I was surprised to see a café in Blois called “French Coffee Shop”. Strange as it may seem, it’s actually a French franchise, which started in 2009 and has over 45 shops based on the American “coffee shop” concept. Blois is one of the latest additions. J’étais surprise de voir un café à Blois qui s’appelle “French …
Monthly Archives: October 2015
Orange beauties – Beautés oranges
Such beautifully coloured and delicately shaped mushrooms are not usually edible but peziza aurantia which grows in open areas because it needs lots of light to develop its spectacular orange coulour, can even be eaten uncooked! We tried it cooked with scallops on a bed of leeks tonight. The taste is not very strong, but …
Bricks and Stone – Briques et pierre
This photo is in response to Stuart’s photo on Amboise Daily Photo today (our towns are 30 km apart on the Loire River). His photo shows a stone and brick window that is more recent and better crafted than mine which is probably about 400 years old. The combination of brick and stone is typical of …
Financier aux Poires
Half the pleasure of desserts in France is in the presentation. A financier is a traditional cake in France made with powdered almonds first made in the 17th century by an order of nuns called the Visitandines in Nancy in Lorraire. The oval-shaped cakes, called “Visitandines”, were made either to make up for the prohbition of meat …
Autumn Hedge – Haie d'automne
Coming from the tropics, I always find autumn amazing in France, even though I’m not that keen on winter! Originaire des tropiques, je trouve toujours l’automne merveilleuse mais si je n’aime pas particulièrement l’hiver !
The Mushroom Tree – L'arbre aux champignons
We’ve been seeing mushrooms on the market for the past month during our travels in Northern and Easter Europe but today was the first day we were able to go mushroom picking since the season began. These mushrooms aren’t edible but I think they’re very decorative. Nous avons vu des champignons sur le marché pendant notre voyage …
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Anyone for duck? – Du canard peut-être ?
I thought Le Gabriel, opposite Gabriel Bridge in Blois, looked very inviting as we drove past recently (Parmentier de canard = shepherd’s pie made with duck). J’ai trouvé que Le Gabriel en face du pont du même nom à Blois, avait l’air très accueillant lorsque nous sommes passé devant récemment.
A Walk at Chenonceau – Une promenade à Chenonceau
We stopped off at Chenonceau on our way back from Nantes today and took our favourite walk along the bike path on the other side of the Cher. As majestic as ever! Nous nous sommes arrêtés à Chenonceau sur le retour de Nantes aujourd’hui faire notre promenade préférée sur la piste cyclable de l’autre côté du …
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Autumn from my window – L'autonne depuis ma fenêtre
We’re home from our travels and autumn is everywhere. This is the view from my office window at Closerie Falaiseau in Blois. Nous sommes de retour de vacances et l’automne nous entoure. Voici la vue de la fenêtre de mon bureau à Closerie Falaiseau. à Blois
Postcard from Alsace – Pink Sandstone and Varnished Roofs
I love the pink Vosges sandstone and varnished roofs of the churches in Colmar in Alsace. This is Saint Martin’s Collegiate Church frequently called Saint Martin’s Cathedral. The original Romanesque church was reconstructed in the 13th and 14th centuries.The variation in the colour of the sandstone is due to the fact that it comes from different quarries. …
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