After months of preparation and anticipation, French/Francophone week finally arrived on July 13th. We were heartbroken to have had to cancel our very first event at the Poudre Library, but we still had the extraordinary kick-off we were looking for at the Bastille Day Picnic thanks to the turn-out from our Fort Collins French and Francophone community. The amount of support during the entire week was truly touching. A sincere thanks to everyone. Un gros merci a tous!
We spent the evening of the 14th listening to the live music by Ken Beecken and his fellow musicians while enjoying the dishes and desserts everyone graciously brought, and speaking French, of course! Although English speakers may have been the minority, many conversations were a welcoming "Franglais". This was a really great networking opportunity among French, Francophones and Francophiles. We hope you made some lasting connections...we know we did! And how could we forget our little committed cyclists who raced in the Petit Tour de France. Go kids, go! (See the picture at the top and at the right)
The supportive and spirited atmosphere continued through to the Francophone cuisine and French wine night on the 15th. We had a wonderful representative from Wilbur's Total Food and Beverage come to give a short presentation and introduction to the many types of French wine and to the 6 specific bottles available to taste that evening. As we whet our palates with samples of the red and white wines, aromas filled the air from our Lebanese, Senegalese and French food dishes. It was wonderful to watch traditional hummus and babaganoush being freshly made and even better to taste them. Take a look at the recipes on the right and make them yourself at home! Finishing with authentic crepes and the locally-named Senegalese dish, "Peanut Sauce", I think it is safe to say no one left hungry from this event. (See the above left picture of our Lebanese cook with her spices and our French cook organizing the wine, a true Frenchman :) ) (See recipes on the right)As for the movie night, the hilarious physical comedy of "Bienvenue Chez les Ch'tis" made up for the fact that there were no English subtitles. Look at it this way...no reading! In seriousness, this French blockbuster broke nearly every French box office record and has grossed over $193 million in France alone, and for good reason (Wikipedia). This film showed that comedy is comedy in any language and our constant laughter served as proof! The evening really captured the essence of the week by breaking the language barrier and bringing a diverse group of people together as one.
Thank you again to everyone who volunteered to help us and thank you to everyone who attended. It would not be possible without each one of you. Thank you!!!
*Check out more pictures on our Facebook page:
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