Award-winning chef Christian Le Squer shares two delicious fig recipes that will make your mouth water. Do try them at home!

Meet Daniel (still in sweltering Soissons) in front of the "Jardin du Haricot" (Bean Garden), which is not a garden but a confectionery store that sells a local specialty, a delicious jelly-bean-like candy. He also takes us to the old bishop's palace where Napoleon once stayed, then onto an eleventh-century abbey called the Abbaye de Saint-Jean-des-Vignes.

The Canard Enchaîné (Chained Duck) recently celebrated its 100-year anniversary. The independent satirical newspaper, known for its shocking headlines, survived many controversies and even censorship. It still has an avid fanbase today.

Daniel Benchimol continues to explore the town of Soissons on an exceptionally hot summer day. There's no better time to explore the magnificent twelfth-century cathedral of Soissons to cool off and admire this gothic architectural masterpiece, including the stained glass wall depicting religious scenes.

In this third segment on the madeleine, a specialty of the Lorraine region, we find out more about the history of the famous pastry. Did you know that the first madeleine appeared in the Middle Ages?

In part two of our discovery of Soissons, a very ancient town indeed (it was founded in the year 20 B.C.), Daniel Benchimol takes us on a sweltering summer day to visit some interesting places, including the Église Saint-Pierre, part of a seventh-century monastery where Charlemagne's daughter lived. He then shows us a baroque-style building on Little Red Riding Hood Street opposite a magnificent century-old fish market.

Lionel is still in Liverdun, a small village in the Lorraine, to find out some more about the madeleine. It's a specialty of the region that comes in various delicious flavors, such as mirabelle plum and bergamot orange.

Lea shows us one of the largest film libraries in the world, the Cinémathèque Française, which contains over forty thousand films. After the Cinémathèque's original home in the Palais de Chaillot burned down, it relocated to a brand-new facility in Paris's twelfth arrondissement.

Daniel takes us to Soissons, an ancient city that was the first capital of France. He shows us the memorial commemorating the victims of World War I and depicting the legend of the famous Soissons vase.

Meet Jean-Claude and Rachelle, who own a specialty store full of delicious goodies. They talk to Lionel about the madeleine, a specialty of the Lorraine region that was supposedly invented by a cook named (you guessed it!) Madeleine.

Chef Christian Le Squer, takes us into the kitchen of his three-Michelin-starred restaurant, Le Cinq. You will see the cooks at work making exquisite dishes. Le Squer wants the food cooked to perfection, even "sexy," as he puts it. His job is to taste only, but it's not as easy as it looks.

Daniel finishes up his tour of Auvers-sur-Oise with an appreciation of Vincent Van Gogh, who completed an astounding eighty paintings during his two-month sojourn in the village. In this video, you'll see the inn where the artist stayed during his visit, along with some of the gorgeous stops on the "painters' discovery" tour of Auvers-sur-Oise. It's easy to see why the village was such an inspiration to the impressionists!

Daniel introduces us to the town of Auvers-sur-Oise, famous as a source of inspiration for a number of impressionist painters, notably Vincent Van Gogh. He also gives us a sneak peek into the Daubigny Museum, dedicated to the work of the pre-impressionist Charles-François Daubigny.

Lionel discusses the French Academy's latest spelling reform, which includes such modifications as removing the i in oignon (onion) and the circumflex in coût (cost). There's been a fair amount of backlash against the reform, though the changes are only recommended, not mandatory.

Meet the various artists in residence at number 39 Saint-Pavin Street in Le Mans. The city-sponsored studio space is a great opportunity for artists to grow in their art and exchange with others.