Peter prepares for golf

with zen like meditation on a Taylormade Burner Driver

The longest day.....

....well in some ways....as it was 8.20 before either of us got out of the bedroom!

A footnote on yesterday- Peter walked down to the local (Marsilly) boulangerie Le Festival de Gout for breakfast to find that it had started its three week holiday on June 15th, reopening on July 7th; a long wait for breakfast.

The cycle ride to Viviers went well, although it was a bit breezy, the moules et frites were up to expectation. They have expanded the menu a little with a wider range of food and drink. We had a very pleasant Il de Re chardonnay "Soif D'Estavin" if I remember it right at 9euro.

Also thinking back to the golf we learned that sable is french for sand and that merde seems to be the french for the golf term"four". Certainly every time Henri, one of our playing partners, hit a wild shot he shouted "merde".

So to this morning and it was a cycle ride to Esnande for Peter to pick up the makings of breakfast and lunch. We are playing golf (nine holes only) with a tee-time of 2.20 so we are going to have "proper" lunch (starter, main, cheese) at 1.00pm. This will see us through the rest of the day and all the way home to Beckenham tonight.

Glorious day again and we are off to have un tasse de cafe & tea in the back yard. A bientot.

Tomorrow is a big fete for the longest day all over the region

Yesterday's 15.20 Ryanair departure from Stansted brought the two us over and by 18.00 (local time) we were in the house.Everything was in order, although there was a small chemistry experiment taking place in the fridge involving tomatoes.

By 18.30 we had visited the local shops in Esnande and bought bread and cod for our evening meal and also called at Viviers to book a table for dinner tonight. Dinner was baked cod in tomato and onion sauce served with pommes frites du four, followed by cheese and accompanied by a modicum of alcoholic beverage.

Saturday has been a wonderful day weatherwise, a little chill in the early morning sun but perfect for golf as we enjoyed our first round at La Pree in 2009. We were paired with two memebrs who wanted to play a "scramble" to practise for the competion tomorrow. This is the same competiton that has kept us off the golf course until 2.30pm tomorrow. We will have just enough time for nine holes before catching the 18.00 flight back.

Viviers tonight for moules and frites and we will be going on our bicycles to balance the frites with some exercise.

Last weekend in May

A Nantilly Note from afar.

This weekend Frank and Anne based themselves at the house and on Saturday collected Pat from Chateau Marlonge. They spent the evening at the house with Frank preparing and serving dinner as Pat and Anne enjoyed the summer evening in the back yard. By all accounts some gardening was done. One hopes the stopover at the house has dispelled some of the bad memories of her first attempt to spend a night here.

Pat made her way up the stairs for a comfortable night before setting off on stage one of her grand return. Step was a car journey (preceded by a bit of coastal sight seeing, to Poitiers. Stage two was a train journey to Lille and Stage three was being collected by Peter and Sheila and being chauffeured, via the Channel Tunnel to Beckenham.

It was a long day for Pat, reveille at 8.00am and arriving at Willow Court at 8.00pm.

It will be three weeks before we are back in Nantilly and it will seem strange that on that visit we may only have ourselves to please, and of course we are very pleased to have Pat so far down the road to recovery. The rest is up to her.