Sur le Pont d"Avignon -Palais des Papes

Only had the day in Avignon... have to come back....visited Palais des Papes.  OMG what those popes got up to.  Three popes at one time... wars, mistresses, children and some stunning architecture!

Le Bubble d"Avignon

We booked a gorgeous barge on the river overlooking Avignon..... It was huge!

What we didn't realise was we would be sleeping in the  "Bubble" 

Oh my goodness what an experience... it felt like sleeping under the stars!  Morning was amazing!

Marseillan

Such a shock to be in a town where everyone speaks English!  Such a pretty place though, loads of restaurants - specialising of course in fish and coquillages, yachts from around the world and the Noilly Pratt factory. 

And of course these is always a water joisting boat.

'Mazing Minerve

All roads, wind slowly up the valley in this area but the road to Minerve is truly dramatic.   At times our car hung tentatively to the steep sides of the mountain while speedy sportscars careered around the corners, until finally we were rewarded by the amazing view of this Cathar village.  A history of siege, looting and conquer was just around the corner.

Narbonne est bon n'est pas

Great to meet up with Erin, Milton and Naamah in Narbonne... 

Beautiful city with a gorgeous canal running through it.  Went on a boat trip through the locks... total rip off but we LOVED it.

Delicious food... Moules Marinière for me and an ENORMOUS hamburger for Roger!

Yet another fabulous city with lots of grand architecture 

Fabulous markets...

AND the most incredible breakfast at Le Marché.... no we didn't have what these guys had at 9.00 am before they set of for work.... saucisson, du pain, steak, frites, and 5 glasses of Rosé each, we just had a simple omelette!  

Great waitress who just kept those plates of food and bottles of wine rolling!

Tielle Sétoise

Typical dish from Sète: Octopus Pie

This is a spicy octopus pie that originates from Sète and is available in all supermarkets, small shops and bakeries around Sete or you can make your own!. It is a sort of octopus ragout in dough, with a delicious golden crust. Tielles have a strong taste of fish a bit like sardines in tomato sauce. 

This was a very proud baker on our trip out to Pézenas.... and  yes they are delicious!

Here is the recipe

• Cook the octopus in a large pot of boiling salted water with some vinegar or some bouillon, until it is tender (45 minutes). Drain, rinse with cold water, peel the skin off and chop it into slightly smaller than bite-size pieces.

• Make the dough. Use some plain flour, olive oil, cold water and a pinch of salt. The dough will be similar to shortcrust pastry. But some people prefer to make it similar to bread dough, for example with yeast
• Heat up the filling. Mix the squid with some olive oil, chopped onions, herbs (bay leaf, rosemary, fennel bulb), spices (black pepper, salt, fresh hot chilli), chopped garlic, tomato paste, hot water and dry white wine. Cook until the filling becomes thick.
• Assemble the tielles. Roll the dough into 12-centimetre disks and put them in tart pans. Prick the dough with a fork, spread some octopus ragout over each pan, cover with the remaining disks and pinch down the edges. Make a small slit in each top with a knife. To make it prettier, spread a glaze of egg yolk, tomato paste and olive oil on the crust.
• Bake the tielles, at about 200C until golden, for 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Les Potiers de Saint Jean de Fos

On our way back from St Guilhem le Desert, we came across this fantastic fair... over 60 potters from 20 countries... Great fun... loved this stall particularly... especially the Boule player.

Lots of traditional and not so traditional musicians too....

St Guilhem le Desert

One of our favourite villages (so hard to choose) was St Guilhem le Desert.  A tiny village perched on the hillside with the obligatory restaurants, epicerie, boulangerie and of course local fete.  They have a local tradition where they put a particular flower on the door.  If the flower closes they know it is going to rain.  I am assuming it does rain sometimes here but we haven't seen a drop!

Pézenas

One of the wonderful things about Sete is that it is surrounded by fantastic villages all with a life and culture of their own.  We found ourselves in a different village everyday,  shopping in the markets which were bursting with local produce, exploring the local streets.  Pézenas was one of the first.

There was always an intriguing doorway or steps leading to secluded courtyards where it was obligatory to have an espresso, beer or glass of wine.

J'aime Agde, Beziers

Totally surprised that France still has bullfighting!  

Bezier's getting ready for the season.

Loved the cathedral and of course the wonderful  food!  So love all those wonderful cheeses and olives!

OMG Have I really been in France 5 weeks without a post

Our first home exchange of the year in France... Sete.  An incredible place.  Home of water jousting... yes they size each other up.... get out their lances, the rowers paddle like hell and then they try to push each other into the water... sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't!  I guess you have to have a sports' brain to get it!  The best bit for me was the 'Umpah' band!

Lovely home, complete with rabbit, tortoise and palm trees.

I was in 7th heaven... fresh seafood everywhere.  Loved Point Court - still a fishing village.

Our house at Sete was on the lake and close to  the Canal du Midi.  We could walk along the shoreline (amazed at all the sunken boats).  We walked to a little fishing village with one restaurant where the plat du jour was the catch of the day.  Parfait!

Of course we had to visit the lighthouse.

Sample the glorious food!

And visit the wonderful surrounding towns.  More next post.