Last Kick at the Cat!

It had to happen. There had to be an end and apparently today is it. Back to reality and Canada tomorrow. But, so as to not waste a day, back we went to Vaison la Romaine for a last market - last kick at the cat, so to speak. Due to the torrential downpour yesterday and the still heavily overcast skies, market attendance today was the lowest we have ever seen it, by market goers and vendors alike - no Vivian to be had. We did tell Lilian we were leaving but said we'd check out his new house next year. The river running through Vaison was wild. Normally it's a trickle - testimonial for sure to the quantity of rain received yesterday. Since tomorrow promises to involve a lot of sitting, we thought we'd better get some more exercise. Instead, we rolled into Gigondas, tasted some wine and went for our last fine French dining experinece for a while at L'Oustalet. Oh well, we'll walk at the airport. It was not deemed patio weather today, so for our first time ever, we ate indoors. As other customers arrived it became clear that the restaurant was full of anglophones. We each had two courses for 35E. This we accompanied with two glasses of wine - one white Chateauneuf du Pape and one red Gigondas. My first course was a celery ravioli with seared foie gras and I had a fricassee of rabbit for my main dish. Dawn had cod with beans - may not sound great but Dawn raved about it. Then we shared her dessert, figs along with anise toffee and chocolate ice cream. This restaurant never disappoints and I overheard one of the anglophones saying it was the best food he'd had in France. This will conclude this edition of my Travelogue as we'll be on the road for Marseilles shortly after 6:00 tomorrow morning. We've had another fabulous journey! Highlights? Everywhere! Disappointments? None! We are very fortunate and once again La Vie Est Belle!!!

Cotes du Rhone-Villages

This southern Rhone wine region that we're staying in stretches from Montelimar to Avignon. There are 123 communes (i.e. villages, geographic regions, towns, etc.) that can label their wine with Cotes du Rhone (CDR). Upscale from those wines are 95 communes producing Cotes du Rhone-Villages (CDRV). Next in the hierarchy are 18 named CDRV, of which Cairanne is one. Finally the most distinguished wines come from 16 cru villages, which like Chateauneuf-du-Pape, use only their name to identify the wine. Today our travels began in heavily overcast skies - no Provencal blue to be had. We selected a route that would take us to some previously unexplored CDRV. So, we headed north over the hills on my favourite road along the Aigues Valley. We've noticed this year in particular, that there are an abundance of white flowers growing among the vines. Maybe we just missed this previous years, but we don't remember seeing them before. Is there a reason they aren't cultivated out? Don't know. We first passed through named CDRV St. Maurice sur Eygues, then drove up to the cru village of Vinsobres. Things are looking pretty posh here following their recent elevation to cru status and therefore their more valuable wines. After passing through Nyons - a lot faster on a non-market day - we travelled up the D538, being reminded there is a rapid transformation from olive producing Nyons to lavender country. Needless to say, the lavender fields aren't as spectacular at this time of year. Our next stop was the named CDRV St. Pantaleon les Vignes. Back on the D538, we then stopped at the next named CDRV on our trip, Rousset les Vignes. Although I did mess with the panoramic shot, I did not change a thing in the shot through the vines. Two more stops included Le Pegue and Montbrison. Last stop before heading south again was at Taulignan with it's eleven towers. By now, the skies had opened up and we were in full downpour. The road home took us through two more named CDRV, Valreas and Visan, but it was too wet to get out of the car for pics. So, back at chez Pigeon we had a large lunch with no terrace time today. Packing and some cleaning up might have commenced today, but there is still tomorrow. We also had a good Facetime with Canada and Alleluia, the Jays have brought the series back to Toronto.

Thanksgiving on the Plan de Dieu

On the plain to the south of us, are vineyards given the appellation of the Plan de Dieu. Most would argue that the wines from this region are less then stellar, due to, as usual, the terroir. It's a flood plain for the Rhone River and owes its terroir to previously having been at the bottom of a much larger Rhone River. In any case, there are many vintners on this plain who do the best they can with the land they have. Nick Thonpson at L'Ameillaud would claim he is one of them. Xavier Henry, where we went today for lunch, likely feels the same. Going for a meal at Auberge la Tuilerie, is probably as close to eating in a Rhone farmhouse as you can come. Although the farmhouse is now part winery, they have a lovely patio, deemed too cool to eat on today and have added on a sunroom/dining room for indoor dining. Their meal is 6 courses and an apperatif plus a bottle of their wine comes with it for 28E. There is no choice on the menu. Each course that arrives is simply a pleasant surprise. Today the restaurant was undersubscribed, with only 8 patrons - tough to make a living. We started with an amuse bouche of new olives and foie gras, then followed with a red lentil veloute (soup). Following that we had a fricasse of cepe mushrooms served over puff pastry and then a main course of stewed veal, scalloped potatoes and creamed carrots. Then there was a cheese course with a variety of four cheeses and finally dessert, a pear chocolate tarte with caramel ice cream. The wine served was their Grand-Pere Jules Cotes du Rhone red. All the while you stare out over the Plan de Dieu towards the Dentelles de Montmirail - not too shabby. Of course, the French weren't celebrating Thanksgiving today. I don't believe that's a celebration they have although the end of harvest or perhaps the first taste of the new vintage would be the closest equivalent. But, despite being on our own, we did have a nice day with more chez Pigeon terrace time at the end of it.

Ste. Cecile les Vignes

First order of business today was to get our box mailed. The computers were up and running, so we met with success. This is not a cheap way to deal with excess baggage, but like I said yesterday, it takes the pressure off the final pack. After last Saturday's washout, we were glad to finally make it to the small, but totally adequate, market at Ste. Cecile. Plus, there was brilliant sunshine, even though the wind persists - maybe it IS the Mistral. This market is always super crowded, so I'm guessing there's a good representation of locals supporting it. The remainder of the day was slow, with some terrace time. October 10 is an anniversary of sorts for us, as that was the day we "met" 43 years ago. Needless to say, some champagne on the terrace was consumed.

Post Office

Now that our stay in France in winding down, we have determined, once again, that it would be prudent to mail a box home. That will make our final packing much less stressful. So we bought an appropriately sized box at an office supply store in Orange, packed it with sundry items weighing less than 7 kg, drove down to Ste. Cecile for a banking machine since last year I recollect having to pay cash and visited the Post Office. Having been buzzed in, we were immediately informed that the computers for La Poste in the whole of the region were down. We filled out the customs paper work anyway and left with our parcel. Since Cairanne's Poste is only open mornings from 10-12, that meant either trying Ste. Cecile again this afternoon or waiting until tomorrow morning. On our way back to Chez Pigeon we thought we'd seek out the donkey yard up close. They sure got loud when they thought we might be there to feed them. Today was intended as a slow day - aka reading and in my case, starting to work on this year's travel book. The weather has remained cool, so that meant finding a comfy spot in the house and hunkering down. As the afternoon wore on, Dawn did lots of reading and I almost got my book finished - fruitful! It had warmed up a bit as well and so we did a small walkabout and I took what I hope are some unique pics. The last picture for today is the most radical shot of Chez Pigeon - a fisheye view from above. The house does not actually curve like that. It's the panorama effect, OK? Anyway, we had a great slow day. Woo hoo! Maybe the post office will oblige tomorrow.

Orange

Today, we set out with two objectives: walk in the market at Orange and lunch a some place new. Lately we've had some trouble getting going in the morning - not like us. We finally set out for Orange at 10:30. When we got there, we had a nice walk through town, purchasing next to nothing. It was a cool walk today despite the sun with the wind still having its way with us. Shortly after noon we headed north out of Orange to Piolenc, first village north of Orange for a visit to Au Comptoir. I guess partially because it's right on the Route National 7, it was a busy place and we were glad we'd made a reservation. Their menu was 15.50E for two courses and 17E for three. Dawn started with beef tartare served with a raw egg for garnish, while I had salt cod brandade - not sure how that translates - on a bed of Chinese cabbage and with little chunks of octopus thrown in. Dawn had fresh tagliatelle with mussels and clams and I chose the entrecote steak. We shared the dessert, a medley of little delicacies. The food here is far from simple and we enjoyed all courses. Following lunch, we were back into Orange for a bit of shopping then back to Cairanne by late afternoon. We actually purchased a couple of DVDs today for evening TV - the English news channels are pretty brutal. So the day ended up with Liam Neeson, for the third time, getting back what was Taken from him.

Over the Hills

Thanks to the myriad of farmer's one lane and yet two way, paved roads honeycombing this part of France and thanks also to GPS that recognizes these roads, there are many ways to go from point A to point B. The farmer's roads may not be quick, but they sure can be interesting. This morning we thought we'd try to go across country in a more or less straight line to get to the small Wednesday market in Malaucene. That meant finding a route over the Dentelles de Montmirail - not exactly flat land. After studying the detailed map of this area that I brought from Canada, I determined that this might be possible. Dawn was OK with the "might" and off we went. We headed up into the hills at Seguret and started off as if we were going to Walter's winery, Domaine de Mourchon. Instead of turning into his driveway, however, we continued down the road with hiker's signs suggesting that we would end up in Vaison la Romaine. This was fine, but we were hoping to get to Crestet, an impressive perched village. We finally did find Crestet, as the photo above suggests, but not until our extremely picturesque route dumped us out at Vaison la Romaine as promised. The great thing about being here in the fall, is that as the leaves change colour you can finally tell one grape type from another - at least you could if you had a hot clue what red leaves meant. Malaucene and Bedoin are the two staging towns at the foot of Mt. Ventoux for the fanatics who must make the climb by bicycle. As you approach these towns there are already many bikers on the roads, some circling Ventoux, but many also getting warmed up to do the climb. The market in Malaucene was indeed small, but adequate. Bike shops renting high end bikes, sponsored by the likes of Tour de France hero Chris Froome, dot the main street For lunch, we thought we'd try St. Hubert in Entrechaux, which we have tried in the past but have always found them on holiday. Today was no exception. Next choice, Puymeras and the Girocedre. Here, we were third time lucky and on Oct. 7 it was still nice enough to eat in their beautifully treed garden. We both chose the Market menu with two courses for 17E. Today it was a charcuterie selection with salad following by pork roast with fried potatoes and zucchini mousse. We kept the two family cats happy by sneaking them morsels. One of them was ready to come home with us - not likely. The wind was kicking up today, howling through the vineyards and I'm sure the locals will be grumbling about the Mistral, but the up side is beautiful clear blue skies. We enjoyed those back at Chez Pigeon!

Donkeys?

Someone in the village below us has donkeys in their backyard. We heard them long before we saw them. So this raises the major question - why does anyone keep donkeys in their backyard? Does this make their neighbours happy? Are they good to ride? They have a reputation for stubbornness, so I suspect not. Are they just pets? Wow, that's an interesting and likely expensive pet to keep. So this morning, as we took our traditional stroll among the wind swept plane trees of Vaison la Romaine, we may have stumbled upon an answer. Donkey sausage! Now I kind of feel sorry for the donkeys. We've had occasion to stay next to a heard of goats in the Corbieres region of France and let me tell you, "eau de goat" ain't no picnic. I kind of lump donkeys into the same category. Now certainly, goat cheese is an acquired taste and a delicacy, but donkey sausage? I guess the bottom line here is, I'm not buying it to find out. The remainder of the day in Cairanne turned out to be nicer than the initial rain forecast and we made it back to the terrace for aperitifs courtesy of Louis Sipp bubbly and Auchan chips. La vie est belle!

Life in the Digital Age

I've been playing with photography, ever since my 20's, when "playing with" meant, choose your subject carefully, frame it, get the right exposure and don't take too many shots because the developing is so expensive. I had then and I have now a Canon SLR camera. I also have an iPhone with a camera and this leads to the quandary. Do we just snap away and photoshop later or do we take photos like the "old days"? I admit that I alter many of my posted photos, but it's generally a cropping issue, one that a good photographer could do from the get go. And then, there are the apps that lead to this kind of stuff, which I also have to confess, is a whole lotta fun. So, today after making our seasonal visit to Tissu Gregoire and salivating over their fabulous fabrics and then picking up groceries for the remainder of our visit at Auchan - well maybe not all of them - I set out to take some photos, all of which were taken no more than 100 metres from Chez Pigeon. I had on one shoulder the photography artist angel and on the other, the digital devil. All through my walk, there was a constant dialogue with angel and devil: Angel, "Now William, frame carefully, look at your subject, think about the sun, get just the right shot!" ;and Devil, "Heh! Wink! Take the shot! Fix it later." What a dilemma! The good part about today's walk is that the weather was nice enough to be back in shorts and sandals. Also, on a Monday, you won't encounter a tonne of tourists - notice that was a metric ton. So I've chosen my best photos today, all unaltered and I given them impressive titles. Like, "Dem grapes, Dem grapes, dem yummy grapes!" Next, we have "A MAM's castle is his home" And, who could forget, "My parking spot is in the middle of the road, OK?" Then there's "The Long and Winding Road". And, how about, "Hmmm!"? Next on today's list of hits is, "Can anybody see the enemy coming?". And who can forget, "If I was a farmer in Provence, I'd live right here.". Not to be missed, would be, "Kangoo's Happy Sojourn". And then there's "Peace Beneath the Olives". And, one you don't want to miss, "Terroir!". And how about, "Hole in the Wall - Thanks Claudio!". Next, "This land is wine land". And lastly, "Name the fruit/vegetable/brain?" Hope everyone enjoyed today's hit parade of "If I was a photographer!"