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Category Archives: Places
Operation Village Market
Last Tuesday was Operation Village Market, which sounds like a World War II Allied offensive. Although well stocked with food, we were running short of fresh fruit and veg. The French government cancelled open-air markets about 10 days ago but … Continue reading
Posted in French life, Places
Tagged Caylus market, COVID-19, French market, market, market halls, shopping in lockdown, SW France
2 Comments
A Virtual Walk Around Puylagarde
Come on a virtual promenade with me today. We are no longer allowed to do anything else, except for “short outings” to exercise ourselves within a 1 km radius of the house and then only alone. It’s hard to believe … Continue reading
One Should Never Leave Montauban
“On ne devrait jamais quitter Montauban!”, is one of the immortal lines spoken by Lino Ventura in the classic film, Les Tontons Flingeurs (lit. The Gun-Toting Uncles, 1963). Having renounced a life of crime to sell agricultural equipment in Montauban, … Continue reading
Posted in History, Places
Tagged Bourdelle, Ingres, Les Tontons Flingeurs, Lino Ventura, Mona Lisa, Montauban, Musée Ingres-Bourdelle, Olympe de Gouges, SW France
2 Comments
Stones, Bones and Giants’ Thrones: on the Limogne Dolmen Trail
Last weekend, we took advantage of the unseasonably warm weather to try out a new walk around Limogne. This small town in the Lot is host to a busy Sunday market and a Friday truffle market in season. It sits … Continue reading
In Search of Black Diamonds in Lalbenque
You can’t buy them fresh in the supermarket and certainly not on Amazon. They are referred to as Quercy’s black diamonds, but these knobbly tubers look nothing like a gemstone. Selling them follows an arcane ritual, and a kilo can … Continue reading
The Day We Went to Paris by Way of Saint-Projet
You might – or might not – have been wondering where I’ve been for the past 10 days, owing to the lack of posts. It’s not chagrin about the reality of Brexit occurring on 31st January, although it continues to … Continue reading
The Richness of French Rural Heritage: Gariottes and Cazelles
The backbone of the earth is never far beneath the surface here, as we have found to our cost every time we plant a tree or a shrub! The farmers carefully make piles of the stones they plough up, but … Continue reading
Posted in History, Places
Tagged cairous, cazelles, French agriculture, French rural heritage, gariottes, petit patrimoine, stone, stone shelters, SW France
6 Comments
Long Overdue Trip to the Fronton Vineyards
Hands up if you’ve heard of the Fronton vignoble. If you don’t live here, you probably haven’t come across it, like us before we moved to France. It’s a very small wine-growing area, and only a limited proportion of the … Continue reading
Posted in Food/drink/recipes, Places
Tagged Château Bellevue La Forêt, Fronton, Fronton vignoble, Montech, Négrette grape, SW France, Vinovalie, wine
6 Comments
Every Château Tells a Story #17: Le Château de Bournazel
So much for my theory that tourist sites are less crowded out of season. Le tout Aveyron turned up at the Château de Bournazel yesterday, giving the hard-pressed guide some logistical problems. “This is the first time we’ve opened in … Continue reading
Posted in Aveyron, Places
Tagged Aveyron, Bournazel, Château de Bournazel, monument historique, patrimoine, Renaissance architecture, Renaissance château, SW France
2 Comments
Autumn Food Fêtes and Festivals
We’re definitely in autumn now. This year it has started off rather damp and gloomy, although the weather is often glorious at this time. But I make no secret of the fact that autumn is my favourite season. After a … Continue reading
Back to Belcastel
This week, we celebrated an important wedding anniversary and returned to Belcastel in Aveyron to do so in style. This plus beau village is home to a Michelin-starred restaurant, Le Vieux Pont, which specialises in Aveyronnais produce and local recipes … Continue reading
Abandoned Village: Saint-Amans-le-Vieux
Today was a beautiful, if still too dry, autumn day, so the SF and I decided to bestir ourselves and make the most of this fine weather for a walk. “Where shall we go?” We are faced with an embarras … Continue reading
Posted in History, Places, Walking in France
Tagged Bonnette Valley, Caylus, deserted village, lac de Caylus, rural exodus, Saint-Amans le Vieux, SW France
4 Comments
Cordes-sur-Ciel: Dramatic and Timeless
I’d forgotten what a long way up it is. Seventeen years had obliterated our memory of the steep hike up to the cité of Cordes-sur-Ciel perched on its hilltop, which was long considered inaccessible. But we weren’t going to wimp … Continue reading
Posted in History, Places
Tagged Albigensian Crusade, bastide, Cathars, Cordes-sur-Ciel, Counts of Toulouse, Raymond VII Count of Toulouse, Southwest France, Tarn
23 Comments
From Monks to Mona Lisa: L’Abbaye de Loc-Dieu
Imagine a place the locals dreaded so much that they named it locus diaboli, the devil’s place. A lonely, remote spot near the major trade route between Rodez and Cahors, with dark woods bristling with bandits lying in wait. And … Continue reading
Rally Round: the Caylus Car Rally
It isn’t exactly the Paris-Dakar rally, but it’s an annual event that we really enjoy taking part in. The Caylus rally is not about speed; it’s about discovering the local historic heritage during a 50 km circuit with eight checkpoints. … Continue reading
Posted in Places
Tagged Bach, Caylus Notre Village, Jamblusse, Lacapelle-Livron, lavoirs, Loze, rallye touristique, SW France, Varaire, wash-houses
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Timeless Monument: The Cathedral of Cahors 900 Years On
2019 marks the 900th anniversary of la Cathédrale Saint-Etienne in Cahors. The cathedral is even older than the ill-fated Notre-Dame de Paris. Yesterday, 27th July, was supposed to be the official anniversary, since it was on that day in 1119 … Continue reading
Summertime, and the Living is – Busy
Life on La Lune has been a bit quiet recently. One non-negotiable reason is that we had huge problems accessing the internet during the past week. While it is back, it’s wobbly. The other reason is that summer has arrived, … Continue reading
Quirky Quercy Art – or Quart
Some of you will remember the late lamented Fyfe Robertson, a British TV journalist known for his trenchant views. A somewhat quirky figure himself, with his tweeds and deer-stalker hat, he had his own series, ‘Robbie’, in which he roamed … Continue reading
Posted in Places, Quirky stuff
Tagged Art, Caylus, Contemporary art, Quercy, quirky art, Saint-Grat, SW France, Vidaillac
4 Comments
Noses to the Grindstone? La Meulière de Clayrac near Cordes
Our walking group has recently taken some interesting routes, which have introduced us to the patrimoine (historic heritage) of the region. Some of the sites are quite off the beaten track and we hadn’t come across them before in our … Continue reading
A Walk Around Caylus
It’s been an eventful 10 days or so. My latest novel is now out, involving quite a lot of last-minute effort. And the Irish Embassy in Paris phoned on Tuesday to say that my citizenship application had been accepted. My … Continue reading
Saving Face: Some of the Less Obvious Gems in SW France
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so I’m following the example of fellow blogger Midi Hideaways, who wrote a recent post about the statuary and carved stone faces on buildings in the towns of the Languedoc. In this post … Continue reading
Posted in History, Places
Tagged carved stone figures, Caylus, chimera, French Wars of Religion, gargoyle, Maison des Loups Caylus, Najac, Puycelsi, Puylagarde, Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val
6 Comments
A Special Day for Life on La Lune
Today is a rather special day for us. More of that below. It’s been a rather eventful couple of weeks, which explains my erratic blogging record just now. Having taken part in a concert in the hilltop village of Puycelsi … Continue reading
Posted in Places, Walking in France
Tagged Félines, orchids of SW France, Puycelsi, SW France, walking
15 Comments
Centuries to Build, Hours to Destroy: Notre-Dame de Paris
One of France’s – no, the world’s – best-loved icons, Notre-Dame de Paris, caught fire shortly before 7 pm last night. The flames quickly took hold and, although the fire brigade was quick to react, it was impossible to save … Continue reading
Posted in History, Places
Tagged France, Notre-Dame de Paris, Notre-Dame fire, Paris, World Heritage site
12 Comments
Say it with Flowers: France’s Villages Fleuris
The garden is burgeoning and it’s that time of year when one’s thoughts turn to planning and planting. While driving around France, you might have noticed village signs declaring “Village – or ville – fleuri(e)” and sporting one to four … Continue reading
Tilting at Windmills
One of the things I love about living here is local people’s interest in le petit patrimoine, the vestiges of a rural life that has faded away. Groups of enthusiastic volunteers contribute to their restoration to rescue them from oblivion. … Continue reading
Posted in History, Places
Tagged Association des Amis du Moulin de Saillagol, Moulin de Saillagol, patrimoine, Saillagol, SW France, windmill
11 Comments
The Story of the People at La Lune
I’d love to know who lived in our house long ago. Elderly neighbours have always been hazy about this, perhaps because it doesn’t really interest them. This week, at last, I discovered a story about previous occupants.
Posted in History, Places
Tagged French archives, French census, French country life, infant mortality, la France profonde, paysans, SW France
22 Comments
The Post-Impressionists Head South to Rustic Provence: Guest Post
Life on La Lune: I’m very keen on art, so whenever I visit a place, I always seek out the art gallery. The Impressionists and Post-Impressionists particularly appeal to me. They have a few connections with Southwest France: Toulouse Lautrec … Continue reading
Posted in Personalities, Places
Tagged Aix-en-Provence, Arles, Impressionists, Paul Cézanne, Post-Impressionists, Provence, Vincent van Gogh
4 Comments
The Bells, the Bells: the Magic of Church Bells in Rural France
In Victor Hugo’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame, the loud ringing of the cathedral bells has turned Quasimodo, the bell-ringer, deaf. Some of you will no doubt have seen Charles Laughton hamming it up inimitably in the 1939 film. I … Continue reading
Millau: Towers, Markets and Bridges – Guest Post by Angela Wren
I’m thrilled to welcome back to the blog Angela Wren, whom I had the great pleasure of meeting at an authors’ event in Carcassonne in September. Angela is a Francophile, who has visited many more corners of France than … Continue reading
Posted in Books/writing, Places
Tagged Angela Wren, Emma Calvé, Jacques Forêt mysteries, Millau, Millau Bridge, Millau glove-making, SW France
4 Comments
Villeneuve d’Aveyron: Ancient Paths and a Historic Gem
What do you think this building is? A small château or fortified house? A barn? All will be revealed below. Autumn is the best time for walking in this area. The days are warm and sunny, it’s usually dry underfoot … Continue reading
