"We'll just let them settle in quietly..."

Mon 26 Jun

Caunes Minervois

Tue 27 Jun

Jeff, Karen, Christopher and Anthony arrived at Carcassonne airport this evening accompanied by the long-awaited thunderstorm which struck as the aircraft's wheels hit the ground. Is this a portent of things to come?

Regrettably, the storm was short-lived but enough to clean the streets of the usual dog excrement and the millions of cigarette butts. There seems to be some sort of 'death-wish' over here considering the vast numbers of smokers! They don't care where they blow their smoke either...just another of their quite extraordinary behaviours that we at home nowadays would raise an eyebrow at. Not the least of these also is urinating in public. Cars are frequently seen pulled up on the side of the road with Dad and his son happily 'pissing into the breeze'. As photographed here outside the local bar, and kindly demonstrated by 'you know who', some sense of decorum has been sought with the 'urinoir' somewhat out of sight but sadly, the effluent flowing directly into the beautiful Argent Double river running through town!

Donna put together a glorified 'holy trinity' for dinner which left our guests glowing as they settled-in downstairs for their first night in a mediaeval house in France.

Wed 28 Jun

We thought a restful introduction into the relaxed and rustic Languedoc lifestyle might have been warranted however, after baguettes, cereal, cheese, fruit and coffee we were off. First up was the steep walk up from the 'Chapel of Notre Dame du Cros' to the marble quarries. Caunes still works three quarries of red marble of different shades: pale rose, old rose, and blood red. The remains of the 'Carriere du Roi' or King's Quarry give some indication of the manhandling of the stone centuries ago. We pushed further up the ridge and found the remains of stone walls that were part of a defensive position on the plateau and are reputedly between 2,700 and 2,800 years old. Apparently, a devastating fire destroyed all the buildings and turned the marble into chalk (?)!

The scenery from the top of the plateau is superb with a 360 degree view of the surrounding country to as far away as the Pyrenees. The area is seemingly covered with the now verdant grape vines.

On the way back we noticed that the church was open as a Mass had just been celebrated (for two women!). The Chapel dates back to 900AD and has been through a number of additions and renovations. As you would expect, it is extensively decorated with marble and the furnishings and paintings are beautiful.

Every year on 8th September (the date of the nativity for the Virgin) the faithful make a traditional pilgrimage to the Chapel. Nearby, water bubbles from a spring which is said to have healing powers and can alleviate fevers. Above, statues of the Virgin, St Joseph, and St John have been erected. We also followed the 'Stations of the Cross' which have been built into the hillside in their individual grottos.

Finally, the Chapel is situated at the mouth of a pass which has high rocky walls which are ideal for rock climbing. Christopher and Anthony gave the walls a work-out and we noticed school children being kitted out for a climbing lesson.

Since being in France we have noticed many groups of French school kids on excursions with their teachers. Reminded me of the books and films about 'Madeline' which entertain our grand-daughter.

I had rung Caroline at Chateau Donjon and Christophe from Domaine Les Malliols and warned them out about a visit. In their very different operations (Donjon-500 years and Malliols-18 months) they received us wonderfully and ensured our guests left with a good understanding of their products. Christophe has just had notification that two of his styles have met 'appellation' standard. He is ecstatic and Donna and I have been invited to a party to celebrate with him and Annabelle next Friday.

Dinner tonight is at the Hotel D'Alibert with the marvelous host, Frederic. During the afternoon we had discussed Christopher Hopes's book and his observation of the barely disguised Frederic as 'Nicholas'. It set a wonderful meal off to watch Frederic and to identify his eccentricities and mannerisms so well described in the book. The two boys enjoyed their Guinea Fowl whilst Jeff did justice to an entree of squid followed by Daube and Karen got on the right side of a Canard a l'Orange.

Not a bad day's work for a 'rest-day'! Can we maintain the pace?