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Feel better, Rabbi! What I mainly remember from my times in college was being the only one who wasn't drunk at parties (along with my roommate, sometimes). Talk about weird. Everyone thinks you're weird when they're out of their minds! I've never been falling-down drunk but have a low threshold for getting buzzed and recall having 5 drinks one New Year's Eve without much food and then talking more than usual (and I'm a big talker in general) to maintain a level of consciousness such that it wasn't too dangerous to cross streets and such. My then-girlfriend hated it, though, and picked a big fight with me over lunch the next day, one of the few big fights of an otherwise pretty joyous relationship. That was actually a pretty awful time. Normally, when I do drink (which is less often than not), I have no more than 3 drinks at most and hope to feel a pleasant kind of lightheadedness and nothing else.

But that's named after Salt Lake, not for table salt or something.

Thanks for the report. I just can't imagine what it's like to write 10-30-page reports on every kid! You must be exhausted!

I was frustrated the last time I was in Florence (summer of 1998) because there were long lines to get into both the Duomo and Baptistery, so since I had already seen the insides of those buildings in 1991 and 1994, I gave up and went elsewhere. But for these honeymooners, might it be worth it to pay a fee to bypass those lines, too? Anyone know whether or how they could do that, and what the fee would be? Incidentally, I climbed up to the top of the Campanile (Bell Tower) the first time I was in Florence, and the view from up there was splendid. The view from the top of the dome is higher, though, for what it's worth.

There's a Cherry Hill, New Jersey.

Lucca is easy: 1 hour by train, many trains. I'm having trouble finding a website that will easily provide you train schedules, though. No doubt, someone has it bookmarked.

The Daily News prints restaurant reviews irregularly, though. Or at least that's my impression.

The line before "Los zeim gein" is important, and this is where I'm liable to screw up a little: "Zei zint shvartser vi uns!" "Los zeim gein!" ("They are darker than us!" "Let them go!") Blazing Saddles was a brilliant sendup of Westerns, and I could watch it any time.

My Yiddish sucks and I'll misspell everything. How about if you take this one, Gifted?

Where's Greater Tuna?

Pickles, there's Orange, East Orange, South Orange, and maybe West Orange (I can't remember) in New Jersey. Gifted Gourmet, keep 'em coming. No, Mark, places after which foods were named would belong in another thread.

No kidding? Maybe the Native Americans really are the "Lost Tribes." (Any of you seen Blazing Saddles? One of the funniest things in a very funny movie is when the Native Americans speak Yiddish among themselves. I won't give away what they say, unless prodded.)

Thanks, Jack. That was interesting. By the way, though Ashkenazi Jews are named after Germany, I believe that they were in the Frankish Kingdom and the Carolingian Holy Roman Empire first, and picked up some French-derived words that way. (My ancestors on my father's side were expelled from the Holy Roman Empire city of Worms and arrived in Poland in the 14th century, before the Black Plague hit their adopted home of Bodsanov.) The word "daven" means "to pray" in Yiddish, and is derived from the French "divinisser." Whether our ancestors' sojourn in France did much to Ashkenazic cuisine is another question.

Bethlehem. Hebrew: Beit Lechem (House of Bread); Arabic: Beit Lahm (House of Meat) In Malaysia, there are loads of them. The furthest inland village in the township I used to live in is called Durian Pahit (Bitter Durian); another inland village is called Padang Pauh (Field of Pauh [a type of mango]). Further south is the township of Jambu Bongkok (Bent Guava, though that would refer to the tree). Also Tanjung Rambutan (Rambutan Cape), famous in Malaysia for its insane asylum. In the U.S., Appleton, Wisconsin comes to mind. There's Orange, New Jersey, but I doubt that refers to the fruit. Oyster Bay is in Long Island, though, and there's Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

Sure: "Am," as in "Am Yisrael." "Am" means "nation" or "people." So we call ourselves "People of Israel." Also, "Bet Yisrael," which means "House of Israel." Cochin is on the west coast of southern India, and has a very ancient Jewish community, but most of them have moved to Bombay, Israel, and Britain.

By the way, I hope everyone does read the Rabbi Ribeye "Xenofoodia" piece Jason provided a link for. It's great!

Just to amplify on what Marlena said, the Ashkenazi community originally hails from Germany ("Ashkenaz" is Yiddish). After they were expelled from Germany, the King of Poland invited them to relocate there.

Why would you feel ashamed for loving anything? And why would you be swayed by anyone's opinion in that case?

On another thread, I posted about a feeling of incongruity in reading a suggestion of combining horseradish (a traditional Jewish food) with mayonnaise. Now, there's nothing treyf (unkosher) about mayonnaise, but traditionally, Jews just didn't eat it, just like they didn't eat white bread. In fact, "white bread and mayonnaise" would be a typical stereotype of a White Anglo-Saxon Protestant from the Midwest. Alright, now it's your turn to post about this.

No. Besides, dairy can be kosher. But maybe we've gone about as far as we want to go on this tangent here. Perhaps I'll start a thread about foods Jews traditionally just didn't eat, even though they can be kosher. [Edit: Here's the thread.]

Katie, I believe that Croques Monsieur/Madame come from Alsace.

My parents may disagree. I'll try to remember to ask them next time I speak with them.

Have you been to Grand Vefour?

El Malecon has great Pollo a la Brasa at its two locations: The main branch in Washington Heights near the George Washington Bridge: El Malecon Restaurant 4141 Broadway, New York, NY 10033 (212) 927-3812 and the smaller branch between 97th and 98th Sts.: El Malecon Restaurant II 764 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10025 (212) 864-5648 They also always have several daily specials, which always include something to please most people. Very good prices (1/2 chicken for $7.50, I believe). I like Pampa, but it's in an entirely different price category from El Malecon. It's a somewhat formal but relaxed and friendly Argentinian steakhouse, and I really enjoy their marinated steaks, blood sausage, and crepes with dulce de leche (really fantastic, if you have room for them!). Good Argentinian wines, too. Do not order their entrana "for two"; order a regular portion of steak and split it with your dining partner: Their portions are gargantuan. Expect to pay about $40-50/person inclusive of tip for a meal including dessert and some wine by the glass. I haven't been to the rest of the places on your list and would welcome some reviews.

Sounds intriguing! Where is it?