tradition! la tradition!

As a certain milestone birthday approached last year, I reflected on the fact that I had promised myself I would move to Paris by then if I were to remain single. I had been tired of dealing with the ups and downs of dating and this move would have been my consolation prize. Four years ago I had perfected my "rrrrr's" and had my beret and luggage tags that read "Paris" ready. As luck would have it, it was then that I met my love, got married and we put the move on hold until our retirement. This means that until that day arrives, I will miss Paris, most of all the baguettes.

To me a baguette is not just a piece of bread. It is a symbol of tradition. Living in a society that went from buying Wonder Bread to Organic Spelt and Flaxseed bread from fancy bakeries, I admire the simplicity and continuity of buying the day's baguette fresh from the boulangerie each day on the way home for dinner. In Paris, I witnessed the sight of business men and women in their suits after the day's hard work followed by a cocktail and cigarette at a café heading home with two things in hand: a briefcase and a baguette. You rarely see this in the metro because the baguette is bought from your local boulanger right near home. And its always bare with just a 2-inch square piece of paper wrapped around its middle.

It is this very simple square piece of paper that got my husband in trouble during our honeymoon in Paris. We love riding the metro and getting around the city. The gypsies hop on the train with their accordian and sing a song, collect some change, and hop off at the next stop to catch the next car or train. It is so romantic to watch the Parisians kiss without oblivion. To stamp this trip to Paris as our "honeymoon" and make it stand out from the rest, we made it a point to find an amourous couple in the metro and each time kiss like them. At times to maintain stability this required holding the handrails. Afterwards we'd run back to our little apartment on rue du Dragon to wash our dirty hands. Our apartment was directly across from Boulangerie La Boule Miche and every day we asked for our "une baguette tradition, s'il vous plait!" A "baguette tradition" differs from the typical white French bread ("baguette ordinaire") we think of simply as a baguette. It is made by hand using a higher quality wheat flour with yeast and salt, sans additives, just like in the old days.

One particular afternoon, we stepped out of the metro stop and the sight of delicate pastries called us into a different patisserie/boulangerie. In addition to some lovely treats, I had a baguette in hand as we walked out. Hot from the oven, it was ready for a bite. I held out the baguette to my husband in a "you go first" gesture, waiting for his mouth to encircle the bread for his taste. Instead in painstaikingly slow motion I saw his hands, the ones that had touched what seemed like all the handrails in the metro, envelope the bare naked baguette above and below mine which was over the square piece of paper. He was looking for a firmer grip before his bite. Arrrghhh... he had ruined my hot fresh baguette with metro germs!!! In not so slow motion, my hand which never parted the baguette fiercely yanked it out his and I started to hit him over and over again on the shoulder with it yelling obscenities in French about his filthy metro hands. This passionate moment of baguette-beating rage was not a typical Parisian scene and luckily did not ruin our honeymoon although we re-enact it on every subsequent trip to Paris just for laughs. Who knew a new tradition could be born out of the "baguette tradition"?

suggestion:

Don't beat your husband with a baguette. Instead buy two and eat one fresh and hot on the way home.

where to find:

For the best baguette tradition, no doubt go to Paris and try a different boulangerie until you arrive at your personal favorite. In the Bay Area, the closest I've gotten to a baguette that reminds me in flavor of my Parisian favorite is from Brickmaiden Breads made with Sel de Guérande from France. A baguette costs $4.00. Brickmaiden does not have a retail location but can be found at the Sunday Marin Farmer's Market. The Marin Farmers Market takes place in the parking lot behind the Marin Civic Center on Sunday mornings 8 a.m. - 1 p.m. year round.