Week of Coffees and Dinners with Friends

After dropping Whitney at the airport on 13 October, we drove back to Lectoure in time for Papa to have coffee with Nelson. I walked with Carolyn on the morning of the 14, had coffee with Ingrid in the afternoon, and later had Florencia over for coffee, as she was dropping off a piece of art. On Wednesday, 15 October, we met Jean Francois and Marianne for coffee at Racinette, and had coffee with Annick and Philippe at Le Bastard in the afternoon. I went to the Friday market on the 16th, and we had lunch at Bar XIII. Papa had coffee with Jean Claude in the afternoon. I walked with Carolyn again on Saturday morning, 17 October, then went to the Bechetoille’s garden to pick persimmons and pomegranates. We went to Marc and Tina’s home for dinner that evening, and heard about their recent trip to the Southwest United States, with stops in Arizona. Tina met us at the door wearing a piece of jewelry that our Navajo friends Janice and Joanne had made. I am grateful to have made that connection and Marc and Tina loved Canyon de Chelly!

On Sunday, 18 October, we had lunch with Andy and Lesley, with recipes they cooked from countries they recently visited, Hungary, Romania, and Moldova - all delicious! Papa had coffee with Nelson on Monday morning and Monday evening, we had dinner with our Belgian friends in Saint-Clar, Hilde and Filiep. I had coffee with Caroline this morning at their home in Rejaumont, then an impromptu coffee in the afternoon with Rachel and Sid. We’re having dinner with our neighbors/friends Alice and Gerard this evening, along with Abby and Deirdre. It will be a feast! Alice always cooks too much!

We are so fortunate to have such wonderful friends in the Gers! We have a busy few days ahead before we leave for a few days in Paris. All good! We are enjoying every minute!

Whitney’s Visit to Lectoure

Whitney arrived in Toulouse last Wednesday afternoon. We drove back to Lectoure, had a light supper and went for a walk around the village. On Thursday she went on a run, we had lunch in St. Mere and walked around the old chateau ruins, then she had a massage at the Thermes while I soaked in the pool. After Whitney’s morning run and my walk, we went to the market on Friday morning, then went to Moirax for lunch at Auberge du Prieure, our favorite Michelin star restaurant. On Saturday, she went for a longer run, then met us at our friend Jean-Francois’ house to dig crocus. We had a delicious lunch at our friend Abby’s house with her and our friend Deirdre. We took more walks around the village and shopped a bit along Rue Nationale. On Sunday, we visited my friend Florencia’s art exhibition in Cassaigne, then we visited the cathedral in Condom and the ancient chateau of Larresingle. That evening, we had dinner at O Badiu, our favorite restaurant in Lectoure. We got up on Monday morning, exercised, then drove to Toulouse for a 1:00 lunch at Hortus, a Michelin recommended restaurant. After lunch we visited the Capitole, Cathedrale Saint Sernin, and walked around the center of Toulouse. We spent the night in an airport hotel for Whitney’s early Tuesday flight. We enjoyed every moment of her visit! It was a gift to us! The bonus was eating so many delicious meals in one week!

Soiree Between Friends

Last evening, Papa and I hosted what has become an annual soiree at the end of our summer in Lectoure. Seventy five friends joined us at the Hotel Collegiale des Doctrinaires. Wine was served, cheese from a Ferme Cazau, ham from Fleurons, grapes from a friend’s garden, ice cream from Glice, cookies made by friends, and more! It was a wonderful evening for us with so many friends in the same room talking and enjoying being together. 

 

Friends Week

We’ve passed another busy week. We enjoyed games with Romain and Dominique on Monday evening. They left for Paris on Tuesday morning. We were sad to see them go, because they have sold their house across the street and we won’t see them as often. 

I was up early on Tuesday morning and went on a long walk with Solenge, north of the village. I came home and changed clothes, to go to the Fleurance Tuesday market. It is larger than Lectoure’s and I ran into some friends, always fun! Papa had Tuesday morning coffee with Nelson.

My friend Kate came for coffee on Wednesday morning. We chatted for a couple of hours. They live on a farm, where she grows flowers for sale. They are preparing their gardens for a wedding next summer. Papa and I were up early and left at 8 the next morning, Thursday, to pick up our friend, Jean Francois, to go to the Gers Departmente Archives, to research the history of both our properties. We were there over three hours and will need to go again for more information. We went for dinner at our friends Jessica and Paul’s home in the evening, talking for hours.

On Friday, I went to Lectoure’s market at 9 in the morning, then met friend Caroline for coffee. Friends Carolyn and Franz came for a market lunch at noon. Papa had coffee with friend Jean-Claude at 3 in the afternoon. We had friends Henri-Jacques and Brigette for aperitifs in the evening. 

I went to my friend Florencia’s atelier at 9:30 on Saturday in Condom. We chatted three hours and then I shopped a bit in Condom before returning home. In the evening, we went for dinner at Manufacture Royale with friends Christele and Hubert, and they also invited Corentine and Francois-Xavier. Dinner was delicious and we enjoyed the conversation. 

We love our social life in Lectoure, always interesting for us, with friends from all over the world and from many walks of life. 

Every Day is a Good Day!

We have played games two evenings over the past week with our neighbors/friends Dominique and Romain. They have lived across the street part time over the past five years, since we arrived in Lectoure. They have a contract to sell their home, so they will spend all their time at home in Paris. We always have a great time with them - the four of us are quite competitive with each other!

I had coffee with Pirrko last Thursday in Bastion Park. Papa and I had lunch with Janine and Steve at O Badiu that same day. There was a new menu and everything was delicious! On Friday morning, I went to Lectoure’s market to buy fresh fruits and vegetables. We drove to Chateau de Barthas in Mauvezin by 10, for a tour with the owner. He was full of history from the Gers, all very interesting for us. We met friends Christine and Maurice for lunch in Mauvezin after our tour. In the evening, we were invited for dinner at the home of friends Monique and Luc, along with friends Jean-Francois and Marianne, and Agnes and Raymond. Dinner was delicious and the conversation was interesting. Monique, Jean-Francois, and Agnes grew up in Lectoure and their families have known each other for generations. They traded stories of siblings and extended family.

On Saturday morning, a new friend from Seattle, Christiane, was visiting their home nearby and came for coffee with her mother, visiting from Germany. After lunch, I went to Agnes garden to pick fresh persimmons. On Sunday morning, I had a nice walk with friend Elizabeth and her dog, through the fields south of Lectoure. Papa and I went to Fleurance to a vide grenier in the town center, and stopped by the brocante shop of friend Claire. As we walked back through the village, we ran into a couple we met last weekend, while visiting their chateau during Patrimoine Weekend. We invited them for apéros later this week.

We went for Sunday dinner at friends Rachel and Sid’s house, with friends Susan and Chip joining us. We talked for hours, catching up on travels and news. More to come this week! Every day is a good day!!! We are having fun!

Sarah’s Visit

Our granddaughter Sarah arrived in Toulouse airport last Thursday just before noon. We gave Sarah a walking tour of the village, to the Cathédrale and down Rue Nationale to the Brocante Village and its old chapel (formerly an hospital), and came home to cut grapes on the terrace. She had a late afternoon rest and we went to O Badiu for dinner that evening. On Friday morning at 9:30, Sarah and I went up the 240 steps of the Cathédrale tower to enjoy the view. Afterward, we went to Lectoure’s weekly market, then went to Bar XIII for lunch, inviting our friend Anling to join us. In the afternoon, Sarah and I went to the thermes to soak. We had supper at home with ham and cheeses, bread and fruits we bought that morning at the market.

We took advantage of the annual weekend of Journées Européennes du Patrimoine. On Saturday morning our first stop was Chateau de Serillac, where the chateau owner approached us and offered to give us a personal tour of the chateau. He purchased it twenty years ago, and has continued working on it since. It is an interesting property with beautiful vistas. We drove to Condom for lunch and visited the Cathedrale with statues of the Three Musketeers and d’Artagnan. Sarah posed along with them. We visited Larresingle, a chateau ruin, and we stopped at Chateau Cassaigne, a beautiful chateau with a deer park. And we visited Chateau Lavardens, whose floors are magnificent, 18 unique 17th century geometric mosaic pavements made with local pink terracotta bricks and limestone. 

Papa and I went to an art vernissage on Saturday evening at Les Orages, the historic Tannerie in Lectoure, seeing several friends, while Sarah rested a bit. We had an apéro dînatoire at our neighbors Alice and Gerard’s house later in the evening, with their family visiting from Australia. Sarah enjoyed talking with the Australian niece’s son and fiance, also in their 20’s.

We visited more Patrimoine weekend chateaux on Sunday morning, with Anling joining us. Our first stop at Chateau Cadreils, the home of the parents of French actress Julie Gayet and her husband, former President of France, Francois Hollande. Julie’s dad gave a tour of the exterior of the 17th century secluded chateau. We enjoyed a very long lunch afterward, at Auberge de Prieure, a Michelin star restaurant. We had 10 courses over 3 hours. It was an unforgettable dining experience for all of us! We took a walk about the Cluny Eglise in Moirax after lunch. Built in the 11th century, it is beautiful!

Neighbors Alice and Gerard and their visiting Australian family came for apéros on our balcony on Sunday evening. We ate and watched the sun set on our favorite spot in our Lectoure house!

On Monday, our friend and chef Amanda texted that she was coming to our house at 10 to prepare lunch for us. I had texted her a few days before to ask if she was cooking at the cafe La Romieu on Monday. She had a change of plans, treated us to a delicious lunch, and even served us! I invited our friend Abby to join us. Days with surprises are the best! Sarah helped us cut grapes on the terrace in the morning, we did another walk about Lectoure in the afternoon, and we sat on the balcony as the sun went down. We were up early on Tuesday morning to take Sarah back to the Toulouse airport. We had a wonderful visit with Sarah!