Rocamadour [7]

I want to like this photo, but I'm not sure what I was trying to capture. We did eat lunch in Rocamadour, maybe at this place. I'm a sucker for a pizzeria. Still, I don't remember the meal. That tells me that it was probably okay, not great, but not bad either. Kind of like how I feel about this photo.

Lunch in Rocamadour. Is that Jean-Luc Picard in the red shirt?

The heat has been coming on these past few mornings. Yesterday's morning low was about 8ºC (about 45ºF). This morning it's a little warmer outside, but the radiators are hot.

Fairy ring

For the past few years, in the fall, we've noticed a ring of mushrooms sprouting around a conifer in the back yard. Ken did some research and found out that these rings have a name: fairy rings. In French, they're called ronds de sorcières (witches' circles), among other names. I've never known such things existed, until now.

A fairy ring around our fir tree. The circle is completed on the other side of the walkway, but you can't see it in this photo.

Sundays are hunt days around here this time of year. There are fewer and fewer hunters out back as the years go by. But a few still come every Sunday morning at nine to shoot small game birds (mostly pheasants) and wild hare.

Rocamadour [6]

Here's a street scene along Rocamadour's main street. It's pretty much the only street in town. And it's a pedestrian street (with access, of course, for delivery and service vehicles). One souvenir shop after another begs for your attention (and euros). If it's not a souvenir shop, it's a restaurant, many of which have terraces that overlook the valley below.

The main drag.

Rocamadour [5]

This view is looking down from that overlook/walkway in yesterday's post. It's zoomed in a lot.

Looking down.

The wind is still blowing here, but it's nothing like what's going on in Florida right now, thank goodness. Meanwhile, the grape harvest continues. There were hand-pickers in one of the parcels out back yesterday. A mechanical harvester worked several other parcels. It's out there again this morning in the dark. I'm thinking the growers want to get their grapes in before they absorb too much (rain) water.

Rocamadour [4]

Yesterday, I posted a photo that included part of the château above Rocamadour and the walkway that juts out above the cliff-side town. This is a view of that walkway from the château, That's Ken and our friend Sue posing out at the end.

Watch out for that last step!

A big weather system (named Aitor, I think) went by us over night. We certainly didn't get the brunt of it; I think that happened farther north and east of us. But the wind did howl and the rain came down. The effects of the storm will continue to be felt here into tomorrow as temperatures begin to drop.

Rocamadour [3]

At the risk of being repetitive, here's a wider angle version of yesterday's view. That little Panasonic bridge camera I had then (my first digital) had a nifty zoom lens built in.

The view is amazing from up top.

In 2006, we climbed all the way up to the château and walked out onto that overlook you can see jutting out at the top of the photo. I don't know if I could do that today. I also noticed on the map that there are some elevators available, but I'm not sure of their precise location or how far down they go.

Rocamadour [2]

I don't have much to say about these photos. There's plenty of Rocamadour's history on the internet (and Wikipedia in particular) if you're interested. Anything I write here would just be a re-hash of what's already out there. I've visited the place twice. It's mostly shops and restaurants lining the single street through town. In summer, I'll bet that street is crammed with people. There's a parking lot at the bottom of the canyon and visitors can walk up via stairways. There may be a shuttle to carry people up who can't walk, but beyond that main street it's stair-climbing all the way.

Chapels, reliquaries, and maybe a monastery and/or convent, all built against the cliff side.

We had showers on and off most of yesterday. One, around 19h00 or 20h00 was a hum-dinger. It lasted about ten minutes then stopped as abruptly as it had started. Our recently repaired roof seems to be holding up. Knock on wood!

Rocamadour [1]

Rocamadour is a picturesque town, clinging to the side of a cliff face in the valley of a Dordogne tributary, the Alzou. The site has been inhabited since prehistoric times, became well known as a religious pilgrimage site in the middle ages, and has since transformed into more of a tourist destination.

Looking toward the north at Rocamadour.

Rain is predicted off and on during the week and our high temperatures are getting lower. It's not really cold, though. It feels like fall!

Château de Montfort

Another Dordogne Valley castle, this time Montfort. French Wikipedia has an extensive timeline of historical information if you're interested (there's also a link to a summary in English). Apparently, the castle was fought over a lot, destroyed and rebuilt at least four times in its history.

Le château de Monfort, Dordogne.

Today is the autumnal equinox, the beginning of fall for those who prefer the astronomical way of defining the seasons. From now until next spring, each day will bring more darkness than daylight.

Another one

Here's another version of the abstract from yesterday. Again, it's one of the crenelated walls and tower at the château de Beynac in the Dordogne.

Castle abstract.

We had a strange and unexpected rain shower around mid-morning yesterday. The rain fell straight down; there was no wind. And the sun shone the whole time. At one point, we could see it raining out front but not out back. We were precisely on the edge of the shower, and we confirmed that with a look at the radar images online. Even with all that sun, I didn't see a rainbow.

Consequently, I didn't go out to finish cutting the grass. Too wet. Maybe today, but there's more rain in the forecast. It's not essential that it get done now; the grass is not going wild. The cool weather we had in the past few weeks slowed its growth.

Seeing double, again

I know I've posted this before, probably back in 2006. It's a section of the roof line of the château de Beynac, cut and copied and pasted to form this kaleidoscope-like image.

 

Mirror, mirror.

Grass was cut yesterday! Not all of it, though, so I'll be out there again today to finish up. Depending on how the weather unfolds, this could be the last cut of the year. I have cut the grass in October and November before, so that's not unheard of. We shall see!

A closer look

It's the massive château de Beynac again, this time zoomed in for more detail.

Le château de Beynac, Dordogne.

They keep adding moons. This latest one is the "partially-eclipsed-full-harvest-super moon." Really. What's next? The not-so-full blue moon of Kentucky? The late-harvest moon over Miami? The it's-only-a-paper moon? The Hepburn river moon? The hits-your-eye-like-a-big-pizza-pie moon? The fly-me-to-the-new moon?  In other words, I could go on.

Château de Beynac

Here's another one of the famous Dordogne castles. Ken and I, along with our friend Sue, parked down by the river and walked (climbed) up the narrow streets to the castle above. We didn't go inside, though. Probably in a hurry to get somewhere else. And châteaux start to look alike after a (short) while.

Château de Beynac on the Dordogne.

I may get it together to cut the grass today. Or tomorrow. We'll see how the spirit moves me.

Another "mystery" château

It's really no mystery, it's just that I haven't made an effort to identify it. UPDATE: Ken used the Google photo ID app to identify the château. It's the Château do Fayrac.

Another Dordogne château.

I did get some yard work done yesterday which I hope is part of the prelude to cutting the grass later this week. I cut down the fading artichoke stalks and added them to the pile of yard waste that I've made where the vegetable garden usually goes. Then I covered the pile with a tarp so it doesn't turn into a soggy rotting mess before I can get rid of it. I did some weed whacking along the back yard path and I applied some herbicide to the tree stumps in the north forty where weeds are brambles are trying to take hold. They're sprouting where the mower can't reach.

Here's pie in your eye

Our trees are laden with apples this year, so I've put a few of them to good use. After some recent blustery weather, a lot of the riper apples have fallen. Those left on the trees are still pretty small and not so ripe. So, I rummaged around on the ground for a few apples nice enough for a tarte aux pommes. I thawed some applesauce that I made two years ago for the base (under the sliced apples) of the pie.

Dessert is served!

I cleaned up the apples, peeled them and sliced them for the top. There were some blemishes that I trimmed out. The crust is my standard pâte brisée (short crust). It's really easy and quick to put together with the food processor, except for some resting time between steps. The top is glazed with Ken's home-made plum jelly. Yum!

Breaking news...

Nothing's happening. This is the state of the grapes out back. They're looking good, but I've seen no evidence of harvesting, yet. It could happen any time now.

Grapes on the vine.

The days are getting shorter, of course, and now I can feel it. It's dark when I get up in the morning and the sun doesn't rise until after 7h30. We're about a week away from the equinox. Pretty soon the hunting season will start.

Castle and bridge

A typical sight in the Dordogne Valley. I can't tell you which castle this is. I probably should do the research and try to figure it out. But I'm too lazy and it's my morning to walk Tasha (maybe those two things cancel each other out, but I'm too lazy to... you get it).

If you recognize this château, let me know.

We're still in the chilly zone. Two of our neighbors (four of us in the hamlet have riding mowers) have cut their grass in the past two days. Over achievers. I think it's too cold and a little to wet to be riding around on the mower, and I'm lazy (see above), so I'm waiting for the predicted warmer, dryer days ahead. I hope the forecasters are right.

Oisons

Not to be outdone by the chickens, goslings (baby geese) were also roaming free at this place we visited not far from Sarlat. These particular goslings look like they're enjoying some down time. Tuckered out from all that running around, I suppose.

A gaggle of goslings?

It's still chilly this morning and the heat came on again. It doesn't stay on long, just enough to bump the temperature up a degree or so. They say we're in for a warm up soon. I can see the grass growing.

Old mother hen?

I don't know how old this bird is. I don't know if it's a mother. I don't even know if it's a hen. And those chicks... are they hers/his? I just don't know.

I'm reasonably sure that it's a chicken.

This morning, the outdoor thermometer says we're in the single digits. It's just under 10ºC (about 50ºF). The central heat hasn't kicked in, so the house is chilly. **Correction: the heat did come on just after I typed that. Today is haircut day.

One last look

Before we leave Sarlat, here's another rooftop look at the city's center. That's the bell tower of the Saint-Sacerdos cathedral.

What a beautiful day it was!

Things that make you go hmmm...

I don't know what this is, other than a vase of flowers. Given the photo's place in the overall order, I'm pretty sure I took it inside the cathedral of Saint-Sacerdos in Sarlat. Beyond that, I'm sure of nothing.

Maybe it's sitting on a tomb or some other kind of memorial?

We're thinking that the central heating may have a chance to come on this week. It kicks in when the indoor temperature gets below 18.5ºC (65ºF). This morning, it's 19.5º in the house.

The nave

I took this photo several dozen steps behind where I stood for yesterday's photo. It's still St.-Sacerdos in Sarlat.

Le nef (the nave) in Saint-Sacerdos, Sarlat.

I think the meteorological folks have made their point this year. We're having very fall-like weather with rain and low temperatures, and the equinox just under two weeks away. Mornings are starting to fee "crisp." Lows are predicted to drop this week, and we'll see (or feel) single digits toward the end. Joy.

Cathédrale Saint-Sacerdos

This, I believe, is part of the interior of the cathedral in central Sarlat, Saint-Sacerdos. It was built in the gothic style beginning in the early twelfth century. Construction continued into the seventeenth century, according to Wikipedia.

It might be where I was standing, but it looks like parts of the building have shifted over time.

The men's final (US Open) is today in New York. I'll record it overnight (time difference) and watch it on Monday. Today I'll try to watch the two semi-finals and the women's final, but that's a lot of tennis to fit into one day. And on Monday afternoon I'm driving Ken up the polyclinic in Blois. He's got a post surgery check-up with the eye surgeon. I may not get to the men's final until Tuesday.

A provençal kind of dish

I took photos of the pissaladière I made last week, but they didn't come out well. This is the best one. It's not really une pissaladière authentique since there are no anchovies. I also used some green olives (I was low on black olives), which I don't think is common. At any rate, the pizzas were delicious. I caramelized onions on a low simmer with oregano and thyme and a soupçon of sugar for the topping. I've since put black olives on the shopping list.

The second of two pizzas. Next time I'll make more caramelized onions to better cover the crust.

It rained most of the night and it continues this morning. I don't think I'll go to the market in the rain. There's nothing we really need, so I'll wait until next week.

A sign with wine

Here's another one of those metal signs from central Sarlat. This one makes me smile. And thirsty.

Who would like some wine?

The end of August is normally when the French government sends out income tax notices, explaining how much you owe or what your refund will be. They also send out the annual property tax bills at the same time. I've been anxiously awaiting our notices, but they hadn't come. So I went on the tax web site and submitted a question asking why I haven't received them and what I should do.

Before I got an answer, I figured out where to find the property tax bill, so now I've got it and everything is normal. Then I got the response from the income tax people that I should expect my tax notice to be available on the second of October. Odd, but at least it's a positive response and I can stop panicking about it.

More signs

Here are two more restaurant signs that I saw in central Sarlat. I liked the play of shapes and the light.

You gotta love a restaurant called "The plate of foie gras."

I got in touch with the landscape contractor yesterday (he answered my email right away!) and he set the date for our annual hedge trimming. Well, not the exact date. It will be "début décembre" (early December), depending on weather and other things. So that's one less thing that we need to worry about this fall. Next thing: firewood.

The King's Mill

That's the name of this restaurant tucked away in central Sarlat. "Roy" is an older spelling of roi, which means "king." All things royal belong to the king. It's good to be the king. Unless you're Louis XVI.

These table settings are much more lively than the bed clothes.

I got up just before 6h30 this morning. It was still very dark outside, but I could see that we're socked in. The air is still and foggy. Relative humidity is up to 91% and the temperature is 16ºC (60ºF).

Good news, bad news

The good news is that Tasha's groomer is going to have a baby. The bad news is that she's stopping work two weeks before Tasha's grooming appointment and won't return until April. The first time I've made an appointment well in advance, it's all for naught. Now we'll have to find another groomer.

It looks like they used bed clothes to set these restaurant tables in Sarlat.

Our home heating fuel was delivered yesterday, as expected. Now we're set, if not ready, for the coming winter. The next thing is to get some firewood delivered.

And this morning, it's raining outside.

Rue Landry

I was intrigued by these passages. They're nothing more than the spaces between buildings, begging for exploration.

La rue Landry, Sarlat.

Yesterday morning, our home weather station reported that the outdoor humidity was at 98%. Yikes! Fortunately, the temperature was cool and it felt comfortable. As the day progressed, the humidity level dropped to more normal levels. By the way, I don't really know how accurate our little weather station is, both with regard to temperature and humidity. We have a second thermometer that also measures humidity out on the deck, and the two of them more or less agree. More or less.

Astronomic or meteorological?

I was taught that the position of the earth relative to the sun marked the change in seasons. Thus, fall starts on the autumnal equinox (on or around the 21st of September) and ends at the winter solstice (on or around the 21st of December). In recent decades, however, I've noticed that more and more people tie the seasons to whole months. Thus, fall starts today, September 1st, and ends on November 30. Winter begins on December 1st, and so on.

Another view of the Saturday market in Sarlat.

The seasons change as the earth's tilt moves toward and away from the sun. The equinoxes occur when the sun is tilted neither toward nor away from the sun. It's the astronomic definition of the seasons, tied to a natural cosmic cycle. The calendar-based meteorological definition seems more or less arbitrary to me, although I've read that it is tied to the earth's average temperature cycle. It looks to me, however, that it's tied simply to the calendar.

So, if you go by the meteorological definition of the seasons, happy fall! If you follow the astronomic definition, you've still got three more weeks of summer ahead.