Well, at least it waited until the last day........

Scratchy throat last night, SORE throat this morning and stuffy nose evolves into real congestion. Thanks, France but I've actually got heaps of germs chez moi so I really don't need to import more of yours. I probably cut off the special fois gras medicine a week too early..............

Over the river and through the woods

We saw 3 boat companies moving people up and down the Seine. And that didn't even include the one we know Bateau Mouche. Tom wasn't up for riding the hop on, hop off up boat until we got tired of it. 

We walked pass the Sorbonne and into the Jardin de Plants where they have some really big, really old trees. And this really cool fountain. 

We did not go into the tropical glass houses, too muggy.

But we wandered around the gardens.

They have a "Menagerie" full of children, small scale houses and gardens.

2 weeks with Mr. and Mrs. Midity

That would be Mr. Hugh Midity and yesterday morning was the first day since we arrived that has been dripless - sweat-wise. It's only 80 and only 55% Midity but it's most certainly NOT a dry heat.

Next picture not for the squeamish.....................

Poor guy caught in the locks and hung out to dry

But THIS photo good for all..............

Farming's not all sunflowers/corn/wheat, etc. This a poplar plantation and pretty common all over the south. I'm not sure how quickly Farmer Jean waits before sending these off to either pulp paper mill or other wood products but they are pretty good weeds, like eucalyptus.

"Fill 'er up with high test and check the oil and tires, please".

"Oh, wait - make that a couple liters of rose, please"

Here's a new aperitif that Alvin introduced to us - sort of hill-billy Armagnac cut with anybody's sparkling wine. The Armagnac is secondarily fortified with orange/lemon flavors and other bits and it's diluted at a 7-1 ratio with the bubbly stuff. We're bringing a bottle home so Duncan can cast aspersions on it.

We arrive in Paris

In February when we were here the place was normal. Today, Saturday night the joint is hopping. At the little square around the corner from our hotel was packed. There wasn't a free table in any of the restaurants.

We had bbq merges and chicken sandwiches along the river with a welcome breeze an a jazz quartet. Tom pointed out that we were in the minority age wise. 

Quite a difference from the night market last night in St. Columbe. not just because it rained either.

We took the train this morning from Bordeaux it was packed with people going on holiday. 

Off the beaten path

We headed down to Place de Bastille to catch a boat for a 2 1/2 hour ride on the St Martin canal. It starts off with a 2k trip thuough a tunnel under the streets of Paris.

Then on through a series of locks

Until you reach the Bassin la Villette. It was teaming with people. Walking, riding in little boats, on the tiny sand 'beach' with beach chairs an umbrellas. So much fun. Might be my favorite Paris thing yet. A r

On to a proper lunch and a hike up to the Buttes Chaumont. People we everywhere there too picnicking on the grass mostly. 

Boats and Boat Rides

Becky really wants to rent a river boat/barge some day and putz around some of the canals where we've ridden our bikes. All in the goal of 4 years from now - when Jasieu is 10 years old and can be named "Lock-Meister" with all the rights and responsibilities of opening/closing the locks.

This is his role model - she's about 10 years old and was scampering around with the card key that operated the locks in Nerac on our tour boat.

And meanwhile, here's my personal Mt. Everest. Webster's has a page just for me under the "Lightweight" definition and I tested it 3 times over here with a 2nd glass of wine or the 50 cl pint glass of bier. No changes noticed - still have the additional loss of hearing when the 2nd glass or 2nd half of the brewski is reached. A total "BFD" and I'll always be satisfied with the 1 glass I can handle.

We let somebody else cook

We just ate - and ate. 3 hour super relaxed final lunch at an Auberge overlooking the canal. Man, it was chow down time. Here's the menu for today

First off, choose your starter or entrée. Cabecou cheese fried in a pasty sandwich with speck (I've always been suspicious of that term, even if it's just dried ham of some sort)

or the eggplant (aubergine) caponata with smoked trout. Next , decide on main plate - it could be "porcelet" (roast pig in a very unique cut) and they wasted an eggplant on me. How did THAT get on my plate?

or merlu- a Mediterranean white fish.

                                         ---- OR -----

You could supplement your menu with the upgrades below. But best of all, dessert came with the multiple options. Which spoon would YOU use?

Don't blow it and choose the chocolate cake spoon with the nectarine soup spoon or the chestnut mousse spoon. They're all different and I'm sure the dessert dudes would tell you how important it is to eat with the correct spoon. I just want to be the guy in the kitchen with the squeeze bottles full of flavors decorating all the plates.

The good, bad and the ugly

I really enjoy cooking with friends and cooking with Kate Hill here in Gascony is a real treat. My friend Renee came down the hill and Janet is here from Oregon. Janet was here 2 years ago when we were here. So she isn't a stranger. 

We made tomato tarts of all sizes and shapes. 

Tomato tic tac toe.

My tart before and after baking.

That's the good.

The bad and ugly is when I failed to pay attention and cut my finger. Put me out of action for the rest of the day. But my help was not really needed and the other muscateers finished up with out me. 

The final product: tomato tarts of various shapes and sizes, Swiss card fritters, cornflower pancakes with a couple of toppings and a peach tart. Yum.

The really ugly:

About that cooking school...........

Jacques Pepin and Hubert Keller and other TV cook stars can chop up stuff watching somewhere else besides where the knife blade is located. We are not Jacques nor Hubert but we need to keep our eyes on the ball (knife) ALL the time. Swiss chard fritters don't taste that good.......

Speaking of food (fud) and McDonalds - they have gone very serious about ordering your Big Macs - it's done at a kiosk and after you decide how to pay they BRING it to you. Yesterday at the Bordeaux train station we needed an English translator to find the location of the car rental return - it took 3 tries before a charming lady helped us. I spoke with 3 McDonalds people getting my fud, each of whom responded to my turgid French in English to help out the dumb ass tourist. That's in Agen, a town of maybe 35,000.

And still speaking of food - this is Bacon. He's a loud, proud son of Agen who lives in the cooking school. He's BIG, probably 200 pounds of lovable lummox who guards the place during and after school.  A very big pussycat of a dog

Wednesday was our big driving day. I wanted to see the great Bordeaux grape region, the famous Pauillac, Pommerol, Medoc wine country. Much like Napa and Sonoma without any hills or mountains surrounding it. We went all the way to the most northern part of the Bordeaux peninsula - think top of Pt. Reyes and Tomales Bay. We took the ferry across to Royan and then skirted the edge of Cognac country on the way home.

About that cooking school...........

Jacques Pepin and Hubert Keller and other TV cook stars can chop up stuff watching somewhere else besides where the knife blade is located. We are not Jacques nor Hubert but we need to keep our eyes on the ball (knife) ALL the time. Swiss chard fritters don't taste that good.......

Speaking of food (fud) and McDonalds - they have gone very serious about ordering your Big Macs - it's done at a kiosk and after you decide how to pay they BRING it to you. Yesterday at the Bordeaux train station we needed an English translator to find the location of the car rental return - it took 3 tries before a charming lady helped us. I spoke with 3 McDonalds people getting my fud, each of whom responded to my turgid French in English to help out the dumb ass tourist. That's in Agen, a town of maybe 35,000.

And still speaking of food - this is Bacon. He's a loud, proud son of Agen who lives in the cooking school. He's BIG, probably 200 pounds of lovable lummox who guards the place during and after school.  A very big pussycat of a dog

Wednesday was our big driving day. I wanted to see the great Bordeaux grape region, the famous Pauillac, Pommerol, Medoc wine country. Much like Napa and Sonoma without any hills or mountains surrounding it. We went all the way to the most northern part of the Bordeaux peninsula - think top of Pt. Reyes and Tomales Bay. We took the ferry across to Royan and then skirted the edge of Cognac country on the way home.

Cooking school

I have a chance to cook again with Kate Hill again this year. So much fun! I love hanging out with people who like cook food, eat food, talk about food.....

This time with a woman from Oregon who was here a couple of years ago when Tom and I were here, a Canadian professor who is trying out living in France and my friend Renee. We went to the market and then wizard up three different cold uncooked soups and pork loin sandwiches.

And, I get to go back tomorrow.

Chez Mickey comes through!

We have a sort of internet connection at the Gite - it has a sometimes link in the kitchen but not in any other room and it's been on the fritz for a week so....I'm sitting in one of Agen's 3 McDonalds where they have a STRONG signal. Finally.

We really are in the country - it's wheat harvesting time as long as the crop is  dry and the last few fields are getting their haircuts. Wheat, corn (for duck feed), tobacco, forage crops like alfalfa and sunflowers.

Alec and I have permanently scarred shinbones from constantly bashing into the trailer hitches on our 2 heavy duty vehicles but almost every passenger vehicle in France has one of these cute little ball hitches for boats, camp trailers, etc. I think we'd probably scar them if we ran into them. Here's an SAT word - these are ubiquitous!

Add this to my bucket list - playing tennis on a clay court. On this 95 degree day this court was getting a watering for the afternoon games. It's a totally different playing style but just like the French Open - I want to try this out someday. I've been hitting with my friend Alvin on his village courts that just had a marvelous renovation but Clay - Dude - that's heavenly!

When I worked at our store on Burlingame Avenue back in the Stone Age/20th Century honking horns and wedding caravans were a regular Saturday occurance. It's disappeared from the Bay Area , especially since hardly anyone gets married anymore - but they still do it up righteously in France. LOUD horn honking, swerving/weaving parades down main streets - Whooppee!

Perfect Day

I First a bike ride along the canal while Tom plays tennis. 

The corner menagerie has increased from 3 goats, many chickens and 2 geese by 2 geese babies. 

Next was lunch, a trip to the Hypermarche then a long dip in the piscine contemplating a field of sunflowers. 

Dinner in Nerac followed by a klezmer concert. 

Turn on the fan and go to bed.