It’s short, and it’s not January: February in a Nutshell
But it’s a Leap Year, so we get a bonus day to turn things around
“It might be the dreariest month of the year, but there are at least two things going for February: It’s short, and it’s not January.”
The above opening paragraph of this article made us lol because: #truthbomb. February can be tough; it’s when that “will Winter never end?” feeling sets in and all you want to do is jump on a plane and head somewhere sunny. But here’s some news that should cheer you up: 2024 is a leap year which means February has a bonus day! We get a whole EXTRA DAY to flip that frown upside-down.
Read on for ideas on how to spend your extra day this month: doing yoga, obviously, but also preparing cozy foods, dipping into cheery restaurants and getting ready for an Ottolenghi-in-Paris surprise.
Extra Day Idea #1: High-quality, low-cost yoga
Check out a new studio or better yet, visit one that offers weekly classes that won’t send you to the poorhouse. If FREE is more your speed, exchange a few hours of work for yoga classes:
If your favorite studio doesn’t advertise work-exchange, ask them about it! Many studios don’t talk about needing volunteers but in this economy, who couldn’t use a helping hand? In our experience, owners are generally receptive to offers of trade. Just make sure the exchange is equitable and your responsibilities are clear.
Extra Day Idea #2: Take a class with Pia Le Cannu
When we met Pia in Paris ages ago, we were struck by two things: her sincerity and her wise, old soul. Not for her the fitness-inspired yoga flavor du jour; Pia was more interested in the breath than in athletic sequences or Instagram posing. Her classes were intelligent, astute and suffused with a spirit of inquiry borne of her own explorations and life experiences.
While she’s no longer based here (Paris’ loss is Guéthary’s gain) we are lucky that this week she’ll be at Muses Yoga in Montreuil, and Naya Studio in the Marais for two sessions. We highly recommend seeking her out during her Paris residency or hightailing it to her bright studio on the Atlantic coast (perhaps it will be sunny?)
WEDNESDAY FEB. 7TH, 2024 at MUSES YOGA
12h45-14h Vinyasa All Levels
Muses Yoga (M° Robespierre ou Croix de Chavaux)
THURSDAY FEB. 8TH, 2024 at MUSES YOGA
18h30-19h45 Vinyasa & Breathwork
Naya Studio (M°Bréguet-Sabin, Bastille, Chemin-Vert)
Extra Day Idea #3: Nourish from the inside out
Make Anna Jones’ celery root soup. It’s built on a foundation of celery, leek and apple, then is blitzed and topped with toasted hazelnuts and sage crisped in brown butter. If that doesn’t float your boat, poke around Anna’s site where you’ll find many other great recipes as well as a resource list of her cookbooks which you should add to your library.
Cook from Paris chef Carrie Solomon’s Breakfast All Day! or take yourself out to her snug, joyful restaurant Aube Matin Midi in the 11e arrondissement. Her cuisine is a shot of sunshine on a gray day. On the other side of town, Echo Deli is introducing a little sister: Kiss Paris. Kiss opens its doors Wednesday Feb. 7th so get there at 9 am sharp!
While Parisians are impatient for Yotam Ottolenghi to finally open his “daily café” (his words, not ours), there is at least one firm date we can scribble in our agendas: September 5th. This is the date Yotam Ottolenghi and his co-writers Helen Goh, Tara Wigley and Verena Lochmuller release their latest cookbook, Comfort. To celebrate the launch, the whole crew is embarking on a worldwide Comfort Tour which will bring them to Paris on Friday Nov. 8th. Tickets are available here if you want to totally fangirl out (🙋).