The run-up to xmas was mostly quiet with none of my usual weekly activities. We did have our English lesson with Mathias on Wed morning since we had planned to see the new Star Wars later that day. But when we tried to book advanced tickets on line, the few screenings in English were sold out and with the theatres being an hour’s drive, we decided to wait a few days. I tried to swim on Thursday but the pool was closed so I just went food shopping. Despite being xmas eve, the store wasn’t too crowded and I found everything I needed. I spent the rest of the day preparing food for the evening’s event.
We had the regulars from my conversation group, which were Gilles and Myriam, Barry and Carol, and Bryan and Carol. Everyone brought champagne or sparkling wine, so we had that along with cheesy toasts, stuffed mushrooms and a spinach and sour cream dip served with red and green veg, as a nod to xmas. Carol brought cheese straws and mince pies, which pleased Will. They all left around 9, and we cleaned up and chilled out.
On xmas day, we skyped Will’s family and then headed to Bryan and Carol’s for our big meal. We had drinks and nibbles before a lovely meal of leek and potato soup, followed by roast turkey and pork, roasted potatoes and parsnips, two kinds of stuffing, brussels sprouts and red cabbage. After a pause, we moved onto cheese, and eventually finished with a buche de noel from the magician at our local patisserie. A bouche (log) is the traditional xmas dessert and is a sponge cake, layered with cream and chocolate, and then rolled up. We stayed for a digestive, and left around 6 in time to get home and light the fire.
We spent Boxing Day with Sophie and Dom and their friend Axelle, and old friend who was visiting from Paris. They picked us up around 11 and we all went to some friends of theirs who have a chambre d’hote in Miallet. They are an English couple, but she speaks excellent French, and they were having an open house for friends and neighbours. I made some salmon cream cheese roll-ups, and also brought along the remaining dip from xmas eve. They served mulled wine and mince pies, so it almost felt traditionally English, except that it was 15C and sunny. We left after an hour and headed to Sophie and Dom’s for lunch. She made moules frites with her special garlic mayonnaise, and civet de lapin (rabbit stew) for Will. It was all lovely, and even more so since we ate outside! After lunch, we walked to the Abbaye de Boschaud, a ruined abby where they have concerts during the summer. We got a lift home from some friends who stopped by, and were home around 6.
On Sunday, we went to Angouleme to see Star Wars. There are very few screenings in English, and for now, they are mostly in Angouleme or Perigueux. This one started at midday, so we were out of the house at 10:30. The drive was nice, with even less traffic than normal, and we arrived in one hour. There was a queue for tickets, not because there were tons of people, but because there was only one person selling tickets, and food/beverages. It was the most crowded we’ve ever seen a theatre here, but having said that, it was only 1/3 full. We both enjoyed the film, and may see it again when it comes to Nontron in January. We arrived home around 3:30 and watched movies the rest of the day.
Yesterday was fairly busy, but not with work or anything. We’ve spent the last few New Year’s Eve with Manu and Mathilde and other local French people, but this year, it will be an English event at Nat and Jill’s. So instead, we decided to have an evening with them around our place. Also present were Philippe, Jean Claude and Nadine, and Lewis and Pary. I decided to do an apero-dinatoire, which is basically an informal dinner consisting of a lot of nibbles, making it as much work or more than a normal meal. Nadine brought some mini-breads, and Mathilde made dessert, so I had a little help. It was the first time L & P had met the others, and everyone got along fine. Philippe drained nearly a litre of vodka over the course of the evening, so he was quite animated, to put it mildly. N & JC recently returned from their new house in The Gars, where they will be moving in the Spring. They can’t sell their house here for another year and a half, so they’ll be splitting their time until then.
I went for a swim before shopping, and being the Monday after xmas, the shelves were fairly empty. I managed to get nearly everything I needed and then headed home for a late lunch. I started cooking around 3 and finished just as guests started arriving around 8, thanks to some help from Will. The “first course” was toasted baguette with goats cheese two ways: crumbled log topped with fig jam and parma ham; and a block that had been stinking up the fridge, melted and served with drizzled honey. I also made a warm spinach artichoke dip, an American classic, but new to the French. Everything on the menu was a new recipe, so I was pleased that it all went down well. The next “course” was bbq meatballs and chicken drumsticks, plus veggie quesadillas: one with peppers and onions, and the other with mushroom and shallots. Mathilde’s dessert was not exactly a buche de noel, but similar. It was a gateau foret noire which was a chocolate cake with cream, cherries, and cherry syrup. The last guests left around 1:30 and after cleaning up a bit, we unwisely decided to have a final drink and film, hitting the hay around 4.
In other news, the mild weather continues here, although it did rain a bit last night and is meant to today. Temps are still around 15 during the day, and 7 at night. The Japanese Apple bush in the front garden already has red flowers on it, which normally don’t come out until Feb. The current forecast is for rain and slightly cooler temps after new year’s, which should make Lucien very happy. The cats have not had any more run-ins with their new nemesis, so we hope it was a temporary thing. Louis has actually put on some weight recently, for the first time in years. That’s the news from sunny Mazeroux. Happy end of the year, as the French say.