We found ourselves going way back in time today when we took a stroll to a nearby menhir. Nestled in a patch of pleasant woodland, just off one of the local footpaths, it stands 2.5 metres high and is said to date, rather inaccurately, from between 2 & 5 thousand BC. Our Neolithic ancestors were […]
Yes, today’s mystery tool is a Spoon Auger, and it is used for boring holes in solid wood… These tools were also used in the production of Sabots which is the French word for clog (which probably derives from Savate from the Arabi Sabbat for shoe and bot, for boots). These ‘shoe-boots’ or sabots were […]
We tend to think of Coca-Cola as the all-american drink but actually, in a roundabout way, the French may lay claim to having had a hand in its invention. It all started when, in around 1863, Corsican chemist Angelo Mariani invented his ‘Vin Mariani, French Tonic Wine’, a brilliant concoction of Bordeaux wine and coca […]
Nah, let’s not talk about croissants…let’s talk about pancakes! Here in France the 2nd of February is Fete des Chandelles, (candles). It’s Pancake Day, but not quite as we know it. As is often the case, it’s a religous festival with its roots buried deep in a pagan one. For pagans it was all about […]
My Mum, who was ordinarily quite liberal, had certain, inexplicable lines drawn in the sand that we could not cross, one of which was the strongly held belief in the unsuitability of chocolate as a breakfast staple. No amount of wheedling from me would dissuade her of this notion, and thus, much like her irrational […]
At this time of year, bright red berries are the stars of the hedgerow show. Wild Honeysuckle, like a bejewelled necklace, is snaking, alluringly through the forest, (poisonous to us but the birdies can eat them). We can use the bright and beady Hawthorn berries to make jellies and jams and can also be used […]
Today, a friend and I set off on a ‘Sortie Botanique’ which was led by a M. Everard, who is an ethnobotaniste. The purpose of the excursion was to discover ‘Les herbes de la Saint Jean’. These are seven or so herbs which are traditionally gathered on the morning of the Summer Solstice, before the […]
I came across this website page all about old flags and suddenly became bewitched with the idea of making some covertcabin flags…I just could not understand why it hadn’t occured to me before and immediately set about rectifying our flaglessness. Stage 1: I rummaged through my vast collection of fabric remnants and was suprised to […]
The children’s rhyme or song « Here We Go Gathering Nuts In May » has always slightly confused me as generally nuts are to be gathered later in the year. That was until I realised that the nuts referred to in the song were (most probably) pignuts! These beauties pop up at this time of year, their […]
CAUTION! Today is All Fools’ Day… here in France, as well as the usual pranks that we associate with 1st April, kids cut out paper fish and try to stick them on unsuspecting people’s backs. If anyone is caught out they are called a ‘poisson d’avril’! Hilarity ensues… So how did this fishy tradition come […]
