Winter comes to St Chinian

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With Christmas over, it is Bonne Annee to all of you from St Chinian. Part of our desire to live for a time in one place, was to experience life as a citizen and not a tourist. The quiet winter months in Southern France provide the opportunity to find our what our French neighbors do while preparing for the influx of summer tourists.

First big news -- We had snow yesterday!! it's the first time ever that I haven't had to figure out how to get to work and get staff in. All that we had to do was enjoy the scenery. We got about 4" but that was enough to close all the village shops for the afternoon. In Britain, the salt machines are called "gritters". I don't think they have a name here because they don't have any gritters. We quickly learned that the shops that have a tile entry way are deadly.

We spent the day with a small fire, a good book and great wine. I looked out the window at the ancient houses across the river and wondered who else had that same view in older times. Or were they out in the fields all day until the light was gone? It's one of the musings I like best about being in Europe.

Now for some more about French Culture.... After Christmas comes Epiphany which signifies the arrival of the Wise men at the manger bringing gifts. In Languedoc, they celebrate by sharing a cake called "Gateau des Rois. It's a special kind of brioche with candied fruit and it is shaped like a giant ring doughnut. You can eat it plain or stuff it with Creme patisserie. YUM. Boulangeries used to sell only bread. Cakes and other pastries were only sold in patisseries. Nowadays most sell both.

So on January 6th, the boulangeries sell the gateaus, each with a small figurine inside. In the 60s, the figurines were plastic and mostly religious figurines. Later, they were made of china and became collectible. Some were even Disney characters.

At the family dinner, one child was selected to go under the dinner table and call out the names of the other children, one by one, to the adult cutting the cake. They waited for one child to shout "J'ai la Feve" which meant their slice contained the figurine. That child would be given a paper golden crown and declared King or Queen. At my Womens International Club, we observed this custom and guess who got the figurine? Your's truly! As if living in France isn't enough of a prize!

This is also Truffle time in Languedoc. You remember they are the black looking fungus things that pigs find in the forest. There are truffle markets from January to February. These things are rare and expensive. So in some markets, the crowd is held back from the stalls until a rifle shot is fired. Then pandemonium erupts as they rush forward to claim the prized truffles.

One of my new favorite French customs is "Les Soldes". These are sales days held across France with up to 90% discounts. They start on a Wednesday in early January and last for two weeks. In older times, shopkeepers used to offer special pricing or even free goods during these weeks. Sales are only permitted to take place, by law, in the summer and winter for two weeks. There are two extra weeks that shopkeepers can choose but they can't be attached to the Soldes weeks. The intention is to clear merchandise that has been in stock, so they aren't allowed to bring in extra stock. The sizes might be limited but the prices are insane! I found a pair of 90 euros shoes for 10 Euros. Of course, they didn't have my size.

I saw a sign in a shop window that I sure can't translate. Maybe you can. Or maybe it was just the frustrating of the weary salesclerks, who knows? I'll ask my French teacher at school tomorrow.

It's not all shopping however. New Years is the time to give. My friend told me that her grandmother used to give each child a coin after Christmas in a rather formal family ceremony. What a nice tradition. Now the postman goes to his houses with calendars and the neighbors give him his "donner la peice" or New Years gifts. Fireman and trashmen make the village rounds with calendars as well. So its a good idea to have some coins or small bills at the ready when the doorbell rings.

Bye from France!!

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Photos

Our courtyard in winter

Gateux des Rois

The St Chinian park

We need a translation

Too skinny for Gritters!

Do I look French?

Diehards at the Market

Memorial to the St Chinian Soldiers

Venobres River in Snow

Comments

[Angie]

Looking good
It looks beautiful there