le blog

I have been on one of my missing Paris kicks recently (well, more so than usual). In particular, I miss sitting in a cozy café while enjoying a pastry and people watching. So, when  I went to visit my eldest daughter at college in Indiana, PA, I had some time to kill while she was in class. I went looking for a little pastry shop and discovered the loveliest of places - Caffé Amadeus. I know what you're thinking...named after Mozart, it clearly is not French, but Austrian...but so was Marie Antoinette. Therefore, I believe it qualifies for a spot on my blog!  Caffé Amadeus - Indiana, PA ( JenniferLynn Photography ) Upon entering, I was immediately greeted with a warm smile and the sounds of Mozart (of course). I immediately set about the business of ordering. I knew going into Caffé Amadeus that I wanted tea and a pastry, but since it was a coffee shop, I was not sure what quality of tea I would find. Let me say, I was not disappointed! For a coffee shop, they had a lar...

My husband sent me the photos below...he got them from an email that was passed around, so we have no idea to whom the credit goes. These are not my photos, but they are too incredible not to share. If you know the photographer, please let me know and I will happily give them credit!  Read the following press release that explains how two British artists and thousands of volunteers commemorated Peace Day (25 September 2013) by honoring D-Day's fallen soldiers. I am amazed at the community response...I only wish I could have been part of it: This past weekend British artists Jamie Wardley and Andy Moss  accompanied by numerous volunteers, took to the beaches of Normandy with rakes and stencils in hand to etch 9,000 silhouettes representing fallen people into the sand. Titled The Fallen,  the piece is meant as a stark visual reminder of the civilians, Germans and Allied forces who died during the D-Day beach landings at Arromanches on June 6th, 1944 during...

Every so often, I need a fun book. I can only read so much about war and genocide before I need a little light-hearted amusement. However, I do have standards...no cheesy romance novels with smoldering, over-sexed and under-dressed men on the cover. Bleah. Pas pour moi . Don't get me wrong - I'm not against romance. I just prefer it to be approached in a more subtle and clever manner. I found such a book a couple of months ago and read it in two days flat. All I had to do was go to my go-to guy, Christopher Moore. His cerebral wit is always a hit with me, so I picked up his latest novel  -and it did not disappoint. Sacré Bleu: A Comedy d'Art  was simultaneously intelligent and hilarious. It taught me a few things about painting and made me laugh. A LOT. And I don't mean chuckle to myself. I'm talking loud bursts of laughter that gleaned more than one annoyed look from my family. Most entertaining book I've read in awhile! Sacré Bleu takes place in my fa...

The Louvre is one of the most renowned art museums in the world. I love its art, and am particularly infatuated with its statues of antiquity. Here are some of my favorites that I have compiled on multiple visits to the Louvre. A couple are in color, but most are in black and white - a favorite medium of mine. Enjoy! Photo Credit: Jennifer Boyer-Switala  I love how the bathers (above and below) are so serene - just waiting to bathe, daydreaming, playing with their feet... Photo Credit: Jennifer Boyer-Switala  The above bathing woman is my favorite of the two. I find her back to be sensual and elegant... Photo Credit: Jennifer Boyer-Switala Cupid above is depicted as a cherub. Below, he has grown... Photo Credit: Jennifer Boyer-Switala The three photos (one above, two below) are of the late-18th C. sculpture  Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss  by Antonio Canova. It is my favorite statue in the Louvre. It is gracefully sensual and just incredibly bea...

Members of the French Résistance When we think of the French Resistance during the Nazi occupation, we probably conjure up an image of clandestine activity – men in black sneaking out in the darkness of night to lay explosives or ambush some “Boche” soldiers. Indeed this did happen; however, I would like to give you another image to consider...one of a woman pushing a stroller or walking hand in hand with children down a Parisian quay or riding her bicycle through a quaint rural village. If that does not sound like resistance to you, read on… Women in Résistance Ignored? In her article, “Women in the French-Jewish Underground,” Renée Poznanski points out that most scholarship about the Résistance has focused on the male-dominated military and political pieces of the movement, thereby overlooking the roles of women. Because women’s roles within the French-Jewish Résistance typically involved traditionally female contributions such as social services, education, and humani...