The Loire Valley and especially Blois
Today we went through Switzerland on our way to Austria. We stopped to get coffee en route and found ourselves in a shopping centre spanning the motorway. No one was wearing masks including the hairdresser but all the shops had hand sanitizer at the entrance. We had lunch outside on the edge of Lake Constance …
Continue reading “Postcard Summer 2020 #3 – Bregenz, Austria”
We are delighted to begin our holiday in this beautiful yet little known part of France, in southern Alsace, not far from Switzerland. It also has an impressive number of bike paths and is part of the Eurovelo 6 cycle route that crosses Europe from Saint Nazaire on the Atlantic coast of France to Constanta …
Continue reading “Postcard Summer 2020 #2 – Sundgau, Alsace”
First stage of our journey – a village called Suarce in the Jura mountains, one of the regions the hardest hit by Covid19. Our B&B hostess is surprised we are wearing masks – she isn’t – and the waitress at the restaurant in Strueth isn’t wearing one either. But we have an enjoyable ride and …
Every year the Denis Papin steps in Blois are redecorated. This year’s theme is water, the Loire and the Loire Valley’s 20th anniversary as a Unesco World Heritage site. The photos are marred by roadworks but I won’t have another chance to take another photo any time soon as we are leaving on holiday tomorrow. …
Continue reading “Stepping into the Loire – Les marches de la Loire”
Touraine-Mesland is the appellation controlée across the river from Chateau de Chaumont. The vineyards were planted by the monks of Marmoutier Abbey and were the first to introduce the gamay grape to the area in 1858. The purple grapes used in the area are gamay, cabernet franc et côt while the whites are chenin, sauvignon …
I love this ferny corner. I bought the red begonia on the left at the horticultural school’s annual sale and I’m amazed at how well it’s come back again. J’adore ce coin à fougères. J’ai acheté le bégonia sur la gauche à Hortibroc l’année dernière et je suis étonnée de voir qu’il a repoussé si …
One of the reasons we chose to move to Blois is the proximity of mushroom-filled forests open to the public but the weather in recent years has somewhat curtailed our foraging activities. After a rather wet week followed by sun Jean Michel thought we might find some near Chambord castle. The result was a little …
Continue reading “Mushrooms at Chambord – Champigons à Chambord”
These are random photos taken at the market today. It was stressful as social distancing seems to have disappeared. Ce sont des photos prises au hazard au marché aujourd’hui. C’était stressant puisque la distanciation semble avoir disparue.
We have been having unseasonable cool rainy weather and are very frustrated not to be able to eat in the garden in the evening. But tonight we were able to do so at last and were not even disturbed by next doors barking dogs. The owners have bought a camper van. Le temps en ce …
We measured the radius of this cedar in the grounds of Chateau de Chaumont and decided it was about twenty metres. You can see the size of the compared to the three people in the photo. Nous avons mesuré le rayon de ce cèdre dans le parc du château de Chaumont et l’estimons à une …