Skip to content

Margo Lestz – The Curious Rambler

Bringing History to Life

  • Home
  • About Margo
  • My Books
  • Contact Me
  • France (General)
    • FR History
    • FR Culture / Language
    • FR Art / Architecture
    • FR Festivals / Holidays
    • FR Food
    • FR Housing
  • NICE, France
    • NICE Art/Architecture
    • NICE Festivals/Holidays
    • NICE Outdoor Spaces
    • NICE Food
    • NICE History
  • UK
    • UK History
    • UK Culture / Language
    • UK Festivals/Holidays
    • UK Art / Architecture
    • UK Food
    • UK Weather
  • Holidays
  • Misc
    • Italy –
      • IT Florence
      • IT Language
      • IT Misc
    • Switzerland
    • United States
    • Germany
    • Spain
    • Languages –
  • French-Themed Gifts
  • Writing
    • Want to Write a Book? –
    • Publishing Advice
    • About Writing –
  • Reading
    • Other Blogs –
  • Privacy Policy
  • *Facebook*

Tag: France

French Beret: A Hat with Attitude

19 September 2015 Margo Lestz

The French beret, that little pancake of a hat, has become the recognized symbol of all things French – at least among those outside of France…

Continue reading

Carnival Music and Gourds in Nice, France

21 February 2015 Margo Lestz

Every year, the Nice carnival has a different theme, but music is always important…

Continue reading

Louis Armstrong disguised as a French man

French Jazz Fans outsmart Hitler

9 July 2014 Margo Lestz

French jazz developed under some interesting circumstances during the Nazi Occupation of World War II….

Continue reading

Blockhead building

Blockhead Building gets a Thumbs Up

10 June 2014 Margo Lestz

Normally I’m not a fan of modern architecture. but there are a few modern structures that I really appreciate and one of them is in Nice, France….

Continue reading

flamingo, phoenix parc, nice, france

French Expressions Pop Up in the Park

20 May 2014 Margo Lestz

Some animal and plant related French sayings illustrated with photos from a day in the park….

Continue reading

Tooth Fairy vs Little Tooth Mouse

10 May 2014 Margo Lestz

There’s no Tooth Fairy in France so who collects the children’s teeth?…

Continue reading

nicois gourds, celebrating the gourd, nice, france

Celebrating the Gourd in Nice, France

8 April 2014 Margo Lestz

Nice, France has a strong and proud culture all its own and the people work hard to keep their Niçois traditions alive….

Continue reading

April fool or april fish

April Fool or April Fish?

28 March 2014 Margo Lestz

In many countries, the first day of April is a day to play harmless jokes on family and friends. This usually consists of telling a farfetched story in such a way that it sounds like it could be true. When the other person falls for our joke, we exclaim…

Continue reading

Madame Liberté

18 March 2014 Margo Lestz

The Statue of Liberty is one of the most recognised symbols of the United States. But did you know that Lady Liberty is an immigrant?…

Continue reading

Do you speak english, yes, no

It Pays to be Polite in France

26 February 2014 Margo Lestz

“A cup of coffee” – € 7.00″A cup of coffee, please” – € 4.25″Hello, a cup of coffee, please” – € 1.40 At this café in Nice, France, minding

Continue reading

Cathedral, Church, Nice, France, Empress, Tsarina Maria

Three Russian Tsarinas Leave Their Mark on Nice, France

16 February 2014 Margo Lestz

If you can’t make it to Russia, how about a trip to Nice, France? It’s warmer and you can see a lovely Russian cathedral.

Continue reading

Menton France, lemon festival, fete du citron

Menton, France celebrates the Lemon

7 February 2014 Margo Lestz

They say when life gives you lemons, you should make lemonade.  But what if you are a town on the French Riviera and life gives you extraordinarily delicious lemons?…

Continue reading

was Nice part of Italy

Nice, France: Her Relationship with Italy and How She Became French

20 January 2014 Margo Lestz

Normally, I write about the city of Nice, but in this article, when I mention Nice, I am speaking of the historic “County of Nice”

Continue reading

king cake - galette des rois

The King Cake holds a Surprise

11 January 2014 Margo Lestz

In France, it’s a tradition to eat pies and cakes containing little “prizes” in January. This practice can be traced back to Roman times and their winter solstice celebration…

Continue reading

hand w one truffle

Truffle Hunting in Provence

2 January 2014 Margo Lestz

Our wedding anniversary was approaching and when Jeff asked what I wanted, I didn’t hesitate, “I want to go truffle hunting!” Looking a bit puzzled,

Continue reading

Thirteen Desserts? That’s my kind of Meal!

23 December 2013 Margo Lestz

Christmas time in Provence and the south of France is full of traditions and, as with most good traditions, food is usually involved. Miniature wheat

Continue reading

A Girl Called Fanny That no one Wants to Kiss

13 December 2013 Margo Lestz

  Recently, when I was at the Christmas “santon” fairs looking at all of the little figures that make up the Nativity scenes in southern

Continue reading

Santons: The Little Saints of Provence

6 December 2013 Margo Lestz

In many parts of the world, Nativity scenes make up a part of the Christmas decoration but in Provence, they are taken to the extreme…

Continue reading

Auer collage interior

Living the Sweet Life in Nice, France

15 November 2013 Margo Lestz

  Do you need to add a little sweetness to your life?  I know just where to go for that.  One of my favourite places

Continue reading

Promenade du Paillon, Nice France

A River runs through it – well under it Anyway

27 October 2013 Margo Lestz

This weekend I went to the opening of the lovely new ribbon of a park that flows through Nice, France. It is called the “Promenade

Continue reading

conversations in Nice france, place massena, jaume plensa

Art in the City: The Tramway in Nice, France

12 September 2013 Margo Lestz

A few years ago, I took a course that required me to get up early and catch a bus to another town.  Sometimes I would

Continue reading

Liberated, Proud and Glorious

22 August 2013 Margo Lestz

Last weekend, when we went for a walk after sunset, we were surprised to see ostriches strolling along the promenade.  Well, they weren’t real ones. 

Continue reading

Promenade des Anglais, English Promenade, Nice France

The English Promenade in Nice, France

3 August 2013 Margo Lestz

The Promenade des Anglais, affectionately known as “the Prom”, is one of the most beautiful seaside boulevards to be found and lucky me, I live

Continue reading

mosiac stairs flowers

Finding the Castle is a Walk in the Park

24 July 2013 Margo Lestz

The news from Nice is… it’s hot!  The app on my phone says 28° Celsius (83° Fahrenheit), but I don’t believe it – it feels

Continue reading

Apollo, sun fountain, Nice, France

A Greek God Just Can’t Get Any Respect in Nice, France

12 July 2013 Margo Lestz

When a powerful Greek deity arrives in Nice, he is ridiculed, humiliated, and banned from the city. If you visit Place Massena, in the very

Continue reading

socca - chez térésa

Socca – A Niçois Superfood

2 July 2013 Margo Lestz

What is this amazing food that has protected the city under siege, nourished the population during peacetime and inspired men to go to extraordinary lengths

Continue reading

Collage bourgeois buildings

Farewell to a French Apartment

23 June 2013 Margo Lestz

The above collage is a selection of lovely bourgeois buildings in the Musicians quarter of Nice, where we used to live.  It is called the

Continue reading

Queen Victoria in Nice

11 June 2013 Margo Lestz

Queen Victoria spent her winters on the French Riviera. While there, she could let her hair down and relax, often touring around in a little donkey cart.

Continue reading

what do you mean, you can't bring it inside

What do you mean, you can’t bring it inside???

2 June 2013 Margo Lestz

I was sitting in a folding chair in our empty new apartment waiting for our delivery from Ikea, which was scheduled to come between 1:00

Continue reading

no kitchen

No Kitchen? It’s Perfect!

21 May 2013 Margo Lestz

No one would ever accuse me of being a gourmet chef, or any kind of chef for that matter.  Really, I’m pretty much useless in

Continue reading

Air vents old town nice air conditioning

The Old Town Knows How to Keep its Cool

15 May 2013 Margo Lestz

Saturday we went to a crafts market in Old Nice.  We were in an open plaza at midday and the sun was beating down on

Continue reading

Dansers may festival, nice france, le festin des mai

May, a Month of Holidays and Festivals in Nice, France

8 May 2013 Margo Lestz

< The month of May can be a frustrating time to be in France.  There are 5 public holidays, which makes it difficult to conduct

Continue reading

Charles ix muguet lily of valley

Happy May Day! Give a Flower to Someone You Love

29 April 2013 Margo Lestz

May 1st is a public holiday in France.  It’s called La Fête du Travail, and  it’s the equivalent of the US Labor Day.  But it’s

Continue reading

Catherine Ségurane: Niçoise Laundress Saves the Day

21 April 2013 Margo Lestz

A 16th century Niçoise laundress chased away the Turkish army and saved the city of Nice, France…

Continue reading

Renting a French Apartment

14 April 2013 Margo Lestz

The Cours Saleya market proved to be the perfect place to go to forget about the stress of trying to rent an apartment here in

Continue reading

British Cannon Fire over the City of Nice

7 April 2013 Margo Lestz

If you have ever visited Nice, France, you may have been startled by a very loud noon time boom. It occurs every day at precisely 12.00 and is a remnant from the Victorian times, when a British wife couldn’t remember to go home for lunch.

Continue reading

SEARCH

FOLLOW THE CURIOUS RAMBLER

You'll receive an email each time I post a new article (every other week or so). Just enter your email address below.

Margo

MY BOOKS

  • UK/ENGLAND
  • French Culture
  • South of France 3
  • CHILDRENS BOOK
If you've read any of my books and enjoyed them, a review on Amazon or Goodreads would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

OTHER GREAT BLOGS

  • Click here to see other blogs I enjoy

LEARN FRENCH OR ITALIAN

  • Click here to see some language-learning resources
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

A WordPress.com Website.
 

Loading Comments...