Grand Weekend

Friday began with Lectoure’s Market, where I buy our fresh fruits and vegetables.  We had friends Caroline and Glyn for dinner that evening, with dessert on our balcony.  On Saturday, we had new friend Florencia for lunch.  Born in Argentina, but living in France for 30+ years, Florencia is an artist and a philanthropist.  We heard about her project in Senegal.  On Saturday evening, we went to a Nuits Musicale en Armagnac concert, Broadway to Hollywood, with a piano, a bass, and a soprano singing favorite songs from Marronniers Park with the hills of the Gers behind them.  We walked to the Park and sat with friends.  It was a beautiful evening!

Today, Sunday, I walked early. It was a beautiful morning and I passed a field of sunflowers that have just bloomed.  Papa and I worked in our garden for a few hours.  We cut grapes that I took to our neighbors.  We have a big crop this summer and they are delicious!  After lunch, we went to our friend Ingrid’s house in Saint Clar.  Her friend Rita joined us and we talked for a couple of hours on her terrace.  We have had a grand weekend!

Terropera

The Gers has had the hottest two days on record this week. Mornings were cool, so I walked and Papa went to the gym. We tried to stay cool in the afternoons by reading and other inside activities. On Tuesday morning I went to our friend Agnes garden to pick fruit. I came home with pears, plums, and figs. Our doorbell rang on Wednesday afternoon, with our friend Jean-Pierre dropping by to ask Papa to go for coffee. In the evening, we went to a Terropera performance, in a barn on a farm near Terraube. The quality of Terropera is always the best in the Gers, in our opinion. We saw several friends there, and sat with Judy, Christine, and Maurice. On our way home, the almost full moon was bright orange/red. Beautiful! (My photo does not convey its magnificence!)

Lundi Nuit

Monday nights on Rue Nationale are the best street parties we know, with food, music, and happy people, happening in our historic village. We love it!

Three Concerts in Two Days

Last evening Papa and I went to the annual Musique en Chemin Festival in La Romieu, to the Saxback concert, in the cloisters of Collegiale Saint-Pierre. There were five and sometimes six saxophones with a bassoon and a French horn, playing three classical pieces by European composers plus two well known American pieces by American composers - from Porgy and Bess and Westside Story. The musicians were world class and enjoyed performing. The concert was very well done! We enjoyed dinner in the square of La Romieu with friends Kelly and Jean-Pierre after the concert.

Today was “concert day” for us! We drove south about 1 hour twenty minutes to the village of Tillac for lunch at 1:30, and then we went to Summer Concert Contempo with our friend Judy singing as part of the choir of 55. All the songs were known by everyone and the choir director invited the packed audience to sing along to a couple of choruses. We enjoyed it! 

We drove back to Lectoure by 6:30 pm and went to a concert in Bastion Park, with our neighbor Esmee performing. She has a beautiful voice and is an amazing entertainer. She sang at my 1 July girls lunch for friends. I texted several friends, some already planning to go to the concert, and met up at the Bastion Park. We had a fun evening!

Second Visit to Another Source

My friend Bea showed me the way to a spring, a water source, just north of Lectoure. I took Papa there this morning. Along the way there was a wall of large stones, and cobbles along a path. All very interesting because we know “there has been a constant settlement (around Lectoure) since 10,000 and 2500 BC, evidenced by remains found during excavations.” “The original Roman city of Lactora thrived by the Gers river from the 1st to 4th centuries AD before barbarian invasions pushed people to the fortified hilltop.”

Source Discovery with Friend

On Wednesday morning, I met Solenge at 7h30 and we walked about 5 miles, through the countryside and the commune of Tane.  Along the way, Solenge showed me the location of an ancient spring, with a stone basin to collect water, down the hill.  It was a beautiful cool morning and our walk was one of discovery for me.