The things we do for Christmas

a little difficult to photograph lights that are 'dashing'  across the street

So, the mairie turned on the Christmas street lighting and we felt we should do our little bit to bring cheer to our street.

the only tree in the street gets attention

It's not all that common for the french to decorate the outside of their houses for christmas , so we started with a few poinsettias and a wreath on the door and then added a few simple lights.

Our french neighbour decided that he wouldn’t be outdone by the australians across the street and strung some tasteful twinkling lights across his windows – very pretty.

very tasteful at french neighbour's

We added  lights to our upstairs windows …. just something subtle.

"not too much"  we thought

 This evening , neighbour was up a ladder trying to place a full sized Christmas tree, complete with lights, above his door. Graham decided that it was time to be neighbourly and helped out, especially as it was raining and dark out there.

being neighbourly

The result ….  we are the only two houses in the street with decorations but at least we feel ‘in the festive mood’ though we have no intention of moving into the class of the Griswolds.  We are celebrating with lunch at our neighbour’s house tomorrow.

neighbour's house looking pretty festive

*** apologies for the quality of the photos, but it's cold, dark and rainy out there....

Joyeux Noêl tout le monde

Down on Le Lot

We went off to visit some australian friends who are currently living beside the Lot river in southwest France, not too far from us.  The Lot starts in the Lozére region in the  Parc National des Cevennes north of Montpelier and winds it’s way slowly west across southern France until it joins the Garonne between Agen and Marmande - 480 kms away.  

the house is a converted barn

all the usual - potted geraniums, blue shutters and bicycles

At Castelmoron-sur-Lot, where we stayed, it is wide and calm and deep enough for boats to putter about. There are heavy mists on these french rivers, but after they lift the skies are a wonderful shade of blue for the rest of the shorter days.

mist rising as the morning wears on
- and it was just a bit chilly on the boat

"our" jetty

the local chateau

the village of Fongrave, 

the Club Nautique opposite - lots of rowing and sailing and fishing from here

Across the river is the little village of Le Temple-sur-Lot, so named as it was a Templar settlement. The Commanderie was built at the end of the twelfth century and includes multiple towers and a chapel. It was burned down during the Hundred Year’s War and later rebuilt. Part of it is now a restaurant , naturally.

La Commanderie de Brulhes - in summer,
the area in front is a series of fountains

"guard" dog - too friendly

one of the towers - love the local building style of red bricks 

watching over everything

beautiful ironwork

red bricks and autumn coloured leaves

how to scare off those pesky unwanted visitors

We visited the hilltop medieval village of Puy L’Évéque for lunch. We had planned to eat at the local hotel where the dining room overlooks the valley and river Lot below. The views are magnificent, but the restaurant was closed for the winter so we resorted to eating at the bistro. Good food and friendly service, just no view. We decided that we must all return in spring.

We spent the late afternoon playing petanque in the garden - with varied results.

champion throw !

those balls are heavy

serious discussion is compulsory

the day always finishes with a great dinner, good local wines
and the world being put to rights in front of a roaring fire

This is a beautiful part of the country ( where isn’t ?) and well worth making the effort to visit.

sunset over the river

à bientôt

Autumn on the Dordogne

chilly mornings

Autumn is here and it feels like winter isn't far away.The temperature is dropping quickly these days. Two weeks ago it reached 20 degrees in the afternoon, now it’s 12. The mornings are frosty, the leaves are turning red and gold and then dropping en masse. Everyday there is someone nearby pollarding a tree and today the commune workers were up on their cherrypicker hanging the Christmas lights in the streets. Can the Christmas markets be far behind ? 

Just sharing some of the seasonal sights with you ....

Pessac-sur-Dordogne from the terrace of
the Belvedere restaurant

house in Sarlat

chateau at Port Ste Foy

Port Ste Foy

and Ste Foy la Grande in the autumn sunshine

pebble riverbed and river grasses - an unusual view of the river

Cooking lots of soups and casseroles and baking now in the mornings, and raking leaves and pruning when the afternoons warm up a little. Looking forward to putting up our christmas decorations soon and making that christmas cake. What about you ?

en pensant à toi mes amis

As Audrey Hepburn said , “Paris is always a good idea”

barges moored on the Seine

Our passports needed renewing so a little break in Paris was required. C’est la vie.

Since the Australian embassy is in the 15^th arrondisement ( near the Eiffel Tower), we decided to stay nearby. We haven’t been to this part of Paris before, so it was an opportunity to explore. The area is mostly residential and there are some very attractive apartment buildings and lots of good shops around rue du Commerce.

not as distracting as one would think

view from our window - the tower disappearing into the fog

Loved our hotel. Not only did we sleep beneath a canopy picture of the Eiffel Tower, we could also see it from our window. The hotel has been newly refurbished and is very fresh and cheerful and quiet. The staff were so friendly they even gave us an upgrade. The tower did totally disappear in the fog one morning though. 

www.hotelgustave.com/en

can't miss the Australian Embassy

Passport interview took all of ten minutes and then we were off to the Grand Palais to see the Gauguin exhibition. Unfortunately, the building exterior is being refurbished so a bit of a building site, and the queue for the exhibition was 1 ½ hours, so we gave that up as a bad idea. Instead went across the street to the Petit Palais and their permanent collection including classical greek pieces and art of the middle ages, dutch masters and art nouveau furniture – quite eclectic.

Grand Palais, and the statues on the Pont Alexander always glow
no matter the weather

a Seine water nymph

Then off to another place we have always missed visiting, the Centre Pompidou. Loved the Derain exhibition as I didn’t know much about his work, but we weren’t impressed with the permanent exhibition of modern works or the way that much of the work was displayed.

there's always a park in Paris

A short walk from our hotel, we discovered a wonderful authentic french bistro for dinner. It is over three mezzanine levels and decorated in a style that  we all expect here. 

Lots of vintage french marketing posters and old mirrors beneath a glass domed roof. The food is simple, typical french dishes served by friendly waiters. Ours recommended to me the rhum baba for dessert as a specialty of the house. Not only did he sprinkle the baba with rum at the table, but he also left the bottle behind so that I could help myself  – as if it needed more ! The clientele was mostly couples and there was that hum of happy customers enjoying the experience .  Highly recommended.

www.lecafeducommerce.com

at the local shops, you can buy cheese.....

or a harp.....

On the last day we had brunch at an australian café. Matthew from Wollongong and his french partner, Tim, serve good coffee ( surprisingly hard to get in France) and avocado, poached egg and bacon on toasted bread (tartine). They even have vegemite and make fresh scones !

www.ocoffeeshop.com

A little shoe shopping was also included so a good break all round  and another part of Paris ticked off our list.

I do love the colours and style of Paris doors

Can also recommend the newly upgraded TGV service (Train à Grande Vitesse)  between Paris and Bordeaux. Two hours and eight minutes city centre to city centre (584 kms). Such a shame that successive australian governments can’t get their act together and build this from Brisbane to Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne, at least.

Back home to raking and bagging all those leaves that are now falling. Next week's highlight, a trip to the dechetterie. Ah, well.

Bon week-end mes amis