27) Spring and Summer arrive all at once

White Campion

Spring and summer seem to have arrived all at once in the Quecy Blanc.  The swallows arrived on 7^th April, the swifts arrived on the 6^th May and, as in the rhyme, the cuckoos are singing all day (they have been throughout April).  Yesterday we saw (almost ran over) a red squirrel, the day before we saw (almost ran over) a hoopoe, and each night after dark we listen to the nightingales singing to each other across the valley.  We have also seen what we think might be an eagle.  There are lots of buzzards and kites soaring on the thermals over the valley, but this is bigger (and more eagle-like).

Oak tress (Latin name Quercus) across the valley from our gite balcony

I gather the weather in England has been very hot during April, and it has been the same here.  As it is our first year in France, we are not sure what to expect or what is normal.  One thing that did astound us, though, was the way the oak trees came into leaf, all at once, on the same day - the 11^th of April.  It is very chalky here, and everywhere there are wild oak trees (hence the name Quercy Blanc).  We sat and had breakfast on our balcony in the morning and, by the evening we noticed all the trees had come into leaf.  The whole landscape thus changed overnight (overday?).

Vines in the field next to the gite

The other change to the landscape is the vineyards.  Gnarled and brown when we arrived, they are now turning a lush green as their runners shoot out along the vine wires.  There is lots of activity in the vineyards, with the most extraordinary machines trundling precariously over the vines, as their guardians shower them in a fine dust of noxious chemicals to keep at bay the bugs and beasties that could damage the precious crop. 

Cahors wine is somewhat of an acquired taste.  It is very dark (it is known as the black wine), and tends to be quite strong and heavy.  Peter the Great of Russia apparently once declared that the official communion wine should be Cahors wine.  Apparently this was because it travelled well (presumably because no bacteria could survive in it – God knows what it’s doing to our stomachs).  The best of it is very good, but quite expensive.  We have, however, found some very drinkable local wine in the markets, which you can buy direct from the producers for around £4 a bottle (and, of course, you can buy it en vrac at around 1.50 euros a litre).  In due course, we will travel round the vineyards themselves on a serious wine tasting exercise to discover where it’s best to buy.

This chalky area is also wonderful for wild flowers.  They are everywhere, and there are so many different varieties.  April and May must be two of the best months to be here, and yet no one seems to arrive until the summer holidays, when so much of the best will be over.

Aptly named Bee orchid

Another type of orchid

I didn’t have to worry too much about the orchids being cut by the chap who mowed the lawn at our new house, as they too are all over the place.  So far we have found at least nine different varieties, and several plants we have spotted have not yet come into flower.

Butterfly on lilac at the new house

A rather beautiful lace winged butterfly seen on a walk near our gite

We have also seen some amazingly beautiful butterflies, and the other day an enormous moth turned up on the doorstep. 

An enormous moth

Underside of the moth with 50 pence piece (unfortunately it died)

The down side to all things that fly about and buzz, is that they are not all as welcome as butterflies.  There are also some enormous hairy black things which buzz slowly about at high volume, and one of the giters the other day said they had seen a hornet (gulp – I am neurotic about wasps, let alone monster versions with a reputation for violence).

A rather blurry picture taken with a hand shivering with fear of an imminent strike

On a walk in the delightful village of St Vincent, G and I were watching the fish in a crystal clear stream when slowly (and rather menacingly) a small pointed head emerged from the weeds, followed by the beautifully (but chillingly) marked long lithe body of une vipère.  Luckily, (and I really do want to believe this) things such as adders and hornets are not much interested in humans and, in fact, are rather scared of them (the feeling is mutual).  In the grand scheme of things, French drivers (or for that matter, English drivers) are undoubtedly far more of a potential threat, and certainly they are far more dangerous.

Lauzertes market where we bought strawberries

With the advent of summer, the markets have expanded, as has the range of produce for sale.  Strawberries are out in abundance, and they actually taste of strawberries.  This area is renowned for melons too, but the local ones don’t seem to be in the markets just yet.

A rather shady character in Monsempron Libos market

Monsempron Libos market on a Thursday was a real discovery, the biggest we’ve yet found.  Here they had stalls (several) just selling asparagus, and on Sunday we bought some white asparagus for the first time at our local market of Montcuq – what a treat (and virtually no calories).

26) Post script to the Royal Wedding

In the end we couldn’t avoid watching the wedding as it seemed to be on all the UK channels at the same time, all of the time.  I must say, I thought William and Kate (whom I don’t really know, but everyone seems to call them by their christian names) did very well.  The thought of being on close up cameras, being watched by a billion people is enough to make anyone freak out (particularly if you knew lip-readers had been employed to check out anything you may say out of earshot).  What happens if you suddenly need a pee (or worse)?  Perhaps the geeks at Porton Down came up with some sort of imodium for bladders?  Or perhaps there was a stand in Kate-look-alike actress that took the part in the Abbey?

Kate’s sister looked very pretty, but they had wrecked her hair from when we saw her arriving at the hotel. Perhaps they did this so she didn’t outshine Kate (or the stand in actress) on the important day.

I thought the trees in the Abbey looked crap.  Whose idea was that?  I heard one reporter saying it brought a modern touch to the event.  It didn’t.  It just looked crap.  Gothic cathedrals are wonderful.  They can also look great with modern art in them ( Henry Moore in Salisbury, Sutherland in Chichester, or the Gormley in the crypt at Winchester), but trees just don’t work, they simply look crap.

I did feel a bit sorry for the RAF, though, with William choosing to wear an army colonel’s uniform.  Admittedly, it was a very striking red colour, and had much more pizazz than the T Mobile Utube version, which had William in RAF garb.  Then to add insult to injury, he had sown his RAF wings onto a sash.

I think there ought to be a sort of Royal uniform, which doesn’t have a connection to any of the forces.  Something perhaps like that of Black Rod, but with the addition of a crown.  Why no crowns?  Kate, who wasn’t even Royal until the “I do” bit had a tiara, but no crown for the Queen and not for the Prince either.  Shame.

Coverage in France built up to a bit of a crescendo on the actual day, but they dropped the story like a pomme de terre chaude the day after.  Back to normal now, with not much news about England (I think the recent election was just far too muddling for them).  Of course, the most famous Englishman over here is Arsen Wenger.