Marché Médiéval; Chinon

As a setting for a Marché Médiéval you can't get much better than Chinon. And yesterday the town hosted just such an event.

We went along in the afternoon and immediately realised it was very popular indeed - so popular that parking was well nigh impossible.

After a trek from the outskirts we came to the town centre where there were stalls featuring traditional trades including a blacksmith, a demonstration of glass-blowing and clog making. There were also period games and  dressing-up Medieval style for the children. (I'm not clear where the face painting features in Medieval life but it was well supported nevertheless!)

 

 

Old rubbed shoulders with new and even the narrowest of streets were full of stalls.....

 

It seemed everyone had made an effort: even many of the visitors to the Marché had entered into the spirit of things...

Chinon was transformed for the day into a bustling Medieval town. It was a colourful, vibrant and a wonderful afternoon out for us.

La nocturne gourmande du Cardinal

Richelieu hosted La nocturne gourmande du Cardinal yesterday evening in the square. We went along to take a look just after the start and tables were already set out for diners later in the evening.

 As always with these events, the preparation was thorough..

 

Music was provided by MEL1 - MELODIES, a most unusual contraption but very effective in the setting.

 

Around the square were stalls selling a wide range of local produce and gourmet dishes prepared on the stalls.

 

 

The stall which particularly caught my eye was Macaronniere D'Autrefois, with its sign declaring "Sans Gluten". What a star! 

 This was one stall at which I could enjoy a tasting; and enjoy I did!!

Apple Harvest

This week we have been reaping the fruits of our labours... literally!

The plum tree, which was on its side in a sorry state when we arrived, yealded a surprising two pounds plus of fruit.
Back in October it took the might of the winch to right it:

We picked fourteen pounds of pears from one of the three pear trees and today, thirty three pounds of  apples from one of three apple trees.

The sad thing is that in both cases you can't tell we've even started on the trees.

Anyone know of any good apple and pear recipes??

Phare des Balèines, l'Île de Ré

One of the highlights of our trip to the coast last week was a visit to the Phare des Balèines at the northern tip of l'Île de Ré.

The lighthouse was built in 1849 is 57 metres high and access to the top is by a spiral staircase of 257 steps..... and there was a long queue!

We decided to forgo the climb and instead take a walk on the wild side... round the Écluses de l'Île de Ré, a fishing area surrounded by stone walls, dating back to the Middle Ages.

The walls were built without any concrete and yet have survived the ravages of tide and time. We experienced a little of these 'ravages' as we walked the kilometre or so round the wall with the tide advancing...

 

 

Even the beach had it's idiosyncracies...

In one area children had used smaller pebbles to spell out their names on the shore. I wonder how many of these cairns survive the winter storms??
It was certainly a fascinating place and one to recommend.

Magic Roundabout 3

This weeks featured roundabout is located just outside Châtellerault at the crossroads of the D38 the route to Targé and the D161 the route to Chevalerie. It is part of the Châtellerault ring road.  We travel on this road on our trips to Limoges Airport. It is the "rond-point des Vignes de Targé "

It is a very rural location so I would not expect to see anything other than a plain roundabout perhaps with a few wild flowers. However this is France and as can be seen from the photographs it is a small domaine ( Domaine des Roundabout!!!). It has the old machinery, two caves and even a small vineyard growing grapes.

I wonder what they actually do with the grapes?

A Tale of Two Tigers....

A Tale of Two Tigers.... or so we thought!

When we first spotted this handsome butterfly on the lavender we thought it was a Tiger Swallowtail but on further investigation we now think it's a Scarce Swallowtail....

 

 

And let's face it, when you're as attractive as this specimen (even with a damaged wing) who really cares what you're called!

And the other tiger? Well, we're sure of that one... It's  a Jersey Tiger moth which seems to have taken up residence in the garden.

 

The colour of the hind-wings is shown at its best when the moth is in flight. Its striped legs are something else!

This shot shows just how well adapted it is to flight.  Does aircraft design owe anything to the Jersey Tiger???

The Fireworks...

We mentioned yesterday that the Fete du bois de Temple was to end with a Feu d'Artifice, or firework display. What we didn't realise at the time was that the fireworks were to be set off from the field at the front of our house!

However, these men setting up the display in the late afternoon were a bit of a give-away....

So we were able to watch the pyrotechnics from the comfort of home..

The strange thing was it was so dark we had no idea that there were dozens of people lining the road in front of the house to watch the display. It wasn't until the fireworks finished and people clapped and cheered and suddenly car headlights came on and engines revved that we realised we were not alone...

Colin has never filmed a firework display before... the video below was taken 200 yards away from our front garden and gives a sense of the atmosphere!

It was a fitting end to a lovely day and we look forward to next year's Fete du bois du Temple