Aloha, thanks for visiting.
My wife and I are retired baby boomers. 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 southern France, from Menton to Collioure 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.
When school ended, we traveled through France for five months, from April through August, 2025, 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“).
We spent Christmas in Bayonne, French Basque Country, and New Year’s in Donostia (San Sebastián), Spain, Basque Country, to learn a little about the Basque Country.
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 included 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.”
FERRANDI Paris ended in early June 2026. Both of us did well and earned our diplomas, though the 10-hour days were tough. We were very tired and worn out. After almost two years in France (We arrived in August 2024), we left France and moved to Rome, Italy, for the summer.
We’ll be in Rome until late August 2026, then head back to the USA to apply for our Italian visas, San Diego, then Hawaii, and Kauai for Christmas and New Years. If all goes well, we’ll move to Florence, Italy, in January 2027 for two years or more, if possible, to attend school. My wife will study Italian; I will study photography and the Renaissance.
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.