"Strengthening Social Ties"

©Vacossin Traiteur (http://www.vacossin-traiteur.fr/)

Hello! My name is Isabelle Guillaume and I am a French student at the University of Central Arkansas. I am taking a French research class. At the beginning of the semester, my professor asked me, "What do you love? What are you passionate about?" I told him, "Food." Because the history of cuisine is quite long, he pointed me in the direction of "nouvelle cuisine" from the 1960s and '70s. I found that the French gastronomic meal is listed on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list. The rest, as they say in English, is history.

So, what exactly is this blog? That's a good question. To be perfectly honest, I am not quite sure yet. We have seen these types of cooking movies like Eat Pray Love with Julia Roberts and Julie and Julia with Amy Adams and Meryl Streep where a woman talks about her experiences and relationship with food. I do not want to be these characters, but I'm sure I will mirror them in some ways.

So, let me start with the name of my blog. Like I already said, I found the French gastronomic meal on the Intangible Cultural Heritage list. In the brief summary, it read:

The gastronomic meal gives rhythm to the lives of community members. It draws circles of family and friends closer together and, more generally, strengthens social ties. It constitutes an important reference point for identity and gives rise to feelings of belonging and continuity.

The moment that I read it, I really connected with it - strengthens social ties. In my opinion, this part specifically is not just about the French. It is all of humanity. Sharing a meal with a stranger unites us. We forget about the things that divide us - our origins, our social class/rank/standing, maybe even politics ... my professor insists that the French love to talk about politics. It's possible, but in the three times I went to France, I have only ever had one conversation about politics. I know that my French friends have very strong political views, but we have never discussed them. The people that asked me the questions have fully grown children, so maybe it's a generation gap.

But I digress.

What is this blog? It's my journey through French gastronomy. Welcome.

See you next time!