Add to this a generation of officials and politicians on both sides of the Rhine who neither studied at each other's universities nor even speak each other's language and, despite the tight institutional mesh that still ties the two together, there is a sense that the Germans no longer need the French as they once did.

ECONOMIST: France loses ground to Germany

For equipment, you will need a large steamer pot or a large pot with a steamer rack and a tight-fitting lid and a Chinese wire-mesh skimmer.

NPR: Recipes: 'The Summer Shack Cookbook'