Do you like the colour red? (le rouge in French). Most men prefer blue, but my husband, unfortunately favoured red. I say unfortunately, because after 6 years of being a Red Maid, I had hoped to avoid wearing it when I left school! Even our first bedroom had a burgundy coloured carpet and bedspread!

“Burgundy” is “Bordeaux”  in France, both good red wines! In the Biarritz region all the woodwork of the houses must be painted dark red. It’s said to depict the “blood of the bulls”. The house-holders buy the paint from their local Mairie (Town Hall) at a discount price. That was the only corner of France that we were glad to leave! Some of you may remember using rouge on your cheeks (the ladies I mean!) In France it’s called “Le fard”. When some one is very angry they are said to be seeing red. In French “se fâcher tout rouge”. Why am I chatting about red?

Well, I lunch regularly with various groups of friends. I’ve just met up with four ladies, three of whom I hadn’t met for fifty years! We all lived in the same road as children, houses 40, 42, 44, and 46. It is so interesting to learn how our lives have all taken different paths.

One lively lady, Margo Cevik, is the leading lady of “Cotswold Gems”, a branch of the Red Hat Society, which started in California. Their ethos is to have no rules! It’s a social club with members from all walks of life, who support each other. Their inspiration for no constraints comes from the poem “Warning” by Jenny Joseph. They believe in living life to the full. On Margo’s birthday some of her group arranged a surprise trip in a fire-engine. On their birthday they wear a purple hat…. and yes, she wore a purple crash-helmet! One of her group, a young 60 year old, has wing walked, abseiled down a building and hiked in the Himalayas amongst other things. Am I joining? I’m not brave enough to do daring acts, but I agree that we should make the most of every day. I wish Margo and her Red-hatted members continuation of their fun filled adventures.

I’ve just returned from celebrating my birthday in France as always. As I write, I am looking at the muguet (lily of the valley) that some of my friends gave me for good luck. On April 30th we had lunch at my favourite restaurant in one of my “top towns”. Have you ever visited ”Le Touquet”?

With my husband Ron, it was the first place in France that we saw in 1956. We caught a plane from Kent, it only had ourselves and two others on it. Le Touquet airport is like a car park with hundreds of tiny planes, row upon row.

Anyway Peter and I had a fabulous lunch! Ask me if you want any addresses or information. My meal ended under a sea of raspberry coulis. So it’s back to the red again!

I wish you all a red-rose June and may all your days be “red-lettered” ones. Have fun. Enjoy every day!

Esmé

Friends, I really hope that, like myself, you have many loyal friends. I could write a book about the fascinating lives that many of my friends have led and are still living. However, as my article is limited to one page, I must condense what I wanted to tell you about Victoria.

Born in Brittany, she moved to Paris when very young. Coincidentally, another of my friends who also lived in Dranc, a suburb of Paris, told me of the shocking day when the Nazis marched into their school and dragged out all the Jews. Victoria was one of them. The family left Paris on foot pushing the baby in its pram which contained their few possessions. Auschwitz came next where only the three children escaped the gas chambers. I thought that this would have been the worst time of my friend’s life. I was wrong!. Victoria told me that the most frightening time came after their release. She was all alone in a 5-star Parisian Hotel and felt totally abandoned until weeks later when an uncle came to claim her. She keeps her Auschwitz tattoo covered and never talked about these ordeals except to me.

Her sister Reneé gave many lectures and was honoured for her work in retrieving many valuable paintings which the Germans had stolen. We were invited to the Elyseé Palace for the ceremony.

Victoria was our tenant on the Port of Bormes but returned to Paris. She didn’t want to leave the south but if she lived in Paris, her pension would be doubled. In France, ex-concentration camp victims get many ‘perks’. One of them is a card stating that they never have to queue anywhere!

After my husband died I lived with Victoria for a while. Do you know Paris? I find it colourfully exciting. We had many adventures together.That’s another story, perhaps for another post!?
                 

                                Value them  —  your friends are precious

                                                      Esmé                      

I was very lucky this Christmas to be given some lovely wine! In fact my ex son-in-law sent me a
chocolate and wine hamper.

However I’m not going to discuss wine this month. I’m thinking about WATER!  What I miss most about not living in France is being near water. Our first property was on the Vendeen Corniche. It was called “Les Vagues” (The Waves) and was so close to the sea that, even in July spume like snowballs hit our windows! Then we moved south and bought a flat on the only part of France surrounded by the Mediterranean. Next we moved to Ste. Maxima on the Gulf of St. Tropez. Again fabulous sea views. When my husband was no longer with me I moved to Aix-en-Provence. No, it’s not on the coast, but it is a town built on thermal springs. Aix in Provencal means water!

Jean Cocteau said “Aix, un aveugle croit qu’il pleut. ( "Aix, a blind man would think it was always raining.”)

Why? It’s because wherever you walk you hear the sound of  splashing water.There are fountains everywhere. The beautiful main boulevard is called “Le Cour Mirabeau” It’s like a miniature Paris! I shopped there daily! Down the centre of the “Cour” are four fountains, the traffic moves slowly in order to negotiate them. The most famous one is a moss covered rock from which spouts warm water. People flock to Aix-en-Provence for the thermal “cures.” Supermarkets have whole aisles full of various bottled waters. Each “brand name” is bought  for different reasons: best for babies, good for slimming, etc.

Hotwells, here in Bristol, was of course a popular place to drink the waters. In the basement of our Post Office we had a well! As I had a vivid imagination, I thought that one day it would make our
fortune!! The four most popular towns for thermal waters in our country are Bath, Buxton, Harrogate and Matlock Spa.

As space is limited I’ll only talk about Bath. When I think about that city, I always remember Jane Austen. We can tell from her many novels how much she herself enjoyed visits there. Bath was said to have been founded in 863B.C. Then the Romans redeveloped it. It fell into decline but was rejuvenated by the visits of Queen Anne. Have you ever drunk the water there? I needed some chocolate afterwards to take the taste away!! The foundation stone for “The Royal Mineral Water Hospital” was laid in 1738 by the Rt. Hon. William Pulteney The hospital (known locally as “The Min”) is now called The Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases. In 1978, the hospital was the third from last of the English hydropathic hospitals to stop offering hydropathy treatment.

NEWS FLASH

This year a new natural spa hotel is opening in Beau Street. “The Gainsborough Bath Spa” will use water from the thermal springs for a range of treatments. Tempted??

COOKERY IDEAS

With the weather calling for warming meals, why not make a “Beef and Dumpling Stew”?

I’m sure that many of you have your own recipes. Here is mine. For four people you need about 800grms of braising steak cut into small chunks. Vegetables are your choice but I suggest 250grms each of shallots and carrots. I cut the shallots into halves and slice the carrots. Brown them in a frying pan with olive oil until they have softened. Tip them into your casserole. I use a Le Creuset pot but perhaps you prefer to use a slow cooker. In the same frying pan, but adding some more olive oil, brown your steak on all sides. Don’t be impatient, do this slowly!

As each batch browns add to your vegetables, sprinkle with some plain flour and stir gently. Add good stock, tomato pureé and, if you are like me, two glasses of red wine! The better the wine, the better the dish! Now add a bunch of your favourite herbs plus salt and pepper to taste. I add some garlic. Cover your pot and cook VERY slowly for about 6 hours.

During this time, make your dumplings. Mix 200grms of self raising flour with 100grms of suet (I use Atora but there is a vegetarian version if you are making a non-meat stew) Add salt and enough water to make a fairly firm dough. Shape into “golf ball look alikes”. Take out the herbs and add the
dumplings for the last hour of cooking.

Please ask me if you would like to borrow my book (in English) about Aix-en-Provence

I wish you all a Fun Filled Fantastic February

Esmé

January... always a hopeful month! It’s the start of a New Year so it’s exciting and full of possibilities for change.

As regular readers know, I have a passion for France and all things French. I’ll explain about one of the January customs in France.

All the Boulangeries (cake shops) sell their “Galette des Rois”. A galette is a cross between a tart and a cake. Each region has it’s own recipe. When we lived in the Côte d’Azur they had an almond flavour. “Roi” is the word for King and you will realise why it is in the title. In the galette, is hidden a “fêve”, which is a small china ornament.

It’s rather the same idea as our grandparents hiding a silver 6d in the Christmas pudding! It’s considered very lucky to find the “fève”. You become “King” and you wear the golden crown that is always sold with the galette. Now if you cut the slices, the knife might hit the fêve and the person doing the cutting could then choose to whom they gave the lucky portion. Therefore the youngest person sitting around the table has to sit under it. He or she then calls out each name so that it is pure chance who gets the lucky fêve!

I’m always pleased when readers share with me their thoughts on the things that I have written. My neighbour, Peter, told me that Jolly’s in Bath is still very much in business, they must have been trading for over 70 years! However, he said that the "Red House” where we always had afternoon tea after our shopping spree, is now a branch of Laura Ashley!

He also told me some interesting facts about Marmalade. I have  always supposed that it originated in Spain because Seville oranges are often used. No! The Portuguese made the first “orange jam”. Marie Antoinette was said to be very fond of it. Why was it called Marmalade? Peter told me that Mary Queen of Scots was often unwell. One of the few things she could eat was a confiture (jam) made of oranges. Her staff were French and when she asked for it they would say to each other “Marie est malade” (Mary is ill) which sounded to the English as though they were saying “Marmalade”!

As I’ve explained before, I use Bonne Maman jam in my cooking. I usually bring some back from France as it’s cheaper there. In September I brought back orange, blackcurrant and raspberry flavours. Why didn’t I bring back mandarin? You can’t buy it in the north of France, yet they sell it at Downend Co-op. Another mystery ... a friend of mine in Brittany was left a field by his Godmother in which he grew potatoes and cauliflowers. The latter cost more to buy in his village than the ones transported over here!

COOKERY IDEAS

Do you like Cauliflower Cheese? When I make it, I usually fry some rashers of bacon until they are crispy, and then I scatter little bits over the melted cheese. If you want to vary the dish you can add sliced potatoes to the cauliflower, make the cheese sauce using single cream and top with sliced tomatoes flavoured with nutmeg (or garlic).

FASHION TIPS

Now that the sales are in full swing, if you see a sleeveless dress that you really want, but you need sleeves, there is a solution. If the item is a real bargain, buy two. You get one in your proper size and the second in the largest size on sale. You then make the sleeves from the second dress. You can use the sleeves from an old dress that you no longer wear as a pattern. I often do this and there is usually enough fabric to make a scarf or pleated belt as well.

Finally, a story against myself. A character in “Emmerdale” was shot in the “Woolpack”. I saw her advertising a competition on TV and thought “She’s recovered quickly”. I was confusing the real person with her “soap life”! Perhaps I watch too much television!

I wish you all a true-life 2014. Enjoy each day.

Esmé

OCTOBER—”season of mists and mellow fruitfulness”! It is also in our country the month for harvest celebrations. In my youth, every group in our church decorated a different part of the building. I was in the choir and we always “did” the window sills. We prided ourselves on making them still-life works of art! Les Davison told me that here in Frenchay when he was Scout Leader, the scouts ate the apples during the service—so the following year they only had onions on the window sills!

We always enjoyed the Harvest Supper on the Monday evening. People donated cooked hams which were sliced and served with the Harvest vegetables. The ticket money was given to charity. There are no such celebrations in France unless you count the meals at the end of the “grape picking season”. In Switzerland they have 7 course meals to welcome the return of the cattle from the high pastures. It’s not so much the arrival of the cows that cause the excitement, but having the men home again!! Russia has an apple festival and in Albania they celebrate the harvesting of egg plants. Perhaps you know of other events?

FASHION

Several gentlemen have asked me if I intend to include advice to them in this section! Pourquoi pas? Why not? Actually much of what I think about clothes applies to both sexes. There are no rules—if you feel comfortable and at ease you are probably hitting the right note! 

I think that most men look their best in a jacket (black, dark navy or deep grey) worn over a plain coloured shirt. The ties chosen are a good reflection of a man’s personality. With the subtle colours already suggested they can be adventuresome with colour and design.

My son loves his ties. He is a teacher and his students take an interest in his choice. Over the years I have bought him many—my favourite being a scene from a Monet painting! It was bought at a visit to Monet’s house and garden at Giverny.

My pet dislikes in men’s clothing are items in fawn or brown or “Grandad -type fair-isle cardigans. They really age a man! When we lived in the South of France we often ate at the Club House. This overhangs the Port and we went across the water in water-taxis. These were free!. At dinner time almost every man was dressed from top to toe in white or cream. Some of the more flamboyant wore gold chains around their necks and wrists. Not my husband!

Our best friends were Opera singers—their main home being in Paris. Saturday evenings were themed nights such as Russian or Spanish. Our friend Claude often sang! He also sang when we dined on their terrasse. His voice was so powerful that people walking around the port would stop and listen…..and then applaud. We had some fabulous times living there and would you believe that it cost less to live there than at Marshfield Park in Downend?! Why? There were over 900 yachts in the harbour and although many of the owners were only on board for a few months of each year—they all contributed to the charges!

I planned to “talk” about Royal Fashion but space being limited—I’ll do this next month. Just one more fashion fact—all the magazines and T.V. fashion shows have stressed that the most popular dress length is the maxi. Not true. On our three visits to France this August we saw only four maxis! Two were worn by teenagers on the ferry. One was white cotton and looked like a nightdress, and one was attractive and worn by my daughter-in-law. I think I’ll shorten mine and thus get more occasions to wear them!

COOKERY

I asked my French friends about “Le Welch”. They said it started to be eaten in France about ten years ago. They make a cheese sauce and add beer before pouring it over the toast. This morning I watched a chef make our Welsh Rarebit by putting mustard and Worcester sauce plus grated cheese into a sauce. By the way, my young friend thought that we called it Welsh RABBIT. He said to me that he was surprised because he thought the British don’t like eating rabbit!!

MY THOUGHT FOR OCTOBER

If the escalator of your life isn’t taking you fast enough to your dreams—try using the stairs.    ENJOY EVERY DAY
Esmé