Butterscotch Bars
David, 09 Jun 04:24 AM

It's been an interesting year, hasn't it? I've been on a bit of a bender lately, getting rid of (or at least, reducing) paperwork that's been piling up and holds little interest for me. I have so much that I had to buy more paper (as in, paper file folders) to store all that paperwork in which seems redundant, but living in a place where paper still rules supreme, and digitizing takes as long as filing, I'm stuck filing and storing.

One change in the world of paper has been food blogs, which started out for many as being places where you could "store" and share your favorite recipes. But I've noticed over the last few years that food blogs have become a lot slicker, more polished, and often "aspirational." While I'm jealous of those who have the talent, and patience, for writing for search engines, and arranging flowers on top of multi-layer cakes, I really just enjoy cooking and baking.

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France Reopens to Americans (and Others) June 9th
David, 09 Jun 03:56 AM

After over a year, France is opening its borders to most travelers, to a group that includes North Americans. I wrote about some of the developments in my June newsletter but some points have been clarified in the last few days. France announced a "color system" in which your requirements for entry will depend on what country you are from. There are three color groups; Red, Orange, and Green (more here and here) but for the Orange group, which includes North Americans, if you are fully vaccinated, you can come to France. If you aren't fully vaccinated, you must have a compelling reason to come, and the requirements are stricter, plus you'll need to quarantine for 7 days and have a PCR test after arrival.

The type of proof of vaccination has yet to be confirmed but you should print out what you have or bring your vaccination card, along with any other documents you have that relate to being vaccinated. Later this month, France will offer a "health pass" of some sort, which has yet to be determined. (More on that below.)

According to the US Embassy in France, here are the current requirements for Americans and others in Orange zones:

"Proof of vaccination (currently only the Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca, and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are accepted). Travelers must also be fully vaccinated, which occurs two weeks after the second dose of Pfizer, Moderna, or AstraZeneca, and four weeks after the single dose of Johnson & Johnson; AND Either a negative COVID PCR test conducted within the 72 hours prior to departure or a negative COVID antigen test performed within the 48 hours prior to departure."

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