Texas vs OU at the Texas State Fair

This week-end, I went to the Texas State fair in Dallas. I met Mr. Big Texas and as the wife of a UT fan, I watched the game on a big screen in the Toyota booth.

I am still thinking why College Sport is so important in US? Everybody was wearing orange and red tee-shirt, yelling "Texas Fight". This is something really crazy for me becaause we don't have any college team in France! Maybe few like Rugby, Handball or volleyball, but they bring 100 supporter maximum! They are playing for fun and they will never become a professional, and no fans will drive 3 hours + 2 hours on a traffic to see their college team. However, we have fans of professionnal soccer and rugby team, but they are professionnal. Altough, and they can do anything to support their team, there is rivalry, passion, sometime fight...
If you are good in soccer or other sport, you play in a private club in France. Sport in college is for fun. In school, we have some sport class (about 3 hours/week) and you get grads.
Personally, I did gymnastic for 11 years in a private club called "La Tarnaise", it was really fun and you meet people from other schools and other ages. What about in U.S? Are you hanging out with only the people from your school?

I think there is a question as well about belonging. Is it not true that you have to belong to an institution (school, company, clubs...) or you are/feel excluded in U.S? Belong to something is fundamental.

Peach & Cream fried

Let's come back to Texas State fair! There is not only the big game Texas vs OU. There is as well the excellent, healthy fried food. I read that some people are shocked and worried that such food was served in the State Fair as the winner "fried butter". But a State Fair without fried food is not really a State Fair, like a dinner without cheese. Yes, true, this food is not really healthy if you eat every day, but what about once per year? It won't kill you for sure. As my dad says, "Everything is good but with Moderation". For myself, I ate cheesecake fried (my favorite), the peach & cream fried and the must "Turkey leg". I never seen that before, but like you know "everything is bigger in Texas".
If you go to a "Fête Forraine" in France you will find "crêpe", "gauffre", "barbe à papa", "pomme d'amour", "churros" for the most famous. Regalez vous, it is just once per year!

***French Vocabulary***
Fête Forraine (f) = State Fair
crêpe (f) = crepe, pancake
gauffre (f) = waffle
barbe à papa (f) = litteraly "daddy's beard", cooton candy
pomme d'amour (f) = litteraly " apple of love", candy apple
churro (m) = spanish donught
Regalez vous = Enjoy (the food)

Change blog name

OK, for the few people who had read my blog, you may notice that I changed the name of my blog from "Tchaoupiner" to "A French girl in Texas". Indeed, I think it may be more interested and funnier for you my dear readers to talk about my adventurous in Texas as a french woman than my past life in my lovely country, France. However, I will post maybe once per week or twice a story about french food or the french culture. I can't resist.

This week-end, I am planning to go to the State Fair in Dallas, eat the famous and "healthy" fried food, turkey legs and watch the important and unmissable football game: Texas VS OU. A post will come soon...

Cathedral Saint Alain in Lavaur, Tarn

As I promised, here are some pictures from the Cathedral Saint Alain in Lavaur in the South West of France. If you stopped by this city, you have to visit this huge pink brick monument. It is a former roman catholic cathedral, built between 1225 and 1300. It got a magnificent portal with Gothic decoration. Inside you can see the very fine organ and the Romanesque altar table from 11th Century.


The particularity of this Cathedral is, it is inhabited by the famous Jacquemart, this is an automated character in wood who ring the bell every hour.
The legend said that the first Jacquemart was built by a prisoner sentenced to ring the bells every hour to indicate its presence. He then built a wooden automatic man for striking the bell in its place and so he could escape.


At the opposite of this huge monument, there is my high school and then the Hotel de ville* ou La Mairie*, with a beautiful jardin*. You go to La Maire to get married officially, to get your birth certificate passport etc.. to get all your administrative documents. Usually, the new married take some pictures in this garden, see below. What do you think? it is not pretty?


***French vocabulary***
Hotel de ville (m)/ La Mairie (f): City hall/ Town hall
Jardin (m): garden

Lavaur city

To introduce myself, what a better way to start to talk about where I was born, and it is such a beautiful city called Lavaur in the Tarn, the South-West of France. I can say it is a small city, well smaller than Paris or Marseilles, but bigger than a village. The village I grew up has 500 inhabitants for example, but it will be another post.


So Lavaur, what it looks like? How I can describe it? I am thinking about its big place*, its fountain, its cathedral and its hospital, the market on Saturday. Actually, I am thinking I can't say everything I would like in one post, there is too much, even if for a small city!

Below is the picture of the center with its fountain which was my first idea when I was thinking how can I describe Lavaur. The thing, the center is where you can find everything, it is the heart of the city. The fountain represents the heart of Lavaur, 4 roads are meeting at this center. The first one is going to Castres which is the sous-prefectures of the Tarn, it is the second biggest city in the departement*.

La fontaine les 3 Grâces

The second one goes to the Grande Rue (altough grande* means big, the street is pretty small), it is THE commercial street where you can find one bookshop, 2 bureaux de tabac*, the butcher shop, 3 or 4 bakery shop, a chesse shop, 3 banks, 5 clothes shops , one gift shop, one florist, one hardware/ironsmith and I am sure I missing some shops, but it is funny how well I can represents all these shops in my head. I have kind of grew up with them.

The third street follows the Allées* and you arrive at the hospital, the Court, the only High School (where I studied) and the wonderful Cathedral St Alain.

The last one, Rue Jean Jaures, goes where I am living to Lugan, St Lieux, ... and Toulouse (you are more likely to know this city, it is the 3rd biggest city in France).

I will talk more about Lavaur, and I will start by the Cathedral, the most famous and beautiful point of interest.

****French Vocabulary****
une place (f): public square, city square, market square.
un departement (m): an administrative division roughly analogous to an English district. In France, there is 100 departments.
grande (adj.): tall, big
bureau de tabac (m): smoke shop, tobacconist's shop, shop where can buy magazine, newspaper, cigarettes, lotteries tickets, candies and some small office supplies.
the Allées (f): French promenade

Welcome to Tchaoupiner blog!

Hey, welcome to my Blog and the first thing you are wondering is what means "Tchaoupiner?????!!!". Well, for the story, I have just move one year ago from France to Dallas, Texas (yes, big change), more specially from the South West of France where we speak the "patois". This is a "clin d'oeil"* to my grandmother who when I was a child kept saying to me "Arrête de tchouapiner", which means "stop to touch everything". True, I was a little girl, I couldn't stand for one minute in the same place, but who could? As well as, following her everywhere and imitating what she was doing.
I think in a way this word is defining me, I try to travel as much as I can, I am not afraid to experiment, learn, touch, feel... live!

Maybe because I am kind of nostalgic (It is a long time I didn't see my country... one year!), I would like to share with you my love for my region : Midi-Pyrennées. I would love to share some recipe, talk about our traditions, our culture, our language which is "the Occitan", some anecdotes and even more...

Readers, I would like to say "Encore bienvenu! et Adiou!"*

***French vocabulary***
Tchaoupiner (v) (Occitan) = to touch, to tamper, to meddle
un clin d'oeil (m)= wink
bienvenu = Welcome
Adiou, Adiu, Adieu (Occitan)=goodbye or hello