Monday 20th May - Cooking in a Bedsitter
Today's weather forecast is not very promising. It is raining when we get up. D proves the assertion that it is never too late to learn by successfully toasting Turkish bread in a dry frying pan. 
Before our visit to the vineyards there is a bit of housekeeping to do. It is some sort of Bank Holiday so everything opens a bit later. The big Carrefour supermarket nearby has a self service laundromat and we get there just after opening time. With a bit of help from a French lady we get our washing under way.
This allows us to join the mob waiting to storm the front gate of the Carrefour. Fortunately the shutter goes up bang on time so there are no unseemly incidents. D resists the lure of a bargain pack of 10 wine glasses for 5 euros. We have only broken one. A suitable specimen is found for a euro and we also find replacement non-stick pans for our venerable travelling raclette machine. There is just time to grab some food and wine before we have to return to the laundromat to switch the clothes from the washer to the drier.
R then looks out of our window to see flashing blue lights in the car park. There are several Fire and Police vehicles out front. D hopes that nobody has reported his toast experiment
Our route to Saint Emilion takes us east, away from Bordeaux. We cross the Dordogne near Libourne and then follow secondary roads through the vineyards. Several fields have roses growing at the ends of the rows of grape vines.
A source on the internet suggests that roses are planted at the end of rows as an early warning system for the winegrower. They attract insects like aphids before the vines. They also get fungal disease like black rot and mildew before the vines do.It takes a little time to find somewhere to park on the outskirts of Saint Emilion village but it is worth the effort. By the look of things it has been raining heavily but has stopped for now. We gaze across the pan-tiled rooves for a while then wander down into the village. There are lots of places selling wine but also a few arty places.
We find a cafe and ingest some caffeine before finding a bench in a small garden where we can sit and eat our packed lunch. The sun even shines for a while.
We continue our circuit and it begins to drizzle. We seek shelter in a Cave and leave a bit poorer. No doubt the wine will be splendid. R is delighted to see kites overhead.
Tonight's feast is far too good for a Monday.The avocados that the man in the market sold us yesterday were a fabulous starter. Then we enjoy
Before our visit to the vineyards there is a bit of housekeeping to do. It is some sort of Bank Holiday so everything opens a bit later. The big Carrefour supermarket nearby has a self service laundromat and we get there just after opening time. With a bit of help from a French lady we get our washing under way.This allows us to join the mob waiting to storm the front gate of the Carrefour. Fortunately the shutter goes up bang on time so there are no unseemly incidents. D resists the lure of a bargain pack of 10 wine glasses for 5 euros. We have only broken one. A suitable specimen is found for a euro and we also find replacement non-stick pans for our venerable travelling raclette machine. There is just time to grab some food and wine before we have to return to the laundromat to switch the clothes from the washer to the drier.The rain has stopped by the time we get back to our digs. R has a teleconference call booked with the hospital for the six week review of her surgery. The call doesn't succeed and she is in the process of calling the hospital when they call her. The review is completed as a voice call.
R then looks out of our window to see flashing blue lights in the car park. There are several Fire and Police vehicles out front. D hopes that nobody has reported his toast experiment We continue to get ready for our excursion and when we leave our room there is a small throng of pompiers and gendarmes in the corridor. The nearest says "Bonjour Monsieur-Dame" and there appears to be very little jeopardy.
Our route to Saint Emilion takes us east, away from Bordeaux. We cross the Dordogne near Libourne and then follow secondary roads through the vineyards. Several fields have roses growing at the ends of the rows of grape vines. A source on the internet suggests that roses are planted at the end of rows as an early warning system for the winegrower. They attract insects like aphids before the vines. They also get fungal disease like black rot and mildew before the vines do.It takes a little time to find somewhere to park on the outskirts of Saint Emilion village but it is worth the effort. By the look of things it has been raining heavily but has stopped for now. We gaze across the pan-tiled rooves for a while then wander down into the village. There are lots of places selling wine but also a few arty places.We find a cafe and ingest some caffeine before finding a bench in a small garden where we can sit and eat our packed lunch. The sun even shines for a while.We continue our circuit and it begins to drizzle. We seek shelter in a Cave and leave a bit poorer. No doubt the wine will be splendid. R is delighted to see kites overhead.It begins to rain heavily. We have done better than the early forecast suggested so we are happy. D manages to get us home without assistance from Gertie. One for the Boomers!
Tonight's feast is far too good for a Monday.The avocados that the man in the market sold us yesterday were a fabulous starter. Then we enjoyPoulet poelé avec couscous a la Rosena, all cooked on a two ring stove.
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