A Fascinating Find

Last week I went to the annual Salon de la Carte Postale in Rodez. I didn't get into pawing through thousands of old postcards -- although I can see why people do. But I did purchase a number of fascinating documents that provide intriguing glimpses into Aveyron over the last decades.

As a food blogger, how could I resist this issue of La France à Table from 1971, featuring the Aveyron department? I had never seen a copy of this magazine, but it seems to be quite a collectors' item.

I tried to find some information about the magazine: its history, how long it was published, how popular it was. But my (quick, I admit) Internet search only came up with numerous efforts to sell back issues...

As so often when I am confronted with printed vestiges of the past, I felt strange and nostalgic reading the magazine's black and white pages. The issue was printed three years after Mai '68, but it appeared so old-fashioned that, had I opened a random page, I would have guessed it was from the forties.

Another intriguing observation: ALL of the ads were for a certain type of product.

Can you guess what?

Every Day's like an Open Door!

The weather has been so absolutely glorious the past few weeks that I have felt like singing on my way to work...

That rhythm of town

Starts calling me down

It's like a message from high above

Oh, oh, oh

Pulling me out to the smiles and the streets that I love

Good morning Bourran

Every day's like an open door!

Okay, this all probably sounds quite silly. But like Baltimore, (now if you haven't seen Hairspray, you must, but in English) Bourran, or the New Rodez, is much maligned. In fact, it seems to be quite fashionable to criticize our little La Défense:

"C'est une horreur!"

"Ils l'ont raté!"

"Moi, je n'y mets jamais les pieds!"

But Bourran is growing. And it is growing on me.

My Own Front Yard

I really need to get out and about more over the weekends, and this is one of my resolutions for the new school year. Sometimes I feel like life in Aveyron is passing me by.

I did go to an event in Rodez this morning, but yesterday I reveled in our beautiful weather and enjoyed one whole day at home.

Can you blame me?

Aveyron in the News -- Again!

I hope they had a good time!

Aveyron in the Press

I'm finally back in France and on my own computer after 7 weeks in the USA and a much-needed break from blogging.

It may still take me a few days to absorb the fact that I'm in Aveyron again, so for the moment I'll content myself with sharing a few references to my home département from the media.

I always get a little thrill when I see articles about Aveyron in the French press, and I invariably buy the magazine. The summer issue of vmf (Vieilles Maisons Françaises) presents a 14-part feature about homes and architecture in Le Rouergue, which is the former region of France that corresponds to the current département de l'Aveyron. I plan to savor it page by page.

My cup runneth over in French and English, because Ken of Living the Life in Saint-Aignan was kind enough to send me a link to "Introducing Aveyron", recently published in Travel and Leisure.

I am of course terribly jealous of the person who wrote it, and I must say she did an excellent job of portraying the area. Here's a little extract:

"Can so much of it be a secret—even from the French? Almost forgotten for centuries, this sparsely populated département in the south of France stretches over a wildly varied landscape of medieval villages, adventurous terrain, and fairy tale– worthy hotels."

(Marcelle Clements)

Ms. Clements also justifies the title of my blog quite nicely:

"This is la France profonde, the heartland, which Parisians seldom visit and cannot fathom, where there is some of the world's most stunning, geologically diverse countryside—much of it unspoiled."

I couldn't have said it better. I certainly haven't yet. But maybe someday I will.

En vacances

I've already decided to take a vacation from Cuisine Quotidienne in August, and I think I'm going to do the same for La France Profonde. I may be doing a little behind-the-scenes sidebar work, but I'll be back to posting in September.

If I have time to post, I'll be writing for my "catch-all" blog, And So Forth, or the incipient My European Scrapblog.

La France Profonde did get a very nice review from the blog Informal Critique last week -- perhaps that has made me feel I deserve a bit of a blogging break?

Anyway, if you're really in the mood for an FP post, check out five of my personal favorites:

1. Where It All Began

2. Traces of Cafes Past

3. Gradually Approaching the Millau Viaduct

4. She's Always There Somewhere

5. Celebration in Solitude

Bonnes vacances!




(Image courtesy of Siouxwire)

How to save the Tour de France?

I may be onto an idea of how to save the scandal-ridden Tour de France.

Hop over to today's post on my spanking-new blog effort My European Scrapblog and tell me if you think my idea would work.

By the way, it's a Typepad blog...

I wonder if I'll get a friendly comment from a Blogger staff member about that?

The Saillac Series: Post Two -- Window Watching

What expat photo blogger can resist the occasional foray into a door or window feature?


I do put off posting on the subject because I don't really have that much to say about it, but it's not for lack of photos...



On our December trip to Saillac in the Lot department, my husband and I captured these "ouvertures" in various states of repair...



What local events have been watched through them over the centuries?

The Saillac Series: Post One

Being away from Aveyron for the summer makes posting about the area more challenging. I've brought a lot of photos with me to the USA , but I'm suffering from a lack of context.

Maybe it's time to go back to some other places that are equally important in my French life.

One is Saillac, a tiny village in the Corrèze department, not far from Martel in the Lot.

We have close friends there, and the area has been one of my family's vacation havens for the past seven years or so. One of my favorite photos on this blog was taken there on a crisp winter morning.

Another was less complimentary, and elicited a few squawks from my friends --and rightly so, for Saillac is a far more charming place than this photo implies.

Over the next few weeks, discover some frosty photos of winter in Saillac -- another intriguing corner of La France Profonde.

Stormy Weather

I am now in Olympia, Washington for the next six weeks, and this is the sultry and strange weather I left behind in Aveyron.

I do believe 2007 is the first time that we have not been able to eat outside on our deck a single time in May or June. Storm after storm plagued Aveyron during those months, including a few that caused serious flash flooding.

Listening closely through my open windows in mid-June, I could swear I heard wailing and gnashing of teeth. It must have been all the neighbors who had rushed out to build costly swimming pools last summer.

(Photo courtesy of Thierry Jouanneteau)

The Bovine Brigade

They're tough. They're mean. They moo.

Don't miss the bovine brigade -- coming soon to a pasture near you.

(Photo courtesy of Thierry Jouanneteau. Click on it to enlarge.)

Celebration in Solitude

On the evening of La fête de la musique in Rodez, crowds mill about all over the town.

I love the festive atmosphere, but it's the solitude of this soloist's celebration that catches my eye the most.

La fête se prépare

Preparation is underway all over France for la Fête de la Musique, which takes place on June 21st every year.

Rodez is no exception -- I noticed telltale signs of the upcoming event all over town as early as Tuesday afternoon.

Perhaps this statue can pitch a prayer for good weather!

Postscript June 22nd:

The weather was lovely, albeit a little cool, for the Fête de la Musique in Aveyron. I'll get a post up about it over the weekend. In the meantime, if you went to the Fête de la Musique in France or elsewhere and have blogged about it, feel free to leave a link to your post. I'll do a little round-up.

Cross-Cultural Clips 1

I tend to save up way too many links to "articles of interest," so I have decided to take action and present an occasional link list. If you are an expat in France, a Francophile or simply enjoy comparing cultures, you may enjoy reading one or more of the following:

The New York Times Movie Review of La Vie en Rose: “'La Vie en Rose,' which Mr. Dahan wrote as well as directed, has an intricate structure, which is a polite way of saying that it’s a complete mess," writes A.O. Scott. I agree. Do you?

Is Maman mean or magnifique? from Telegraph.co.uk: I won't comment on this one yet, but I suspect some of you might.

Hillary Equals France by Bill Maher. "What's there to say about a country that was too stupid to get on board with our wonderfully conceived and brilliantly executed war in Iraq?" Several expat blogs have already linked to this great article -- don't miss out on it. Hilarious and terrifying.

French film industry dubbers complain of pressure to water down scripts from the International Herald Tribune: I found this surprising. Who are the Puritans, again?

Looking Up, Things Are

A Happy Ending

About a year ago, I was wondering what would become of the historic "Family" cinema in downtown Rodez once the new multiplex cinema project was underway.

The bad news is that the "Family" closed down at the end of April, leaving Rodez with only two movie theaters and fewer choices -- for the moment.

But the very good news is that the cinema's premises are being taken over by La Maison du Livre, a highly popular local bookstore that is sorely lacking in browsing space.

I'm pleased that the site is trading reels for reads, and that the cinema will not be transformed into some new brand-name clothes emporium. Consider it another point scored for culture in Rodez.

And speaking of cinema, if any of you have seen Les Chansons d'Amour, hop over to my post about it on And So Forth and tell me what you thought about the flick.

Work more, earn more?

Ken from Living the Life in Saint-Aignan just wrote an interesting post -- an article, really -- about French attitudes toward work and Sarkozy's ideas about changing them.

I just left a comment, practically worthy of a post in and of itself, but why don't you join the debate on Ken's site? It's certainly a subject most expats have strong opinions about...

(Cartoon courtesy of Un dessin d'actualité par jour)

Printing, Then and Now

Imprimerie Colomb, what did you print? What was your first job 132 years ago? Newspapers? Notices? Postcards?

You must have been proud of your new, modern printing machinery -- just like I'm proud of the fancy new equipment in my office.

Imprimerie Colomb, what would you think of the technology I've used to print this short text about you?

Rodez International!

It is absolutely smashing -- as my British readers would put it -- to be able to take the plane directly from Rodez to London Stansted. Here's a shadowy glimpse of Rodez International and eager Aveyronnais tourists off for a long weekend in the big city.

The contrast between Rodez International and Stansted is striking. I often wonder how it feels for British visitors to arrive from the sprawling Ryanair hub to our tiny but welcoming airport.

I know, at least, that tourists from across the Channel will immediately be introduced to our "brilliant" -- as my British readers would put it -- local food products:

So now you know -- I just traded in a week of Roquefort, Marcillac wine, aligot and country-style bread for Starbucks iced mochas, Italian and Australian wine, Japanese food, and club sandwiches. And I'm certainly none the worse off for it!

New Neighbors

These are our new neighbors. They just moved in last week. So far, they're a little noisy but otherwise we're getting along quite well.

In fact, I think we've seen them before. Do they ring a bell to you?

They invited me over for cookies and milk this weekend, but I'll be leaving Thursday on a big-city adventure and won't be back until next Tuesday, so I can't make it. I moo hope they won't be offended.

If you're curious where I'm going, I've left a few hints over on And So Forth...

The Road Not Taken

"I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference."

Local Election Results

If you don't know what to do on the Internet this morning, especially if you live in France where you're enjoying a day off to commemorate the Allied victory in World War II, you might want to peruse your favorite French towns' election results in Le Monde's "Edition Spéciale."

For example, you can see that Rodez, Aveyron's main city, voted this way, whereas Laguiole, a smaller town in very rural North Aveyron voted that way -- and how!

Aveyron gave the majority to Nicolas Sarkozy, but not overwhelmingly despite the department's conservative reputation.

Enjoy the function while it lasts, because Le Monde's features are only available free for a week or two.

(Related post on And So Forth)

Train Tripping to Tours

La Gare de Rodez

6:40 AM, Saturday April 28th 2007

I bet a lot of you first hopped around France by train.

Europasses, anyone?

"Limoges, Limoges, trois minutes d'arrêt. Correspondances pour...."

NE PAS OUBLIER DE COMPOSTER VOTRE BILLET!

On my first trips to France, it seems like I spent about half of my time in trains. Now I seldom travel that way -- I think the last time was in 2000. And I rarely travel alone. But in late April I went up to the Tours area, sans famille, to see an old friend who is moving back to the States next summer.

I won't blog about Tours as much as I did for the Tarn, but expect a few posts about my trip hither and thither. And definitely a few more train shots.

Google Bayrou, Find Sarkozy?

I was just writing to my parents in the USA about the French presidential race, and I wanted to send them the name of the new party François Bayrou is forming. I couldn't remember if it was "le mouvement démocratique" or "démocrate", so I did a Google search for Bayrou, and this is what came up at the top of the page, the day before the election between Sarkozy and Royal:

Sarkozy-Royal au 2nd tour www.europe1.fr/presidentielle-2007 Réactions, interviews, commentaires Suivez l'événement sur Europe1
Le Vrai Sarkozy www.sarkopeur.com Ce que vous ne savez pas de Sarkozy Son expérience et son talent

All right, Bayrou isn't in the race anymore, so maybe the first link is legitimate. But how did this extremely pro-Sarkozy YouTube video come up in second place on a search for "Bayrou" the day before the election? Well, first I suppose I should point out that it's a commercial link. But doesn't it seem a little wrong for Google to sell space for that link under searches for Bayrou?

By the way, by not removing the actual links above, I am not in any way trying to work as a secret force for Sarkozy! I'm just "showing it like it is."

In a country where equal media time for the candidates is controlled to the second, it's interesting to see how the world's biggest search engine has been harnessed in a last minute attempt to reach out to Bayrou's voters.

She's Always There Somewhere

I wasn't looking for her the other day, but she just peeked out at me.

What would Rodez be without its cathedral? And why is it not that well-known?

Personally, I'll take it over any French cathedral I've ever visited. Of course I can't pretend to have seen them all! You probably have your own favorite and I'd love to hear about it.

My Michelin guide gives the town of Rodez itself only one star ("Intéressant") but the cathedral rates two stars ("Mérite un détour") out of the maximum three.

I have news for the Michelin writers -- you can't dissociate the two.

Albi Afterthought

I think it's time to face up to the facts: my previous post, an Albi guessing game, was just a little too difficult to get much of a response. Does that mean I'm going to give you the answers?

No -- because one of these days some Albigeois or Albigeoise might stumble upon my site and have fun identifying the pictures.

I could write more about Albi, but I promised myself to limit La France Profonde's trip to the Tarn to the month of April. One month of blogging for a two nights' stay! And so many memories...

Thank you again to our hosts for this special weekend, Nathalie and David Bolton of La Peyrecout gîte. They are also the publishers of French-Entrée Tarn & Aveyron, a complete portal site for anyone interested in a move or trip to the Tarn or Aveyron area.

Oh yes, as for the above photo -- Albi's beautiful covered market where I used to do twice-weekly shopping is undergoing a serious facelift. There are a lot of changes going on in Aveyron too, especially in Rodez. I hope to share some of them with you in May.

Albi Treasure Hunt

La France Profonde is continuing its trip through the Tarn department, where I started my life in France. My goal was to finish "the Tarn series" by the end of April, but with an upcoming three-day trip to Tours - where I also used to live -- this project might spill over into May!

Albi is a popular tourist destination, and plenty of visitors pile in throughout the summer to see its imposing cathedral and the recently remodeled Toulouse-Lautrec museum. Maybe you have even visited these sites.

But do you really know Albi? Let's go on a little treasure hunt: four photos, four questions.

1. What hidden treasure of Albi's downtown area can be accessed from here?



2. What Albi landmark can be seen at the end of this street?


3. Where was this photo taken from?


4. Name two albigeois specialties that were sold in this long-famous and now-defunct Albi bakery:

Feel free to comment whether or not you know the answers! All of these photos also represent places that were favorites of mine when I lived in Albi...

Great Deal in Gaillac -- "Cassis" Restaurant

After a morning visit to Cordes-sur-Ciel, our next stop during our weekend in the Tarn department was Gaillac, a colorful small town known for the eponymous wine produced in the surroundings.

We stopped in Gaillac for just one reason: to eat lunch. Our hosts Nathalie and David Bolton of La Peyrecout had recommended that we try out "Cassis," a former café located on the main square. " Chef Justin Winstanley has turned the site into a charming restaurant.

For our meal, we chose the daily lunch special. The starter was a "salade gourmande." I must admit I am not always bowled over by salads bearing that name, as they are often smothered with greasy lardons and slathered in slimy store-bought salad dressing. (Mais oui! In the land of delicious vinaigrettes!)

The Cassis take on a salade gourmande was much lighter: cooked beets with red onions, steamed cauliflower, roasted red peppers, céleri remoulade with walnuts, an avocado purée and a few salad greens: a true feast for the eyes and the palate!



The main course, simple yet convincing, was a boneless pork chop, hot and crispy frites, and a delicious Swiss chard gratin.


To finish up, a classic dessert: tarte aux pommes normande.

All of the above can be enjoyed for a very reasonable 9.50 euros (about $13.00 or £6.50,) although more elaborate menus are available.

If you're looking for a tasty and affordable lunch or dinner in the area, I couldn't recommend Cassis more.

To finish, I must give a special mention for the fact that my teenage "kids" were allowed to order the menu d'enfants -- which is not always the case in France, where the cut-off age is usually ten, and enforced. Unlike many French kids' menus, virtually identical all over the country, it was as original and appealing as the adult choices.

Cassis Restaurant

80 Place de la Libération

81600 Gaillac, France

(0)5 63 57 62 67

Cordes for Sale?

Abandoned houses in Cordes intrigued me even more than the many lovely renovated buildings. The one above sparkled with brilliant blue, but apparently no one comes home through its cheery door.

I've always been one who likes to take a gander through old windows into empty rooms, but sometimes this wasn't possible:

Overall, we were amazed by the number of houses for sale in Cordes sur Ciel. I didn't do any research into this subject, but we must have seen dozens of homes à vendre, leaving us to assume that prices are out of sight and/or that potential buyers are not so enthusiastic about homes with lots of charm, but little or no garden, or just a patio with a view of thousands of tourists all summer.
Some owners might do better to change their "for sale" sign so it's more in keeping with the village's atmosphere:

We also saw plenty of homes that were apparently inhabited, but in need of some good renovation work:


But for some, it's too late!

I was interested to note that all of the charming properties in the Cordes area haven't been bought up already. Seriously, most places don't look like the one above! If you're interested a home in the Cordes area, take a look here.

Cordes sur Ciel 1 -- Bits of Blue in lieu of Blue Sky

Cordes sur Ciel is one of the jewels of Tarn tourism. It's easy to see why when the sun is out, and the village looks like this or this. But we visited it on a grayish and windy day, and the view of the village was a little more like this -- which definitely changed the village's atmosphere, and explains why we didn't bother to stop at the viewpoint to take the "typical" photo of Cordes.

The lower village, with its grocery stores and bakeries, was bustling. But we were there on a Monday - -when smaller shops are closed -- and just barely at the start of tourist season to boot. Factor in the blustery weather, and the upper village was practically deserted.

Frankly, I liked it that way. It was pleasant not to be distracted by the many shops and the multi-lingual throng of tourists which swarms into the village during the peak season.

We were able to focus on details...

...and appreciate the colorful decorations on the homes and other buildings, because our sky was definitely lacking in blue on the morning we visited "Cordes sur Ciel...Gris."

La Peyrecout: Chez Nathalie et David (Comments Enabled)

Before telling you more about our stay in the Tarn, I definitely want to mention that the whole idea of the weekend there stemmed from the kind hospitality of Nathalie and David Bolton, owners of La Peyrecout gîtes, located near Cordes. I met them through their new Internet site project, FrenchEntrée.com Tarn & Aveyron, which syndicates some of my posts from La France Profonde.

Nathalie and David were kind enough to invite us to stay in their beautifully restored La Grange gîte, which I highly recommend for a weekend getaway -- or more. We only stayed two nights but it was such a relaxing break that it seemed like a week!

(PS: I originally posted this a few days back and just noticed that once again, comments were not enabled on the post. This is a new problem I've had two or three times now with Blogger. Any suggestions, other than of course checking that the comment link comes up on every post? )

A Word About Stats and statcounter.com

I just noticed that my Statcounter set-up is showing stats at the bottom of the page, which reminds me that some time back, La France Profonde racked up its 15,000th visit!

I had promised myself I would watch for the event, but the fact is I don't go to statcounter very often, so I missed it by about 400!

Enquiring minds may want to know why the Statcounter at the bottom of this blog says only "2,767" as I write. Well, when I moved over to "new Blogger" I forgot to take Statcounter with me. The quickest solution I found to the problem was recreating a "project" -- so I'll always need to add 13,000 odd visits from my "old Blogger blog" to what I see below...I guess...

Where It All Began

I just got back from a three-day trip through my earliest expat memories.

My husband and I got married in July 1990 at the Mairie in the tiny village of Cestayrols , population 459, located in the Tarn department. A few months later we moved from Lincarque, the even tinier hamlet where we had been renting a gîte, to Albi, where we lived from 1990-1992. My first daughter was born there, in the now defunct Clinique Escudié.

I adored Albi and when we left it for professional reasons in 1992, I thought my heart would break. Place nostalgia overwhelmed me every time I thought about the town's red brick houses, its covered market and its warm atmosphere.

After a three-year stint near Tours, we moved back to the Southwest -- to Aveyron -- and swore we would get back to Albi and the Tarn often.

But of course we don't. There have been the occasional trips to show American visitors la ville rouge, and a few stops on our way to Toulouse. But for the most part, we rarely return to the area we loved so much.

Until this spring break. Our stay in the Tarn was short, but brought back a multitude of memories -- and a lot of blogging material.

I hope you'll be reading La France Profonde in April -- because we'll be taking a trip to the Tarn.