“There’s nothing like coming home”

“I love going away, but there’s nothing like coming home.” My mum would always say that when her and dad had been away, they loved their holidays but they really loved their home. I have noticed I am getting more like my mum as I get older, and this little saying rings very true for me as well.

We arrived home to a lovely, dry, blustery day, so Brian decided to take advantage of the moment and get the grass cut; it’s the first cut of the year. He had the mower at about a level 4, to give it a high trim. I then went back over it at a level 2, which was an ideal bit of exercise for me. The lawn is now looking much tidier.

I can’t wait to start doing more in the garden.

Heading home

We stopped off at the delightful little town of Obernai for a coffee and wander, before our final destination for our holiday; we’d chosen a small spa hotel in the Alsace.

As we sat and enjoyed our coffee, I could hear a clapping sound. ‘What’s that?’ I asked Brian, but he looked just as puzzled as me. We heard it again, and both looked up and saw a rather large and chatty stork, nestled on the top of a chimney. Probably a little frustrating for the owner, but a joy to see.

The spa was lovely. It was a very relaxing final couple of days for us, to stay still, relax and enjoy. Brian’s biggest decision was ‘what shall we try tonight?’

It was a wonderful end to our holiday.

Strasbourg by day

The old town of Strasbourg is dominated by the the Notre Dame cathedral; a pretty impressive structure, with some fascinating, differing styles of medieval architecture, and intricate carved stone lacework.

It was built between 1180 and 1439, hence the changes in style throughout. The tower, which we didn’t go up, is 142 metres high. Apparently it remained the highest building in Europe until the 19th century.

Inside the cathedral there is a rather remarkable astronomical clock, built between 1571 and 1574. It looks like something from a Jules Verne story.

The cathedral dominates many of the views from street level.

The Strasbourg streets are very easy, and delightful, to wander round; with beautiful little boutiques and plenty of eating and drinking opportunities. We enjoyed our time there—supping coffee, spoiling ourselves on sweet treats, and soaking up the beautiful weather which had welcomed us.

All in all, a delightful trip.

Strasbourg by night

We were staying at an Ibis hotel just near the train station in Strasbourg. We chose it because it was simple for parking and access to walk into the city. Our view across to the station was quite impressive, especially at night, when the lights came on inside the station, revealing the old building, now covered in a protective glass shell. It isn’t really visible by day, as the glass shell reflects the outside world. Very clever.

On our first evening we decided to explore some of the various Alsacien wines. We found a delightful little bar that offered a mixed tasting with a light supper, which was Ideal. Among the lovely wines on offer was an interesting red, pinot noir Alsacien wine; really surprising.

Petite France—which is the little canal area of Strasbourg—is extremely pretty at night, with the lights, and old timbered buildings, reflecting in the water of the canals.

It made for a nice place to walk off some of the cheese we’d eaten on our supper sharing board.

Musée des beaux arts – Strasbourg

The museum of fine art is situated in the Rohan Palace, just next to the cathedral in the centre of the old town of Strasbourg.

Sometimes art museums can be a bit overwhelming, with rooms filled to the brim with lesser known artists, whose works are good, but lost in the mêlée of paintings. This museum however has been well curated, and though there are many works by ‘students of’ or ‘school of’ the paintings have been well presented and are individually accessible.

Whilst we were there they had a temporary exhibition ‘lights on the living’. This included some rather fantastic wildlife photography by Vincent Munier interspersed with some of the wildlife paintings they owned. It was a nice way of incorporating it into the museum.

These are some of my favourite paintings. I’m always fascinated as well by the frames used, some are simply spectacular.

It is also good when the building itself is beautiful.

All aboard

The river Ill flows through the centre of Strasbourg and surrounds the historic old town. It is a 217 km long tributary of the Rhine which runs along the eastern side of the city bordering with Germany. The river plays an important part in the structure of the city, and we decided to take a little boat ride to view the sights from the river, and to better understand it’s geography.

It was such a gorgeous day it made it a perfect choice for a quiet cruise around the city. We met the boat at the dock, and were soon heading down the river.

We passed a big section of the old town, and passed through a lock before turning to go toward the more modern area of the city.

The architecture changed as we headed out, and the river led us to the court of human rights.

And past the European Parliament building, with its huge forum and multitude of tiny offices, all rather spectacular.

It was such a serene journey, and just what we needed to orientate ourselves.

And after a hard mornings sight seeing what better than a tasty lunch outside in a pretty café.

René Lalique

The drive to Strasbourg from Épernay was around three hours, so we found a little café in town to enjoy a coffee and croissant before setting off. Once we’d left the town, and were following the main route to Strasbourg, I put on a little Steve Coogan; aka Alan Partridge. ‘From the Oasthouse’ is a podcast we both find very amusing, and we chuckle away together at his observational humour.

About two hours into the journey Brian spotted a tourist sign advertising the ‘Lalique Museum’. I’d read about this, but forgot completely it was in this area. We immediately agreed it would be a great detour. Not really knowing what to expect, we changed our route and headed towards it. About half an hour later we arrived, and were pleasantly surprised when we entered the foyer and were greeted by an enormous glass chandelier. It was quite incredible.

The village we had found ourselves in (Wingen-sur-Moder) seemed to be in the middle of nowhere, but we soon learned why it had been chosen to build the glassworks by René Lalique back in 1922; apparently the region’s glass making traditions date back to as early as the Middle Ages, and have persisted to this day. It is now the only place in the world to produce Lalique crystal, with some 250 people working and practicing the companies skills here. The museum opened in 2011 to celebrate Lalique’s work, and now shows off the talents of three generations, René Lalique, his son and daughter, Marc and Suzanne, and grand daughter Marie-Claude. It displays nearly 650 works of art, and in 2023 was updated with new media technology.

I was particularly interested in seeing some of the vases and perfume bottles. The organic designs and the way they use natural themes to decorate the shapes is simply beautiful. The perfume bottles in particular are so delicate.

The vases are no less intricate, but on a different scale.

At the end of the visit is a short film that depicts how the crystal is made today with the same techniques they originally used.

Such a fabulous stop off; well worth a visit. There are other glass museums in the area, which I have noted, and we will probably be visiting them on another little adventure.

A night in Épernay

After our trip to the UK, we decided to make our way to Strasbourg for a couple of days. We’ve visited the Alsace before but never Strasbourg. It was just too far for me to travel in one day so we made an easy little stop off in Épernay.

We arrived just in time for a short rest, wash and change before heading out for dinner at a delightful little restaurant ‘Table Kobus’. We have been there before, many years ago, it has been redecorated, but has fortunately kept some of its historical charm. We had a delicious dinner. It is definitely still well worth a visit if you are visiting Épernay.

Family & Friends

It has been way too long since we visited the UK, so last week we set off via the Eurotunnel to visit family and friends.

First stop was a small village in Norfolk, where we visited my brother Jon and his family, who live on a farm. Whilst there I also got to see my dad; at 94 he’s doing exceptionally well.

We had a really enjoyable few days with them; eating home cooked food, and trying local specialties, whilst sharing some wonderful memories and quality conversations.

We then headed back south into Essex, where we stayed with some friends and visited Brian’s mum and family. It was so good to catch up with our families after such a long time. WhatsApp video is good for keeping in touch, but it’s not the same as seeing someone in person, and sharing a hug.

A unique bottle

Last year some very dear friends of ours got married. Very unexpectedly, to all, they had got engaged here in Champagne, and we had all celebrated that moment with a wonderful bottle of Gremillet blanc de blancs, which the future groom had bought a few days before in preparation.

So for their wedding a few of us decided it would be nice to make a decorated Magnum of the same Champagne for their wedding present.

The decoration part fell to Brian, who started by doing a rough drawing of the proposed design.

After carefully cleaning the bottle he began applying layers of enamel paint. He didn’t stick exactly to the drawing, but I think the finished bottle looked really beautiful, an ideal wedding gift. He also painted all our signatures and the date on the reverse of the bottle.

A really unique bottle and a lovely little memory.

Cellar wall

A job we had started some time back was the cellar. We’d built the separating wall together, and Brian had fitted the ceiling, put some lights in, and made the door.

Our Workaway Chris had helped us dig out the old chaux from the back wall, and Brian and I had regrouted it. But before he’d had the chance to paint on the waterproof plaster, I’d got poorly, so things went on hold.

When our friends came over late last year to help support Brian, and finish off some jobs for us, this was one of them that was on the list.

He’d already bought the product he’d wanted to use, so one morning him and Trevor set to work painting on the plaster. I think it looks great, and it’s made such a difference to the humidity.

We’ll have to see how it performs through the summer, but fingers crossed they made a difference. However, Brian would like to add a second coat, and he found another small water ingress, so it’s an ongoing job.

New Acquisition

If you are a regular reader of our blog you may have seen the wonderful painting of Dylan Thomas by our dear, departed friend Peter Moller, which hangs in our dining room. Well late last year his wife Robyn entered the second painting in that series, featuring a young Ian Hislop, into an exhibition/sale of paintings in her local area of Stonehaven.

It was an exhibition of portraits by local artists, and Peter’s certainly stood out. There were two in the show, the first one showing Hislop at his editorial desk, and the second featuring Oscar Wilde.

It was a big decision, but we felt we couldn’t let the two be split up, so we snapped it up before it went to someone else. The Oscar Wilde also sold.

Our new acquisition is now hanging in our library, where it has pride of place.

If you’re interested in seeing more of Peter Moller’s paintings take a look at the new Instagram page we have set up for his wife to celebrate his work, or visit the official website.

100% Pinot blanc - BLV

We went to visit one of our favourite producers last week to purchase a few bottles of champagne.

We hadn’t seen him for a while so it was great to catch up, and practice our French on him. He had produced a new cuvée ‘Pinot blanc vrai’ , which is 100% Pinot blanc, and has 6 grams of sugar added. The grapes were harvested in 2021. So it’s taken a little while to finally be ready.

The taste was fresh and crisp with a fruity grapefruit undertone. Rather delicious and would be a perfect aperitif.

We obviously had to come away with a few to enjoy at home.

Crostic

For a little bit of brain activity to start my day, I do Wordle, which I’ve been doing for a while, and I really enjoy the other games that come with it: ‘Strands’ and ‘Connections’. But there’s a good little game Brian’s found called ‘Crostic’, that’s turned out to be very useful.

At first glance it seemed to be a really easy game, but Brian had read that you can change the language, and use it as a language learning tool. We’d been looking for something to help us improve our French vocabulary, and what better way than with some general knowledge questions in French.

So we do it now during breakfast, after Wordle. It’s a bit of fun and we’re learning at the same time.

That’s a Dinky car

It’s been almost five years, but Brian finally got round to putting his cabinet up with the little cars he inherited from his dad inside. He wanted them upstairs, in our roof apartment, but we don’t have a lot of wall space, what with all the wardrobes and paintings, but he found a spot in the corner of the stairwell.

They’re a mixture of original, old toys, and a few newer, French models, which he bought at a vide grenier (car boot sale).

Finally they have a home. I’m thinking he needs one of a 2CV though, as that’s my favourite. We will need to keep our eye out for one.

Time for Coffee

Since we bought our La Pavoni coffee maker, which is coming up to 6 years now, we’ve had the most wonderful coffees almost every day.

Espressos, macchiatos, lattes, cappuccinos; it’s been a learning curve at times for Brian, but he’s enjoyed the journey, and I get great coffee at breakfast. Our guests also get to enjoy a good coffee when they come to visit, which goes down very well. One of the key things he’s worked out is what milk works best for frothing—it’s not as straightforward as you’d think. And recently we bought him a new jug, as the shape of the spout makes a difference when pouring out the froth, my favourite bit.

Cheese board!

At the market last Friday I bought some cheese from my favourite cheese stall man. He’s an amiable, smiling chap, who always says ‘Bonjour’ if he sees us at the café. Although Brian had kept him updated on how I was doing, as he missed seeing me, I guess he wondered how I really was. He was so glad to see me out and about again, and told me I looked well, which is always a nice thing to hear. We had a little chat while I was picking cheese.

I bought a nice chunk of Morbier, a sensible slice of Brie de Mieux, and a good piece of Tomme de Savoie. Enjoying them with fresh baguette and some dried figs is just delicious. Oh, and we also indulged in a glass of Rully, a round, and fruity white wine from Burgundy. Served not too cold.

Checkmate

During the period when I was not well, Brian often had a lot of time to himself. To keep his mind active, and to occupy his thoughts, he decided to try and improve his Chess. We had occasionally played against each other over the years, and I generally beat him, however I think more by luck than skill. I think it frustrated him that he didn’t know how to improve his game. He’d read a book or two, but they were not always the best way for him to learn, they were not very visual. A friend bought him a chess book for Christmas that really encouraged him, as it was a lot more visual and more interactive. Although his game improved a little, he still wanted more.

The breakthrough was, of all things, Duolingo. We had been using it to help us with our French, but they also introduced Chess learning on the App. He started following the simple tutorials, and quickly realised this dynamic approach was how he should be improving. Duolingo wasn’t the answer though, and after some research he found Chess.com.

The structured learning, and ability to play against other people around the world, was exactly what he needed. He started with an ELO (which is a Chess rating system) of 400, but quickly dropped down. After some effort, he worked his way up to 1200, which is apparently considered okay for club Chess. But his latest game cheered him the most. Although his overall rating was still only 1276, the computer rated his play at 1850, which is considered strong club level.

I confess I don’t know why he calls himself Jack Burton, I think it has something to do with a film, but I don’t ask. I haven’t played him since he’s improved, so it will be interesting when I’m up to it again.

If anyone would like to give him a game you can find him on chess.com under the name ‘JackBurtonAlwaysSays’.

Flooding

When we nipped out yesterday we were both quite surprised to see the volume of water that was laying across the fields.

The small river outside of our house is probably twice as deep as it usually is, and all the local rivers are bursting their banks at some point along their course.

As we drove over the bridge in Bar-sur-Seine we could hear the roar of the water gushing over the top of the weir.

We know there are flood warnings in Paris which will not be helped by all the water heading its way from the surrounding areas near us in the Aube. The Seine has a long way to go to reach Paris, but there will be lots more tributaries feeding into it.

Fingers crossed not too many more flooded forests, like this one not far from us.

Pampered

Yesterday I took myself off for a little bit of pampering. There is a really pleasant little beauty salon in Bar-sur-Seine where I went to have a manicure, pedicure and gels on my toes. Sarah, the lady who owns it, not only does nails but also offers facials, massage, and waxing.

It’s a great moment for me to just relax, practice my French, and enjoy some me time.

I just love the red colour I chose.