Hot August

Puycalvel fields

It is definitely an unusual year, the grass,  fields and trees are all green.  Normally, by now I would not have to cut the grass as it would be yellow and dry.  This weekend was the Lautrec garlic festival and the last time people could go to a bar without a pass sanitaire (vaccination certificate), the café plum in Lautrec was very busy!  The field below the terrace, where I take coffee is changing colour and will soon be a sea of yellow sunflowers.

We are  having a good August with all gîtes full, the feedback we are receiving is excellent  This month we have a number Belgian families, French and one English family...who live in Belgium. It's been busy with a number of changeovers, lots of towels and bedding to wash, dry and iron.  It's hot and the pool is seeing a lot of action.  While everyone was out I managed to cut the grass in and around the gites and the lower meadow. On another occasion when all out I cut around the pool.

Giraffe and baby

Thoughts on the zoo we visited at the end of July. Evie and I have had a number of discussions about zoos.  During our recent visit we thought some of the cages were too small, but overall the animals were well cared for.  Evie has the same ideas as me and thinks zoo animals should be in large enclosures and breed to release back to the wild to sustain dwindling wild animals.

Victoria plums

The orchard is providing juicy victoria plums, (lots this year) apples and pears to follow.  We are eating tomatoes and the odd pepper.  However, the onions and potatoes are still in their packets, too much work to get them in!  The courgettes given by JP were eaten by snails.......next year.  The sad news is we lost one chicken, it was poorly, so Evie and I took her to the vet, however after a course of medicine (given to all as a precaution) she succumbed and is now buried in the potager.  The other chicken sleeps with the ducks and seems content. 

I have booked for us to holiday in the UK, the boys are now vaccinated and currently we will not have to isolate.  This will mean we can see friends and visit family.  Be aware though, that EasyJet have changed their baggage policy and to take a "normal" roll-on case you now need to book a seat  £22......each way.  In future I will check other airlines' cost of travel.  We will stay with Grandad in Fleet and visit Brighton, Weybridge and hopefully Cornwall.  However, we only have 10 days as the kids need to get back for school.  The French have introduced a Covid vaccination certificate for access to restaurants, bars and all venues such as zoos and kids play centres.  We have all had the Pfizer vaccine.  Apparently these certificates will be fine, even though the UK and French governments seem to play tit for tat since Brexit.  It is like a school playground fight, and that statement is unfair to school children!

Below the terrace

It has been a good month to see animals early in the morning (baguette run) with roe deer walking through the sunflower field below the terrace.  Red squirrel (no grey in France), hare and one Belgian family even had a bat in the Grange.  It probably flew in through an open window, but it was caught in a towel and released.  During my trips for guests to Marty the boulangerie in Lautrec I have seen golden oriole, turtle doves, hoopoe and little owl.  Swallows feed overhead and judging by the numbers look like they have had a good year, as have the bee-eaters.  I hear them call overhead daily as they feed on insects high in the sky.  The swallows even visit the pool for water.

The kids and I went to a restaurant "La Table de Servies",  It was great to sit under the plane trees and eat, drink and enjoy the outside life.  I enjoyed the fish menu, the kids, a kids menu of steak hache, fries and salad,  finished with us all enjoying a French favourite Crème Brûlée.  This was also the first time we had to use our pass sanitaire.

Lautrec

August has seen the hottest day so far at 43 degrees, the odd thunderstorm and drizzle.  But generally hot and sunny, great for all the guests who enjoy the peace and tranquillity of the Tarn countryside.

Guests coming to La Bastide for a holiday normally use Goole maps or Waze.  Waze seems to think the farm track from Cuq is navigable by most cars!  They are wrong, it is full of ruts and impassable in the wet.  I would recommend (until Waze changes the app) driving to Puycalvel first, then use the app to find us.  Metalled road all the way.

Top 10 markets in the Tarn

Albi
Covered market - every morning
Carmaux
Friday morning
Castres
Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday mornings
Gaillac
Friday morning

Lacaune-Les-Bains

Sunday morning
Lavaur
Large open air Saturday morning
Lisle-sur-Tarn
Sunday morning
Mazamet
Tuesday and Saturday morning
Rabastens
Saturday morning
Réalmont
Wednesday morning

Fresh at the market

Lautrec our local medieval town has a small Friday morning market, selling fresh fish, meat, vegetables and dairy products.  There are also seasonal producers markets, you can buy produce and choose freshly cooked food from a variety of stalls to eat al fresco, washed down with a local bottle of wine. Visit Marches Producteurs, they run until 7th September and are a real treat.

The end of the month finished with a medieval concert in Mondragon, followed by a drink and typical French food, baguette and cheese, meeting new people and talking with people I had met once before (mainly the Expat community of the area).

Medieval Sorèze

Durfort church

Durfort stream

A trip for lunch in Sorèze was fascinating.  I went with friends and explored nearby Durfort, a town that was a centre of the copper industry dating back to the 16th century.  There is one shop now, that still tins copper pots. A rare art these days.  A stream runs though the town where the pots were cleaned, the waste chemicals were washed downstream!

Frésinet

Sorèze

A great lunch at the Restaurant Saint Martin which is opposite the Museum Dom Robert (another visit planned to see his work), well worth a visit for the eclectic interior and good wholesome food.  Lunch including wine and coffee started at 18 euros for the excellent plat du jour. The charcuterie starter was very comprehensive. The pork casserole frésinet, a local speciality, was very good and the portion was more than ample.  A  walk around the town was interesting, finishing at the old communal Lavoir (a public wash house).  I am already planning the return visit

Eclectic 

Our final guests arrive 1st September, and all guests will have left by the 11th.  After that Grandad is coming for a visit and some friends who have been before.  I can't wait to see everyone, after being in lockdown, for what seems like forever.