Bastille Day isn’t really until le quatorze juillet, but this Saturday, July 11th Portland hosts two celebrations at which Portlanders can sip wine and practice French. And don’t worry: both celebrations will have jardins de bière!
Celebrate Bastille Day 2009 with the Alliance Française de Portland at Jamison Square Park Saturday from noon to 8:00pm. [...]

The best rookie Frenchman in Portland Trailblazer history has a blog (bloc-note? ) for French basketball website, Basket Session.com.
In a recent post Batum writes about All-Star weekend. He shares his experience doing color commentary for the Rookie Sophomore game on Canal+, partying with Steve Nash, setting world records, and more. But despite [...]

There are other things to do this weekend in besides drinking beer.
The Scandinavian Heritage Foundation’s 24th Annual ScanFair takes place this weekend at PSU’s Smith Center. Come for the Scandinavian food, crafts, and the 53rd crowning of Oregon’s Lucia Queen of Light. Stay for the Pickled Herring Eating Contest at noon Saturday!
The [...]

The Mississippi Ave. Street Fair is the best street fair in Portland. Five blocks of the avenue, from Skidmore to Fremont, will be closed to cars from 10am to 7pm. In place of traffic you’ll find “Live Music, Dance Lessons, Storytelling, Beer & Margarita Gardens, BB’Q Rib Off, Dunk Tank and much more.”
And [...]

With my super ninja google skills I found this French-language nugget:
Lyon envisage sérieusement de suivre un camp d’entraînement aux Etats-Unis lors de la deuxième semaine de juillet. On cite la ville de Portland pour accueillir les champions de France. Pour l’occasion, deux matches amicaux seraient programmés.
Now I’m only in French 102 (seriously), but this seems [...]

I guess I have to stop with the frog jokes.
In college I studied Spanish, Portuguese, and even Hungarian; all more useful to my cultural prejudices and post-college travel plans than French.
I never made it to Budapest.
Two years ago, however, I did spend a week in Montreal. I fell in love with countless cosmopolitan women, [...]

Yet another must-do for Saturday, July 14th: Pix Patisserie’s Bastille Day Block Party.
Pix Patisserie’s Bastille Day Block Party AND Employee Talent Show! On July 14th, everyone’s favorite patisserie is going to be closing down Failing St. next to our North location in celebration of France’s national holiday, Bastille Day. We’re staging a huge street fair [...]

I visited Fenouil in the Pearl recently.
The big, modern and airy space was bustling and First-Thursday crowded. We sat outside on the patio looking onto Jamison Square.
We shared several appetizers:
The lobster beignets are as delicious as they sound; little fried lobster chunks with an anise-flavored aioli for dipping.
I tried my very first foie gras. [...]

Je préfére l’Espagne, but nevertheless, Saturday July 14th is Bastille Day!
So in addition to the Portland International Beerfest and the Mississippi Avenue Street Fair, make your way down to Jamison Square for the 2007 Bastille Day Festival for waiter races, pétanque exhibitions, probably some cheese, and French music!
And don’t forget: J’ai une grenouille dans mon [...]