Saint-Sylvestre

Nous avons passé les dernières heures de l'année 2007 avec 10 amis autour d'un fin diner à la maison.

Entrées
Tapas,
Saucisses de vienne en cornets,
Petits canapés au saumon, oeufs de lompe, et fromage
Foie gras,
Saumon à la sauce citron et crème aromatisée
Plats de résistance
Curry fait maison,
Pièces de boeufs marinées aux trois parfums et grillées au barbecue,
Raclette accompagnée de ses charcuteries italiennes, de son ananas grillé et pommes de terre
Salade, plateau de fromage
Desserts
Crêpes,
Crèmes caramel,
Buche au thé vert,
Cake marbré,
Café, thé et champagne pour les 12 coups de minuit !

Bilan pour 2007?
Et bien, pas de changement au niveau professionnel. Côté voyage, nous avons finalement pu en faire pas mal :
- week-end au ski à Bear Valley en Mars avec ma boite,
- 12 jours en avril à Singapour, Kuala Lumpur et Penang - Malaisie et Phuket - Thailande,
- 2 semaines en France à la fin de l'été pour le Carnaval de Notting Hill à Londres, Paris pour le mariage du frère à Jean et Bretagne pour revoir ma famille,
- week-end en Octobre à Yosemite en Californie du nord,
- long week-end de Thanksgiving à San Diego en Californie du sud,
- long week-end de Noël à Las Vegas dans le Nevada.

Espérons en faire autant pour 2008 !

Joyeux Noël ! Merry Christmas!

Famille, amis, lecteurs de ce blog, je vous souhaite à tous un Joyeux Noël !!!

Familly, friends, readers of this blog, I wish you all a Merry Christmas !!!

We completed our 4-days week-end at Las Vegas by the Christmas Buffet at 'Le Village' in Paris Las Vegas Hotel. The room is a two-thirds repliqua of our classic French village cliches. Buffet stations are grouped according to French regions. In Brittany, you have, of course, made-to-order crepes, except the waiter does not know what is a butter-sugar crepe... only heavy topping to put on it are availables... Other represented regions are Normandy, Alsace and Provence. Bread and cheese are better than other buffets but do not expect to find the real taste of France here. I finally think that we should have go to the Bellagio Buffet which is one of the priciest but also the highest ranked buffet. Next time.

Relax day at the Golden Nugget Hotel

Today was The Relax Day. We spent the morning enjoying our hotel features and especially the swimming pool and the jacuzzi !
Indeed, the Golden Nugget opened in 1946 but was recently remodeled. The new swimming pool has a 200,000-gallon shark tank as well as a three-story waterslide that makes you slide through the shark tank! Oh, by the way, the name of the hotel comes from the world's largest gold nugget which is displayed inside: 61 pounds and 11 ounces...

Then, we had lunch at the Golden Nugget buffet which is correct.
And, once the night came, we enjoyed the so-called "Fremont Street Experience" which takes place in the street just outside our hotel. It is a high-tech light and laser show that takes place five times nightly and it is free! The canopy towers 90 feet above the ground and spans the length of five football fields. Featuring more than 12 million LED modules and 555,000-watt sound system, the light show attracts tourists and locals alike. The first light show was broadcast in 1995. Nearly a decade later in 2004, $17 million was invested in upgrading the Viva Vision canopy. Videos are broadcasted on what is the world's largest screen.
While we were there to 'experience', we also tasted the 'Deep Fried Oreos' as well as the 'Deep Fried Twinkies'! Not so bad as it sounds, but HELLOOOO calories...
Pictures of the Christmas week-end at Las Vegas here ! Photos de Noel a Las Vegas ici !

Red Rock Canyon

After getting up late, we decided to visit "Red Rock Canyon" which is located less then an hour's drive west of Las Vegas. There is a the 13-mile scenic drive that provides vehicle access to many of the features in the canyon.
But, why are the rocks red? According to the Bureau of Land Management, more than 600 million years ago, the land was the bottom of a deep ocean basin. Over time, the changing land and water levels resulted in deposits of ocean and continental sediments. There were iron-bearing minerals in the stone and the exposure of these minerals to the elements caused oxidation, resulting in the red, orange and tan colored rocks.
To resume, oxidation of the iron in the stone causes the red hues.

Then, we tried the Rio's Carnival World Buffet ($20/person). It was recommended in our Frommer's guide and we know why! It was a real fest of king crab, delicious fishes, meat, pizza etc... and an outstanding choice of dessert (at least 70 kinds of pies and cakes) with even Crepes Suzette and Bananes flambees!
To help us with the digestion, a good walk is more than welcome. A little detail though, at this time of the year, Las Vegas is not any more the 40°C desert but a 0°C windy place...
Finally, I tried my luck at gambling in the Wynn's casino. I played $10 at the wheel of fortune and won $32..... that I immediately lost the day after and even more...

Mamma Mia! @ Las Vegas

Good news! As I finally get my monday off at work, we decided to head out to Las Vegas for the 4 days Christmas week-end with Pau Din and Yann.
Not a minute to loose, we went to pick the rental car ($171.76 for one week), a Pontiac Grand Prix, a little before midnight friday night: a 2 hours waiting line... no kidding ! Then, we put the luggages in the trunk and zoom, 8 hours and 532 miles later, Las Vegas here we are !

To fill our starving stomachs, we first stopped at the Main Street Station Hotel for its recommended buffet in the old Las Vegas.
Then, we took some rest at our hotel the "Golden Nugget" ($142.08 for 3 nights).

Las Vegas is famous for its casinos but also for its shows. So, we went to the Mandalay Bay Hotel to see the "Mammia Mia!" Show ($46.25/person). This Broadway hit was created by Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus' with 22 of ABBA's greatest hits woven into an irresistible love story. We were all enchanted by the show. If you are a fan of ABBA, it is a must see !

For those who lived in an igloo the last 35 years (...), ABBA was a Swedish pop/dance group active from 1972 until 1982. The quartet was formed through the friendship of Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus and their respective girlfriends Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Agnetha Fältskog. Together, they topped charts worldwide from the mid-1970s to the early 1980s. The name "ABBA" is an acronym of the first initials of each members name: A for Anni-frid (Frida), B for Benny, B for Bjorn and A for Agnetha.
By goggling on the net, I also found out that the movie "Mamma Mia!" will be released this summer 2008.

To help you wait, I found this irresistible video of Abba's tiny muppets dancing and singing:

If you carefully pay attention, you will recognize their following songs: Mamma mia, Watch out, I have a dream, Rock me, Under my sun, Take a chance on me, I do, I do, I do, I do, I do, Money money money, Dancing queen, Ring ring, Two for the price of one, Waterloo, Thank you for the music, The winner takes it all and Hasta manana.
Correct me if I am wrong but you may also recognize Björn at the minute 1:52, the man that's walks in, Benny is at 3:15 on the phone, Frida appears at 2:35.... she's now a blonde and poses with her hand on her hip, then Agnetha walks along behind her at 2:37 holding a clip-board.

Et pour vous faire plaisir, voici le vrai clip de "Mamma Mia":

I am Legend

Just released last Friday, "I am Legend" is a great movie: Will Smith performance is awesome, and his dog's too!
The scenario is inspired from Richard Matheson's novel written in 1954. The suspense is there all along the movie but I tell you, the end is a little sad...
I feel that this kind of scenario could really happen. With all the genetic experiments going on, man does not know everything and could generate a very bad bacteria, virus or clone against the mankind. Maybe it already happened? We never know... It is like this controversial theory about HIV virus. It suggests that the AIDS epidemic was inadvertently started in the late 1950s in the Belgian Congo by Hilary Koprowski's research into a polio vaccine... Hmmm, disturbing isn't it?

Synopsis: Robert Neville (Will Smith) is a brilliant scientist, but even he could not contain the terrible virus that was unstoppable, incurable, and man-made. Somehow immune, Neville is now the last human survivor in what is left of New York City and maybe the world. For three years, Neville has faithfully sent out daily radio messages, desperate to find any other survivors who might be out there. But he is not alone. Mutant victims of the plague -- The Infected -- lurk in the shadows... watching Neville's every move... waiting for him to make a fatal mistake. Perhaps mankind's last, best hope, Neville is driven by only one remaining mission: to find a way to reverse the effects of the virus using his own immune blood. But he knows he is outnumbered... and quickly running out of time.

J'ai craqué...

... pour ce magnifique sac à main Coach ! Mon premier sac américain de 'luxe'.... D'habitude, je ne trouve rien à mon goût dans cette marque dont les américaines rafolent, mais pour une fois, j'ai eu un coup de coeur sur celui-ci. Pour le moment, je trouve la finition pas mal mais, vu qu'il est en daim, j'attends de voir comment il vieillit pour me faire un avis définitif.

A part ça, c'est de la pure folie en ce moment dans les centres commerciaux et ça devient invivable le week-end... Santana Row, Valley Fair, Stevens Creek boulevard attirent les foules pour les achats de Nöêl et il faut être très patient dès que l'on prend la voiture pour rentrer ou sortir de chez nous.

Pour couronner le tout, on ne peut plus aller à la banque, au supermarché, au resto.. ou allumer la radio sans entendre ces musiques de Nöêl qui vous restent dans la tête pour le reste de la journée: Let it snow, Jingle bell, O Christmas Tree, O Holy Night, We Wish you a Merry Christmas... Alors je vous ai trouvé cette version un peu plus "swingie" de Jingle Bell -->

Puis, à la nuit tombée, tout s'illumine: Santana Row a ses palmiers vetus de lumières vertes et rouges, un énorme sapin de nöêl devant le Valencia Hotel ainsi que devant le Maggiano restaurant. Beaucoup d'américains décorent leur maison pour Nöêl (intérieur et surtout extérieur) avec des animations lumineuses comme des traineaux, des pères nöêl, des rennes, des ours, des cadeaux, des sapins etc...bref, le show à l'américaine...

Soirée Pizza-Jacuzzi chez Clément...

Pour bien commencer le week-end et oublier le froid qui s'installe, nous nous sommes retrouvés entre francophones chez Clément.

Située à deux pas de chez nous, sa maison est plus récente mais surtout, comporte un superbe jacuzzi quasiment tout neuf ! Alors, pour se tenir chaud, on achète l'enorme pizza Costco avec un poulet tout cuit-tout chaud puis on plonge entièrement (ou juste les pieds ;o)) dans le jacuzzi pour déguster le gâteau chocolat-amande préparé par Marthe... Haaaahaaa, elle est pas belle la vie ?

Happy Birthday Yann !

Tonight, we gathered with some friends to celebrate Yann's Birthday at the French restaurant "Left Bank" in Santana Row.

Food was not as good as expected for the price, but the wine Yann ordered was very 'delectable'. What was the name of this wine already? Too bad I forgot...

From left to right: Kara, Servane, Jean, Pau Din, Ashvinder, Marthe, Clement, Virgile and of course... Yann !

We offered him the Borat gift set which contains the DVD of the movie "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan" plus a cap of the Kazakhstan and a wonderful blue t-shirt 'High Five'. What a nice outfit it makes, the pictures speak for themselves :
Happy Birthday Yann !

Old Town San Diego et Retour à San José

Avant de reprendre la route pour la Silicon Valley, nous avons visité la vieille ville de San Diego, située à 2 pas de notre hôtel. Avec ses restaurants, son atmosphère coloniale espagnole, ses figurants et son animation, cette visite est bien plus valable que d'aller à Tijuana, et en plus c'est gratuit !
Ensuite, nous avons mis 9 heures pour faire San Diego - San Jose à cause des bouchons du week-end de Thanksgiving... Je n'avais jamais vu autant de monde sur les routes !

Voici un petit récapitulatif en images de notre séjour à San Diego:

San Diego Zoo / La Jolla

Avec plus de 4 000 animaux de 800 espèces différentes, le Zoo de San Diego est mondialement connu. Nous y avons passé une bonne partie de la journée, à frémir devant les nombreux reptiles, s'amuser devant les gorilles , admirer les hippopotames
et s'attendrir devant les pandas géants.

Puis, nous nous sommes promenés à La Jolla pour voir le coucher de soleil. Encore une journée pleine d'aventures !

Black Friday Sales / Bienvenida a Tijuana !

En ce lendemain de Thanksgiving, nous ne dérogeons pas à la règle : faire les soldes !
Direction “Las Americas Premium Outlets” et ses 125 magasins… Ce qui est marrant, c’est que ce centre est vraiment accolé avec la frontière Mexicaine. Le parking est dominé par ce grand mur qui empêche les candidats à l’immigration de traverser. Dans les magasins, les vendeurs/vendeuses vous parlent en mexicain, même si c’est évident que vous ne l’êtes pas…

Les affaires ont semble t’il été bonnes puisque tout le monde a au moins sorti une fois sa carte de credit, mis à part… moi… Ben non, je n’ai toujours pas trouvé ces petites bottines que je cherche depuis des semaines... Avec des -40% -50% voire -75%, les américains profitent en général de ce week-end pour faire tous leurs achats de Noël.

Puis, Pau Din, Sunil, Marthe, Jean et moi-même traversons la frontière à pied pour profiter de l’après-midi dans la ville de Tijuana. Mis à part des restaurants et boutiques pour les touristes, il n’y a rien de special à voir. Cette ville est surtout connue pour sa vie nocturne où les jeunes américains profitent d’une législation plus souple sur l’alcool pour y venir faire la fête.

Road Trip to San Diego / SEAWORLD

_ _

Aujourd'hui pour les américains, c'est le début d'un long week-end de 4 jours plus connu sous le nom de "Thanksgiving". Tout le mode se retrouve en famille pour un énOOOrme repas avec une énOOOrme dinde... (voir post précédent).

Mais pour les expat' comme nous, ces 4 jours tombent à pic pour visiter du pays ! Avec 7 amis francophones, nous avons donc décidé de visiter le sud de la Californie ! Yann, Virgile, Marthe, Pau Din, Sunil, Jean and moi-même sommes fin prêts pour l'aventure !

Etant donné que le mercredi veille de Thanksgiving est la journée la plus noire de l’année sur les routes américaines et pour les aéroports, nous avons pris la sage décision de ne pas partir directement après le travail. A deux voitures ($126.31 la location d'une Dodge Avenger pour une semaine + la voiture de Virgile), nous avons pris la route à 2h30 du matin... pour parcourir les 460 miles (environ 740 kilomètres) qui nous separent de San Diego. Pour les directions, c'est US-101 S, CA-152 puis I-5 S, il n'y a pas plus simple ! Et hop, en 6h30 nous voici à San Diego.

Notre première visite est pour le Seaworld Park ($50/personne).

Le parc abritte toute la vie maritime: poissons en tout genres, ours polaires, pingouins , requins, phoques, lamentins et j'en passe avec divers spectacles. Nous avons bien aimé le "Dolphin Discovery" qui, comme son nom l'indique, met en scène des dauphinset aussi le spectacle "Believe" avec Shamu, l'orque.

A noter, durant les spectacles ou sur certaines attractions, le public est souvent "mouillé". Et nous n’y avons pas échappé... Etant donné les temperatures fin novembre, nous avons un peu été surpris par le froid... Mon conseil est donc de faire ce parc en été ! Et aussi de prévoir une tenue de rechange ! Dernière chose: ne payez pas le supplément pour faire le ‘Skytower Ride’ ainsi que le ‘Bayside Skiride’, ca ne vaut vraiment pas le coup....

Après cette très très longue journée, nous trouvons le repos à l'Holiday Inn Express d'Old Town. Très bien situé et avec un deal à $99/ nuit la chambre pour 4 personnes, petit déjeuner inclus, nous ne pouvions pas mieux tomber !

Thanksgiving

--> What is it?
Thanksgiving is a traditional North American holiday to give thanks at the conclusion of the harvest season.
In the United States, Thanksgiving is a four day weekend which usually marks a pause in school and college calendars. Many workers (78% in 2007) are given both Thanksgiving and the day after as paid holidays. I am one of those!
--> What do we eat?
Thanksgiving meals are traditionally family events where certain kinds of food are served.
First and foremost, turkey is the featured item in most Thanksgiving feasts (so much so that Thanksgiving is sometimes facetiously referred to as "Turkey Day").
Stuffing, mashed potatoes with gravy, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, corn, pecan or pumpkin pie are commonly associated with Thanks giving dinner. Yep, it is a HEA-VY meal... Usually, you spend the rest of the week-end recovering...
The Thanksgiving season is also a time of generosity. People contribute food to annual Thanksgiving food drives and donate to charities.

--> Where does this tradition comes from?
The early settlers of Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts were particularly grateful to Squanto, the Native American and former British slave who taught them how to both catch eel and grow corn and also served as their native interpreter. Without Squanto's assistance, the settlers might not have survived in the New World.
The Plymouth settlers (who came to be called "Pilgrims") set apart a holiday immediately after their first harvest in 1621.
(Source: Wikipedia)

Congratulations Beatrice !

Today, our friend Beatrice became a US citizen !

In the morning, she had her oath ceremony and pledge allegiance to the American flag.
We gather to celebrate at a bar in Mountain View.

Usually, after 5 years of legal permanent residency in the United States (Green Card), you can ask the US Citizenship through the N-400 form. You must pass a test on United States history and government. Applicants for citizenship are asked ten questions, and must answer at least six correctly. This process, where a person not born is the US acquire the US Citizenship is called "naturalization".
The main change is that you have the right to vote. Also, you have more freedom to enter and leave the country for long periods of time. Voila !

Special Day...

Ce vendredi 16 novembre 2007 n'est pas un jour comme les autres....
J'ai une pensée toute particulière pour quelqu'un qui m'est très proche : après 40 ans de bons et loyaux services dans l'administration française, mon père prend sa retraite... aujourd'hui !!!
Il quitte le conseil general des Côtes-d'armor où il était chef de service.
Bonne retraite, profites-en bien et la première chose à inscrire sur ta liste de retraité actif : venir nous visiter en Californie !
Et surtout n'oublie pas : plus besoin de te lever tôt lundi matin pour aller travailler...

MARTINE revit grâce au web !

Vous souvenez-vous de ces bandes dessinées que vous lisiez (ou pas...) dans votre tendre jeunesse?
Ces histoires de "Martine à la mer", "Martine fait de la bicyclette", "Martine est malade".... déclinées sur diverses activités/thèmes et illustrées de dessins un peu naïf ?

Et bien, cette série des Martine connait depuis peu un renouveau grâce à ce site web: Martine Cover Generator.
C'est un succès fulgurant alors que le site vient seulement d'etre lancé le 18 octobre 2007... Et oui, cela fait moins d'un mois. C'est ça la magie de l'internet !

Parti d'une blague entre copains, ce site vous donne la possibilité de proposer un nouveau titre aux couvertures de Martine. Bien souvent inspirées de l'actualité, décalées voire un peu 'trash', ces nouvelles couvertures de Martine sont bien plus marrantes que les originales...

Pour la petite histoire, Martine est une série de livres illustrés lancée en 1954 par Gilbert Delahaye et Marcel Marlier. Le premier titre est celui de "Martine à la ferme" et sera suivit de 50 autres. Depuis sa création, la série a connu un tirage total d'environ 85 millions d'exemplaires dans un grand nombre de pays. Les livres sont traduits dans toutes les langues et le prénom de Martine est changé en fonction des pays (Anita, Tiny, Debbie, Maja, Marika, Mary, Steffi...).

Reste à savoir si tout cela est bien légal et si la maison d'édition ne mettra pas un terme à ce 'buzz' internet...

La Fondue du samedi soir

Saturday night, we hosted a 'Fondue Dinner Party' at home.

For those who don't know what is a fondue , it is a winter dish made of Swiss cheese melted in a pot. It is usually flavored with dry white wine, garlic, paprika, pepper... Then, guests use their fondue fork or wooden skewers to dip in it crisp bread or vegetables (carrots, potatoes, celery...). Many versions exists: among others there is the "Fondue Bourguignonne" with beef to dip in oil or "Chocolate Fondue" with fruits to dip in chocolate .
It is a very convivial dish when you follow the traditional way: everybody share the same cheese pot and drink dry white wine !
From left to right: Kareem, Servane, Virgile, Jean, Lior, Clement, Marthe and Monique. We were joined for the dessert by Sunil and Yann. Thank you all for your presence tonight ! Next time, let's try a Raclette !

Friday night, let's go to the Wine Bar!

On Marlene's idea, we were a group of 7 people (FF, Marlene, JF, Marie-Luce, Olivier, Jean and myself) to go to the Wine Bar. We ended to the Savvy Cellar Wines in Redwood City.

We ordered some charcuterie and cheese assortments along with 6 red wines to taste. Then, we picked up 2 bottles of white wine, among which a bottle of Jurancon, my favorite wine, that we kept for the dessert...
Even though it is more expensive than a regular restaurant, it allows you to try different wines and discuss each other preferences. Plus, the discussion usually becomes more fun after a few glasses...

Saw IV

SYNOPSIS

Jigsaw and his apprentice Amanda are dead.
Now, upon the news of Detective Kerry's murder, two seasoned FBI profilers, Agent Strahm and Agent Perez, arrive in the terrified community to assist the veteran Detective Hoffman in sifting through Jigsaw's latest grizzly remains and piecing together the puzzle.
However, when SWAT Commander Rigg is abducted and thrust into a game, the last officer untouched by Jigsaw has but ninety minutes to overcome a series of demented traps and save an old friend or face the deadly consequences.

Pass your way on this one: you will loose your time and your money.
Jean and myself have seen Saw I, II and III and we found those pretty good. But that one is boring, not captivating and it even makes me feel nauseous the way it is done. This installment continues the story of the Jigsaw Killer, and his obsession with teaching people the value of their own lives. Even though Jigsaw died in the last installment (Saw III), this film focuses on his ability to manipulate people into continuing his work. But it a succession of traps, with multiple characters which makes you lost the interest in the story.
Wait for the DVD release if you really want to see it.

Halloween Party!

Tonight, we went to a huge Halloween Party (around 450 guests!) which was a fund raising at the same time.
Those guys really know how to make a sensational party!
There were live music bands performing all night long, inside the living room and along the swimming pool. We even had a children dancing performance and firedancers.

The decorations were fantastics and everybody played the game by wearing a costume. Pirates, nurses for a night, witches, vampires, firefighters, Obi-Wan, Popeye, Pharaon, bunnies, angels, demons, cow, policemen etc took assault of the place. We even saw a siren but the poor was having difficulties to walk and everybody was stepping on her tail...
For Americans, Halloween is an important event. They either rent or buy a costume in one of the many stores that propose everything from the wig to the entire costume and even panties and socks... For the occasion, I was in Princess of Thieves ("Robin of the Woods") and Jean was the pirate "Jack Sparrow". We had lot of fun. This is the kind of party you don't want to miss. Hopefully, they will do it again next year! See you there with your best outfit!

Pictures of the Halloween Party here! Photos de la soirée Halloween ici !

Halloween

Halloween is celebrated on the night of October 31.
Originated from the Pagan festival Samhain, it is celebrated among the Celts of Ireland and Great Britain. Irish and Scottish immigrants carried versions of the tradition to North America in the nineteenth century.
The term Halloween is shortened from All-hallow-even, as it is the eve of "All Hallows' Day", All Saints' Day.
Many European cultural traditions, in particular Celtic cultures, hold that Halloween is one of the times of the year when spirits can make contact with the physical world, and when magic is most potent...

The main event for children of modern Halloween in the United States and Canada is trick-or-treating, in which children disguise themselves in costumes and go door-to-door in their neighborhoods, ringing each doorbell and yelling "trick or treat!" to solicit a gift of candy or similar items.

We went to the Valley Fair Shopping center to see the children in costumes, walking from store to store to get some candies or gifts. It is so cute to see babies and toddlers disguised in pumpkins, nemo and other vegetables or heros...

Then, we took the road for the Stanford University campus where some students organized a party for Halloween. We did not stay late because we have to work tomorrow but it was fun. I did not have any specific costume so I decided to dress as a "school girl". A student told me that I was disguised in Britney Spears... Hey, that was not really what I had in mind when I dressed up...