Not a particularly eventful week last week except for the run-up to our first dinner party in France. We invited our English friends, Debbie(well she's Aussie actually) Sandra and Patrick, who all live in the village. I was a bit worried at first because whenever we have had parties in the UK I have always insisted that, whilst I am cooking, everybody stays out of the kitchen. Of course now we are open plan that is not possible but it worked out quite well and we ate and drank until almost 2.30! The menu was avocado on a bed of lettuce and rocket surrounded by crevettes with a garlic and olive oil dressing, duck breast, carrots,, peas and new potatoes and ice cream with fresh mango. I think the food was ok well there wasnt much left for the dog! and the wine flowed well. Debbie complained of the hangover of the year, so it must have been acceptable.
After recovering from the hangover, which wrote off Sunday, David started on tiling the kitchen and it is looking good now and very French. Photo will follow when tiling is grouted.
We went down to the market today, had a coffee in the cafe and joined the local club for members of the "third age". It is a mixture of French and English people who wine, dine, walk and travel, so it should be good fun and we hope it will help our French conversation. We managed to join without a word of English being spoken so hopefully things can only get better.
We have several new friends who are ill at the moment, crazy when you think you come here for a healthier life-style. One Dutch lady, a neighbour who has cancer, one young married French chap with an English wife and lovely family who has contracted a virus which has resulted in him having to have open heart surgery this week, and our local bobby, who also helps us out with building jobs, who has crashed his squad car and broken several ribs. Its manic in Bize!
Anyway we are off for lunch on Saturday with the Club Le Troisieme Age so it could be that its hangover day again on Sunday. I hope not because I want to go to the market and garden centre at St Chinian and as I am still not driving because of the old eye problem himself will have to be in the mood to take me there.
Watch this space for more news from Bize Minervois in the Languedoc Roussillon. Au revoir.
