Now, this one is a mystery. What on earth could be the signficance of this official bakery of Father Christmas in Blois? En voilà un mystère ! Que pourrait bien être la signification de cette boulangerie officielle du père-noël à Blois ?
Author Archives: avril
Christmas in France's Oldest Prison – Noël dans la plus vieille prison de France
Beauvoir Tower in Blois was originally a keep surrounded by a moat. In 1256 it was attached to the town’s fortifications and became a prison in the 14th century. Today, local crafts were being sold for Christmas. If you’re feeling adventurous, you can even sleep there! La tour Beauvoir à Blois est à l’origine un donjon entourée …
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Mulled Wine – Vin chaud
Manning a stand at the market is exhausting work at the best of times without when you have to put up with the cold in winter, a cup of mulled wine is a warming moment. Travailler sur le marché est épuisant même dans les circonstances les plus favorables mais quand il faut supporter le froid en hiver …
Christmas preparations – Préparations de noël
This week, we made our Christmas foie gras with friends (7 of us) using a recipe where the foie gras is kept in salt for 17 hours and doesn’t require cooking. You can find the recipe here. Cette semaine, avec des amis (on était sept) on a fait notre foie gras de noël avec une recette …
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The Big Cedar – Le grand cèdre
I took this photo on Sunday when we went to vote for the regional elections at the (now closed) school down the road. What a beautiful tree! J’ai pris cette photo dimanche lorsque nous sommes allés voter pour les conseillers régionaux à l’école (malheureusement fermée) dans notre rue. Quel bel arbre !
Hilltop Castle – Château perché
Before I describe the castle in the photo, I’d just like to say that I’ve been having scheduling problems with Loire Daily Photo recently. I’m hoping the problem has been solved. Founded by the Counts of Vendôme in the 9th century, the feudal castle at Lavardin in the Loir Valley about 20 K from Vendôme …
Frosty Morning – Gel du matin
The real frost has begun. A few leaves still cling to the hazelnut tree. Le vrai gel a commencé. Il reste encore quelques feuilles sur le noisetier.
Tea Time with Eric Saguez
Eric Saguez, a former pastry cook at the Ritz and Meilleur Ouvrier de France, opened his patisserie in Blois in 1994. The one on the right is called Oasis but Jean Michel can’t remember the one on the left! The title of Meilleur Ouvrier de France, which roughly means “best tradesman in France”, is awarded …
The Postie's Peg – La pince du facteur
We don’t exactly live in the country, but it’s still a good 15 minute walk to the government mail box to post a letter so we have an arrangement with our postman whereby we leave a peg on the box if we have a letter to post. He then uses his skeleton key to open the box …
A Surprise in the Garden – Une surprise dans notre jardin
Daffodils are not supposed to bloom in December! The first ones usually appear in February. I don’t know exactly what this means … Les jonquilles ne sont pas censées fleurir en décembre ! Les premières arrivent d’habitude en février. Je ne sais pas ce que leur présence veut dire …