Footnotes to a Conversation, May 8, 2023
“The buying of more books than one can read is nothing less than the soul reaching towards infinity.” - A. Edward Newton
Cozy Mysteries
The French obviously enjoy reading cozy mysteries, but there are very few by French authors (I finally found one this past weekend!). Instead, they read British mysteries in translation. I took this photo in a large Lille bookstore.
Strasbourg
I had a fabulous 2½ days in Strasbourg to finish off my time in France. You’ll be hearing more about it, but one of the things that really impressed me was how pedestrian-friendly the town was. Here are 2 photos I took after going out to dinner Saturday evening. Who ever said it was bad for business to pedestrianize the city centre? The streets were packed with people.
One square I walked through had outdoor patios for 3 restaurants, ping pong tables, a children’s playground, people chatting, and kids playing ball. It was such a people-friendly space!
Local Food
What could be more Canadian than maple syrup or Nanaimo bars? And yet, what a limited view of local food. We’ve started recognizing Indigenous foods, such as wild rice and fiddleheads, but when will we start accepting tofu or paneer as local? Sunrise tofu and Nanak paneer are made in Canada from Canadian ingredients, but we label them as “foreign,” and they’re not included in our celebration of local foods.
I’ve eaten lots of Sunrise tofu over the years without even imagining that it was a Canadian product. From a small storefront operation, it’s grown into the largest soy company in Canada. “The eventual goal is written on the wall of Sunrise’s boardroom: ‘Tofu in every fridge in Canada.’”
Do check out this series of articles from The Tyee:
Forget about the ‘Ethnic Aisle’
When We Celebrate ‘Local Food’, What Gets Left Out?
Footnotes to a Conversation is a weekly Monday feature covering an assortment of topics that I’ve come across in the preceding week – books, art, travel, food, and whatever else strikes my fancy. I also post occasional articles on other dates, including frequent book reviews and travel tales.
If you share my love of nature, check out EcoFriendly West, an online publication encouraging environmental initiatives in Western Canada, and Nature Companion, a free nature app for Canada’s four western provinces.