Scottish Reunion

We were in the town earlier on in the day and a film set during the 2WW is being filmed there and took this photo as we wandered around.
The President of the Association invited all the group who went to Scotland chez elle to relive the experience with a couple of cds that had been made of the photos. She was the hostess but the association bought the drinks and we all took something to eat. I made a really wicked chocolate mint cake which was just jam-packed full of calories ..... the weight is creeping back on and with no early morning walks disater looms! Must get into the habit of using the treadmill; maybe next week ....

Norman Cuisine

Thanks to Valérie and Guillaume there were several local products sitting in our cupboard just waitng to be eaten. As one of them was a jar of tripe from Caen, it was decided that there would be a comparative meal chez Michel as Philippe was there on a visit. There were chips again, normandy pâté, cider, also from Normandy and an apple and calvados ice cream, home made in our new machine. After our long leisurely lunch, there wasn't much else to do apart from have a little siesta.

Helping the Local Economy

Stayed on at the bar after the language exchange as Christian had a strong desire for Moules-Frites and who am I to deny him?
Friday we managed to catch up with Rowena for lunch at a new restaurant where she lives. Simple but well cooked though overpriced for what it was. Zig-zagged down into Spain as far as Figureres where we had to pick up Christian's leather jacket which was in for repair. From there we headed off to Argelès for a "devernissage". There weren't many of us there but the artist appreciated our presence. we gave Juste and Joséphine a lift home but stopped off on the way for something to eat. Another thre course meal and goodness knows how many more kilos.

Sweltering Skies

The weather is hot and Christian's computer has been playing up but thanks to Michel it was sorted out. It took two days, mind you.
Wednesday afternoon a couple of the Association's members openned up their house to visitors. An old stone farmhouse it's just full of interesting things to see. Anne is particularly talented on the interior design front. as you wounld expect, the visit ended with an apéritif on the verandah

All That Jazz

Still very hot so we didn't hang around a long time at the market and came back to the bar for a drink (ie, Perrier). Didn't stay there very long either as 50 people (including screaming kids) turned up for a paella to celebrate a birthday. We settled for salad at home.
In the evening there was the last organised meal of the season: boules de picoulat. Not exactly summer food but they were good.
Sunday and it's still very hot but the ironing couldn't wait and it does feel good to have two empty baskets. The course of antibiotics has now fnished so it was a real pleasure to take a glass of cava when Jany came for an apéritif before we joined André, Jeannine and Marie-Louise for a meal at the bar. Rosie and Maurice were playing jazz and the terrace was full. A good buzz, music, fine weather and a better than usual meal under the stars all adds up to my idea of life in the south of France.

Behind Closed Doors

I did venture out behind sunglasses and a large hat to deliver Association massages on Tuesday morning but apart from that I stayed in until Thursday night. By that time the mark on my face was fading past and I needed a change of scene. There was an evening of sardane made even livlier with a raffle and bar selling soft drinks, muscat and beer. Nothing to tempt me away from "I'm-not-drinking-until-the-antibotics-are-finished"! Today the highlight was a trip to the supermarket and a Perrier at the bar.
Large parts of France are on a heatwave alert, not here though it is very hot. Shutters closed, fan on was the order of the day.

Ever Quieter

Had an early morning trip to the clinic rather than the GP, as today's a public holiday, to get some treatment for an inflammed and swollen ear. It's something that's happened before and while not painful spreads up the face and itches like hell! A course of antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, pain killers and something to counteract the side effects of the antibiotics should sort it out. We gave the fiesta a miss, without a burkkha to hand, I prefered to hide away and sleep.

An Even Quieter Day

Today was even quieter. Just a drink at the bar this morning and the computer this afternoon.

Winding Down

After all the excess of yesterday, this weekend was a much quieter affair. No market, just a drink at the bar after two machines of washing and a bit of cleaning up. Yes, the family have moved on to their next holiday stop in Savoire. The day had been announced as "rouge" but in the end with 800km of traffic jams it was reclassified as "noir". Is it any wonder that we prefer to stay at home in the summer?
We couldn't even be bothered to put in an appearance at the "moules-frites" evening which was enlivened by a very loud disco that could be plainly heard from our terrace. Took me ages to get to sleep so got stuck into a book that Diana had lent me. "To the Island" by Meaghan Delahunt which is about a dancer teacher and lone mother who sets out from Australia to Greece to track down the biological father that she never knew and who had been arrested and tortured during the period when the Junta took power. According to a Guardian review "the novel is strongest in evoking Lena's struggle to feel at home on the island, out of season but ...... fails to think at all about her son's lack of connection to his own father, a friend with whom she had a one-night stand. I'll reserve judgement until I get to the end.

Three Apéritifs

This evening we progressed from one apéritif to another. First there was a vernissage of photos at the Mairie, then it was onto the camp site where there was sangria on offer. At home Valérie was in the kitchen .... pineapple cocktail to start off with on the terrace followed by cod in a creamy tomato sauce and cheese. The ice cream machine had been in action again. Vanilla ice cream and pineapple sorbet accompanied by meringues to finish off the meal. All delicious.

Simple Pleasures

The sorbet was delicious. Have we found a new hobby for Christian? The search is now on for interesting recipes. How does stilton or beetroot ice cream sound? The possibilities are seemingly endless.
We had a very quiet day today as the family were out. There were enough left overs in the fridge, so lunch was taken care of and in the evening we all went to the local bar for something to eat. Sitting out on the terrace was just the thing. Ah, the simple pleasures of life are the best.

Putting Pen to Paper

Something different needed my attention today as I'd taken on the organisation of a calligraphy workshop for the association. Appropriately, it was held in a lovely little chapel in the village. Valérie participated while Guillaume watched the kids and Christian tried out our latest toy ..... he made a peach sorbet which we'll have after tonight's barbeque.

On the Treadmill

Valérie, Guillaume and the 3 kids arrived yesterday. No problems until they arrived just north of Perpignan when the radio warned of a 20km tailback from the frontier. The day was cloudy and fresh; one of those days that send the tourists heading for the shops in Le Perthus rather than the beach.
Today they took it fairly easy and Christian got to grips with the treadmill.

Dancing the Night Away

Didn't bother withethe market on Saturday. Thought there wouldbe too many people and all we needed was some cheese. Had a leisurely coffee and then a glass of wine in the bar but resisted staying for something to eat as we were going to eat poulet-gambas at this week's organised meal. 14 of us at the table, a wee bop and then liquers at Michel and Marguerite's. Made it home for 1am.
This morning we were on the road at 9.15am for a fête in the village over the border with which are twinned. The weather was cool and overcast so we started with hot chocolate and local donuts. At midday the local Mairie laid on tapas for visiting officials (that included us) which was copious enough to do for lunch. A rest in the afternoon and then Juste and Joséphine stopped by for a snack before taking us to a local international folk festival for which they'd be given 4 complementary tickets. It was fab-u-lous. Dance troupes from Russia, Mexico, Peru, Spain and of course Catalunya. The Peruvians did their UNESCO classified scissor dance. Have a look at it on "Youtube". Just amazing. Another dance, less dramatic but very beautiful was the one from Tchoukotka, an independent district of Russia with a population of about 55,ooo people in the East of Siberia, bordering the Baring Sea. There's a clip of it also on" Youtube". The only downside was that being outdoors, it was a bit parky and there was quite a bit of humidity in the air. again didn't make it to bed until late, 1.30am but so what?.

Down to Earth

Life is back to a normal, simpler life. Language exchange on Thursday morning and a drink in the bar afterwards where Joséphine stopped by. She was on her own so came back to take pot luck with us. Dinner was at Michel's in the evening along with Juste and Joséphine. The blokes ate tripe (and talked .......) while we had something more to our taste. Mozzarella, home grown tomatoes and basil (Joséphine) and peach cake (me) completed the meal.
Today, we managed to get out for a walk before it became too hot (we're in the mid 30's at the moment), went to do some supermarket shopping (family arrive on Monday) arriving home to take delivery of a treadmill which we are convinced will work wonders for us. It took 2½hours to get it put together so it's inauguration is on hold until Monday. Just wait until you see the photo.
This evening there was vernissage of surrealist paintings. Many of the them seem to have been premonitions. There was one (from a series of six) that used imagery of the (riderless) horses of the apocalypse in front of a skyscraper background. The artist should have exhibited in New York in 2001 but needless to say, it was cancelled. A very good apéritif followed which should have sufficed for our evening meal but we ended up going to the local bar with Juste and Joséphine (yes, again), Maud and Daniel. To wrap unp the evening everyone came back to ours for cava in the "pub".

One More Year, Several More Wrinkles!

The day dawned to the sound of "Bonne Anniversaire, Mon Amour". Nice, eh? First stop was the hairdressers where more blond strands lay on the floor than on my head but apparently the result is ok. Joined Christian for a coffee where much to my surprise there was a present waiting. It's a long time since we've given each other presents prefering to go out or away.
Lunch was at a local Michelin star restaurant and it was good. Excellent service, lovely food which took 3 hours to eat on a shady Mediterranean terrace. Five courses, 4 which came with a glass of wine chosen to complement the food.
Needless to say, neither of us was very hungry in the evening, so we made do with champagne and foie gras. It's a hard old life!

Not Much to Cheer About

While we were suffering from last night's over indulgence Euro economies are going pear-shaped, Somalia is starving, Obama is trying to get the Senate and the House of Representatives to agree to a new debt settlement and people with too much alcohol in their blood are driving the wrong way up French motorways and killing folk coming in the opposite direction. You can only despair.