Sunday lunch with the ladies...

Cally was kind enough to invite Pauline and me with friends to join her for her birthday celebration yesterday along with Michael Rose and Ada - we all had a lovely time...especially Ada!

Edinburgh to Barrou via Bordeaux - Ada has arrived

Loss of a great statesman...

Joined French friends for lunch in Barrou yesterday who expressed a fondness for former Predident Jacques Chirac - a man who has been described the 'consummate politician' where are they now, these great men?

Something for the weekend - brocantes Sunday 29th September

Brocantes / vide greniers Sunday 29th  September

* Up to 50 stalls ** 50 to 100 stalls *** 100 to 200 stalls ****More than 200 stalls    ? Unknown

Chedigny  Brocante *****

Joue-les-Tours  Brocante ***** (Super U)

Villeperdue  Vide-greniers **

Something for the weekend - Château et Jardins de Villandry : Les Journées du Potager 2019

This weekend Château et Jardins de Villandry holds its annual 'Journées du Potager' - more on their website here

The sky at night...

Last night's sky over La Guerche

Last nights sky over La Guerche

Take me home down Country roads...

After lunch last Wednesday near Chargé we spotted this car in the carpark of the restaurant...all the way from Virginia USA.

We speculated as to why it was here...wasn't a particularly 'special' car so the expense of bringing it across the Atlantic would not seemed viable. The conclusion we reached was that it perhaps had been driven from a USA military base in Germany where it had been shipped but then we asked surely they don't send everyone's car over?

Having a good time...

Can't help but smile every time we approach this sign on the road up from the Loire river towards the back entrance to the garden festival at Chaumont-sur-Loire...as I did last Wednesday on our second visit of the year.

Concert du Trio Barocca

Now, that's another post title that I never thought I'd use! Went along to listen to the trio "Musica Barocca" courtesy of Comité des Fêtes Pressignois last night at the salle des fetes in Le Grand-Pressigny. The ladies presented a program mixing baroque music and classic texts: Vivaldi, Monteverdi, Purcell, Haendel, and also Shakespeare, Catullus and Racine, though in truth it was all a bit over our heads, although an interesting experience! As I have often said here, expect the unexpected when in Southern Touraine!

Entrée to make you smile...

This is how the entrée was presented at yesterday's lunch at  'Les Tilleuls' in Barrou - made me smile - it's the type of childlike thing I'd do!

Something for the weekend - Journees du Patrimoine 2019 - Free chateaux visits

This weekend, you have free visits to some of the main chateaux plus so much more - heritage sites throughout the Loire Valley open their doors and share their history with you, some free to enter,others at a reduced rate. More info. here

Special birthday!

Delighted to join our friend Maureen to help celebrate her 'special' birthday yesterday.

A return to the garden festival...September 2019

Made our second visit to the International Garden at Chaumont-sur-Loire on what was another lovely September afternoon.

We decided to check out more of the artwork this visit as we had missed out on most of this on our last visit. Will post more on this later.You can take a walk with us through our earlier visit to the festival here

Wot we bot - not a lot!

Bought this mirror at Sunday's brocante - seemed to fit in with the deprivation that is our rear courtyard here at La Guerche. 

Sunday's brocante, a visit to the market and a walk in the park...

On Sunday we popped over to the morning market at Descartes before strolling through the gardens, which as ever are a credit to the local gardeners to the small brocante around the (now closed) aquapark. 

Why in Ligueil?

Before we attended 'Les Percufolies' event in Ligueil on Sunday I had wondered why the event was being held there. Our friend Pauline had let me know that Ligueil is the home of 'Bergerault', now an international brand of percussion instruments - vibraphones, marimbas etc. - who would have known?  It was in the town that Albert Bergerault a musician and inventor set up a small factory in 1932 making xylaphones and other musical instruments. The website for the event gives a potted history of the man here.

In 1973 he invented a large musical ensemble that worked from an accordion. After his death in 1989, his son Jean and his daughter Colette Fergeau kept the memory of their father going through demonstrations of this musical ensemble.

Now we know...beating a drum for Ligueil

Last night we went along to the big free event over at Ligueil, 'Les Percufolies' to check out what it was all about. We had made mistakes on previous years by visiting during the day...it is certainly an evening thing.

When we first arrived we went to the stage set up by the church where we were met by the sound of  'tablao flamenco' backed by a bit of Fado...not my favourite - did you know this a UNSECO World Heritage 'intangible art form'?.

There were a number of venues throughout the town -  we stopped for a few minutes to check out 'Permis de Quizzer' with their 'rimba tubes' (instruments built from PVC tubes) where they were making you guess movie music, a bit over our heads but fun for the French audience and participants. 

From there we made our way to the other big stage set up by the mairie where 'Bata Brinca'  (from Brouges) were giving us an energetic taste of Brazil (it's all about the B's) Below is a small sample of what they were about...

They were followed by Natascha Rogers on the main stage with some 'world jazz music', a unique sound rooted in afro-american, afro-cuban music.

A small snippet of her performance below...

Then it was back round to the stage by the church to catch 'Lo Barrut' a group who use their voices and some percussion to offer what I can only describe as 'chanting'...different!

We came away thinking that this must take a lot of organising and that it was very well set up to provide an excellent setting and ambiance...the music, well that is all a question of taste!

Brocantes / vide greniers Sunday 15th September

Brocantes / vide greniers Sunday 15^th September

* Up to 50 stalls ** 50 to 100 stalls *** 100 to 200 stalls ****More than 200 stalls    ? Unknown

  

ANGLES SUR L'ANGLIN  Brocante Vide-greniers **

CHINON  Brocante Mensuelle **

CORMERY  Brocante & Vide-grenier *****

DESCARTES  Vide Grenier ***

MONTLOUIS SUR LOIRE  Vide Grenier ***

  

SAINT FLOVIER  Brocante & Vide Greniers **

VOUVRAY  Brocante de Vouvray ***

From Barrou and back...

Yesterday's walk with our walking club had us setting off from Barrou along (or should I say up and down) the Creuse Valley.

We started by climbing uphill behind the village on a route that was very familiar to Pauline and me.

It takes you along the valley with great views over the village.

 

Our illustrious leader,as ever, managed to take us along some tracks even we hadn't been on. One which led us us passed  this charming house in a little hameau just up behind Barrou (La Grande Village) which we had not visited as to us it was a dead end. 

After that we headed up past a friend's house which was handy as we managed to refill our water bottles - thanks John & Maureen!

On our way we came across this farmer working away. He was chopping the heads of the sad looking sunflowers to extract the seeds. What an end for these beautiful flowers! 

 This was the view towards the small hamlet of 'La Coue' a place we visited back in  2016 during Patrimoine weekend and a local history tour.

There were rare and welcome, spells of respite from the very hot September sun.

Are we nearly there yet?

A last look along the valley before heading back to the village for a welcome refreshment!