countryside life of Auvergne, France

The countryside of Auvergne is original and charming, with countless cows and sheep strolling around the hills, and colorful fields and large area of forests contribute to the beautiful nature. The eating style is based on the region food, of course, as in any part of France, fresh and tasty are the points. Castles in that area are quite old, some date back to the Middle Ages. The other thing I like there is that they take 2-3 hours lunch break, and go home eat with the whole family - warm food!

At Vichy, you can enjoy one of the best spa in the world. If your budget is limited, 0.25 EUR is enough for trying different kinds of spring from the ground, and all of them taste different due to the different minerals in it. The one called Hopital tastes like smelly egg, sorry to tell you about that, but it's true. However, remember one thing when you are drinking them, they are just water, and each time just take a sip. Cause normally, you need a special prescription from a doctor to tell you how much you should drink from each kind of the spring, depends on your health condition.

My friend took me to the volcano area in the south, of course, they are sleeping volcanos, and that makes St. Nectaire from that area one of the best cheese in France. The cows there eat some special grass and flower on the volcano hills, so their milk tastes different; and very important, they are happy cows, walking around and enjoying the sun, or just laying on the grass to relax; the way of make and store St. Nectaire is also special, most procedures are manual, and the new-made cheese should be stored in the volcano caves to ensure a certain humidity and the special minerals from the cave; the hygiene condition doesn't meet the EU standard, but that's the way the really good St. Nectaire is made (i like this side of French people, flexible:). At the end of the trip, I bought a big piece of the cheese, and ate it in front of one volcano lake with baguette, however, the wine was missing as my friend had to drive back.

According to Chinese tradition, lunch should be the most important meal in the day, however, in big cities, people eat some sandwich or fast food instead, which is a pity. In the countryside of France, it's like some yeas ago in my hometown. 2-3 hours lunch break enables everyone go back home and eat with the whole family. I miss that very much! It's so great we ate at my friend's parents' and grandparents' home for several times, and I got the chance to see how they cook at home. No fancy, no recipe (Oma is elder, so she does use recipe book for some dishes), each time the same dish could taste different, as they try to use vegetables and ingredients from their own garden at that season. I think that's the essence of French cuisine, local&fresh, and not follow rules...

I also found that, not matter where in France, even a small town, you can find amazing pastry shops, which are far more better than most of that in Berlin (personal opinion). However, the volcano made the soil of that region fertile, so it's not suitable for wine growing but normal agriculture, especially cows&sheep. Anyway, Bordeaux is just 3 hours drive, so to get the best cheese and best wine in one day is possible. My friend told me people from her region are really proud of their hometown. After one week there, I do understand that.

PS: thanks my dear friend Morgane, I love your hometown and your family!

where does the roast suckling pig come from?

Once I read an article about a Chinese journalist's travel&eat experience in Spain, and she mentioned about the dispute about who invented the roast suckling pig, Spanish or Chinese. Well, for me, who invented is not the point, but the similarities & differences in eating between Spain and China makes me to think: how come we have so much food cooked the same or similar way, while the two countries are so far away. Is it Marco Polo again who learned something in China and took them back to Spain or the other way around?

1. In China, roast suckling pig came from Cantonese region more than 3000 years ago , which is normally prepared for celebration or sacrifice, such as opening of new business, important holidays, sacrifice for ancestor. I only tried it in my city, and I guess it's not that original, however, the way to prepare, marinate and serve the piglet is different from in Spain. For example, in Canton, the cook takes the whole skin out from piglet after roasting, and cut the skin into small cubes and then put them back on the top of the piglet. The piglet will be served with green onion, sugar, sweet soybean paste, as people find it's quite heavy to eat the piglet alone.

In Segovia, the piglet is brought directly to the table after roasting, and the waiter will cut it into several pieces on site and serve the customer. The normal portion for one person is 1/4 of the piglet, and as far as I see, it's totally no problem for the locals there. If I eat that, no food for me in the following two days.

2. Churros-油条(you tiao): I found Churros when I grabbed breakfast in a bar near my hostel in Madrid. The old man was making fresh Churros at the end of the bar, the dough went through a machine and became a certain shape and length. I was wondering if it's you tiao-a typical Chinese breakfast food, goes with soya milk- till I tried one. Yes, it's 100% you tiao, however, soon I found Spanish eat it with chocolate milk or coffee. I tried Churros with both later in Sevilla, however, I still prefer our version, with soya milk. Then who invent Churros/you tiao first? It's said Spanish learned from Portuguese, which learned from Chinese. Again, it doesn't matter who invented it, but it's great to eat something tastes like home when you are very far away from home.

More similar food: tail of ox, fried pig fat, ham, wild bird/chicken... maybe that's why there are some many Chinese in Spain...

Fishers Fritz-fish with 2 stars

My first Michelin star restaurant-Fishers Fritz in Berlin, and it is the only restaurant with 2 stars in the German capital (2010 guide). Normally you should do it step by step: 1 star, then 2 and 3 stars. However, getting the "highest culinary level" in town directly doesn't mean all the other restaurants are not deserved to go, as normal restaurants can also be tasty and are daily based. Such as Miss. Saigon and Kimchi Princess at Kreuzberg, both have very delicious food, but totally different styles: home made original southern Vietnam food VS. trendy & tasty Korean barbecue.

Back to Fishers Fritz, how to say, it's my first try with star, so there is no standard or refer to look to. In general, it is great experience that deserves trying, especially for those who are curious about star restaurant but with limited budget: 3 courses lunch menu costs 47 euro, food are mainly concerned to fish & seafood, best service with adequate ambience, however, wine is quite expensive. However, the main course is tender but not surprising for me , maybe too much experience with fish from childhood?

Tip: how to judge if the fish is fresh? please watch the movie "We feed the world", which makes you think more about what we eat daily. Of course, when we buy fish or poultry in my city, they are all living -swimming or crowing- so freshness is not the question, but where the fish/poultry come from: nature without pollution (bio)? pond in the river/outdoor with feedstuff? or pond/farm?

my first Michelin try

I got my first Michelin try at the end of 2010, on the way back to Berlin from skiing trip in Oberwiesenthal. It is a hotel & restaurant outside of Dresden--Landhaus Lockwitzgrund.

On the Red Guide, it is marked with a Michelin face and one house, which means good value for food with regional flavor and comfortable rooms. And the fact...Red Guide is the THE Guide! Hotel rooms are very new and comfortable, better than many four star hotel and also good value for price. The restaurant is typical local style: full of the cute wood handcraft from the region. The other regional element is the "wild" meat, as large area of forest and mountain is very close. The food is tasty, and the soup I had is great, totally recommend: Maroni-Madeira-Rahmsüppchen

mit Kürbiskernklößchen und geröstetem Bacon. However, the placement in general is not that delicate. And the other minus point is the selected red wine is not that tasty, at least for us. In general, both the hotel and restaurant are very good value for the price.

My first try just hit the road. Tomorrow, my first Michelin-2 star is waiting!