Every year in France as elsewhere, people excitedly prepare well in advance for the Christmas and New Year’s festivities. As early as November, the avenues get all dressed up in tinsel and garlands of lights, and the streets are packed with holiday shoppers.
The traiteurs (delicatessens) and butchers have been busy taking orders for delicacies that will soon be set out on dinner tables, with people ready to splurge on expensive treats that are usually reserved for the end-of-year holidays. France’s Christmas and New Year’s feasts are anything but lean.
