A busy weekend...Sunday, Patrimoine,brocante and music.

Yesterday we headed out with Angela and Dennis in search of some visits for Patrimoine - with our first port of call being 'Domaine de la Boutelaye' where a friend had visited the day before and recommended it, only to discover it was in fact only open on the Saturday! Undeterred we continued on our day out and headed to Angles-sur-l'Anglin for their brocante plus to visit some nearby sites there.  

On the way there we passed through Coussay-les-Bois and noticed the the Eglise Saint-Martin was open to visit so popped in for a look. We were met the ladies of 'Les Amis de l'eglise Saint-Martin' who explained that the main church in the village 'Eglise Notre Dame'  was closed as it is currently unsafe and their association is helping to raise funds for its restoration.

The brocante was a little quieter than previous years but as we were supposed to be there for the walk it did not really matter.

There was the usual variety of 'stuff' on sale with this stall holder having items just in case you needed them.

This one was offering some bear legs.

As I said we were only there for the walk but couldn't resist these glasses (12) which were still in their display boxes for 6 euros the lot! Only problem was we had nothing to carry them in so asked the stall holder to hold them for us and we would pick them up later.

As luck would have it a stall near him had this shopping trolly at 5 euros so the problem was immediately solved! Angel and Dennis bought a few items including some paintings as they were searching for something to hang in some spare wall space they have. After finishing our walk we stopped in at cafe 'Le Bellevue' for a refreshment only to find we were wearing our cloaks of invisibility. After waiting a bit to long and seeing people who had arrive a bit later than us, we got up, thanked them for their lack of service and left. 

We were more fortunate at our next stop in Vic-sur-Gartempe where we had headed to take in another visit at Villa des Iles. We decided to have lunch at 'Ô Bouchon Vicquois' where we were told we would have a wee bit of time to wait as our host was chef as well as front of house. We decided to wait and were delighted with our lunch.

After lunch we walked down to the house, which we understood would be reopening in the afternoon, only to find the gates locked - another disappointment.We then decided to drive down and have a look at the 'La grotte de Notre Dame du Bedoué' just outside the village.

Apparently the grotto was made to save the parishioners of Bedoué the trip to Lourdes to pray to the Virgin Mary, a statue was installed  in this small cave in 1920. The cave remained a local pilgrimage site until 1965.  It is still maintained by the owner and decorated with flowers by visitors.

Next we headed to Château de la Brosse but unfortunately my sat-nav took us on a road that was only designed for tractors. So after a number ups and downs and a couple of knocks underneath the car we eventually arrived at the gates of the chateau but not surprisingly it was closed. I did manage a couple of photos from over there hedge. 

Although we had failed to fill our day with heritage visits, with good company and a good lunch we had a good day out.

To end a busy day we headed over to Celtiqua's final gig at the Lavoir in Preuilly-sur-Claise where they put on their usual good show with a bit of audience participation.

With two of our friends showing some good moves.

A busy weekend...Saturday, music and fireworks.

After a lovely lunch to celebrate a friends birthday in Le Grand-Pressigny I headed over to 'La Poterne' in Preuilly-sur-Claise to set up for a concert with Gerard on its terrace after setting up our equipment and audience chairs the bright afternoon sun was far to hot to play there so we had to reset ourselves up in the shade of the walls of the internal courtyard. Below is 'Only you' one of the songs from our set.

There was a good mix of friends and locals as an audience.

After the concert Pauline I joined friends Angela and Dennis to watch the fireworks down by the plan d'eau which accompanied by backing music proved pretty spectacular!

Sisters enjoying a musical evening in Mairé...

On Saturday evening we all headed over to the musical evening at Mairé where the village put on an night of music and Pizzas from their communal oven, all served up in a friendly atmosphere...good fun!

Fun with 'Mistiti' at Les Tilleuls...

Popped over with friends to hear 'Mistiti' at 'Les Tilleuls' in Barrou last night - she is a larger than life entertainer who has a number of artistic personas ranging 'classic French', 'Punk','Irish' and as last night's performance 'Rockabilly'.

She quickly got the audience on her side with her energy,song choices and costume change. 

As ever 'Les Tilleuls' created a lovely ambiance for the concert which had to finish before Mistiti could do an encore as we had our first real (very welcome) rain shower for months...did not dampen the enjoyment of the evening however.

Quinze août part II...

Yesterday, Angela and Dennis reinstated the 'Quinze août' festivities at their home in Mairé, albeit on a smaller scale than previous years. As ever they were very generous hosts and the food contributions from friends made for an excellent afternoon/evening of music, food and friendship.  

David and Geoff provided the music for the afternoon to an appreciative  audience consisting of English, Scots, Irish, Welsh and Americans - very international !

Franquette at 'Le Lavoir'.

Joined friends over at 'Le Lavoir' in Preuilly-sur-Claise last night for another set by the classy duo 'Franquette' good night in good company.

 

Last night at 'Le Halle café' in Boussay.

We headed over to 'Le Halle café' in Boussay last night to listen to the classy duo 'Franquette', they did not disappoint!

More music...

Last night Pauline and I headed over to the bar in Barrou to support the fund-raiser  for the "Note à note" Music School whose students put on a concert for us supported by some musical accompaniment by Polo. Chris and Gail had the same idea and cycled over from Le Grand-Pressigny so we were in good company for the evening.

I caught this sunset on the way back to La Guerche.

A night of music and fireworks...

 

Last night we had music over at 'Le Lavoir'  in Preuilly-sur-Claise with the ever popular Angie Palmer (and Paul) then headed over to Lesigny to catch the firework display to round off a local fete.

Spoiled for choice - musical Touraine.

Last night we had the option of going over to Le Grand-Pressigny to listen to our friends 'Celtiqua' at Brody’s plus check out 'Jérôme & Sylvain' an act we had not seen at Parce Que in Ciran. We decided to have the best of both worlds by going over to Ciran and taking in the first half of their act and then heading back to Le Grand-Pressigny to catch the second half there. As it happened there was no break at Ciran so we missed 'Celtiqua' but there will be more chances later in the year. We are so lucky here in Southern Touraine to be surrounded by so much musical talent.

Fun in Barrou...

 

Good fun and a full house for our gig last night at 'Les Tilleuls' in nearby Barrou. Many thanks to everyone who came along.

St. Patrick's Day celebration in Touraine.

 

Enjoyed last night's St. Patrick's Day celebration in the 'Prehisto Bar' in Le Grand-Pressigny. Good traditional music provided by David,Dave,Chris and  Geoff who kindly allowed me to contribute with a few songs...good fun.

Here is a wee thing I did for St. Patrick's Day:

 

 

Music and friends...

Another lovely evening on Saturday with our ever generous friends sharing their hospitality and French neighbours with us in an evening of good food, drink and music.

Friends and fireworks...

Another lovely evening last night (remember,remember) hosted by friends in Le Grand-Pressigny, excellent company, food and entertainment. I even had a lovely violin accompaniment for one of my efforts.

A night of musical enchantment...

Dear friends treated us to a candlelit musical concert in the Eglise Notre-Dame-La -Riche in Tours last night where we listened to *Candlelight's Tribute to Hans Zimmer, a lovely experience.

*Fever was founded in Madrid, Spain in 2014 by Ignacio Bachiller Ströhlein, along with co-founders Francisco Hein and Pep Gómez. The company operates as a data-driven entertainment discovery platform, helping users find and book local events and experiences, from immersive exhibitions and dining pop-ups to concerts and festivals.

One of Fever’s flagship creations is Candlelight Concerts, a global series of live classical and contemporary performances staged in atmospheric, candle-lit venues. These concerts have been a major driver of Fever’s growth, helping introduce younger audiences to classical and instrumental music in a modern, accessible way.

'The times they are a'changin'...

I am referencing the Dylan song for a particular reason, as we are currently feeling the winds of change. Last night was a lovely evening with friends listening to 'I Don't Know' giving their final performance after providing many years of entertainment around our region, a bitter sweet experience. This and our own decision to *return to Scotland feels like the end of a chapter, with all the mixed feelings that can bring. Watching a familiar place shift around you can really drive home how nothing stays the same for ever.

Back to the evening itself which proved a bit of a challenge for the restaurant owners as it was originally intended to be more of an outdoor event but the inclement weather put paid to that. They were forced to turn people away and shoehorn as many as possible inside. For our party of seven this meant a table too up, close and personal  to our friends in the band.

Jane, however, came up with the compromise of taking the tables outside and dining there with fingers crossed for the weather. This worked out fine and we moved back inside after eating. 

Then it was a case of slightly jostling for space to appreciate the band. 

Peter and I,and later Chris, took to the staircase with its great vantage point.

As I said a lovely evening though tinged with a little sadness.

* If you know anyone looking to move to this delightful part of France they can check out our house here: https://www.experienceloire.com/house-sale.htm