Heaven in a demi-tasse

Heaven in a demi-tasse

There’s an office building in Paris which belongs to one of the less important security branches of the labyrinthine French intelligence empire. On a frigid January morning twenty years ago, I rode the century-old elevator to the third floor; I was the guest of a mid-ranking French diplomat I’d met on assignment in Cuba: I’d helped him with one or two delicate enquiries regarding the equally labyrinthine Cuban foreign ministry.

Le préservatif

I’ve heard a lot of amusing stories about this one and as I explain more about this word you’ll see why. Préservatif is similar to the word preservative in English. Generally, when we ask if food has preservatives we’re referring to a chemical-based ingredient added to food to prolong its freshness. Préservatif is one of those “faux-amis”, (words that are the same in both languages but have very different meanings). 

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