Just when I thought I was done with school, here I am again, sequestered in one of the Alliance Francaise classrooms, with pen to paper, and nose to board, grappling with my French. See, I didn't know I had to pass a language proficiency exam in order to earn my Master of Arts diploma. Too late to back out now; I've done the time, I might as well take this much-feared French manuscript translation, five-hour exam and be done with it. I don't even want to think of whether I pass or not. Let's save that for later, if I even survive the test proper.
So on Monday and Friday mornings for three hours each time, I sit in this classroom to parle, lire, et ecrire en Francais. Most of the time, the lessons zoom past my head, completely missing my brain so I just sit there, smile and pretend that I understand. I let time tick on faster by thinking of the heavenly spinach quiche that the Alliance Francaise cafe serves daily.
Let me tell you, this is the best quiche I've tried in Manila. I have this favorite cafe on the left bank at the Rue Des Ecoles, called Brasserie Balzar, where the quiche is to die for. Brasserie Balzar dates back to 1897, when chef patron Amedee Balzar opened its doors. It catered to a small yet select group of artists and literary personalities. It was only in 1990 that it became popular with the general population because immediately after Czech leader and Nobel Prize winner Vaclav Havel won the election, he visited Paris and requested Brasserie Balzar to be his first stop. The patrons of Balzar gave the teary-eyed Czech leader a standing ovation.
The Alliance Francaise cafe serves spinach, mushroom, or ham and cheese quiche. Please try it with a side of green salad and a glass of white wine. I promise, you won't regret it.
No comments:
Post a Comment