Our latest guests were Paul and Karmen. He’s a good friend from uni, and it was their wedding we attending in Hong Kong a few years ago. They have intended to visit each of the last few summers, so it was great that they finally made it.
I collected them from Angouleme and then we had a light bite before they crashed for a few hours. They arrived from NY where they had spent a day visiting Karmen’s mom, and before that, they were at a wedding in Vancouver. It was cheaper to continue this direction and make it a round-the-world trip, and we’re pleased it was. We had confit de canard and roasted potatoes that night, before calling it an early one.
On Thursday, we chilled at home in the morning, after having croissants for breakfast. Both Paul and Karmen were running a sleep deficit, and with the shutters closed, they both slept quite late. We went for a walk before lunch, and although it was intended to be a short one, we ended up trekking through the woods and it was an hour and a half before we got home.
We returned via the dirt road that joins the road in front of chez Beaufils, but the new neighbour has blocked it off. This is Lucien’s worst fear, since it means he’ll now have to drive down to the village in order to access his wood, which is only 50 metres down the track. The new neighbour was out clearing some trees, and when he saw us, he stopped and asked who we were and what we were doing. I understood that there would be a new track between his property and the neighbours’, but so far, it doesn’t appear that way. I don’t think this will be the last you hear about the track.
Back at home, we introduced our guests to the Port 80 sandwich, and they both enjoyed them. In the afternoon, we went to Nontron to get a bit of food, and also, to get some Belgian beer for Paul. He is a connoisseur, and has been to Belgium many times on tasting trips. He even gave a presentation at his law firm, which was well received despite that the audience was a bunch of boring lawyers. Anyway, we went to the cave (wine store) in search of beer, and ended up with a few ales for Paul, but also three bottles of champagne! Karmen likes it, and they had some brands she wanted to try, so when in France…
Our guests brought us many gifts, including duty free brandy and tequilla, but also, a vaporiser, which is like an e-cigarette, but for other purposes. It requires lighter gas so we picked up some of that and then tried out our new toy. Will and I are both undecided on how well it works, or how efficient it is, but at the least, it’s a much healthier way to go, so we’ll give it a try. That evening, it was warm enough for margaritas outside, which we had with chorizo, something Paul likes but can’t really find in HK. Dinner that night was pork steaks in chili orange sauce, served with herbed quinoa and green beans, plus Milhac patisserie for dessert.
Paul had a bit of work on Friday morning, so the rest of us went to the Voie Vert and strolled up and back for an hour before lunch. In the afternoon, we showed them the local sites, which were St Jean de Cole and Brantome. It was cool the first few days of the visit, but by Friday, it improved to 23C and sunny, perfect for sight seeing. We had a beer near the river and as we walked back to the car, Karmen spotted a shop she liked and we went in. In it, we found the owner, a retired school teacher who now makes silk prints from linoleum etchings. He makes a total of 10 from each one, all in different colours so they are unique. Paul and Karmen found one they liked, and while they were looking, Will and I chatted with the proprietor for a bit. Turns out, he’s one of us, and he and his partner were the first gay marriage in Brantome, back in December. As many times as we’ve been to Brantome, it’s the first time I ever noticed the shop, so it was a very good find.
We went out for dinner that night to the Hostellerie St Jacques in St Saud. It’s the place that does elaborate multi-course meals, and it didn’t disappoint. Dinner there is a bit out of our price range, so this was a first for us in that respect. We all ate very well, and the guests were very impressed with their meals, less so with the fuchsia decor . There weren’t quite as many courses as lunch, perhaps a testament to the French habit of smaller evening meals. Like the other nights, our guests went to bed around 11 and Will and I stayed up a bit longer watching telly.
Saturday we all mustered on the early side, and left the house for Bordeaux before 11. It was slightly complicated because we had a wood delivery scheduled for that day, but our neighbour John kindly agreed to deal with it for us. We first drove to St Emilion where we had a light-ish lunch. We didn’t realise until after the food came that Karmen had ordered something with andouillette, sausage made with all the parts you really don’t want to eat, so she didn’t have much. Instead she got a crepe coated with Gran Mariner and set alight, which made up for it. After buying a few bottles of wine, we headed to Bordeaux and arrive to the hotel around 4:30. We did a quick stroll to the river and back, before ending up in Bar à Vin. They both really enjoyed it, Karmen especially, and we each had a couple of glasses, plus bread and cheese.
We headed back to the hotel to change, then did a bit more wandering before stopping for cocktails. We tried to make dinner reservations, but either places were closed or full so we it was luck of the draw. We did alright in the end, although we mostly had duck and chips, which was a bit heavier than we hoped. We walked Paul and Karmen back to the hotel around 11 before heading to Buster Bar, our usual late-night place. We didn’t go the last time we were in Bordeaux, so it was December since we were last there. Despite our best intentions, we were still there when they closed at 2, and like usual, were invited to stay another hour while they cleaned.
On Sunday, we checked out around 11 and then had breakfast at our usual cafe. Then we dropped off our guests at the station where they got the train to Paris to spend a couple of nights before heading home. It was a really great visit, not only to see them, but to show them around our little corner of the world. We really hope they can come back soon since it’s not likely we’ll head their way any time soon.
It was back to work for us on Monday, although I don’t have much on at the moment. Will is slightly busier, but he too is waiting for people to get back to him. He did finish a site for renovations company, and that went live a few days ago.
Today, we went to a memorial service for John, husband of Ute, who are good friends of Bryan and Carol. Will did their gite web site and he provides them with IT help from time to time. She asked if he could do the music for the service, so we also went on Monday for the rehearsal. The service was in the little church in their village of St Jory de Chalais, about 15 min from us. We went back to their place afterwards and enjoyed meeting their family for the first time. And now, I will raise a glass to John, and wish you all a bonne soirée.