France’s World Cup win
Local supermarkets were still selling celebratory plastic cups and paper napkins featuring Les Bleus
In Paris, the scandal over the presidential bodyguard Alexandre Benalla’s assault on May Day protesters has shocked and outraged
as locals like to remind visiting Parisians,“is not Paris”
Three hours from the urban hysteria, here in La France périphérique – the term suggests physical closeness to the capital
but a great psychological distance away – there is anger and profound disappointment
Political analysts say more than a third of the French electorate was already having doubts about President Emmanuel Macron, whose second-round election victory was boosted by voters’ dislike of his far-right opponent, Marine Le Pen
a native of Normandy who retired to the area
but I was prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt
disillusioned voter“I didn’t vote for Macron or Le Pen
Now I have lost confidence in him and the government.”
The pensioner is particularly angered by the president’s reaction to the scandal
which with Trump-like gusto Macron dismissed as a storm in a teacup whipped up by the media
Thank goodness we had Le Monde to reveal this affair
otherwise we’d have known nothing about it,” Hitier added
“Instead of playing down this unacceptable violence he should have spoken out straight away
By keeping quiet about it he’s bought himself time to prepare his response and wriggle out of the shenanigans
View image in fullscreenEmmanuel Macron remained silent for a week after the Benalla affair finally emerged
Photograph: Rafael Marchante/ReutersInstead
the Élysée kept quiet about Benalla for more than two months
Macron remained silent for a week after the story finally emerged
“People I’ve spoken to are stupefied by the whole thing,” the political analyst Bruno Cautrès
from the Sciences Po research institute Cevipof
'He is considered a master of communication and yet to make such a serious error
political analyst“Sometimes it feels like we have gone back to the 1970s
I have studied Macron for two years and I myself am astonished
He is considered a master of communication and yet to make such a serious error
The Front National made serious inroads in the Yonne during last year’s presidential and legislative elections when disaffected voters branding themselves part of “forgotten France”
fake news and satirical reports quickly take root
An exchange overheard in a supermarket queue kicked off with suggestions of an Élysée cover-up and quickly swerved into unpleasant terrain with the assertion that Benalla had changed his name to sound less Arabic – he did not – and an observation that the bearded
hoodie-wearing protagonist looked “like one of those Islamic State people”
Benalla appeared in an exclusive interview with Le Monde in which he admitted his actions had been “extremely stupid” but said he was only helping police neutralise two violent protesters; he added
that he had been the target of jealous rivals wanting to get at him
French presidents court public popularity but rarely need it
as it is virtually impossible to unseat a leader during their five-year term
Macron is heading for what Cautrès calls the “danger zone”
but even if it plunged to the catastrophic 26% of his predecessor
it would take a massive defection in his centrist La République en Marche party
More seriously than damage to his image, the scandal has derailed Macron’s key constitutional reform, including changes giving greater power to the president at a time when some in France believe the Benalla affair shows he already has too much. The controversial legislation was to be discussed last week; instead it was postponed while parliament was suspended and MPs formed a cross-party commission to quiz key players in the scandal.
Read moreThe commission then plunged into disarray as opposition MPs – including the joint-chairman – walked out accusing the Élysée of blocking the inquiry and sticking two fingers up to democracy
and its undertones of an Élysée that considers itself above the law
making it unlikely Macron will be able to push through the reform
“It’s going to be complicated for him,” Cautrès added
If there is a time to bury bad news in France
when the country shuts down over the long summer holidays and the serpents de mer – sea snakes – make their return (aka the “silly season”)
The Benalla affair is all sound and fury now
The three resonant syllables seem to promise something of the riches this historic and flavoursome terroir made famous
A red wine that's become an eponym for luxury
The ever-present memories of good and fearless dukes
as well as the great paintings they left behind: Rogier van der Weyden's epic Last Judgement in Beaune's L'Hôtel Dieu is a majestic synopsis of wealth and the mortal fear it brings
Burgundy was the 'paradise of paradises'
it has some of the prettiest landscape in all France
You find gentle farmland with not much drama of the geological sort: the famous Côte-d'Or may be an escarpment
but raw nature has been smoothed by centuries of cultivation and civilisation
Burgundy proves that the two feed off each other
The agricultural product is Pinot Noir or Chardonnay: two grapes which
fettled and tended and marked-up by leathery-fingered vignerons and twinkly-eyed négociants and all the other species of go-betweens in the bafflingly complicated Burgundy wine trade
create a universe of experience from the spit-it-out awful to the (rarer) heart-soothing sublime
Oysters at La Côte Saint JacquesLisa LinderThen there are the snails
since Philippe le Bon first pulled on his scratchy woollen tights
I have been coming here since I was a student in a battered Citroën
making regular stops in Beaune en route to friends in the Jura
ended in a windy field with Mont Blanc in the distance
Aristocratic Bresse hens - white with blue legs and red crops
tricouleur poultry - ranged free and the whiff of farmyard reminded me of John Armit's ineffable advice on wine tasting: good Burgundy should smell of merde
The lonely nouvelle-vague girl on the station platform; the bold graphics of the Agence de la Gare (a liaison of Le Corbusier and Tintin); the corset-coloured pebbledash of the Bistro de la Gare
with its old Kronenberg signs and pitiless strip lighting
I find all of this almost intolerably romantic
If Joigny's Bistro de la Gare is a frazzled old hooker with bad teeth
Joigny's riverbank La Côte Saint Jacques
Snails at La Côte Saint JacquesLisa LinderLa Côte Saint Jacques has had three Michelin stars since 1986 and confidently
presents an essentially French version of luxury and food
The Michelin system now has many critics who say it is biased towards France
puts a false emphasis on ludicrous refinements and mistakes complexity for sophistication
The Michelin system promotes fuss and contrivance above bestial gratification
and this is why it is magnificent: just like the Académie Française
it arrogantly refuses change and will never succumb to barbarian penetration
geometric-patterned upholstery on a chair with a white-painted bamboo frame
like an exciting concept for a 1960s discotheque
leads to a bathroom that's huge with reflected light from the river
What we ate is almost beside the point because this is theatre
The restaurant at La Côte Saint Jacques presents privilege
It is 7.40pm and the staff are standing tensely around the threshold while the bar's occupants are preparing to disengage from Champagne and go to dinner
a party of four at the adjacent table has been discussing niceties of the menu for 20 minutes with the maître d'
The menu offers 'A spring walk between earth
What about one of those Bresse chickens steamed in Champagne
I wonder if he also does this at half time when we change ends and put on clean shirts
who it turns out has prepared a menu specially for us
is not looking as if he wants to explain or change anything much
He assures us without smiling 'I am not tyrannique'
Here you begin to experience the complicated wonder of it all
the density of preparation that gives an establishment the three-star status for which
provincial folk will pay up to £200 for dinner and not grumble about it
a 'cappuccino' of lobster with poireaux vinaigrette
Bass steamed and smoked with caviar (farmed in Aquitaine)
lentils and morels followed by cubes of veal treated in three ways: tête de veau
A shockingly delicious and oily Meursault from Olivier Leflaive
Next morning we drive south to Chablis where a genial rogue in a seven-seater minivan meets us up an alleyway for a vineyard tour
A mere 5,200 hectares provide the planet's benchmark for flinty white wine: from the heights scaled by the van you appreciate the artifice
Gas tanks heat the vineyards while helicopters spray
The rogue gets a tripod stool from the back of the Nissan and
nicely described as a 'pétanque wine'
we spit and we carry on to Dijon for lunch
Leverois villageLisa LinderIn my rattling Citroën days
but doctrinaire pedestrianisation has made it less dangerous
International clothes shops have replaced mad traffic and something characterful has been lost
off the vast and chilly Place de la Libération
just in front of the Musée des Beaux-Arts where once the dukes of Burgundy made sport
It was the suicide of Burgundy's Bernard Loiseau in 2003 that made people question the integrity and sense of the Michelin star system: his Saulieu restaurant retained its three stars even after the gun had done its sombre work
the pressures of the rating system that had
driven him to the bottle and then the trigger
Loiseau des Ducs is La Veuve Loiseau's latest brand extension
a sort of gastro-memorial following the signature pinafores
Its menu features the presiding spirit's classics: jambonettes (frogs' legs) and a fist-sized ris de veau with a positively ducal excess of truffled mash
'What's that green thing you've just put your hand in?' as we looked bemused at uninvited kitchen gifts
including a beetroot velouté with cinnamon foam
there is a skill-talent-genius triarchy in cooking
One of the pleasures of the Michelin Guide Rouge is its precise symbology: besides the stars
diving boards and ironing boards to indicate a hotel's attractions and assets
When we arrived at the Abbaye de la Bussière
I wondered if little silhouettes of expensive cars might be included as well
Until recently it was a run-down religious institution with plastic stacking chairs and furtive monks; there were two Swiss-registered Aston Martins in the car park when our rental Renault pulled up
This is a wonderful place: English owner Clive Cummimgs has reconciled Viollet-le-Duc's theory of Gothic restoration with country-house-hotel practice
Our bedroom was like sleeping in Philippe le Bon's junk room
could strangle a critic while manhandling six pigskin bags from the boot of an Aston with his other hand
In nave-like spaces and on the primped lawn there are bad-sex Paul Day sculptures; I drank an exceptionally delicious Mâcon-Vergisson with a stained-glass window as a backdrop while waiting for my wife and dinner
At the top of Emmanuel Hébrard's menu there is a rubric about gastronomy's relationship with nutrition and happiness sourced from Oxford's chair of Francophilia
I thought he was offering 'road sauce' with yet more frogs' legs
but I had misheard 'root' and a celeriac purée was in mind
We drank Rully La Perche from the Domaine Belleville and I felt Burgundian
you can ride bikes along the beautiful and hauntingly empty Canal de Bourgogne
Acquerello Risotto at LevernoisLisa LinderFurther south
we saw three helicopters on the lawn at the Hostellerie de Levernois
suggesting another possible addition to Michelin's symbology
That and those square parasols signifying hotel hipness
Jean Louis Bottigliero's compound of bistro
restaurant and hotel was the most modern we found in Burgundy
a tartare of tomatoes with raw langoustines and escargots with garlic that had been cooked six times to reduce strength while retaining flavour
Oeufs en meurette with a white (instead of trad red) wine reduction was very clever
I asked Bottigliero if having only one Michelin star was a liberation and a relief and not the imposition that three stars bring
Guests milled pleasantly between the terrace and the choppers while we dozed in the hull of a boat watching gnats in the river's sunshine
In the celebrated Maison Lameloise at Chagny is another of France's three stars
A copy of Curnonsky in the bar ('la cuisine
c'est quand les choses ont le gout de ce qu'elles sont') was promising while escargot popcorn indicated ambition
Langoustines came with 'riz croustillant' which seemed to mean Rice Krispies
At the next table an American couple was insisting in a spelling-it-out way: 'Tomorrow
Wine.' The bedrooms reminded me of a hotel in St Albans I stayed in when I was 10
I spoke to some English cooks about this and they said such a transgression merited a Dreyfus-like breaking of the chef's sword and public shaming
We drove to a final night at the Château de Besseuil
nicely re-worked into agritourisme by Swiss architect André Meillard
We lolled in the vineyard in strong sunshine
French employment laws make it impossible for a rural establishment to run a credible restaurant of the Château's ambitions
We clucked and then drove on to the chickens in their field south of Dole
What does it say of France that Bresse chickens live better than Sarko's racaille with 10 square metres each
good diets and flocks restricted to 500 birds
What does it say of France that their melting flesh marbled with fat is much admired in Burgundy
Yet if I told a Frenchman I like chicken with crisp brown skin served with a bright green salad and a decent baguette
A lot has changed in the nearly 40 years since I first parked my Citroën up against some vines in a dusty car park
I enjoy clever inventions and beguiling curiosities on what I call the Andouillette Principle: if I cease to order them they will
But why have a mini cheese soufflé with the lamb
Why bring uncommanded trays of sweet things
if I am going to die I would like to die with a glass of Volnay Premier Cru Hospices de Beaune in my hand
having eaten some of Jean-Michel Lorain's snails and feasted on the sight of vines disappearing to the horizon in a golden haze over the sonorously beautiful names of Pommard
This feature first appeared in Condé Nast Traveller October 2014
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Long ReadAs disliked by conservatives as he is appreciated by young people and progressives
the man who until recently called himself 'Father Matthieu' has decided to hang up his cassock
He explains the reasons behind his decision to Le Monde
he was wearing a Roman collar and a small silver cross pinned to his jacket pocket
and went by the name "Father Matthieu." A year later
his hair lightly tousled with gel and sporting stubble
Just before our mid-November meeting at a Parisian café
with a million and a half followers on various social media sites
has shocked the Catholic world with his "spiritual coming out."
It had nothing to do with the motives usually invoked by his peers
no-nonsense style that made him a TikTok sensation
He then listed in a somewhat haphazard and sometimes confused manner – despite the choppy editing
revealing multiple takes – a litany of grievances: "I was abused
before going on to describe a "physical assault" by a bishop
being barred by local intelligence from attending a Mass
a "breach of the seal of confession" and "intimidation." "I've lived through the worst year of my life," he said
You have 85.16% of this article left to read
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is eyeing Tour de France stage five to Autun
a 182.5-kilometre run that includes eight categorised climbs
The Italian has reason to believe given his condition that has already been shown
"Up until now it has been going well but seemingly a little slow
will be good for me," he stated to Cyclingnews on Wednesday morning in Villers-Cotterêts
The stage ends with a category three climb at 8.5 kilometres to go
"I will tell you how it goes tomorrow night
I think it will be a stage to control because everyone will want to go into an escape but we will try to control it so that it arrives in a sprint
'Pippo' showed his form by his violent acceleration in stage 2 to Gent
He moved up in the last section from tenth to third behind winner Gert Steegmans (Quickstep-Innergetic)
"Right now I am just looking for today and tomorrow
but also stage 12 looks good." Look for Pozzato's victory salute in Autun on Thursday afternoon
By Gregor Brown in Joigny The young-looking Linus Gerdemann is starting an adventure in his first..
The young-looking Linus Gerdemann is starting an adventure in his first Tour de France
The German of T-Mobile is charged with protecting Australian Michael Rogers has he vies for top spot on the Podium in Paris
Linus explained to Cyclingnews that there have been some "easy" days before the real testing will begin. "Yesterday [Stage 3 to Compiègne]
"I just tried to save energy and to protect Michael while we wait for the mountain days
"I would like to have a good stage for myself but it is my first Tour
so we will have to see what is possible," said Gerdemann
who is in his third year as a professional
"It is impressive for sure," he continued of his Tour de France experience thus far
"The Tour de France is the biggest bike race in the World
It was a good sign for cycling that there were so many fans
For sure we have problems but it was great to see that cycling is still alive."