Norman Hospitality

11.3.17: Sun at last!
Spent last night at daughter Valérie's but even though it was Saturday, there was no lie-in. Maureen's college was having an open day so we all went to admire her art work. She's very talented indeed and I'm sorry that I didn't take a photo of it to show you.
From there I went on to have lunch with Christian's older cousins Janine and Lydie. Roast guinea fowl and surprisingly, only my first apple tart of the visit.
Lydie and Bernard dropped me back at Christophe and Valérie's and while Christophe watched Scotland getting hammered at rugby, I continued my trek through the "Borgias" boxset.
Weather:
17°sun almost cloudless day/18° cloudy. for once being better in the North than the South

10.3.17: Livening up a Grey Day with Good Food

Made a leisurely start before taking the bus down to the big commercial centre. Like most country buses, it was busy with people coming back from the local market and took the long, long  way round. All the way there was a buzz of chat overlain by a sythenised version of "How much is that doggie in the window?" playing somewhere behind my left ear. I can tell you that I was well fed up with it by the time I arrived. Did a bit of gift shopping and had a coffee before Christophe picked me up on his way back from work. The pair of us then went for a good lunch in a really nice restaurant with a huge fireplace and large grounds,  not too far away.  http://www.lhermiere-restaurant.fr/
The afternoon was spent infront of the tv before Valérie (daughter) stopped by to pick me up to go to Kathy and Sylvain's (Christian's younger cousins) for dinner. Luckily we didn't get to the table until after 9pm so lunch was but a memory.
Weather:
15°, overcast/24° sun 

9.3.17: Cooking for my Supper

Heavy rain and strong winds were the ideal excuse to stay in bed until late and not go out. At least here, there's no need to feel obliged to sightsee whatever the weather. Had lunch with Léonie who had finished college early and then I set to and made a lemon drizzle cake for dinner. https://cornercafe.wordpress.com/2012/07/28/fresh-lemon-syrup-cake/ I was pleased that it turned out to be delicious and light earning plenty of positive comments.
Weather:
11°/22°, rain, wind

8.3.17: No Sun, No Sand but Plenty of Sea

Travelled on the train into town with Valérie who was off to work and I to meet Didier (an ex colleague of Christian's) and Annie. They have a house up above Le Havre with fabulous views out to sea. We found plenty to chat about before getting back in the car to go down into the centre for lunch at "La Papiotte", a family run concern serving good food in a pleasant atmosphere. http://www.lapapillotte76.fr/
Daughter-in-law Valérie, came to pick me up and was also stunned by the views from the long patio windows. A cup of tea later and we went off to visit Valérie's parents who have now moved into a very comfortable care home.
The evening was spent quietly with  an apéritif (water!), dinner and a bit of tv.
Weather:
12° (Normandy), 19° (home) rain in both places

7.3.17: Heading North
Today would have been 30 years since Christian and I met. Even though I didn't know it at the time, it was a meeting that was going to change my life. My only regret is that it was too short. Still as the saying goes "better quality than quantity". Still, enough  ... back to my daily narrative.
Nicole K drove Jacques and I to catch the 7am bus to Perpignan in order to catch our train to Paris. Jacques had managed to get a good deal on the tickets; just 19€ each way.
Jacques and Yaneth were at the Gare de Lyon to meet me as were Pierre (the other Jacques' son) and Agnès, his girlfriend. My two guardian angels saw me to the Gare St Lazare while the others headed off in the opposite direction.
Had a bit of time to hang around until my connection to Normandy. It was a shame that Jacques and Yaneth couldn't stay on as they were catching the train to Perpignan a couple of hours later. The time passed quickly enough as I sat in Starbucks and read my crime novel over a very expensive coffee. Paris and "captive audience" means prices are eye watering.
Started correcting Geneviève's English translation of her poems which I'd been putting off for a while. Was hard not to fall into putting them into "good" English rather than letting poetic licence prevail. And so before I knew it, I was arriving in Le Havre where Valérie and Maureen were waiting.
Spent the night with them and having been up at 5.30am, I had my earliest night for ages.
Weather:
8°, watery sun