Travelling again Part 6

At last! At last! The notification has come telling us that our papers have been processed and our new permits are ready for collection. So now we can make final plans for the next part of our holiday. We will go to Auch to pick up our permits during next week and then pack up all our belongings and take off for Chevenceaux, a small village a bit north-east of Bordeaux and south-west of Angouleme. We are looking forward to having a new area to explore.
Also this week, we heard the bird that is, for us, the real herald of Spring – the Mistle Thrush, the bird that makes a strange rattling noise rather like someone shaking a bundle of dry sticks. We have yet to see it as it is a very shy creature but we have looked it up in the bird book so will recognise it if it shows itself.
The weather has finally warmed up considerably and for the last couple of days we haven’t found it necessary to make a fire in the lounge or to switch on the electric blanket. The long range forecast shows ever-increasing temperatures with the end of this week going as high as 23 degrees.
While out driving on Friday –just to the shops and back – we caught sight of the Pyrenees in all their snow-capped glory. This is the first time we have been able to see them and normally, according to the locals, it is a sign of rain in the near future but we have checked the forecast and there is no rain in the offing. The mountains looked simply splendid and because of moisture in the air (or the lack of it) they appeared to be only about ten kilometres away. Lovely!
Hopefully by the end of next week we will have travelled some distance and will have some really interesting to report.

Travelling again Part 5

Another slow starting week, but by Thursday, when it dawned fair, warm and sunny, we thought it was definitely time to get out for a bit. After studying the map for a short while, we decided on a circular tour which started and finished at Manciet which is a small town about eight kilometres from here. For those with detailed maps, our route went from Manciet to Gabarret, then across to Labastide d’Armagnac and Villeneuve de Marsan before turning back towards Manciet via Estang. All in all, a very short trip by South African standards – probably not more than about sixty kilometres – but it took us almost all day.
At our first stop, Gabarret, we bought some suitable eats for a simple picnic before wandering around this unremarkable small town. It is obviously ancient and the buildings have been well cared for, but it has a lot of boarded–up shops and houses which is always a sad sight.
On the other hand, Labastide d’Armagnac is of a similar age but is simply charming. The central square, the Place Royale, has colonnaded pavements on all four sides, with the original village water pump a central feature. It really does have royal connections as Henry of Navarre, who became Henry IV, used to stay at a house in the square and was apparently so taken with the architecture that he modelled the Place Vosges in Paris, on it. Apart from a really good restaurant at the top of the square, a number of shops are occupied by artisans and craftsmen, one of most prolific being a man who does metal sculpture, using just about any scrap metal he can find. The results are both delightful and entertaining.
We had eaten our picnic lunch just before arriving in Labastide, sitting in the warm sun on a bench in the grassy square of Betbezer d’Armagnac, but enjoyed a cup of coffee in Labastide watching the world go by.
The rest of the drive was pleasant but unspectacular, but enjoyable as ever.
There is something I feel I really must share with all of you, although it may be something of a digression. Earlier in the week, we had asked friends at home to forward a particular item of post, to us by courier. This they did, but when it hadn’t arrived four days later, I decided it was time to ‘track’ it. Imagine our total amazement when the tracking record showed that it had left Hermanus on Tuesday for Cape Town, leaving there on the same day for London, then Brussels and Lyon. For some unaccountable reason it was then sent to Leipzig where someone realised their mistake and sent it back, first to Lyon, then to Brussels and finally back to Lyon. At the time of writing this, the package hasn’t yet reached us, but we are suitably impressed at the distance it has travelled in less time than an ordinary letter takes to get from Hermanus to Cape Town. No wonder the courier service costs so much!
Finally…………Spring really has arrived and we have masses of flowers and blossom to prove it. I don’t know why it always surprises us so much, but Nature is really quite magical sometimes.

Traveling again Part 4

Oh………..my………goodness! I just can’t believe this! I suppose that there was a little more being shared around at the Hunt Dinner last weekend than only the platters of meat as, since then, a few of the members of our group of revellers, myself included, have succumbed to a nasty bronchitis bug. Luckily I am now fairly experienced in this ailment and had come well prepared and after a few days was able to be up and about again, and to take advantage of the beautiful sunny weather. Don’t be fooled though – the cheeky breeze is coming straight off the snowy slopes somewhere.
As a result, though, we have not been out as much as we would have liked, although on the way back from the shops the other day, we decided to take a different route home again. We drove through the small village of Seailles (pronounced ‘say-I) and came across the delightful church there with its unusual bell-tower and quirky mis-matched bells. Definitely worth a photograph! Then just a little further along, we thought we glimpsed something through the bare trees that we hadn’t noticed before. With a little backing and forthing along the lane I managed to get a pretty picture of what was probably an old grain store which seems to have been converted into a guest room. Quite charming.
During the week, Neels went over to Peyrusse Vieille to cut the grass at the house we stayed in in 2010 and while he was there, he went to over to the Mayor’s Office to say ‘Hallo’ to the secretary, Anne-Marie. When she heard that we were once again waiting to receive our renewed long-stay permits, she offered to call the office in Auch to find out how far they had got. Imagine our dismay to discover that our documents had not yet even been forwarded to the head office, which we think is in Toulouse! This means a wait of another three weeks at least, and although it is unlikely that we would be asked for any papers, we would be illegally in France after the 25th March. Ouch! Not a happy situation to be in. However, Anne-Marie has promised to call again next Tuesday and to make this fact quite plain to the ladies in the office and hope that something comes of it. All hold thumbs please.

Travelling again Part 3

This week started off wonderfully warm, and for the first time this holiday we were able to open the doors and windows and let lovely warm air flow through the house. The daffodils in the flowerbed outside the front door were surprised into thinking it was Spring and a few of the buds popped into bloom. I even became rash enough to wear a short-sleeved blouse under my jersey! But, sadly, it was not to last and by Sunday evening it was really chilly again. However, the locals assure us that this is normal and the warm spells will become longer while the cold ones become shorter. Goody!! While it lasted, it was a pleasure to sit out on the verandah with a cup of coffee and actually get too hot!
By the middle of the week we had had a call from the hardware shop to say that the heat-proof glass we had ordered had arrived so we fetched it, fitted it and took the door back to Peyrusse Vieille to replace it on the stove. We had also planned to cut the grass and spray the patio for weeds, but the day had started misty and seemed to get even thicker as we drove along. It was far too wet to cut the grass, so we will have to go back another day for that.
While we were driving along, I took note of the road signs along the way. The signs for ‘Stop’, ‘Yield’, and ‘Intersection ahead’ are probably standard all around the world, but those that I had noticed were things like ‘Workmen ahead’ and ‘School children crossing’. In South Africa, the sign for workmen ahead should really have picture of a workman leaning on his shovel; I know that the ones in Britain look like a man opening an umbrella, but here, the men are working but in a very laid back style – not really putting their backs into it at all, which isn’t strictly true, but then, neither are the similar signs in other countries.
And what about the school children crossing the road? In South Africa, they run gaily across the path of the traffic, with hair and school bags flying (Or so it seems) whereas in France they appear to walk in a responsible and sedate manner, carefully shepherded across by and adult or older child. I have included pictures of both signs.
Our highlight of the week was an invitation to a chasse (hunt) dinner. Held in the Town Hall of one of the villages of the ‘municipal area’, long tables were arranged with seats down each side. We did quick estimate and came up with a figure of 200 – 250 seats for the meal. We have attended two similar meals in the past but each one has been different and this was no exception.
As we arrived we were offered a small plastic tumbler of either Muscadet or Pastis but having a good idea of what was to come, I declined both. Neels, however, has long wanted to try out the drink that everyone sits and sips in the cafes, in summer, so he chose some Pastis and, I think, enjoyed it but admitted that it was probably an acquired taste. The tables were liberally supplied with red wine and water, which were replaced as soon as they emptied, so there was no real need for an aperitif. The first course, of nine, soon appeared. I should have mentioned that each person had in front of them a plate (like a soup plate), a knife, fork and spoon and a small tumbler. Baguettes were placed on the table at intervals and people cut chunks off them and passed them around. The ‘waiters’ were quite young members of the community – ours was a delightful little fellow who couldn’t have been more than twelve. He came around with a big bowl of what they call ‘garbure’. I couldn’t find the word in any of the dictionaries we have here, but it is a thick, peasant soup made of duck pieces, cabbage and other vegetables. I feel it may have been a bit overcooked as there was very little ‘soup’ and a great deal of the rest, but it was tasty, and certainly different. Second course was a slice of wild boar pate, which was delicious and required more bread to be brought to the tables. Oh yes, and if you didn’t manage to finish your first course you were in trouble as your one plate lasts for the whole meal. You are allowed to clean your plate with a chunk of bread! After the pate, we had two courses of stew – one made with deer venison and the other of wild boar. This was followed by two courses of barbecued meat –again one of deer and the other of boar – then finally a slice of roast boar served with what I can only describe as baked beans without the tomato sauce. This was the first sign of a vegetable we had seen and we were all feeling quite ‘proteined out’, and looking forward to the second last item on the menu – salad! I had visions of fresh lettuce with tomatoes as we are accustomed to, but it was not to be. The salad was chopped endive, but its saving grace was the dressing which was tangy and delicious.
Finally, and three hours later, the plates and cutlery were removed, with the remains of the bread and each person got a large tartlette – flaky pastry with an apple and apricot filling. After that there was white dessert wine for those who could manage it and then our multi-purpose glasses were filled for the last time, with coffee. Having all congregated at about 12.30, we finally rolled out of the hall at close to 6 pm, very full and mildly tipsy! I think next week may well be a meatless week.