night market, not

 The Monday night market was cancelled - much rejoicing here, we had a storm!! Sad not to eat at Ziads stall though, took this on Sunday when it was amazingly hot. Next week for Lebanese food then.

very fresh here. Bored by talking about the weather but little else matters in a small French village.

Everything changes

 Alet-les-Bains have been doing late nights at the pool on Fridays so we went there with our guests to round up a lively day - breakfast  at Couiza, La Ravito (naturally), then the tour of Rennes le Chateau after a spot of Limoux shopping. Evening snack at the little cabin by the pool.

Very pleasant to sit under the trees and not roast.

Today the kids are with their Aunty Ziggi, lake swimming and who knows what else...

...and tomorrow is the market. 

You might like to know that Esperazas post office has moved to what they call the summer time-table. Open Monday and Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, 2.00 to 5.00.

You should also know that I bumped into Isabelle, late of Tout-la. Jean-Luc is OK, (she wiggled hand like a dying fish,) and sends love to us all. 

welcome visitors

 Our drab lives have been lit by the arrival of Bobs great nephew William and his sister Hannah. Great company!

And they brought bad weather, grey and wet - cool - very very happy here :)

of Mice and Breakfast

Charlotte and I were having an innocent coffee this morning when look who arrived.... Andy and Lou, hurrah! Would have stayed to chatter all morning had I not had a call from Electromanager, who were coming to examine our dreadfully ineffective washing machine.

( Well, it was effective at washing the floor but little else.)

The mice had feasted on our pipes... 

Can't recommend Electromanager enough, he's local (next to Intermarche) will sell you all your white goods and more importantly, come out and fix then when they're manque.

All this excitement meant I forgot to photograph Norbert and Louise who came for coffee. They are blossoming, take my word for it. Ditto Charlotte, who somehow never photographs.

 

chilly weekend

 Our very kindly friends Richard and Alison Samuel offered to collect us and drive us away for a cooling weekend by their swimming pool, nearly at Belpeche. What joy!

We stopped at Bastide-sur-l'hers for lunch on route.

This little dish is coquilles st jacques, very finely sliced into a marinade - we were all thrilled with our various plats, its clear the chef knows a thing or two :)

En route, we noticed that the heat wave was thinning and by the time we got to Peche Luna it was chilly. Some of us braved the pool - not Bob -  but then it was closed up for the weekend. Sigh.

After weeks of uncomfortable heat, all felt this was not fair. It stayed cold until we left. Now back in Esperaza, we swelter again.

However, we stopped off at the Cafe de Fa to cheer ourselves up and had a terrific meal there too -

here's a bit of Alisons fresh crab pasty, which was a great success. All happy! That little place goes from strength to strength; congratulations to the team there.

Too hot for me to go to the night market but hope all who go have fun -

heat, more heat and the river

Here's the sun, just hitting the Aude and the pont  and about to blast us this morning - like most sensible people I went out early and had to wear a jacket it was so chilly! Set to get back into middle 30's again today though. Bits of France were evacuated in the night because of fires but so far we've been spared.

We braved Limoux yesterday in the high heat. Between lunch, shopping and medical stuff we took a doze under the trees by the river which was very pleasant - 

In two separate locations saw two different sparrows chasing Asian hornets. Does anyone know if they are chasing invaders - do they invade sparrows nests? - or are they a crunchy snack. The hornets are back here over the bees nest in the old chimney but the bees remain, pro tem anyway. 

I forgot - alas, alas - to photograph Margot! She gave us dinner the other night in her rented apartment. Looking wonderful. Hope she'll be back soon, checking out her old mates here.

 

in and not-in

 There's quite a lot going on - I'm just not participating. The Monday night market being as usual on a Monday, clashed with the fete du vin which is always on the 20th, which this year falls on a Monday.

Ah well... judging from the noise, both were well attended! 

Its the heat, noise, dust and smoke that's keeping me from scampering about. With shutter and window management, its possible to keep cool. But nothing else, alas.

Missed Bastille day, now called le fete nationale for unknown reasons.  When asked by French friends when is England's National Day I can only come up with bonfire night, November 5th, which is quite hard to explain.