Blogs from Nîmes, Languedoc-Roussillon, France, Europe - page 3

January 1, 2011 Today Elian and Francoise picked us up to share a meal with Elian’s 87 year old mother and his sister Giselle who live in a small village in the mountains of the Cevennes. Elian’s family have lived in this village for hundreds of years. Half the village it seems are uncles, cousins, brothers etc. This place is unbelievable – I fell totally in love with it! The village is on one steep side of a long narrow valley. The steepness means that any farming has to be done on terraces; you can see that the terraces used to go almost to the top of the mountains. However, most of them have now been abandoned as people have moved away to the cities, and those few who do come back are not farmers. The ... read more

Yes, there is the wondrous, cultivated land, the tastefully and fashionably dressed women (and men), the ancient towns and their castles, the lingering old country life, the art, the presence everywhere of history. But what is France if not food? Is there anything more gratifying than walking briskly home from the boulangerie with a still-warm baguette under your arm? tearing it open and dropping yet another new variety of cheese onto it? sinking your teeth into this banquet, and washing it down with a delicious 2 Euro bottle of Cote du Rhone? Yes, sometimes there is. Yesterday we drove to Montpellier to spend Christmas Eve feast day (and overnight) with friends Elian and Francoise, who served us (as they called it with some chagrin) a “light” Christmas dinner. It went like this: Scotch Guacamole Olives stuffed ... read more

December 19th 2010 Here we are in Nimes, France. We have been here four days now (we were in Montpellier for two days with Paul’s friend Elian), and are still adjusting. The apartment that Elian’s family has loaned us is nice, has everything we need, except for a comfortable bed! The uncomfortable bed, combined with jet lag, plus the very cold weather we are experiencing, and the lack of internet, telephone or tv is making us second guess our decision to come to Europe in the Winter! However, we have explored the city several times and are delighted with the Roman ruins, the Jardin de Fontaine, some of the wonderful tiny backstreets, and especially the boulangeries – I’m sure to come home 10lbs heavier than when I left! The apartment is about a 15 minute walk ... read more

Blogday 11 Saturday 26th September The plan for the day was to visit the medieval Cité: the original Carcassonne. It’s a walled town on a hill overlooking the River Aude, while the modern town lies on the opposite bank of the river: laid out in a gridiron fashion that should make it easy to find one’s way around, which it is on foot; but not in a car because of the one-way system. We walked the mile to the Cité from our hotel in the new town along a pedestrians-only street, across the Aude over an ancient bridge and then up the hill to the Cité itself, another UNESCO World Heritage site. Hugely impressive on account of the excellent restoration work that was done in the late 19 Century by one Eugene Viollet-le-Duc, who inspired William ... read more

How the French do Brunch...or Rather...How We do Brunch The day was overcast but even with the threat of rain the town was bustling with activity. This past Sunday was a traditional fete! Not only was the market open with fresh cheeses, wines, olives, breads, flowers, and crafts but the villagers were out selling their personal goods. It is best described as a French garage sale yet it was collective and far more charming. Susana had told me of the celebration and invited me out with her and Robert while Atoussa prepared for a Sunday brunch for the rest of us, Paul and his group. It was to be a leisurely get together and reminded me of lazy Sundays in Richmond when friends would get up after a long night of drinking and go out for ... read more