Aloha, thanks for visiting.
My wife and I are retired baby boomers living in Honolulu, Hawaii. These days, we travel the world together as food and wine journalists. Along the way, I take photos to capture our adventures.
We arrived in the south of France in August 2024. My wife attended the Institut de Français to learn French, while I traveled around the south of France, from Menton to Saint-Tropez and everywhere in between.
In mid-September 2024, we moved to Agde, France, to attend Gastronomicom, an internationally recognized culinary and pastry school officially accredited by the Ministry of Labor and Continuing Education. We studied there for six months and earned a “Certificat de Cours de Cuisine et de Pâtisserie Gastronomique,” or “Certificate of Gastronomic Cooking and Pastry.”
During weekends and breaks, we visited Béziers, Narbonne, Pézenas, Sète, Montpellier, Nîmes, Avignon, Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert, Toulouse, Carcassonne, Collioure, and Barcelona, Spain.
Next, we traveled through France for five months, from April through August, visiting cities such as Lyon, Dijon, Strasbourg, Rouen, Honfleur, Le Havre, Étretat, and Saint-Malo.
In late August 2025, we arrived in Bordeaux to attend wine school as full-time students (See my post entitled “CAFA Wine School: Firsthand Advice.”
In February 2026, we will move to the Sèvres neighborhood in Paris to attend the Ferrandi Paris “Intensive Professional Program in French Cuisine,” a four-month program that provides a comprehensive understanding of French culinary techniques, from classic methods to modern innovations. Experienced chefs lead each class. In addition to practical cooking skills, the program includes lessons on food history, nutrition, and the art of plating, as well as visits to local markets.
People often ask me, “Why? What’s the point of going to cooking and wine school in your mid-sixties?” My answer is always the same: “BETTER DINNER PARTIES.”
Mahalo,
Bonvivant365
Food and Wine Journalist, Photographer
P.S. Many food, travel, and review sites collect opinions from around the web without actually visiting the places. My writing comes from real experiences. We cover our own costs and share what we personally choose. All the photos are mine—I never use stock images.