Car Boot Sale.....

......Breton style !

 

 

 

.......... saucisse frites anyone ?                                                              

                                            

 

........one man's junk is another's treasure                                                                                                                                        

                                         

.....glad I didn't have to clean all this

....hard  to resist, but do I really need more than 4 sewing machines ?

Vide Greniers are good fun and there is always a bargain to be found !  I had to fight hard against buying the little electric Singer, from the mid 1950s and complete with the original instruction book, spare bobbins & feet, at 20 euros it was certainly a bargain - I just hope it found a good home .

Have I mentioned we're in the middle of a heat wave ?

 Average temperatures over the last 2-3 weeks have been 34C with highs of 39C!  Not that I am really complaining , but I can't help but wonder what happened to Spring  this year as we seem to have missed it somewhere along the line .

 

I started.....

...so I'll finish the visit to Les Jardins du Botrains with a couple of photos of the lake

Where  we found this very clever trompe l'oeil

and a garden bench with a difference !

Further on a thriving potager

 and what about this for a greenhouse?

We had a lovely time wandering around these beautiful gardens, and even though the photos don't really do them justice, I hope you've enjoyed the visit
too !
                                        

A Bientot !

'Super'market !

Who says supermarkets are boring?  Well, not my local one and if you don't believe me, lets go shop !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rj3LLZO4TLw

   

le Quartorze Juillet

Difficult Times

Most people will know that here in France we are experiencing a period of some turmoil over reforms to the Pensions Act.  Sadly it has been a bad week for the country as a whole, but even sadder is the total disruption to many ordinary lives caused by blocking the supply of  motor fuels.

We, like many others,  live in a small hamlet several miles from any kind of shops,there is no public transport and we depend totally on our car for shopping,the post office, visits to the doctor and so on.  This doesn't mean that we drive every day but our car is not just a luxury.

Out of the 10 families that live in the hamlet we are the 'youngest' and saying that is stretching the  imagination somewhat.  We chose to live 'rural' and fortunately both DH and I are able to drive.  Most of the villiage is not  in this situation.  They have lived here all their adult lives; they are elderly; most are unable to drive and  we have two widowed ladies here also. 

Their children have grown up and moved away to find work. As they don't drive, they depend on their children visiting or mobile shops for their day to day needs - they also depend on the doctor calling or the nurse dropping in to check on them  All these facilities are about to come to a halt as there is no fuel  in our area, all pumps are dry.

As neighbours we do the best we can to help and keep a weather eye on them, but like most of the elderly  I have come across, they cherish their independence and sometimes feel that they are putting on you.

I have no strong political opinions and I don't pretend to understand the rights or wrongs of this current situation, but I do wonder how many other hamlets there are like ours facing the same problems - which at the moment look to go on for some time. I do think however that perhaps it is time to consider those who are already pensioners living in rural areas , and put a stop to  more of this.

Quatorze Juillet

                                                               

Spanish Experience

At long last, five minutes to sit down and show you some of the photos taken on our trip to Spain, but I suppose better late than never!

Our journey took us down  French Atlantic coast as far as Bordeaux , a beautiful city which deserves its World Heritage site status and which is also the centre of one of France's main wine  producing areas.  Strange to think that if you go back in history this area one was part of the British Isles (together with Brittany itself!).  A quick dash inland towards Toulouse and a  glimpse of the walled city of Carcassone   put us well on our way to the Mediterranean coastal highway.

Our overnight stop was at Coulioure , a very pretty town practically on the Spanish border and one we visited a couple of years ago. Unfortunately by this time the light wasn't too grand and the photos area bit dark

See the fortress on the hill top ?

    

We were luck enough to stay at the  Madeloc Hotel as we did on our last visit, and this was the view from our balcony - not the sea unfortunately, but a lovely jumble of rooftops caught in the early  morning sunlight ( just pretend the wires aren't there!!)

A quick breakfast then off to the border and into the land of olive trees and orange groves....

.......dried hams....

............ colourful rugs.....

....not to mention churches!

I don't usually take photos inside churches, but in this little one  I  was practically ordered to do so by the caretaker!  He was obviously very proud of it and quite rightly so,  and so's not to cause any offence, I took his photo too!

As this is turning into a picture heavy, long post,  perhaps I should stop now and  come back another day with the rest of the photos - oh yes! there are lots more :-)

Normal Service Resumed!

Well, the holiday is over and as usual the washing machine is now cowering in the corner after working non stop for what seems like forever!! That part of coming home is bad enough but - Oh My!! Who's going to iron it all :-)

Our leisurely wander up through France to Pays de Calais was somewhat shorter than planned thanks to our two little orphans (both doing well and I have visiting rights to them until they find new homes !) but very pleasant just the same. The weather was very kind to us and we were able to do lots of sightseeing and walking, especially on the lovely long beaches of Normandie , Picardie and in particular the Baie de Somme . It was quite surprising to see how lovely the Somme was, as like many others I am only aware of the area's history during WWI and it was hard to imagine the lovely countryside as the sea of mud associated with one of the most horrific battles of the Great War.

Cap Gris- Nez , famous for being the 'grounding' place for cross Channel swimmers, and it's sister Cap Blanc-Nez were worth the visit, albeit a very quick one, as we made our way to Calais to catch a ferry across to Dover, with it's white cliffs



and a short stay in Kent - but more about this in another post!

Just before we left, I was very relieved to hear that my Friendship Bag Swap had arrived safely at it's new home!!I can tell you that panic mode was beginning to set in as it took over 3 weeks for the package to arrive in Norway, but all ended well and I think Grethe was reasonably please with her parcel! I forgot to take photos before I sent it off so I 'borrowed' this one from Grethe's Blog, hope she doesn't mind !!




Unfortunately it seems as though the bar of chocolate didn't make it to the photo shot!!!!

The fog has lifted, and the sun is shinning again so I'm off to take a 'quiltie' photo to enter in Amy's Autumn Blogger's Quilt Festival - have you entered yours yet ??????

Le Quatorze Juillet.....

......or Bastille Day .........or Fete Nationale , no matter which name you use, today is a very special day in French history !

Every city, town & village will be holding their own celebrations throughout the day, from the official ceremonial parades in Paris to letting off a few fireworks in the smaller villages!

Our local celebrations consist of a parade through the town at midday, followed by friends & families gathering for a loonngg lunch, then a little siesta (!) before setting out to the village hall for the 'Bal Populaire' this evening !

After a couple of hours of energetic dancing, ranging from traditional folk dances to disco gyrations, enjoyed by everyone from 8 - 80, we'll all pour out onto the sports ground to watch the superb fireworks display put on by the local 'Pompiers' (Fire Brigade). Each year the display gets more ambitious and is thoroughly enjoyed & appreciated judging by all the 'Oooh's and Aaah's' that ripple through the audience ... and so ends a lovely day !


BONNE FETE !!

Stop Press!

After having such a great time looking at all the wonderful quilts being shown by so many talented quilterson the Bloggers First Annual Quilt Festival, on Friday I am going to my first real live show in France !

Pour l'Amour du Fil is a new venture for Quiltmania magazine and their first show is taking place just 2 hours away in Nantes - now how could I not go !!

I am sure that the quilts will be no better than those I've seen at the Bloggers Festival - have you had a look yet, if not you're missing a big treat - but I am looking forward to all those lovely goodies that (hopefully!) will be on sale!

Quilting Quandary Resolved!

Back in May last year, I wrote about a new project on this post. This is definitely the biggest headache I have every given myself when it comes to being over confident with my 'I can do that' attitude and it is fair to say that working on it has been a total love/hate affair!


I have absolutely hated every singly thing that went wrong, and there have been a few believe me! I hate myself for all the tantrums when things did go wrong! I hate all the times I've taken the project box down off the shelf, given it one look then put it back again for several more weeks, because it was the easiest thing to do! I hate the nagging thought at the back of my mind all these months that it would never be finished!


I love the way that each border eventually (!) added changed the look of the quilt. I love all the colours that blended together without having to give any really thought to their placement. I love the feeling each time I manage to get something right ! Most of all I really love the fact that I've made it to the finishing line !!!!!







Two photos, one inside, one out, neither of them do the colours justice, but our sunny weather has deserted us today and this is the best I can do!


The sailing date for our trip to the UK is very close now, William goes off to the cattery early Wednesday morning, then its into the motor and drive up to the Caen /Ouistreham ferry port on the Normandy coast. Caen , the burial place of William the Conqueror , is also minutes from the famous WWII Pegasus Bridge , and central to the Allied landing beaches ,War Grave Cemeteries & Memorials . An overnight crossing, into Portsmouth at 6 am (!) Thursday ready to face the second leg of our journey- the drive up to Manchester!

Didn't We Have A Lovely Day!

We had the nicest day for months last Friday, by mid morning there was a cloudless blue sky and it was surprisingly mild ! In the time we've lived here, we have found February to be a very grey and quite often wet month, so this was a bonus not to be wasted!!



Our destination was somewhere new to us, St Briac sur Mer on the North Brittany coast just around the coastline from its better known neighbours of Dinard and St Malo - and it is a little gem!!


After a pleasant lunch of 'moules & frites' and a glass of vin blanc at a cafe just off the marina , we set off up the hill towards the local Golf Club. I have to say at this point that I thought there was something just a little strange about the cafe owner as he insisted on speaking a 'form' of Italian in a strong French accent ! Now I know my French pronunciation leaves a little to be desired , but no way can I be taken for an Italian!!! He must have been having a bit of fun with us I think, as he signed our bill 'Paid with Thanks' in English when we left !


Up between the links...






....and over the brow of a small hill, this is what was waiting for us !






and this was just the start of it!



Following the footpath around the coast (I think it was a section of the GR34 , part of the huge network of footpaths that criss cross the whole of France!) we came upon cove





..after cove...














... rocky and sandy beaches...
















...and yet another item for the shopping list when I win the EuroMillions!

........the ultimate house with a view - now where will I have my sewing room ?????







Before we knew where we were we had been walking for over 1 1/2 hours and were miles from the car park so it was sore feet all round by the time we made it back - but well worth the effort for such a wonderful unexpected day!

I know it sounds utterly selfish, but it is a delight to be able to visit these smaller seaside towns before the 'summer visitors' arrive - there'll be no empty beaches then I can assure you !!!


Tomorrow's forecast is also promising another nice day, and if it happens, we will be off North again, this time to explore a little further around the coast at St-Cast-le Guildo which promises to be another jewel in Brittany's crown !!!

Presidents' Residences !

As there has been lots of 'Presidential' talk over the last few weeks, and in case you need something to do this afternoon (!) I thought you might like to pop over to Paris and take a vitual tour of one of the French Presidential buildings - Le Palais de L'Elysee !

Once each photo has uploaded, just left click, hold down and move the mouse SLOWLY around the mat! I say slowly as otherwise you may become a little disorientated - and don't ask how I know that :-) You can also zoom into any feature by using the 'wheel ' on your mouse.

It really is worth a visit !!!!