tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73593377125032831992024-03-14T05:19:09.525+01:00Halt, Salute and...What happens when an Ould Wagon moves from the South of Ireland to the South of France with horses, dogs and a Long Suffering Husband!Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.comBlogger166125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-86167786747686297212013-04-21T19:57:00.001+02:002013-04-21T19:57:31.444+02:00THE SKOOG FARM JOURNAL: Sunday Stills Challenge - Something Hot<a href="http://skoogfarm.blogspot.fr/2013/04/sunday-stills-challenge-something-hot.html">THE SKOOG FARM JOURNAL: Sunday Stills Challenge - Something Hot</a><br />
Lovely Hot photo!<br />
And I love "Hot Shots!!"Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-66470092406532698742013-03-15T23:22:00.000+01:002013-03-15T23:22:08.283+01:00We Have Moved...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Yes, you all know we have moved from Cork to Provençe, but now I've made the move from Blogger to Wordpress, too. I hope that Wordpress will allow me to better express the diversity of the blog - after all, I'm now regularly discussing dogs, horses, French food, Provençal tourist attractions and then there's Sunday Stills Photography challenges to fit in, too. Sigh.<br />
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Please please please follow me on over to Wordpress... and bear with me while I get the hang of it and set the page up the way I want it.<br />
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Right now, I'm at <a href="http://tailsfromprovence.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">http://tailsfromprovence.wordpress.com/</a> but within a couple of days, I should have tailsfromprovence.com set up to point there too.Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-53202164790360945262013-03-12T21:20:00.000+01:002013-03-12T21:20:58.807+01:00Spring? Please?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikTIrfvWNRrT_ppFl6JaD2nU5ULyoT7Rq5uCuSGPZ-4hK4s69L3cXS03wW4o0zhPd8A7vEFSsOZkMaOU3hAAKs0vIoZkJAEPNBnciy01KW9IDplYx07zJjzs6q_NOPAKh3UhL8EbMS6eC5/s1600/Slide1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikTIrfvWNRrT_ppFl6JaD2nU5ULyoT7Rq5uCuSGPZ-4hK4s69L3cXS03wW4o0zhPd8A7vEFSsOZkMaOU3hAAKs0vIoZkJAEPNBnciy01KW9IDplYx07zJjzs6q_NOPAKh3UhL8EbMS6eC5/s640/Slide1.jpg" width="280" /></a><br />
The rain has stopped, the snow is gone and the weather has warmed up! There are little flowers appearing everywhere. At the horse farm, there are wild crocuses all over the place. I didn't expect to see them, but there they are, springing up through the dead oak leaves, looking ever so pretty! Back home, we have mini-daffodils in bloom beside the garage door and real Irish crocuses flowering in pots. These were a farewell gift from a Cork friend - she bought a two sets of various bulbs, she has them growing in Cork and I have them growing in Provence. Hers are far, far ahead of mine, but I'll still enjoy mine when the whole pot as a-bloom!<br />
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But to more serious matters... did I live up to my promise and get my saggy butt into the saddle? Yes I did! I did a little work with Aero yesterday - I lunged him for about ten minutes and rode him in the arena for about twenty. He was a good boy, a little excited on the lunge but pretty sensible in the arena. Then today, the LSH decided to come out on a hack with me so in the late afternoon we headed up to the farm. It was sunny and warm - about 14C, I think. Both horses seemed happy at the prospect of a little work, although Flurry was once again coated in a layer of mud. When the LSH went to fit his front boots, though, he found another problem - the Cavallo sport boots were always a tight fit, and Flurry is now in need of a trim after several weeks on soft ground. There was no way the boots would go on, so we had to break out the rasp and give him an on-the-spot trim. We took his heels down a little (I think they could come down even more) and levelled off the walls. At that stage it was clear just how much toe we could round off - there was a thick layer of wall visible outside the white line. Cautiously, cautiously - we're amateurs, after all - we trimmed it back until his boots would fit. I plan on having another go at him tomorrow, to take the heels down and level off the sole another bit. I'm also looking at Aero's feet and going "Hmmm...I could do a little bit there, too... "<br />
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Finally, we were ready to go and we headed off, keeping to trails that would not be too muddy and treacherous. Both horses were definitely happy to be out and about again, as were their riders! <br /><br />
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C'mon Spring, we're waiting for you!<br />
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Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-43316499726580513682013-03-10T19:51:00.000+01:002013-03-10T19:55:13.769+01:00Mother's DayIt's Mother's Day on this side of the Atlantic. What a nice day I've had! It started with a Skype Breakfast in Bed with my daughters... they had set their Dad up to bring me breakfast in bed along with the iPad so they could Skype me - how sweet is that? After a lovely chat & lie-in, with hyper-terriers curled up beside me in non-hyper mode, it was time to haul myself out of bed...<br />
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It was a beautiful warm spring day and we decided to walk up to Reillanne market with the hyper-terriers. There are lots of teeny-tiny flowers starting to appear everywhere - I think we are going to have a very verdant spring here after all the rain we've had, it should make for some nice photos.<br />
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After lunch (potato and jalapeno soup YUM, my favourite!) we went up to see the horses and gave them both a good scrub for a photo shoot. Aero is moulting like mad, Flurry not so much, but it won't be long before he joins in as well. Sneak preview of the photo shoot :<br />
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You'll find out more about this during the week!<br />
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Cinnamon had a go at horse-riding. She had read the book and she knew that she should first introduce herself to the horse :<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">by the way this is NOT my gobsmacked face)</span></td></tr>
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Well, actually, it was more like Flurry saying :<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">HELLO! YOU'RE VERY SMALL! CAN I EAT YOU?</span></b><br />
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and yeah, she snapped at him right after this photo. He'll know not to try eating Small Brown Dog paw again...<br />
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Once I put her on his back, she was surprisingly not too petrified. <br />
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and I was even able to step away from her<br />
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I suspect if I was sitting on Flurry as well she'd be quite comfy, snuggled into me. I don't know that she'll ever match <a href="http://myshetland.co.uk/tag/be-anne-duvet/" target="_blank">Frances Taylor's BeAnneDuvet</a>, though!<br />
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After fun & games with the horses, we came home to find dinner had dried out, but fortunately it hadn't actually reached cremation point yet, so once I chucked a bit of hot water into it, it kind of reconstituted itself - duck cassoulet with lentils (and a glass of white wine..... ahhhh).<br />
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The weather has turned a corner and I reckon Spring is just a breath away. No more excuses, it's time to get my saggy butt back in the saddle. It WILL happen this week, and keep happening thereafter.<br />
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For those who have been waiting with bated breath (all two of you) here is The Gobsmacked Face :<br />
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Poor Aero thought I was going to assault him and ducked. Bless.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">(all photos in this post are courtesy of <a href="http://wideanglecafe.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">The LSH</a>)</span></div>
Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-28091079364200548262013-03-10T00:12:00.000+01:002013-03-10T00:12:10.843+01:00Sunday Stills - PotluckI've been missing from Sunday Stills for the past couple of weeks - life got ahead of me! This week, the theme is Potluck - whatever we want, so when we took a walk to see the floodwaters of the Calavon river, I took a few shots which I will share here.<br />
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First of all, here's one I took for "The Number Seven" a couple of weeks (eek actually four!) ago and didn't get around to posting. I was quite pleased with this...<br />
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...I just didn't have TIME to blog! (Get it? Get it??)<br />
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We've had three days of heavy rain since I came back from Ireland on Tuesday and the rivers and streams are all running at full spate. We walked to Le Saute du Moin to see the waterfall and sure enough it was a lot fuller than it was on our last visit (and a lot less frozen)<br />
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This is one of the tributaries that flow into the pool which feeds the waterfall. This was running pretty fast too, and I had to keep a close eye on Cinnamon to make sure she didn't decide to go swimming.</div>
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A much more peaceful point of view :<br />
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And finally, this is a ford across the Calavon at the North end of the Gorge d'Oppedette. Normally, there is just a trickle of water here and you can walk across it in ordinary shoes. Not today.<br />
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<br />Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-76406631275077007062013-03-09T13:06:00.002+01:002013-03-09T13:09:03.665+01:00Virtual Friends?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Part of the reason I started this blog was to keep in touch with family and friends back in Ireland, but a side-effect has been a whole pile of new on-line friends - there's all the gang at <a href="http://www.hay-net.co.uk/" target="_blank">Haynet</a> for starters, there's a load of Facebook friends, there's the folk at <a href="http://www.amatterofhorse.com/" target="_blank">A Matter of Horse</a> and then there's the twenty-five people who have taken the time to click the "follow" button here at blogspot.com. Some of you keep your thoughts to yourselves, but it's nice to know that you all enjoy reading of our adventures here in Provençe.<br />
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I've had the pleasure of meeting two "virtual friends" in the last couple of weeks. First of all there was <a href="http://www.sarainlepetitvillage.com/" target="_blank">Sara, from Le Petit Village</a>. Sara is a weeny bit younger than me (a year or two, y'know) but we have a lot in common - an Irish mother, dogs, rugby, Provence, and Barry's tea. Well, of course we hit it off. Cinny and Cookie took to her straight away, and then we went to visit the Boyz, who were appropriately attired in mud for the occasion. Sara didn't seem to mind the mud, or their extreme enthusiasm when being offered apples, so yeah, I think we'll be meeting again, if only to bemoan the Irish team's performance...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Máire & Ben</td></tr>
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Then there was <a href="http://poniesathome.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Máire, whose blog</a> I found when I was researching barefoot horses a year and a half ago. Well, it's a small, small world - it turns out that Máire lives literally a stones throw from my mother, so when I was in Ireland last week I called down to see her. We talked horse... and talked horse... and talked horse... and my poor mother was bored to distraction, I'm sure, but she kept smiling and nodding! It was so lovely to meet Máire, Ben and Cloud, and of course, the two-legged family members, and I think Máire enjoyed hearing about "how it used to be " by the lake!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cloud</td></tr>
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Who will be next to make the transformation from virtual friend to real friend? It looked like it would be <a href="http://cavaliereattitude.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Stella at Cavalier Attitude</a> - there was a plan to meet at Equisud in Montpelier on Sunday, but circumstances have conspired against both of us, so that plan was shelved, but I suspect we might manage to meet up during the summer. It now looks like the next virtual friend I will meet is <a href="http://www.la-fiaba.com/" target="_blank">Sharon from La Fiaba</a>. The LSH and I have booked in for a three day Transumanza at Easter and we are looking forward to meeting Sharon, Lorenzo and all their four-legged friends.<br />
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What's a Transumanza? Yeah, I didn't know what it was either.<br />
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I first came across the French word <i>Transhumance</i> last year when I bought a children's book to try and help myself and the LSH increase our vocabulary. The word was used to specifically refer to the droving of sheep from their summer pasture high in the Alps to their winter grazing in the low-lying valleys, so naturally enough I thought it was only used with reference to sheep. This year, though, I learned that it means a long-distance drove of sheep, cattle or horses and, within days of figuring that out, I came across the La Fiaba blog post announcing an <a href="http://la-fiaba.com/transumanza.html" target="_blank">Easter-time Transhumanza</a>, moving young horses from their winter home to their summer home. It turns out that we're only a six hour drive away from La Fiaba, the LSH is very enthusiastic about the whole concept and our dogs are welcome to come too.<br />
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So that's our plan for Easter weekend, what's anybody else up to?Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-86426305616104607022013-03-08T19:23:00.000+01:002013-03-08T19:29:55.254+01:00Thank Friday it's Lunchtime - Restaurant Carluc, Ceréste<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">This week's TFIL is a little different, in that we actually had our meal out on Thursday evening, not Friday lunchtime. The quality of the food won't change from morning to evening, we reasoned, although there won't be a Menu du Midi (lunchtime special) on offer.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">We ate in Carluc a couple of times last year and were never disappointed, so we had high hopes as we arrived at 7.30pm. The owner greeted us like old friends, and actually, it felt like something of a homecoming - it hadn't changed inside at all, there were some familiar dishes on the menu and best of all, our friends R & G joined us for dinner!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The LSH and I have the same taste in a lot of things (except he likes fish!) and we often opt for the same dish. This evening was no exception, and we both ordered the same starter, Croustillant de Chévre (goats cheese in filo pastry). In fact, the croustillant appealed to everyone at the table and we all ordered it!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">It was superb - goats cheese and mouth-watering semi-dried tomatoes wrapped in crisp filo pastry, with a crisp green salad on the side - an excellent start to our meal.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">G and I opted for the same main course, Cuisse de Pintade, a leg of guinea fowl. Guinea fowl has been a revelation and I buy it quite a lot in the supermarket here. To me, it's just like chicken used to be, in the good old days before they started pumping it full of liquid. The meat is more fibrous and less glaringly white than chicken, and although some people might find the flavour a little gamey, it just tastes extra-chickeny to me. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">It came with a little heap of risotto, a really good gravy-like sauce and seasonal vegetables on the side.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The LSH ordered Bouef aux Echalots, or beef with shallots. This is an old favourite on the Carluc menu, and it's always good. The beef is cooked to taste (French people are always surprised when we order our beef rare!) and served in a rich sauce.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">This was served with mashed potato and the same seasonal veggies. It was very, very tasty, but the beef was a little tough.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">R ordered spaghetti a la carbonara, I'm not sure why, I always thought he was a beef man myself! He ate it all anyway and said it was good!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">We finally moved on to dessert, where we encountered some more old favourites. Unfortunately, at this stage, the wine was flowing, the company was good and the food was good, so we forgot to take photographs of the food...</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The first old favourite was Pain Perdu - literally it means "lost bread" but "pain perdu" is French for stale bread. In the sense of dessert, it means bread pudding. It's quite different to English bread pudding, the bread is usually baked in slices and served with a caramel sauce, and, in the Carluc, topped off with cinnamon ice-cream. If you're ever in Carluc, order it! I promise you won't be disappointed! Then there was Tiramisu, tarte tatin (an upside down apple pie) and crème brûlée... all good!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Price wise, dinner is always going to be more expensive than lunch, but even at that, this meal came out at just over €21 per head - not bad at all for good food in a pleasant atmosphere. It's a very different place to the Saigon Wok which we visited last week, both offer different things, but I think I'd opt for Carluc any day I was given the choice.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Service : ✮</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">✮</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">✮</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">✮</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">✮</span></div>
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Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-34958081695169532292013-03-05T12:28:00.000+01:002013-03-05T16:17:13.268+01:00A trip down Memory LayneI'm visiting Ireland to see my mother and the YD. I hired a car at Shannon airport to go to Cork, and after I left it back, I went for a wander through Shannon town with my friend Elayne (<a href="http://haltsalute.blogspot.ie/2012/09/my-road-trip-with-martine.html" target="_blank">who has featured in this blog before</a>). We both grew up here and we had fun revisiting our old haunts, so I thought I would share our roots with you all.<br />
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This little sunken area is where we played when we were little. The community hall was on the patch of concrete in the background, but it was set on fire a couple of times and was demolished recently. When we were small, we used to play "The Billy Goats Gruff" on the bridge - somebody was picked to be the Troll and hid under the bridge and then leaped out and chased the Billy Goats when they tried to cross. Simple pleasures, simpler times.<br />
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My first home was in one of the blocks of flats in the background.<br />
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There used to be three swings here, strung between the concrete pillars. See the stone wall behind the pillars? That was VERY VERY high and jumping off it was a massive feat of bravery and sometimes resulted in a scabby knee.<br />
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The former home of the Shannon Lawn Tennis Club, where I spent many an unhappy hour perfecting the Fresh Air Shot. Nobody realised I needed glasses for years. I also wasn't particularly interested in tennis... nobody realised that, either.<br />
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There used to be a clubhouse on the far side of the courts, a green portacabin, but that's gone too.<br />
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The mighty Shannon estuary. I used to love walking or cycling down here or on one of the other "points," as we used to call these peninsulas which jut out into the river. That's County Limerick on the other side.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoT-KuDENCGsBoA3px8Wb7CXoTVahLNXSkhtEatgJyCB8DdyM8xHuK6llDfq6xV_ke3k0-fzYj7RkAl-SazG-aLZEu1xshQW874jL9fBfsQGt5QKqGZVDp6j5u1BRieICVkZpgxqqdMwAo/s1600/DSCN2908.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoT-KuDENCGsBoA3px8Wb7CXoTVahLNXSkhtEatgJyCB8DdyM8xHuK6llDfq6xV_ke3k0-fzYj7RkAl-SazG-aLZEu1xshQW874jL9fBfsQGt5QKqGZVDp6j5u1BRieICVkZpgxqqdMwAo/s640/DSCN2908.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Outside our first school :<br />
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We were very careful not to look like we were trying to photograph kids in case someone called the Guards!<br />
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This used to be the football pitch for the school. The boys played football or hurling while the girls did knitting and sewing. Different times, folks.<br />
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The church, which is straight across the road from the school. Where we all went every Sunday, no matter what. Did I say different times already?<br />
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This is me in front of my second home. My earliest memory is of playing on the street in front of this house, I was probably about two and a half or three years old.<br />
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One of the local hostelries. It was the only local hostelry initially, apart from the bar at the airport, two miles away. </div>
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Yeah, I know it looks a bit grim. The daffodils were nice though.<br />
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Shannon in the 1960s was a strange place, it was custom built to provide housing for the the brand new industrial estate which grew up beside the airport. My family was one of the earliest to move there. Everybody was a blow-in which made us all equal, although some people were more equal than others and lived in "posh" houses like this :<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimyKaiMTxmLehsUoLPMOTu00IYrcELdsT5l4ATONyPs0FMGDORuHWo0lpd7q-kNzHpd9YUjqdRq_FDLPUm8GFN-kuNpuOqfdC7eek3mNDTFP0Tc2T2ck948KCkOrdUqkqO7kNvN7yFaJLK/s1600/DSCN2928.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimyKaiMTxmLehsUoLPMOTu00IYrcELdsT5l4ATONyPs0FMGDORuHWo0lpd7q-kNzHpd9YUjqdRq_FDLPUm8GFN-kuNpuOqfdC7eek3mNDTFP0Tc2T2ck948KCkOrdUqkqO7kNvN7yFaJLK/s640/DSCN2928.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
This house is one of a row which is straight across from the blocks of flats in the first picture. We thought they were HUGE, but they look so small and ordinary, now. Initially, the flats and these houses were the only accommodation in Shannon, apart from some really grotty barrack-style hostels at the airport itself where my father lived initially. Elayne's family lived in "the flats" too - apparently they brought the population up to 302 when they arrived! Then the first stretch of "housing estates" was built, which was where I lived from the age of two to four, and after that the town mushroomed, with a massive boom in the seventies and another more recent boom in the late 1990s. According to Wikipedia, the population now stands at about 9,600.<br />
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This was my third home, where I lived from the age of four to fourteen. <br />
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Just as I was about to leap out and take a photo, a car pulled up outside and stayed there, so we ended up doing a "drive-by shooting" instead. I didn't want to look as if we were casing the joint or anything like that.<br />
<br />
Then we whizzed by our old secondary school, which looks much the same as it always did, except somehow the yellow brick on the walls has become red. This school was pretty special, it was Ireland's first ever Comprehensive and heralded a new era in education. We were guinea-pigs and they tried out a lot of new courses on us before introducing them into the mainstream school system.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXsLE0bOuZDZYreBsEg5riW9SoUSDlw68QoBeyUtgHUFM7o6j_V-6xwI3VR-3HHmDQaMCLOXKKSFcPaRy2bk_ixggJdoDBvYZmQLG92sNp7eNxljuxN3JaQKDCjVqU5ByOAuy-iqknKPnU/s1600/DSCN2930.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXsLE0bOuZDZYreBsEg5riW9SoUSDlw68QoBeyUtgHUFM7o6j_V-6xwI3VR-3HHmDQaMCLOXKKSFcPaRy2bk_ixggJdoDBvYZmQLG92sNp7eNxljuxN3JaQKDCjVqU5ByOAuy-iqknKPnU/s640/DSCN2930.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
After that, we had a look at some of Elayne's former homes, where she lived in the early years of her (first) marriage, and then drove back to Granny's house via the scenic route.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdvOxPJ4I-cApMtw4UibLHU2QbLorhs5MTbJ_AL6QRuRU1vNvXFaWRMPueKAUxLVYipqE4-kiBu-tOsqotrBv9LvFo7K6vgF0YxWp7iS2Mh1gvOUF1Ux9nnKsa38agM-sXPT9rq3Q5HsQt/s1600/DSCN2933.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="438" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdvOxPJ4I-cApMtw4UibLHU2QbLorhs5MTbJ_AL6QRuRU1vNvXFaWRMPueKAUxLVYipqE4-kiBu-tOsqotrBv9LvFo7K6vgF0YxWp7iS2Mh1gvOUF1Ux9nnKsa38agM-sXPT9rq3Q5HsQt/s640/DSCN2933.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
A dolmen type-thing we passed along the way.<br />
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Granny's house (my fifth home, the fourth one was only a temporary rented house so it doesn't count) looks out over this beautiful lake. It's a lot nicer than Shannon, and most importantly, the riding school was only three miles away!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEv7yOtP_7qZZ2X3HhJvEV0R69dacsfPMMed1SfhvkzTGkkv_ZEzkCNNGmHUhQLoA2P2XZXIk_QfY7lvu83b6wok59qC5xdW0o9JusuxSOzMCKoxEzqS6m1b__Ww-V7KXoAN_hksTY-uYa/s1600/DSCN2899.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEv7yOtP_7qZZ2X3HhJvEV0R69dacsfPMMed1SfhvkzTGkkv_ZEzkCNNGmHUhQLoA2P2XZXIk_QfY7lvu83b6wok59qC5xdW0o9JusuxSOzMCKoxEzqS6m1b__Ww-V7KXoAN_hksTY-uYa/s640/DSCN2899.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-76363104247251279992013-03-04T17:00:00.000+01:002013-03-04T17:11:50.876+01:00Limerick, you're no LadyLimerick : a city that thrived during the boom years and, even now, still has a feeling of vibrancy in the streets. They've fought hard to clean up their act and get rid of <i><b>that</b></i> nickname. <br />
<br />
While window shopping last Saturday, a jeweller's shop caught my eye. Oh sez Granny, they're one of the oldest jewellers in Limerick, they're very good. So we crossed the road and had a look in the window.<br />
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This was the first thing that caught my eye (apologies for the crappy photo, the rest are a bit better)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPO-ioZ09m8mnNKNpzO3yi48YlHQ6_3ooQ3PTkUIEeBz6yux7Jbn3etNgWDU-Jjeit7tSItT_3OrTAdCNrLYVQZZ0FrPEc6DCBWR9r-weoSskgf3sJMO9Gb8aEis4sCgy5DDrJJpaEad2J/s1600/IMG_2340.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPO-ioZ09m8mnNKNpzO3yi48YlHQ6_3ooQ3PTkUIEeBz6yux7Jbn3etNgWDU-Jjeit7tSItT_3OrTAdCNrLYVQZZ0FrPEc6DCBWR9r-weoSskgf3sJMO9Gb8aEis4sCgy5DDrJJpaEad2J/s320/IMG_2340.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Yeah. That's a cannabis leaf pendant on the left and a blinged-up armalite on the right.</div>
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There were a lot more cannabis leaves in the display, plus this this pony & sulky :</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix6eKihC2b9Xj9tjuOatWKHpq_VcMOQl7QN3jsdBjQ3bk8tTfRtIutbgC1RyQOJB0LtoltF_G-zwkn2APVvsKi7mWIq9BpfTSKF8UNxc7zvKWWfpL7YWKdmaSpTAOIg3dlAjv6_giTtrwc/s1600/IMG_2341.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix6eKihC2b9Xj9tjuOatWKHpq_VcMOQl7QN3jsdBjQ3bk8tTfRtIutbgC1RyQOJB0LtoltF_G-zwkn2APVvsKi7mWIq9BpfTSKF8UNxc7zvKWWfpL7YWKdmaSpTAOIg3dlAjv6_giTtrwc/s320/IMG_2341.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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That might be a cultural reference that only Irish people would get, this next one is a little more obvious :</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP4ytHpUSgP1ws5qwlkgpKoEfPLqjrsNrAVBRd9OUci7eg29xn5sbNkYkpp5z3RpjttZ-5CDjxS-YBH4Yp2141LFjcORqzPzl1nxsZv_gAnejvWKcBtGjg1n9I8TeEmO3tGHKw2Z0bhenf/s1600/IMG_2342.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP4ytHpUSgP1ws5qwlkgpKoEfPLqjrsNrAVBRd9OUci7eg29xn5sbNkYkpp5z3RpjttZ-5CDjxS-YBH4Yp2141LFjcORqzPzl1nxsZv_gAnejvWKcBtGjg1n9I8TeEmO3tGHKw2Z0bhenf/s320/IMG_2342.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I guess this jewellers caters to... hmm... an interesting cross-section of the underbelly of society, shall we say.</div>
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Sorry, Limerick, you'll always be Stab City to me.</div>
Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-91170882611211464692013-03-01T15:00:00.000+01:002013-03-01T15:00:07.432+01:00Thank Friday it's Lunchtime - Saigon Wok, Cavaillon
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last Saturday, I had to collect the LSH from Marseille
Airport.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It had snowed overnight,
leaving the road over the Luberon covered with a layer of packed, frozen
snow.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By the time I left, the
snowplough hadn’t passed yet, and I crawled carefully along.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was confident that by the time I got
to Manosque, it would be slightly warmer, with less snow, as Manosque is
usually a few degrees warmer than our side of the Luberon.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was wrong.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not only was Manosque covered in snow, but the
Autoroute was also snow-covered and treacherous.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At least the snowploughs were in action there, clearing one
lane on each carraigeway, so I trundled along in a long line of traffic,
presumably with a snowplough at the head of the line.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Traffic in the opposite driection was desperately slow, even
at a standstill in some places, so when I finally met up with the LSH in a
completely unsnowy Marseille, we decided to go home via the Western end of the
Luberon – a long detour, but we decided to have lunch along the way and do our
TFIL meal a day late.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Just as we passed through Cavaillon, I spotted this.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibnvAhNDIEARgu3Jllc-ns-j-0fkH957zR90-R1lu2AVYSn0Jxqq5AtC-7SGaoGPINGARqXUhGq06ctVOitZTwPeVPY9QsyPxXftro2XYZpo2amt4Tf_Ze5bTFb6QyqqkYRVjej3QFRmrX/s1600/DSCN2893.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibnvAhNDIEARgu3Jllc-ns-j-0fkH957zR90-R1lu2AVYSn0Jxqq5AtC-7SGaoGPINGARqXUhGq06ctVOitZTwPeVPY9QsyPxXftro2XYZpo2amt4Tf_Ze5bTFb6QyqqkYRVjej3QFRmrX/s640/DSCN2893.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All-you-can-eat Chinese, basically.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We can’t lose, we said, and in we went.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You don’t often see very overweight French people, but there
were quite a few in this place – it’s obviously a popular choice for those with
– eh – large appetites.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s a gigantic hall of a restaurant, with the buffets laid
out in the middle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was one
with bits and pieces you could ask the Wok chef to cook, one with starters, one
with mains and one with desserts. We stuck the the stuff that was already cooked, to keep it simple, and we hit the starter buffet - nems (spring rolls), chicken things, fried vegetable things, prawn things and some other seafood things (that I stayed away from), with an array of salads and sauces to accompany them.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Kbt-t4z_knaHUV785BYDaocyukRG4d8DnYyIP2Ihli8GjjUA5j7vvohLurpLFVbG7YdS-X7EQYwJTgxmRDd0ZG9Vz8SVEccoEzNtnUpgKvd8FOjIB2NUzxUe-XEnE9s4GVDCS1MDocn2/s1600/DSCN2888.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="454" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Kbt-t4z_knaHUV785BYDaocyukRG4d8DnYyIP2Ihli8GjjUA5j7vvohLurpLFVbG7YdS-X7EQYwJTgxmRDd0ZG9Vz8SVEccoEzNtnUpgKvd8FOjIB2NUzxUe-XEnE9s4GVDCS1MDocn2/s640/DSCN2888.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I could have just kept eating the starters until I exploded,
but after one revisit, I moved on to the mains, in the interests of research,
y’know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> There were Brochets à Poulet (chicken skewers), Thai Beef, Pork Caramel, Moules au sauce Chilli (chilli mussels, a weird combination, neither of us tried that) and Poulet au Gingembre (Ginger Chicken). </span>These were fine, but less
awesome than the starters, with the exception of the Brochets à Poulet which
were the best I’d ever had.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s
possible that they were laced with MSG, but I reckoned that if it triggered a
migraine, it would have been worth it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By the way, if you really love spicy food, you'd be better off getting something cooked by the Wok Chef - the French don't really do "Hot" and we find that Chinese restaurants here cater to the French palate, with Thai and Chilli dishes tasting a bit bland.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcW2YeNrYrptaz5lq6iGskvuqIc1fWAKz-vFji2U01hqpZ6BVezMOtnJWFYu9oBNR1nhLX23kz7UIEOi3bxWuyQgeycThGIm9a8HXr8aZbyVtzyEnSZCt0718OJylzHrQISGljC2Ey_2NW/s1600/DSCN2889.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcW2YeNrYrptaz5lq6iGskvuqIc1fWAKz-vFji2U01hqpZ6BVezMOtnJWFYu9oBNR1nhLX23kz7UIEOi3bxWuyQgeycThGIm9a8HXr8aZbyVtzyEnSZCt0718OJylzHrQISGljC2Ey_2NW/s640/DSCN2889.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Desserts were a bit lacklustre by comparison with the first two courses; there was Dame
Blanche, a soft meringue sort of thing, crème caramel<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and fresh
fruit.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_do8_aQoGUzPuQiL6lMQNVtBzVDzpGAEILDipCiLGKlZNeJtdpmpElhw7amNeSNcEqnfeNfUhJF65NWISQEosm2K8s_Sb0GHgJ7V2Gprv7zwkjr1H-fN7RaJJGpaHXVCPJQoWRkWDd9rb/s1600/DSCN2892.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_do8_aQoGUzPuQiL6lMQNVtBzVDzpGAEILDipCiLGKlZNeJtdpmpElhw7amNeSNcEqnfeNfUhJF65NWISQEosm2K8s_Sb0GHgJ7V2Gprv7zwkjr1H-fN7RaJJGpaHXVCPJQoWRkWDd9rb/s320/DSCN2892.jpg" width="280" /></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Value for money?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>At €12.90 per head during the week, it’s brilliant value.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If there’s something you don’t like,
you can just go back to the buffet and get something else.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They put the price up at the weekend,
so it cost us €14.90 per head, with a pichet of wine bringing the total up to
€32.50.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you’re a big eater and
find the portion sizes disappointing during your Provençal visit, it’s definitely worth
calling in here.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Comfort wise, yeah, it’s a big barn of a place with no
ambiance whatsoever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were
seated beside the door and were chilled everytime someone came in or out,
despite the electric heater placed nearby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The toilets were surprisingly minimalist for such a large
restaurant, too – just one cubicle each for Dames and Hommes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I bet the queues are not too nice when it's busy in
the summer.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I wasn't overly impressed with the service. I know it was self service, but they brought wine to our table (when asked) and cleared plates. However, they also left us hovering in the doorway looking bewildered for quite a while when we arrived. My advice is to march in confidently and just grab a table if that happens.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's the ratings. I know it doesn't look great with the one star for Service and two stars for Ambiance, but that's just the kind of place it is. I'd happily go back again.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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</div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Service : ✮</span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div style="color: #332211; line-height: 23px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Food : ✮✮✮ </span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div style="color: #332211; line-height: 23px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Value : ✮✮✮</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">✮</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">✮</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div style="color: #332211; line-height: 23px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ambiance : ✮✮</span></div>
</div>
</div>
<br />
<!--EndFragment-->Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-49883469113469678812013-02-27T21:10:00.000+01:002013-02-27T21:11:43.151+01:00Not so bad, then!I didn't like to say it - I was embarrassed for her.<br />
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidlA3QQ1irvvDPcvBjvRRCtIApfivDwH5EL7CvFuUVAtd7dtCDlIY5GX689we2_ceiSEWGx1NQdDia6B1X7XSFvlEN6I6uQxxWOueRz4Z57IxMIrR_X9mfM-Xip5d2FflW7qafOScvgGQa/s1600/DSCN2894.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidlA3QQ1irvvDPcvBjvRRCtIApfivDwH5EL7CvFuUVAtd7dtCDlIY5GX689we2_ceiSEWGx1NQdDia6B1X7XSFvlEN6I6uQxxWOueRz4Z57IxMIrR_X9mfM-Xip5d2FflW7qafOScvgGQa/s320/DSCN2894.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
But Cookie, despite making great strides recently off-leash, learning to come when called and learning to stay focussed on us, was VERY, VERY naughty. Twice.<br />
<br />
The first time was when I went for a walk in the woods above Reillanne - a familiar spot, one of my favourites. I kept her on the leash until we got to the top and started to walk along the top of the ridge, then I let her loose and started throwing the ball. She was good. She was focussed on the ball and the treats that I gave her in exchange for the ball every time. Then I got a text from the LSH. Not an ordinary text, a Viber text, so it meant I had to go through a couple of extra steps to read it on my iPhone. I took my mind off the dog while I pulled up the text, and WHAM! she was gone. Not <i>completely disappeared, never to be seen again</i> sort of gone. No, it was more a <i>WHEE I'm free and I'm going to rampage through the woods, keeping an eye on you all the time but you're not going to catch me</i> sort of gone. <br />
<br />
I tried hiding from her, which used to work a treat with our Beardies years ago. When she eventually found me, crouching behind a bush, she cocked an ear my way <i>Oh there you are</i> and galumphed merrily past me.<br />
<br />
I tried feeding Cinnamon treats - jealousy has worked in the past, but not that day.<br />
<br />
I tried throwing the ball, literally under her nose. She couldn't have cared less, didn't even look at it.<br />
<br />
I tried sitting down, hoping that she would come close and start sniffing at stuff nearby. She seemed to feel that my staying still gave her license to roam further afield and completely disappeared into the woods, so deep that I could no longer hear her bell jingling.<br />
<br />
At that stage, I thought the best thing to do was turn around and make my way back to the jeep, calling from time to time. Eventually, she burst out of the trees far, far behind me on the trail and headed off IN THE WRONG DIRECTION. I called, and she did a 180° turn and tore down the trail towards me, side-stepping neatly as she neared me and running past the proffered treat in my hand.<br />
<br />
Eventually, by making a huge fuss of Cinny and stuffing her with treats, I managed to persuade Cookie to come close enough to grab her. I made a fuss of her, although I wanted to throttle her, and she went back on the leash again.<br />
<br />
A couple of days later, the LSH took her to the Watermeadows for a run. I warned him. He said he'd leave her off anyway.<br />
<br />
He unclipped the leash and she was gone like a snot from a sneeze. The good thing about the Watermeadows, though, is that you can see where she is, most of the time. She ran enormous loops, keeping the LSH roughly in the middle of her loops, but refused to come anywhere near him, not interested in the ball, not interested in treats.<br />
<br />
Being better at throwing than me, he managed to throw a few treats right under her nose and got her attention that way. He caught her in the end, but the two incidents gave us a fright and is making us rethink whether we'll ever be able to trust her 100%.<br />
<br />
I went for a walk in the Watermeadows this morning with Gilla and Poppie. This time, I reverted to our original policy of tying a long, light cord onto Cookie's harness.<br />
<br />
I threw the ball, she tore after it, snatched it from under Poppie's nose and came galumphing past me, with her naughty <i>can't catch me</i> expression on her face. I could, though. I grabbed the trailing end of the cord and pulled her up short, and she came straight back to me, all happy and tail-waggy.<br />
<br />
And that was the end of it. We had a lovely walk. Poppie and Cookie chased the ball and brought it back every time and got loads of treats. Cinnamon chased moles (unsuccessfully). They explored by the river and in the woods. And Cookie kept coming back.<br />
<br />
Maybe there's hope for her after all if we give it enough time.<br />
<br />
Finally, good news on the Cinnamon front. The vet rang this morning to say that her lumps are a benign kind of sebaceous gland tumour and are nothing to worry about. Phew. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJgIruZXjMESuuqgcIY3FW3LkqWyNaIOnRWUH5UmrAZ_xfiT-wzi7LTIpRoaENvZ0C0a0m_lEyOQl1MpxKNO3S6fkFY3qhG0VgwoglWZZzlwyFlfFfAvtCT02bJH65QuKFOkXRgGRO73tU/s1600/DSCN2895.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJgIruZXjMESuuqgcIY3FW3LkqWyNaIOnRWUH5UmrAZ_xfiT-wzi7LTIpRoaENvZ0C0a0m_lEyOQl1MpxKNO3S6fkFY3qhG0VgwoglWZZzlwyFlfFfAvtCT02bJH65QuKFOkXRgGRO73tU/s320/DSCN2895.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
And REALLY finally, thanks everyone who voted for me in the ESMA awards - I didn't come anywhere (sniff!) but it was a huge honour just to be nominated.<br />
<br />
Maybe I might share the Gobsmacked Face with you if I have enough glasses of wine some night.Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-12741147613921802272013-02-25T13:21:00.002+01:002013-02-25T13:21:28.378+01:00Forget the Oscars......it's ESMA week!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjC-r-YXPDpOAVU-Uz5y6wArhg2W6FNF4kMs-cfZ7pAEGKEPKdXAPvJJa57p69ze6-axVal60jOdPVaabFnQQ4fSiJJXXAmLqwcAq86nMoGiPjDAYUqFwwV4Buht6OJMdJHmHOHtjZ333-/s1600/11382_481781438543330_430563456_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="147" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjC-r-YXPDpOAVU-Uz5y6wArhg2W6FNF4kMs-cfZ7pAEGKEPKdXAPvJJa57p69ze6-axVal60jOdPVaabFnQQ4fSiJJXXAmLqwcAq86nMoGiPjDAYUqFwwV4Buht6OJMdJHmHOHtjZ333-/s400/11382_481781438543330_430563456_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
The full schedule is available <a href="http://www.equestriansocialmediaawards.com/news-stories/esma-week-schedule-announced-1292" target="_blank">here on the ESMA news page</a> but the Best Newcomer will be announced today! It won't be me, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/WriteToDearMurray" target="_blank">Dear Murray</a> is my Hot Tip for this category, but if by some miracle it is me, you'll get to see my Gobsmacked Face, which I pull in my "acceptance speech" video. They might give me the award just so they have a reason to air that video...<br />
<br />
It's all kicking off today at 2pm GMT and should be fun to watch. Good luck to all the finalists. Yeah, even the others in the Best Newcomer category.<br />
<br />
<br />Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-22502043767170187052013-02-23T09:26:00.004+01:002013-02-23T09:26:53.802+01:00Really, Snow?Are you serious? Just when I manage to get back into gear and start working the horses again (they were good boys) you do this :<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXMPNIObl8h9NkZUQ5NcA-PJzW_N0KFKzrVQvw6TXLDip2mnLb7j-Z680FYaF4cjWngtFowSLfZ7TPUlMaXj1o4KhbeOXWdGHoElzptmes4_hCMgslL-0Gh1PvLD2Vjmn6CJsPBhUxMbpx/s1600/DSCN2885.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXMPNIObl8h9NkZUQ5NcA-PJzW_N0KFKzrVQvw6TXLDip2mnLb7j-Z680FYaF4cjWngtFowSLfZ7TPUlMaXj1o4KhbeOXWdGHoElzptmes4_hCMgslL-0Gh1PvLD2Vjmn6CJsPBhUxMbpx/s640/DSCN2885.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Now I have to collect the LSH from the airport which involves a drive over the Luberon. Ugh. Wish me luck.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDcboj0ag0je6zatb1jl41OK-kPp3yS4Wx4p8hMxw6KWrp4HpTgrE_kNjQ420qXtZldH5GnXP2rZBigPtPmC3VAoEEj7YF_i6zhnHOwOhNTgIYMIDZXVgwjp5z5rq5FKTQHndpbE-9x52O/s1600/DSCN2887.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDcboj0ag0je6zatb1jl41OK-kPp3yS4Wx4p8hMxw6KWrp4HpTgrE_kNjQ420qXtZldH5GnXP2rZBigPtPmC3VAoEEj7YF_i6zhnHOwOhNTgIYMIDZXVgwjp5z5rq5FKTQHndpbE-9x52O/s640/DSCN2887.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Even Cookie doesn't seem impressed any more.Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-4347447384032029052013-02-22T22:00:00.000+01:002013-02-22T22:00:00.404+01:00Thank Friday it's Lunchtime - Café du Cours, Reillanne<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I will confess, that the Café du Cours is one of our favourite lunch spots. I've been reluctant to include it in TFIL on that basis - are we biased? I suppose we are - biased because the food is great, the staff are friendly, and it's in a lovely spot looking over the square in Reillane? </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Trying to stay objective anyway, here's how our lunch went.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We were meant to go to Forcalquier, but the LSH was busy with work, so we needed to stay local. Ok, Café du Cours it is, we agreed.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We ambled up and sat down on the terrace in the sun, and quickly took our coats off. Oh yes. It was like a summer's day, except for the snow on the roof of the church beside us.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They don't do a menu du jour, as such, but they change their menu regularly.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj49GHDLV7updcU2OWKP6TfO6nOzjIBicXgaHAtHlAR9G-SJOZVlG5KQjKKXrTnu2yR7b-Ed0qXqdM4-EN_LPI2gL65IwbJb_KVT27nhTypnR2mtYBLWmDqf2GhzKDLqcCA2ytxFF7WYdUl/s1600/DSCN2821.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj49GHDLV7updcU2OWKP6TfO6nOzjIBicXgaHAtHlAR9G-SJOZVlG5KQjKKXrTnu2yR7b-Ed0qXqdM4-EN_LPI2gL65IwbJb_KVT27nhTypnR2mtYBLWmDqf2GhzKDLqcCA2ytxFF7WYdUl/s320/DSCN2821.jpg" width="277" /></span></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For starters, I ordered the Foie Gras, and the LSH ordered the Velouté de Topinambour. Neither of us had a clue what that was, and when it arrived, it looked like a bowl of porridge.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzB7citpWssOsRYSoAtfbOtvhvq_d76XjLER_jfNBQ1lEs9TlMP2UCVJEPF8OTIX835XA3IITpa8uaYonJakfvj51K4416s3i-p2ayvgdSB5K2wIuNodHW9OXbJw1g52n302CSWXmBGlPR/s1600/DSCN2823.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="484" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzB7citpWssOsRYSoAtfbOtvhvq_d76XjLER_jfNBQ1lEs9TlMP2UCVJEPF8OTIX835XA3IITpa8uaYonJakfvj51K4416s3i-p2ayvgdSB5K2wIuNodHW9OXbJw1g52n302CSWXmBGlPR/s640/DSCN2823.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ever curious, I asked what it was. The chef told us that it was a vegetable that was used as a substitute for potato in the war, and then brought one out to show it to us - AH! Jerusalem Artichoke! I've never cooked it, and I don't think we've ever eaten it before, but it was nice, I'd have it again. Rumour has it that it has some unpleasant effects on the digestive system - I can categorically state that these rumours are not unfounded.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I ordered the Foie Gras Mi-cuit au Calvados... yum. Sorry animal rights people, I love Foie Gras. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcdcsod8l6XzR66EUHpxZ8rg8q9ZuhsnsP53rXscb4OoGYNd0CnNdPyjqq3bNN_fIpnk1mhOYSUZvYO1uUWyAWQlwQ49t-bEWjInDh0gj0Kzqh_lTD_tr-f3X-Kng3-kAtqNfJIDLhdeGF/s1600/DSCN2824.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="528" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcdcsod8l6XzR66EUHpxZ8rg8q9ZuhsnsP53rXscb4OoGYNd0CnNdPyjqq3bNN_fIpnk1mhOYSUZvYO1uUWyAWQlwQ49t-bEWjInDh0gj0Kzqh_lTD_tr-f3X-Kng3-kAtqNfJIDLhdeGF/s640/DSCN2824.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For our main courses, well there were Moules et Frites on the menu, the LSH's favourite, so that was a no-brainer, while I orders Faux Filet... or Faux Filly, so definitely NOT horse, then.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoImeacvOW21tc-p8BFwhEvLscIESDdPjqqCJogS_9BPCG5y0vbj5oxcuRHjrrGQ3xhgzlXeEn5t1gMRf6DATBWSUf0BsBVSgxhNFSUSgtYmtVIZupdl_gg9_l0Z4MulD0nlKwV7ryASBG/s1600/DSCN2826.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoImeacvOW21tc-p8BFwhEvLscIESDdPjqqCJogS_9BPCG5y0vbj5oxcuRHjrrGQ3xhgzlXeEn5t1gMRf6DATBWSUf0BsBVSgxhNFSUSgtYmtVIZupdl_gg9_l0Z4MulD0nlKwV7ryASBG/s640/DSCN2826.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The moules were big and juicy, the faux filet (it's sirloin) was very tasty but could have been more tender... yeah, I'm nitpicking, just trying not to be biased, y'know.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For dessert, I'm watching my figure, so I had coffee, while he chomped his way through a Crème Brûlée - flavoured with thyme. OH BOY, does that work!!! WOW!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, the ratings.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Service : ✮</span>✮✮✮✮ (with a smile!)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Food : ✮✮✮✮ </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Value : ✮✮✮✮ </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ambiance : ✮✮✮✮✮</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was mean and I knocked a star off for my tough steak... it would be 4.5 stars if I had a Half Star symbol. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Café du Cours is a very <b>traditional</b> French Café. It's been there for years and years - in fact we saw a photo of the exterior which had been taken in the 1920s, and if you changed the faces and the clothes, it could have been taken yesterday. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What I'm trying to get around to saying is, if you're going to be offended by a toilet like this :</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinx-Wvpi9WhT1YJ6O06XI7MPJuxLPWGRSBUwvt7tpYR1h7QNR_Q06MXhAxHEZBDyhH9eKzNGxZpKFzov7l3fPJTgHeAy7wCTmAg459BjF5PJN1WdzZcgq3SvKVMYCoqh5yPUEhkBWgASuw/s1600/IMG_1584.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinx-Wvpi9WhT1YJ6O06XI7MPJuxLPWGRSBUwvt7tpYR1h7QNR_Q06MXhAxHEZBDyhH9eKzNGxZpKFzov7l3fPJTgHeAy7wCTmAg459BjF5PJN1WdzZcgq3SvKVMYCoqh5yPUEhkBWgASuw/s320/IMG_1584.jpg" width="239" /></span></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">make sure you go to the loo before you visit. Or else cross your legs. It's worth the pain.</span></div>
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Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-3482184876541252402013-02-20T22:36:00.000+01:002013-02-20T22:40:51.333+01:00A PromiseThere's a feeling in the air, a hint of something coming. It's not just me, others have noticed it too - there's more activity going on, more people around, more of a bustle about the place.<br />
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I spotted this on a walk ten days ago, just before the snow fell :<br />
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Last week, I noticed that a certain dark bay horse is starting to do this :<br />
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and I saw a whole bunch of these guys sunning themselves, the same day :<br />
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The LSH thought this photo was insect porn, I disagree, I think they were just sunbathing.<br />
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Today I took the dogs for a walk along the ridge near Montjustin. I have to confess to having bought a retractable leash for Cookie, not something I ever thought I would do! It's hard to see, but it stands out more clearly in the shadow :<br />
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She loves it. Apparently it tastes delicious.<br />
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(Such behaviour is frowned on. We've been frowning on it for 18 months now. I don't think frowning is working.)<br />
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The ridge was just glorious. The dogs had a great time, and it was nice and dry so I didn't have to worry about Cinny's wounds getting wet and dirty. There were a few lizards trying to warm up in the sunshine, which both dogs thought was great fun.<br />
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There were loads of bees doing something very industrious at a puddle. Don't ask, I have no idea. I just hope you can see them.<br />
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I saw a hummingbird hawkmoth - a live one, this poor sod died last week trying to butt his way out of one of our skylights.<br />
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I saw two butterflies, and managed to get a photo of one<br />
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I saw a booted eagle too, soaring high above the valley floor, level with me. By the time I got my camera out, he had soared right behind some trees. Typical.<br />
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I saw a hint of leaf buds on an almond tree<br />
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and a more definite hint of blossoms to come :<br />
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Only a week after this<br />
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there is a definite promise of Spring in the air.<br />
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My promise is to stop being a lazy so-n-so and get my butt back in the saddle. Cross my heart.Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-89620330522313002302013-02-16T22:18:00.000+01:002013-02-16T22:18:14.028+01:00How Many Cinnamons?Sorry, I should have posted this earlier.<br />
She was in six of the seven photos.<br />
I hoped the ever-growing dot in these ones would give it away, and it seemed to work ok, most of you spotted her!<br />
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I think most people saw her in the bottom right corner of this one, but maybe not everyone :<br />
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and she wasn't in this one :<br />
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<br />
So well done to Dee, <a href="http://greyhorsematters.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Grey Horse Matters</a>, <a href="http://thedancingdonkey.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">The Dancing Donkey</a> and sort of well done to Nicola, who suspected me of being much more devious than I actually am.<br />
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And by the way, the purple bandage is still, miraculously, on her leg, and she only had to wear the Cone of Shame for one night.<br />
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She's in good form and enjoyed her walk in the snow today.Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-21797840187866919532013-02-16T21:16:00.002+01:002013-02-16T21:16:41.553+01:00We fall over a ChateauSo there we were, driving along a narrow country country road in between Apt and Sault, literally in the middle of nowhere, and out of the blue, there's this :<br />
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There's NOTHING else around, just trees and fields, and a small house across the road.<br />
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Of course we had to get out and investigate.</div>
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It's called the Chateau de Javon. It's privately owned, and it's been in the same family for five generations. <br />
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Do I need to add that it's amazingly, stunningly beautiful?<br />
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And all you can say, really, is What a country.<br />
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Anyway, we took a whim today and went to Montbrun les Bains, which Anne and I rode through last year. It was looking very different with all the snow around.<br />
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Mont Ventoux was looking very picturesque<br />
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whatever angle we looked at it from<br />
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We ended up going back via the Mont de Vaucluse (more familiar Big Trek territory) and letting the dogs have a good run in the snow.<br />
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There were deer tracks everywhere in the snow. The ones that mystified me were these :<br />
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The extra "toes" weren't visible in all the prints, just the deep ones. They were pretty big, donkey hoof sized, or bigger, I would say. Do deer have those extra toes? If not, my guess is Ibex or Chamois, but I would have thought we were a bit low for those.<br />
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Anyway, it was a fun day... I seemed to do more photography than the LSH. Go figure.<br />
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We're going to see how clear the trails around the farm are tomorrow and might go for a ride... À demain!Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-48930193702279147322013-02-15T21:55:00.000+01:002013-02-15T21:55:03.972+01:00Thank Friday it's Lunchtime - Auberge le Luberon, Apt<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgitBZegWMe5Od3Dhiy8bA7AeECEQgRrRwMTk6yF5e6etRd7tDTaNmZhUBi8h_cRZfxtfxKObg_-we-2a7bJMZ6PaZMwEBZQfOpgXLTpFy63dOXpxoxPRwUoBhH24ktidfpJ7ZvfI8nl1nI/s1600/IMG_2318.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgitBZegWMe5Od3Dhiy8bA7AeECEQgRrRwMTk6yF5e6etRd7tDTaNmZhUBi8h_cRZfxtfxKObg_-we-2a7bJMZ6PaZMwEBZQfOpgXLTpFy63dOXpxoxPRwUoBhH24ktidfpJ7ZvfI8nl1nI/s320/IMG_2318.jpg" width="238" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of my favourite Apt villas</span></td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have a soft spot for Apt. In the summer, it's buzzing with of tourists, but in the winter, it's a sleepy country town that only comes alive on a Saturday morning, when the market takes over the whole town. The N100 runs through it, en route from Avignon to Forcalquier, and parallels the river Calavon, which also pass through the town. On one side of the Calavon, the buildings are practical, commercial, almost industrial. On the other side, faded old villas snooze in the winter sun, shutters closed against the cold. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This was where we headed today - the Auberge le Luberon, a traditional hotel and restaurant, which looks across the Calavon to the business district of Apt.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We chose the Auberge le Luberon on a whim - we had parked in the nearby "submersible" car park (it's a car park that's prone to flooding if there's heavy rain, there are warning signs all over the place, apparently it can flood in a mere twenty minutes!). Not knowing what to expect of the Auberge le Luberon, we were pleasantly surprised to find a welcoming reception area and a small, bright and nicely decorated dining area which opened onto a terrace. There was a neatly pruned platane (plane tree) at the side of the terrace, which must give very welcome shade in hot weather and we immediately said "This must be lovely in summer, we'll have to come back!"</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our first impression was that it was definitely a bit posh, but actually, the menu wasn't a ridiculously posh price at all!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVue8Vw4FG_14eigjA_DEURqA_Z2OK1ct52UfKTgLpVBzCPOtPeS22XApP9i47hphQ6MLUwvSxW-Q1K7EkBZFJuW849xmgzNne39br3f45_DAiBj4abpHGQeZUdurg3D7RdUvLtSKT_8g_/s1600/IMG_2306.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVue8Vw4FG_14eigjA_DEURqA_Z2OK1ct52UfKTgLpVBzCPOtPeS22XApP9i47hphQ6MLUwvSxW-Q1K7EkBZFJuW849xmgzNne39br3f45_DAiBj4abpHGQeZUdurg3D7RdUvLtSKT_8g_/s320/IMG_2306.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We both had the same starter, Feuillette de Chèvre and Tapenade - goat's cheese and olive pâté wrapped in filo pastry, with a little salad on the side.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCOAkW0CpKmSsRvDYy6Jfkm-irXQFGq1wvngHYM8FitmBFb1gcICwKrcFrzstIGJ111Vd0293ZmTGfU52BMf3SL3dpOuEx3dj1h3kdM08ide3iMfiIKvQWELH4cK0ZtI5OzQMK_mVfMfhz/s1600/IMG_2307.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCOAkW0CpKmSsRvDYy6Jfkm-irXQFGq1wvngHYM8FitmBFb1gcICwKrcFrzstIGJ111Vd0293ZmTGfU52BMf3SL3dpOuEx3dj1h3kdM08ide3iMfiIKvQWELH4cK0ZtI5OzQMK_mVfMfhz/s320/IMG_2307.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was nice except it could have done without the tapenade - it was too salty and clashed with the goat's cheese rather than complemented it.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hmm. Ok so far, how were the main courses going to be? </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Going with the Menu du Jour, we had a choice of Duck Confit or Salmon. I went for the Duck and the LSH went for the Salmon. Both came with a little square of mashed potato, with a bay leaf sticking out of it at a jaunty angle. The duck had a garnish of choucroute/sauerkraut made with red cabbage, which gave made a nice contrast to the fattiness of the duck.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG-CnyoEgcdHsi2QWp5Z_eADOtroudqouQ-jDC4B1wm9tvtovpNML0oGuRcSzRxPBu1jgeELMmxFJVsjIw1xmszB6uiozOgGFcEc4SgTXn5F6AjQQ6IqFxBGP7C59dCLU2fTyDJUPH1LWO/s1600/IMG_2308.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG-CnyoEgcdHsi2QWp5Z_eADOtroudqouQ-jDC4B1wm9tvtovpNML0oGuRcSzRxPBu1jgeELMmxFJVsjIw1xmszB6uiozOgGFcEc4SgTXn5F6AjQQ6IqFxBGP7C59dCLU2fTyDJUPH1LWO/s640/IMG_2308.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The salmon was dressed with a slightly mustardy sauce, with the LSH felt was superfluous. The salmon was cooked to perfection - not an easy thing to do - and he thought it would have been perfectly fine on its own! </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkbHKeQrcwPP9b72IJ-40NYkaHc3Rgq0jgfhK49u4DXXwaBsrXhW-05yUzOYyAkqjywnF6ZbRy8Y2eiuKoa2SNLKO8LOBbpn5I63V5QcdvdW7sNuIzIHa7B22paqwIz9nch0VM3n_gkUBs/s1600/IMG_2309.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkbHKeQrcwPP9b72IJ-40NYkaHc3Rgq0jgfhK49u4DXXwaBsrXhW-05yUzOYyAkqjywnF6ZbRy8Y2eiuKoa2SNLKO8LOBbpn5I63V5QcdvdW7sNuIzIHa7B22paqwIz9nch0VM3n_gkUBs/s640/IMG_2309.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He still had room for dessert - Chocolate Mousse Cake! It looked amazing - the gooey inside oozed out when he broke into it with his fork, I wish I could eat chocolate!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdIUX_IO0G8NBaZNUZLY0uCpDzicxPVkFuyGvWQaJ3t3qz1vN2j1KDQLqU-pAT0U_7Q-lxuF5MSOgarWrPR5700JyZ4xgSWauJ4MX_TkvNYv9CoRWlxl3W44A6Nw4quSH08Vm_fQMyiybn/s1600/IMG_2310.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdIUX_IO0G8NBaZNUZLY0uCpDzicxPVkFuyGvWQaJ3t3qz1vN2j1KDQLqU-pAT0U_7Q-lxuF5MSOgarWrPR5700JyZ4xgSWauJ4MX_TkvNYv9CoRWlxl3W44A6Nw4quSH08Vm_fQMyiybn/s640/IMG_2310.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I had to settle for coffee. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyQMnhVkTfyUd8ka-yGCR7cRdq2QjmLuqIqsMXvbc_-r2a_bOiXdYR0YmpTNBbeqqvp7frPkXmYvc93SZWPz-Eb6vF2elCRLMCYgsaqPsrPdrBEqDQxr8r1I5qXTKA3fGiThJKJe4rYkdD/s1600/IMG_2313.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyQMnhVkTfyUd8ka-yGCR7cRdq2QjmLuqIqsMXvbc_-r2a_bOiXdYR0YmpTNBbeqqvp7frPkXmYvc93SZWPz-Eb6vF2elCRLMCYgsaqPsrPdrBEqDQxr8r1I5qXTKA3fGiThJKJe4rYkdD/s320/IMG_2313.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Go on, you feel sorry for me, admit it!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was a really good meal, very well cooked and presented, but in our humble opinion, the chef could have toned down on the contrasting accompaniments a bit - less would be more!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Value wise, pretty good for town dining in a place with a "posh" ambiance. We'd be very happy to take visitors there any time we're looking for lunch in Apt.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We'll definitely be back.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #332211; line-height: 23px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #332211; line-height: 23px;"><b>Star Rating (out of 5) :</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #332211; line-height: 23px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #332211; line-height: 23px;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Service : ✮</span>✮✮✮✮ (faultless, despite there being a very large table of diners who came in just before us)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Food : ✮✮✮✮ </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Value : ✮✮✮✮ </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ambiance : ✮✮✮✮ </span></div>
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Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-59217299276498395392013-02-14T19:02:00.002+01:002013-02-14T19:02:56.035+01:00The PatientThe Patient arrived home this evening.<br />
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She's feeling a bit sorry for herself<br />
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but that didn't stop her enjoying a light supper.<br />
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Even Cookie was being nice to her<br />
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although she did steal her bed, forcing Cinny to take to the chair.<br />
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Unfortunately I found a second lump a couple of days ago, so that had to come off, too, hence the bandaged leg. It's right on her knee, so she gives a little squeak every time she bends it.<br />
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Poor little pet.<br />
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How long before she rips that lovely purple bandage off?Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-16422372018993915002013-02-12T22:43:00.001+01:002013-02-13T08:50:42.258+01:00Believe!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH__Tu3Wy3xB2Zq_AhdiThlQDHqVB9dlpkyQs_AhiF3aLH7tgspTwUdTdfu2n_vOHe2FPvc19dS8pbAnO7ri1P-ZVpeoKoyV_31_5h2HAkieFa8-CLW7-byeUETed3FiETaXyT3tszyaPi/s1600/130212_DC63222.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH__Tu3Wy3xB2Zq_AhdiThlQDHqVB9dlpkyQs_AhiF3aLH7tgspTwUdTdfu2n_vOHe2FPvc19dS8pbAnO7ri1P-ZVpeoKoyV_31_5h2HAkieFa8-CLW7-byeUETed3FiETaXyT3tszyaPi/s640/130212_DC63222.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Believe in those who love you<br />
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Believe you can fly<br />
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Anything is possible<br />
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<br />
Even freedom.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: xx-small;">Thanks to the LSH for capturing these beautiful photos of Cookie enjoying life. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: xx-small;">For anyone new to the blog, Cookie is a rescue dog.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: xx-small;">We </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: xx-small;">thought we would never be able to her allow off-leash.</span></div>
Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-54774301839393723612013-02-11T15:21:00.000+01:002013-02-11T15:21:09.178+01:00Snow<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It began yesterday afternoon, just before we took the dogs for a walk. It was only the very lightest sprinkle - more like mist falling as snow - so we went off to the Watermeadows anyway and walked the dogs. Then we went to our English friends' house to watch the rugby - Ireland v England.<br />
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They had very kindly decorated their house for the match...<br />
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and even offered us a flag to wave...<br />
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Now I regret not bringing a Tricolour to France with me.<br />
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Unfortunately the wrong team won - but enough about rugby, it's too difficult to think about it right now (sob!). <br />
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We had both enjoyed a few glasses of wine, so we left Jeepy parked in front of their house, donned our reflective tabards and head torches and walked home. The snow was still falling, and was doing it quite a bit more seriously at this stage, leaving a good covering on the main road, but it was easy enough to walk in and we made it home in about twenty minutes.<br />
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The snow continued to fall all night, and we awoke to this:<br />
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I checked the weather forecast over breakfast and learned that we had a Vigilance Orange in our area, with the snow expected to continue throughout the day, followed by a sharp frost tonight. The LSH decided he'd better go and get Jeepy sooner rather than later, and we also needed some essential food items, so he wrapped up well, donned the trusty reflective jacket and bravely headed out into the elements to pick up the jeep and go to Ceréste to stock up.<br />
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While he was slogging through the snow, I fed the dogs and took them out. I put Cinny's little coat on her, much to her disgust, but she quickly got over her embarrassment and had a blast romping through the snow!<br />
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I played with my camera and took a few photos :<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxa5thrvEYYakLh3J06qWUw72sPMsXaKjx-jdEB4-GP_OOJ3IZbf763HP7ydYJQcN7L5M0Y3YPnWQ58-bI8jhB1mlBAFRJmfR54FQShupT4gIG6dBIdz2hXJdoNie7TwZ0WvzVv4vggPBb/s1600/DSCN2705.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxa5thrvEYYakLh3J06qWUw72sPMsXaKjx-jdEB4-GP_OOJ3IZbf763HP7ydYJQcN7L5M0Y3YPnWQ58-bI8jhB1mlBAFRJmfR54FQShupT4gIG6dBIdz2hXJdoNie7TwZ0WvzVv4vggPBb/s640/DSCN2705.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snow-clad weed</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj50XCOWJnISw-iYCoBcXVxcgxJsmj1sm_CiNxM4l89KMX2UjEjn16Gb06t4oi7LpAnXpI8yfGLPdKtXedtkcSUrRc9nrWXU4VWIH0Dlq_aPBO5QQNGIRuLL2tLu-Rc7sQcmTMP8f8O7W7s/s1600/DSCN2708.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj50XCOWJnISw-iYCoBcXVxcgxJsmj1sm_CiNxM4l89KMX2UjEjn16Gb06t4oi7LpAnXpI8yfGLPdKtXedtkcSUrRc9nrWXU4VWIH0Dlq_aPBO5QQNGIRuLL2tLu-Rc7sQcmTMP8f8O7W7s/s640/DSCN2708.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking up at our house from below the garden</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd3Nl1_i93cBzPt3q7d15fZfzSYP5FArTtqjclL2WTX9K5ixVdZn0zzugaPLx4phPtZ5diZ4K2qqqsEDG_VXB5zbhqeusi1AWaV62FsSnZkqp4vgYDTKIYZ-qOHoailVN5tFSilFmJpplx/s1600/DSCN2711.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd3Nl1_i93cBzPt3q7d15fZfzSYP5FArTtqjclL2WTX9K5ixVdZn0zzugaPLx4phPtZ5diZ4K2qqqsEDG_VXB5zbhqeusi1AWaV62FsSnZkqp4vgYDTKIYZ-qOHoailVN5tFSilFmJpplx/s640/DSCN2711.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our house from the field - I turned the flash on to highlight the falling snow</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFLMjhrGlm0M-MBhMMTjD9W0K8BVDadqSTQLzmkhAw_E0THf467LYfZ5aBcLL8_9QDemOs5_ayIu1xQ_QJyGaD42OICawP_4RKtqVhJqEdaj052BZ0xOa9Mv0eyQW4_H8938c8ZNph9sF8/s1600/DSCN2712.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="414" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFLMjhrGlm0M-MBhMMTjD9W0K8BVDadqSTQLzmkhAw_E0THf467LYfZ5aBcLL8_9QDemOs5_ayIu1xQ_QJyGaD42OICawP_4RKtqVhJqEdaj052BZ0xOa9Mv0eyQW4_H8938c8ZNph9sF8/s640/DSCN2712.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The same shot without the flash</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOsoIc0xFlyrAQPk-5rI58R_wfZxZ04vcuIm40PVPeYBLSt1ZI7EMPxnp8zvkq0O20Bwb9wDnLUsIbfrEVhZzqy5faY02FGonSOD0DrCjcX91LTgEFAhMWnSMq9My_uHt91qZ8-CcQzaxB/s1600/DSCN2713.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOsoIc0xFlyrAQPk-5rI58R_wfZxZ04vcuIm40PVPeYBLSt1ZI7EMPxnp8zvkq0O20Bwb9wDnLUsIbfrEVhZzqy5faY02FGonSOD0DrCjcX91LTgEFAhMWnSMq9My_uHt91qZ8-CcQzaxB/s640/DSCN2713.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Somebody bounding across the snow!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5cqX4wjup5k2i_HMTjEC-PcxeqdqNG5UCzXkdmblsExN1qk3pIZaFcYrWSmMmSxiVgb60xWEWF63Xy9u_xdqRuRVyUIC2BeUuvYJqWr74gzDIDaTkAYnGDtIny41mdEVUbrbh8znrcuoC/s1600/DSCN2719.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5cqX4wjup5k2i_HMTjEC-PcxeqdqNG5UCzXkdmblsExN1qk3pIZaFcYrWSmMmSxiVgb60xWEWF63Xy9u_xdqRuRVyUIC2BeUuvYJqWr74gzDIDaTkAYnGDtIny41mdEVUbrbh8znrcuoC/s640/DSCN2719.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The summerhouse</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1mq2nn004ZPgKT13VrATkeJInLDovf4MuX0MOKqzwpSssEApWJniIuK3zeDfI2XKMP_Tcqb9_gY_XriRu7um2f6y9IhgoVOIYXe7ZePTDo_sAgb5uKmjzLktKl5s_YHeCgjMp8gkck0-9/s1600/DSCN2714.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1mq2nn004ZPgKT13VrATkeJInLDovf4MuX0MOKqzwpSssEApWJniIuK3zeDfI2XKMP_Tcqb9_gY_XriRu7um2f6y9IhgoVOIYXe7ZePTDo_sAgb5uKmjzLktKl5s_YHeCgjMp8gkck0-9/s640/DSCN2714.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The summerhouse again</td></tr>
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Now we're going to play a little game... Out of the seven photos above, how many of them contain a Cinnamon? It's the Small Brown Dog equivalent of Where's Waldo! Answers in the comment section below, please!<br />
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After walking back up through the garden, I remembered the Vet's dire warning about having Cinny out in very cold weather, so I figured she'd probably had enough fun anyway and brought her back to the house. I hadn't had enough yet, though, and Cookie and I went out again, to explore the road towards Villemus.<br />
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The main road to Manosque had been ploughed, but was well covered once again.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The snowplough stopped here!</td></tr>
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The view of the Alps was a little different today,<br />
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...they're there somewhere, I swear!<br />
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We walked as far as the little tumbledown shed which I used for Sunday Stills "Barns" a while back. I tried a few different shots, including sepia and high-contrast monochrome, but this is my favourite :<br />
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I felt sorry for Cookie, she would have loved to be off-leash, but with our neighbours' free-ranging cats and chickens, it's too big a risk, so she had to content herself with bounding around at the end of the leash and snuffling in the snow at my side.<br />
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I think she had fun, all the same.<br />
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I took lots and lots of snow-scene photos, here's some of the best.<br />
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In the garden :<br />
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On the walk :<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO3LtwZ0zPbhBj9q74Y6xPr_4JayFlbP2MAdG3s2UBdgcbEL3PnROmzl5hAyWmF1sUxJh1d1F49RwzpzZgerVr3vGyOnrx6By1HK_HMXO28Qd3oBOXzntXA1DdOc5N8hzm7qGTq6F3fwcr/s1600/DSCN2735.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO3LtwZ0zPbhBj9q74Y6xPr_4JayFlbP2MAdG3s2UBdgcbEL3PnROmzl5hAyWmF1sUxJh1d1F49RwzpzZgerVr3vGyOnrx6By1HK_HMXO28Qd3oBOXzntXA1DdOc5N8hzm7qGTq6F3fwcr/s640/DSCN2735.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I can't decide if I like this affect or not</td></tr>
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Back in Les Granons :<br />
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While I was having all this fun, the LSH had retrieved Jeepy and was en route to Ceréste. The road was pretty bad, it hadn't been cleared even though it's a major thoroughfare, but everyone was driving very slowly and carefully. He bought our bits and pieces and started to make his way homewards, to find traffic at a standstill on a slightly hilly bit.<br />
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There were a lot of trucks stuck, unable to make it up the hill, but insisting on trying anyway, plus a few cars who couldn't make it either. He waited his turn, and cruised past them easily with 4WD engaged. Then it turned out that the Manosque road was closed - there had been an accident on the high part near Montfuron, and the Gendarmes were diverting everyone away. He had to roll down the window and produce his best French accent to tell the Gendarme that he was just going to Les Granons, 100 metres up the road.<br />
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He eventually stomped through the door, two hours after leaving home, laden down with shopping bags, to be greeted with<br />
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"Is this a bad time to tell you we're out of firelighters?"<br />
<br />Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-91007235791590331172013-02-09T23:52:00.001+01:002013-02-09T23:55:34.729+01:00Sunday Stills - CirclesThis weeks challenge for Sunday Stills is Circles. Pretty mean during a week when there is no full moon...<br />
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Anyway first of all I thought I'd go all arty-farty with a round table and a round lamp and two glasses and some coins. I had a lot of fun, but I don't think I Aced it.<br />
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Then I put supper on the table - baked camembert, two glasses of white wine - and I went "Oh look, circles!"<br />
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So here's my second attempt.<br />
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NB No LSH's were fed cold food in the making of this photograph.<br />
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Visit <a href="http://sundaystills.wordpress.com/2013/02/03/the-next-challenge-circles/" target="_blank">Sunday Stills</a> for more circles.Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-28446299412957746372013-02-08T21:40:00.000+01:002013-02-08T21:40:00.062+01:00Thank Friday it's Lunchtime - Le Chante de l'Heure, Apt<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This week, we went to Apt - dear old slightly shabby Apt, home of one of the best Saturday markets in Provençe.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzgcPaYrRqcdw5U_aMJf-WRUWNOLvf9XtWBaad8IxUPj-pzEyfcbvVDAfeCcnYCcAo1yZfzOtkBVCbx9fH4rmCSmBf7mtNbHi8bJJvmABwU5PaAwD3DyUd7DtXP5sEIHcQEnUpY9OBnnq2/s1600/IMG_2687.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzgcPaYrRqcdw5U_aMJf-WRUWNOLvf9XtWBaad8IxUPj-pzEyfcbvVDAfeCcnYCcAo1yZfzOtkBVCbx9fH4rmCSmBf7mtNbHi8bJJvmABwU5PaAwD3DyUd7DtXP5sEIHcQEnUpY9OBnnq2/s200/IMG_2687.jpg" width="200" /></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our destination was a small restaurant called Le Chante de l'Heure, tucked away off the main pedestrian thoroughfare in Apt, the Rue St Pierre. The name "Chant de l'Heure" has something to do with pancakes and Candlemas day (Feb 2nd) which is the traditional day for pancake eating in France. Forget your Mardi Gras moveable feast, the French do it on Feb 2nd every year!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyway, the rather unprepossessing entrance does not prepare you for the cosy, homely interior. Exposed stone walls, decked with an eclectic mix of bits and pieces all add to a very friendly, welcoming atmosphere, and the wood-burning stove glowing brightly in the corner made it nice and cosy on a cold Winter's day. We liked the fact that the dresser on the left is not just a showpiece - it stores glasses and crockery for the restaurant. The waiter showed us to our seats and left us alone while we admired the room - I guess they're used to it. We were a bit surprised that there was only one other diner present - I would have thought that a Friday lunchtime would be busier than that.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Perhaps the prices put the canny local residents off, as it was a bit more expensive than what we've found recently.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There was no "Menu du Midi" and the Plat du Jour on offer was Souris d'Agneau - stewed lamb hocks - at a price of €12.00. A far cry from the €14 we paid for five courses last week, but it's a very different setting. There's no way I'd come into this place in muddy boots!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The LSH went for the Souris d'Agneau, but I wasn't feeling very hungry, so I chose "Mont d'Or" described as a baked cheese, baked potato, salad and charcuterie.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I could feel my arteries clogging even as I looked at it - it was enormous!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not only was it enormous, but it was delicious, and I had lots of fun dipping the different cold meats, potato and pieces of bread into the melted cheese. Despite that, and despite help from the LSH, I just couldn't finish it - there was enough there for two people with my appetite.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The LSH was meanwhile working his way through the Souris d'Agneau - one of his favourite dishes, since we were first introduced to it in our friend Anne's house many years ago.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This was also served with baked potato and a salad. Maybe salad was a strange choice to accompany a winter dish, but we both enjoyed it.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I couldn't even contemplate dessert after my Mont d'Or, but there was Café Gourmand on the menu, and the LSH wasn't going to turn that down. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf579G9GFVJfbxUOB_VPQ6lZYPaPin83dJmITLdsshwsv2ZyfnoMQoYbxBPFDNYJeW7bg32nmOWZS0jFzpe536oWOUwKZSz1_7ttMz8n93sY0D4znj09s8WMDreyV-TGo8zsYZnQIAS9oz/s1600/IMG_2267.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf579G9GFVJfbxUOB_VPQ6lZYPaPin83dJmITLdsshwsv2ZyfnoMQoYbxBPFDNYJeW7bg32nmOWZS0jFzpe536oWOUwKZSz1_7ttMz8n93sY0D4znj09s8WMDreyV-TGo8zsYZnQIAS9oz/s640/IMG_2267.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It wasn't the best Café Gourmand we've seen - clockwise, from the back right corner, there's a slim chocolate mousse with vanilla ice cream, a macaron (which I nabbed - they're light!), a creme brulée slathered with chantilly cream and the coffee itself. The white square in the middle is a square of chocolate that came with my coffee, which I swapped for the macaron!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, to the nitty-gritty - was it value for money?</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, my plate of charcuterie, salad, potato and cheese was a pretty stiff €18. I think if I went again, I would know that I'd like to share it with someone, which would make it great value. The total cost of the meal was €40.50 - probably par for the course for lunch in a town restaurant, but there's better value to be had out in the little village cafés if you're prepared to forego some ambiance.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Service : ✮</span>✮✮✮✮ </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Food : ✮✮</span>✮✮</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Value : ✮✮✮</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Ambiance : ✮</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;">✮</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;">✮</span>✮ </div>
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Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-14798961068975653202013-02-06T20:56:00.000+01:002013-02-06T20:56:36.428+01:00A Final Plea for Votes!<br />
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I just had a look at the other finalists in the Best Newcomer section of the <a href="http://www.equestriansocialmediaawards.com/finalists" target="_blank">PagePlay Equestrian Social Media Awards</a>.</div>
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There's Dear Murray, an equine agony aunt who has 13,000 (yes the comma is in the right place!) followers on Facebook.</div>
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He's fiendishly funny. I want to email him a photo of Filthy Flurry and ask him WHY? Bet he'll make me laugh! And he's cute too.</div>
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<a href="https://fbcdn-profile-a.akamaihd.net/hprofile-ak-ash3/c10.10.160.160/542984_486794841362111_1822496150_a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Equestrian Discount" border="0" class="profilePic img" id="u_jsonp_2_4" src="https://fbcdn-profile-a.akamaihd.net/hprofile-ak-ash3/c10.10.160.160/542984_486794841362111_1822496150_a.jpg" style="cursor: move;" /></a>Then there's Equestrian Discount, an Irish online retailer, with the very cute ED as their mascot. Look at him - he's just adorable! They have bargains. Loads of them. And a lovely website. Sigh.</div>
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Evention? Well when I clicked the link I went to their Facebook page and from there I made my way to some of their YouTube videos. Seriously, how could you not like Engaging the Hind End or, better still, RIder Exercises: a recovery plan after the holidays? Or the "Story of Christmas" viedo (I wanna Vegemite!)</div>
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I had already come across HorseEventsUk.... their site is professional and interesting and commercial all at the same time... sigh...</div>
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Horse Nation... turns out to be an American Giant, well presented, well represented and widely read...</div>
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and then there was Keeping Up with the Kaimanawas. This is about three NZ showjumping sisters who adopted 11 horses from a cull of wild horses and set about training them. Their story was made into a TV documentary, and they continue to document the horses' progress via their website and Facebook page. Well, when my LSH heard that synopsis, he peered over my shoulder, looked at some of the photos on their site and said "WOW!" Yes. Wow. That's all one can say really. Gobsmacking stuff.</div>
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There's Lucky Hare, who makes the cutest little stuffed horses (collectibles, you understand, not toys!), the Exmoor Pony Club, whose site is HUGE and of course the Fab Siân Lovett who is nominated for THREE categories and deserves to win in every single one of them....</div>
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Yeah. I have a nice little blog, and I'm very proud of it, but in this company, I haven't a hope! However, I am genuinely (really, I'm not saying this through gritted teeth, I swear), genuinely delighted to have been nominated.</div>
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And now, I'm going to ask ONE LAST TIME! Can you please take a moment, if you haven't already done so, make your way over to <a href="http://www.equestriansocialmediaawards.com/finalists" target="_blank">the ESMA home page</a>, make your way down to category 16 and vote for HaltSalute and? And on your way, have a look at some of the other nominees and vote for a few others - not in Category 16, I hasten to add, you're not allowed to look at them!</div>
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Stay Loyal! Give me your votes, so I'm not utterly disgraced in the final reckoning! Friday is the last day for voting, so <a href="http://www.equestriansocialmediaawards.com/finalists">click on the link</a> NOW before it's too late!</div>
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Me, Flurry and Aero will thank you for it.</div>
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Better go do it myself, now that I think of it.</div>
Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7359337712503283199.post-78580469219747321362013-02-04T22:37:00.000+01:002013-02-04T23:29:27.539+01:00Days of Whine and HorsesSince last weekend, Cookie has had another three off-leash walks - yes! Three!<br />
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The first one was with my friend J and her dogs, we went to the Watermeadows, which is a wide expanse of marshy fields, very open and safely tucked away from the main road. We started off with four balls between us, and spent the first ten minutes throwing them enthusiastically. Then one of mine got burst (it was a really cheap one), Cookie went off at a tangent to dig at some molehills and I had to follow her and bring her back. Shortly after that, we realised that another ball was missing, presumably dropped by either Cookie or Tattie as they galumphed around. At that stage, my nerve failed me and I put Cookie back on the leash, but she had a good twenty minutes running around with the other dogs, which was lovely to see.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cookie and Poppie in the Watermeadows</td></tr>
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On Saturday, the LSH and I went back to the Watermeadows, with our two dogs and our guest dog Poppie. As soon as the ball was produced, Cookie was leaping up and down enthusiastically, whining and whimpering with excitement. The LSH is better at throwing than me, and this time it went much better, with Cookie and Poppie galumphing around the fields merrily for a whole hour. Cookie got distracted with interesting scents a couple of times, but we were delighted to see that when we moved on, she followed us. She seems to be getting the idea that she needs to keep an eye on us!<br />
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The next day, we went for a walk along a ridge at the eastern end of the Luberon. Once again, we had a couple of balls with us, and once again, Cookie was in a frenzy of excited concentration, whining and whimpering until the ball was thrown, vying with Poppie to be the one to retrieve it and and dashing back to us as fast as she could afterwards, with or without the ball, to receive her reward.<br />
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The only little glitch happened when we were homeward bound. We met a large group of walkers, accompanied by a golden retriever. Poppy was on point duty, and she froze when she saw them and then bolted up to the top of the ridge, from where she watched proceedings (she is very nervous of strangers). Cookie rolled up her sleeves and went into attack mode, making a beeline for the retriever, barking hysterically as she ran. She almost heeded our calls to return to our side, but a certain Small Brown Dog decided that Cookie needed reinforcements, and belatedly entered the fray, with her piercing yap echoing around the hills. At the last minute, she went into "Oh hello, you look nice, let's play" mode with the retriever (who was very tolerant, bless him), which confused Cookie long enough for us to grab her.<br />
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Fortunately the walking group didn't seem to be offended by the Hyper-Terrier attack and Poppy quickly came down from the ridge once they disappeared, so it all ended well. We do realise, though, that we are a long way from Cookie being reliable off-leash, our fingers are firmly crossed that we do eventually get there...<br />
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Rugby got in the way of any horse-riding on Saturday (Go Ireland! Only four more matches until we're Grand Slam Champions!) so on Sunday, straight after walking the dogs, we went up to the horses and headed out for a Long One.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sleepy Aero ears heading out!</td></tr>
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We went along the top of the ridge, Reclapous, for a while, then descended into the valley behind it, travelled the whole length of the ridge in the valley and then climbed up again at the Reillanne end, eventually rejoining the ridge-top walk where I've been with the dogs many times. It was three hours in total, with a very long descent followed by a slightly less long, steeper ascent, through forest and scrubland the whole way. Click on the link below to see a couple of extra photos.<br />
<a href="http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=2003385">Circuit de Reclapous at EveryTrail</a><br />
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My new size 2WW Renegades arrived during the week. I put them on Aero's front feet, and Flurry got to wear the old, fairly worn size 2WWs on his hinds (they were originally his front boots for all of Le Big Trek). He was noticeably more comfortable with them on, and I think I will continue to use them for any long rides we do for the foreseeable future, although I intend to experiment with leaving him fully barefoot for short rides. Meanwhile his front feet continue to spread, which is a good thing I suppose, except it is now a struggle to get his right front Cavallo SportBoot on. ARGH! I don't want to have to buy more boots!!!<br />
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For the first time ever, one of the straps on a Renegade boot opened mid-ride - on one of Flurry's hinds, the oldest pair of boots we are using - and was so badly coated with mud that there was no way it was going to close again. Fortunately we had our emergency kit with us and just swapped the old strap for a nice clean new one - Piece of Cake! One of the reasons I like the Renegades!<br />
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How was Aero for this trek - the longest he has done so far? Well, he was dead lazy going out along the first section of the ridge, but as soon as we turned to begin the descent from Reclapous, a new section which neither horse had seen before, he became much more alert. He didn't put a foot wrong, but I could feel him "watching" behind with his ears the whole time, and at one stage he almost felt like he was scurrying along with his tail clamped down, anticipating that a mountain lion or a pack of wolves was about to spring out and attack him. Fortunately, nothing awful happened, and at the far end of the ridge, he met his very first long, steep, rocky climb. He tried to rush it initially, which works with short, steep climbs, but when you've got a steep 350 metre ascent, you have to take it steady, and eventually he did, following Flurry's lead and picking his ground carefully as we climbed.<br />
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We tried out another new bit of kit as well, the cantle-mounted saddlebag which I bought at Cheval Passion - you can just barely make it out behind the LSH's bum in the photo above. Flurry got to carry it with two bottles of water and our picnic in it. It's a bit small, but it worked fine, except when he shook himself - one of the bottles of water fell out, but I don't think that will happen if we pull the drawstrings tight enough! Aero got to carry the pommel mounted saddlebag for the first time, I deliberately didn't put much in it, just the first aid kit and hoof boot repair kit. As expected, he took no notice of the new attachment at all. Next time, I'll put a bit more in it! And then after that, my new Tapis Sacoches will have arrived :<br />
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And we'll have fun loading that up!Martinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com4