What a weirdo month! I filled the first few days of October in New York before scooting all over New England with my little sister Anne, and spent the remainder of the month in Provence and Paris. Looking back on a trip so large and lovely is a challenge, but filtering it through a manageable list of recommendations was an interesting approach. Below are a handful of the very best things from October, by no means a comprehensive reflection, but a few standouts to consider. Fair warning to the lactose-intolerant, there’s a good bit of butter ahead and this list really swings from high to low.
recommended
The State of Maine
Maybe you have friends who’ve come back hollering about the scenery and the ocean and the blueberries. Maybe you’ve visited yourself. You might already know. And I always suspected I’d like it, but was unprepared for how ALL-IN I could go in a short amount of time. The wooing began casually with a slice of strawberry rhubarb pie at the Lobster Shack at Two Lights. Considering the weather was gray and we’d arrived at the end of the tourist season, we climbed over rocks to the water with little competition and watched the waves while we ate our pie (we had decided to prioritize lobster roll dollars for Eventide where they use brown butter and perfectly squishy buns). After visiting the lighthouse at Fort Williams Park, Anne said, “I think I’ve been going to the wrong beaches.” We ate our way through Portland (wow), holed up on a pond further north, and bumbled through Acadia National Park. If you’re considering a trip, I’m happy to pass along recommendations that were generously entrusted unto us. It’s called Vacation Land for a reason!
recommended
Tatte
According to Google Maps, there are 14 Tatte locations in the Boston area, and it’s my opinion that this concentration is a bit greedy—we all need one nearby. Begun by a self-trained pastry chef from Tel Aviv, their menu balances cozy and fresh flavors with lots of vegetables and grains. Their pastry case is the real spectacle, full of everything I want to eat: pistachio cherry tarts and halva tea cakes and the flakiest kouign-amanns (pronounced mostly like ‘queen amanda’ and perhaps my Dessert Island Pastry??). We left super satisfied with a bag full of treats for the road. Including this emphatic recommendation for your future Boston-bound self, it’s too good to skip.
recommended
the expensive european style cultured butter
The primary cultural learning of my French pilgrimage is our obligation to first-rate butter. Not the sticks I buy in a box at the lowest price for all the baked goods, but the expensive block in a gold wrapper that says “European style” on the side. It should be kept on the counter so it’s always the perfect temp for smearing on that good bread you started making after last month’s recipe (call back). And once you’re familiar with the luxury of spread-ready butter, your bread is ready for any party: pile of salami, large spoonfuls of jam, a sliced fig. This is a recommendation so simple I feel a little silly making it, but simple is usually good for a reason, and maybe you need permission from an enlightened tourist. Next time you’re at the grocery store, I hope you hear my tiny voice in your ear saying “Go get the fancy butter in that sophisticated gold wrapper. Je ne sais quoi.”
recommended
Below Deck
Mindless television isn’t hard to come by—if anything we’ve been given too much to wade through. Allow me to shed any remaining dignity, extract one from the pile and shine it up for you: Below Deck has been airing on Bravo since 2013 (peruse this discerning profile if you’d like to understand the phenomenon), but Anne and I only found a marathon during our brief window of cable television in Massachusetts. The wise wizards at Bravo have blessed us with a delightfully soapy and voyeuristic look inside the world of yacht charters. Resplendent with ill-advised crew relationships and actual workplace drama, the crew must deliver the absurd requests of entitled drunk folks while keeping a luxury yacht literally afloat. We dipped our toes in a few different seasons and shouldn't be considered experts, but certain themes persist: the on-board chef is always a brilliant egomaniac, one of the crew members must learn that being a yachtie is actually hard work, and no-nonsense Captain Lee will keep everyone in line while looking exactly like Michael McDonald and Kenny Rogers’ gold-chained brother. Fire it up next rainy sick day and let me know which job you want on the yacht.
recommended
Doc Marten Chelsea Boots
Researching and acquiring high-value footwear is one of my passions, ask anyone. Although I wanted to express the versatility of my shoe game around New England and France, these shit-kickers won travel wardrobe MVP. The Flora Chelsea boots from Doc Marten have held up for at least four years and do not appear to be slowing down. They’re easy to pull on and kick off, with plenty of room for your toes to wiggle and soles that are still light after a day of walking. They’re abundantly suited for whatever weather: warm them up with wool socks when it’s cold and fear no puddle on a drizzly day. I found the traction extra helpful for rocks and gravel, and still felt COOL when we stopped at nicer places for dinner. Mine are the cherry red color and didn’t take much to break in, but if there was more room in my closet I’d love to cozily stomp around in these.
loosies
some additional favorites from October since I’m too le tired to self promote:
favorite french foods: fresh figs from any market, meat-flavored potato chips, next level rotisserie chicken, and 4€ bottles of local rosé.
museums inside of former mansions (Newport, Rhode Island, I’ll be back)
coordinating a destination 30th birthday celebration/trip of a lifetime in this freaking french chateau to correspond with actually reasonable airfare (thanks forever AK!)
airbnb quite generally
enough trips to dunkin donuts to figure out a personal order (small black coffee with unsweetened hazelnut and cream, a chocolate frosted original)
Holler if you want to chat about work, life, autumnal foliage, or anything else you love right now! I’m on twitter (sometimes) and instagram (sometimes) and the world wide web (24/7).
xoxo,
Francoise