Yes its still boiling hot, and I think it is for most people in Europe. Just quickly, before going on to matters of the market and missing ducks, I have finally finished Aubert and Capucine hare. She now has a rather fetching silk embroidered shawl for the cooler evening ( hah - not much of that here at the moment ) Although you know what its like - they are finished and then you think that they could have been better in another fabric, so you make another sample. Only I can’t because the sewing room is in the top floor, and its meltingly hot up there. What I want to do at this moment in time, is take off my clothes and stretch out on the cool terracotta floor tiles, like the cat is doing. Lucky sod. Anyway at least these two hares are not hot, and they are ready as samples for the September sewing course. Which I still have a couple of spaces for. I have extended the time too, as I think they need more time. So arrival thursday afternoon or evening, and departure Monday evening or Tuesday morning.
Right - onto other matters. I took the three swedish workaway girls to the market this morning, in Rochefort. My usual haunt. Normally I go on a Saturday morning, but we have the gite changeover to do, so won’t have time then. While the morning was still cool and full of promise, I fed and watered the chickens, and someone else went down to pick the raspberries and blackberries. What there was of them, because many of them are dried up. Still, the raspberries were deliciously sweet. We had breakfast under the Judas tree, and felt rather good under its fat shady leaves. Then into the car, and I was happy to find a parking space in the shade.
The market was full of tourists, wandering slowly, just looking, stopping in the middle of the track to find a water bottle from the others rucksack and that sort of thing. Honestly ! I finally managed to find all the things I needed to buy - carrots, celery and parsley were needed for the tomato sauce that we will be making again, as the tomatoes are happy with this crazy sun. Then some lovely nectarines, both yellow and white, some reine claude plums, some lumpy large lemons, and a large loaf of grainy sourdough bread. I then headed to the covered market, where I went straight to the big hall in the middle, full of fish and seafood. It was limply cool, and I wandered forwards scanning the stands for seafood that would be good on the plancha. In particular, ‘couteaux’. I saw a very large man choose tiny little fish, and then a skinny tiny woman choose a giant slab from a monster of a fish. I found some couteaux at a stand that I quite like, for their chatter and cheer, and got all I wanted in one go. Some little squids too, which they prepared for me, and some filets of merlin I think. There was a queue and at the front I watched some boys poke their finger at the live langoustines. Finally all was done, and I wandered up to the little brasserie des Halles, and claimed the table I had asked for. In the shade, and quite bearable. The girls arrived, and we had a nice lunch of mussels.
The walk home seemed hard, and driving in the heat ridiculously tiring. A siesta definitely needed upon arrival. And so goes the day.
I think I must leave the duck story for another day as my eyes are drooping and I feel jealous of everyone else napping. It concerns four ducks that are now two.
We have only one more day of full heat after this one, and then saturday drops down to 32 - altogether much more manageable, and after that it should be in the late twenties. Can’t wait. And really… can’t wait for rain. Like the rest of us.
Yes its still boiling hot, and I think it is for most people in Europe. Just quickly, before going on to matters of the market and missing ducks, I have finally finished Aubert and Capucine hare. She now has a rather fetching silk embroidered shawl for the cooler evening ( hah - not much of that here at the moment ) Although you know what its like - they are finished and then you think that they could have been better in another fabric, so you make another sample. Only I can’t because the sewing room is in the top floor, and its meltingly hot up there. What I want to do at this moment in time, is take off my clothes and stretch out on the cool terracotta floor tiles, like the cat is doing. Lucky sod. Anyway at least these two hares are not hot, and they are ready as samples for the September sewing course. Which I still have a couple of spaces for. I have extended the time too, as I think they need more time. So arrival thursday afternoon or evening, and departure Monday evening or Tuesday morning.
Right - onto other matters. I took the three swedish workaway girls to the market this morning, in Rochefort. My usual haunt. Normally I go on a Saturday morning, but we have the gite changeover to do, so won’t have time then. While the morning was still cool and full of promise, I fed and watered the chickens, and someone else went down to pick the raspberries and blackberries. What there was of them, because many of them are dried up. Still, the raspberries were deliciously sweet. We had breakfast under the Judas tree, and felt rather good under its fat shady leaves. Then into the car, and I was happy to find a parking space in the shade.
The market was full of tourists, wandering slowly, just looking, stopping in the middle of the track to find a water bottle from the others rucksack and that sort of thing. Honestly ! I finally managed to find all the things I needed to buy - carrots, celery and parsley were needed for the tomato sauce that we will be making again, as the tomatoes are happy with this crazy sun. Then some lovely nectarines, both yellow and white, some reine claude plums, some lumpy large lemons, and a large loaf of grainy sourdough bread. I then headed to the covered market, where I went straight to the big hall in the middle, full of fish and seafood. It was limply cool, and I wandered forwards scanning the stands for seafood that would be good on the plancha. In particular, ‘couteaux’. I saw a very large man choose tiny little fish, and then a skinny tiny woman choose a giant slab from a monster of a fish. I found some couteaux at a stand that I quite like, for their chatter and cheer, and got all I wanted in one go. Some little squids too, which they prepared for me, and some filets of merlin I think. There was a queue and at the front I watched some boys poke their finger at the live langoustines. Finally all was done, and I wandered up to the little brasserie des Halles, and claimed the table I had asked for. In the shade, and quite bearable. The girls arrived, and we had a nice lunch of mussels.
The walk home seemed hard, and driving in the heat ridiculously tiring. A siesta definitely needed upon arrival. And so goes the day.
I think I must leave the duck story for another day as my eyes are drooping and I feel jealous of everyone else napping. It concerns four ducks that are now two.
We have only one more day of full heat after this one, and then saturday drops down to 32 - altogether much more manageable, and after that it should be in the late twenties. Can’t wait. And really… can’t wait for rain. Like the rest of us.