The words “amour” and “cuisine” are about as much French as you’ll need for a weekend escape to Quebec City, this continent’s cradle of French civilization, where English may be a second language, but it is definitely spoken. Conveniently located on the St. Lawrence River instead of the Seine, Quebec City is less than a six-hour drive.
Stay in the Vieux-Port neighborhood, and don’t bother renting a car, as the city in spring, summer, and fall is made for romantic wanderings. Start out at Place Royale, where the city was founded, and head north; the streets Rue St.-Pierre and Rue Sault-au-Matelot form a wedge-shaped district that used to be a center of the shipping and banking industries and is now a chic neighborhood of swank bars, boutique hotels, and artisans’ studios.
Related Travel Information
First came singles bars, dating services, and click-and-date Web sites. Then young urban professional searching for a little tenderness turned to speed dating.
Now a pair of French cooking schools are blazing another, somewhat less frenetic, trail in the quest for modern romance: “cook-dating.”
“I came up with the idea when I noticed how much the students in my classes had in common,” said Frederic Chesneau, who runs a small cooking school in the Marais district of central Paris.
“There were a lot of thirty-something professionals with
Experience the magic of the holiday season in Europe with Air France Holidays' new vacation packages. From only $499 you can spend a memorable Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year holiday in Nice, Amsterdam, Paris, Rome, Prague and other popular European destinations. Book early as space is limited!
Holiday Vacation Packages (partial listing)
3-Night Vacations:
Paris Thanksgiving Getaway from $499 (Departure Date: 11/23/05; Gateway: Newark)
Rome Thanksgiving Getaway from $579 (Departure Date: 11/23/05; Gateways: Boston/New York (JFK)/Newark)
Nice Thanksgiving Getaway from $589 (Departure Date: 11/23/05; Gateways: Boston/New York (JFK)/Newark)
Amsterdam Thanksgiving Getaway from $799 (Departure Date: 11/23/05; Gateways: Boston/New York
Experience the magic of the holiday season in Europe with Air France Holidays' new vacation packages. From only $499 you can spend a memorable Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year holiday in Nice, Amsterdam, Paris, Rome, Prague and other popular European destinations. Book early as space is limited!
Holiday Vacation Packages (partial listing)
3-Night Vacations:
Paris Thanksgiving Getaway from $499 (Departure Date: 11/23/05; Gateway: Newark)
Rome Thanksgiving Getaway from $579 (Departure Date: 11/23/05; Gateways: Boston/New York (JFK)/Newark)
Nice Thanksgiving Getaway from $589 (Departure Date: 11/23/05; Gateways: Boston/New York (JFK)/Newark)
Amsterdam Thanksgiving Getaway from $799 (Departure Date: 11/23/05; Gateways: Boston/New York
Paris - First came singles bars, dating services, and click-and-date websites. Then young urban professionals searching for a little tenderness turned to speed dating.
Now a pair of French cooking schools are blazing another, somewhat less frenetic, trail in the quest for modern romance: "cook-dating."
"I came up with the idea" - and coined the term - "when I noticed how much the students in my classes had in common," said Frederic Chesneau, who runs a small cooking school in the Marais district of central Paris. www.cookdating.com
There were a lot of thirty-something professionals with stressful jobs, similar interests and very little time
Cindy Aldrich of 10460 N.W. 107th Ave. in Granger spends a lot of time on her backyard deck. She likes to relax with her husband as they listen to the water falling over rocks into their pond.
"They just seem so relaxing to hear that sound of the water all the time," Aldrich said.
The pond is filled with koi and goldfish, with more appearing each year. Some of the plants in and around the water include cannas, taros and lilies.
Aldrich is a member of the Central Iowa Water Garden Association. Her pond will be included in the association's tour Sunday. Admission