Sunday, March 31, 2013

Watch out, Easter bunny

Today is Easter and, as such, a major holiday in France. Tomorrow, Easter Monday, is a day off. People have been moving about the country (and indeed, Europe) to take advantage of the long weekend. Traffic on Friday and Saturday was reportedly very bad in the southbound direction toward the Mediterranean coast and the mountains. Apparently, there is still good skiing to be had.

Nothing to do with Easter, just some dried up grape vine tendrils.

On Saturday morning I went to the St.-Aignan market to buy a rabbit for our traditional Easter dinner. I got a nice looking one and Ken cut it up and marinated it. He'll likely have photos of it on his blog. I also picked up some mushrooms, radishes, nice looking little turnips, and some salad. The market was pretty, even though it was raining lightly. The brightly lit stalls made all the food look quite appetizing under the overcast sky. In spite of the weather, everyone I encountered was in good spirits. I should have taken the camera, but I don't usually take it out in the rain.

13 comments:

  1. OMB, you EAT the easter bunny? bwhahahahaha! don't tell the kids that one! :)

    pix of the market would be cool.

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  2. Walt,
    That's the first thing I thought too "You eat the Easter Bunny?" Last time I ate a rabbit was one my father shot when I was about ten years old. I can still remember the sound of my teeth crunching down on the buckshot that was left in the rabbit's leg. Last time I ate a rabbit. I'll have salsa please.

    Ron
    Retired in Delaware

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  3. Ahh, the market at Easter!? Must be great, and very festive :)

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  4. I forgot to wish Ken a Happy Easter on his blog! Happy Easter to you both!

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  5. A perfect holiday for traditions! I can't wait to see what you'll do with the mushrooms and radishes. I'm also curious as to what variety of salad you purchased. I went to the link to see your market photos. That was quite a large market. Many choices. Enjoy your celebration. What are you going to do on your day off - Monday?

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  6. Happy Easter Walt
    Enjoy your rabbit :-)

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  7. Hello Walt,
    Wishing you both a Happy Easter weekend! Rabbit sounds good!
    Ivan

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  8. I wish they would stop this stupid changing of the clock twice a year. Just pick one standard and keep it!

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  9. What clock are you talking about? I don't see any here in Virginia. Is it because I use blogspot .com and not blogspot.fr? I'll try the latter to see if it is different.

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  10. No clock either with blogspot.fr. Any idea?

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  11. I am curious - if Easter/Monday are so national in France, does this mean they all go to Mass on these days? I am puzzled - I thought France was overall not a religious/Catholic country anymore, but then I see the massive demonstrations against gay marriage... don't know what to think now.

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  12. ron, Ken and I have been having rabbit for dinner on Easter for nearly thirty years. It's kind of a joke, but we like it so much it's become a tradition.

    judy, I'm not sure it was any more festive than normal. But I hadn't been in a while -- shopping outdoors in winter is not all that much fun -- and I enjoyed it.

    nadege, thanks! You, too. :)

    mary, we eat the radishes with butter, salt, and bread as an appetizer. The mushrooms went into the fricassee. As for the "day off," other than taking Ken to the train station, it's just another day!

    t.b., thanks, and we did! Now I have leftovers...

    ivan, merci, and to you as well.

    starman, oh, it doesn't bother me at all. In fact, I kind of look forward to it.

    chm, just above the "newsiness" section there should be a widget that says "Time in Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher" with a little digital clock in orange. Can you not see it?

    michael, they're not particularly religious, just traditionally so. And the demonstration wasn't massive, but it wasn't insignificant. The marriage equality law is before the senate this month and is expected to pass easily (like the assembly, its majority is socialist). France is officially not a catholic country; there is no official religion and religious marriages are not recognized by the state. Only civil marriages performed by a mayor or adjunct are official.

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