Monthly Archives: February 2012

Touches of spring colour

Posted on February 29, 2012 by

Our Sunday market is a pretty good barometer (thermometer? speedometer?) of activity in the village, and things have started to brighten up a bit. In the darkest days of January and February, especially when it’s rainy, the number of stalls … Continue reading →

Posted in Kayaking, Life in southwest France, Markets in France, Sports, Weather in the Dordogne | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Food fit for a birthday

Posted on February 25, 2012 by

We weren’t actually supposed to be here. Yesterday (Friday) was my birthday, and so we had made reservations to spend the night at Le Vieux Logis in Trémolat, an hour or so west of Daglan, eat at its Michelin-starred restaurant … Continue reading →

Posted in French food, Life in southwest France, Restaurants in France, Restaurants in the Dordogne, Weather in the Dordogne | Tagged , | 9 Comments

Radio Free Daglan, the easy way

Posted on February 24, 2012 by

It’s always a bit surprising when I hear something like this from a friendly reader: “Sorry that I haven’t looked at your blog for some time, but today I caught up with it — spent the morning reading all the … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogging, Life in southwest France | Tagged | 3 Comments

Quail? One each will do

Posted on February 23, 2012 by

My wife Jan has typically been more pro-quail than I have. She has often ordered quail in restaurants, while I have tended not to. She has been the one to suggest that we could buy quail to roast at home, … Continue reading →

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Dealing with anticipation

Posted on February 22, 2012 by

I remember learning somewhere — high school? university? a book? a matchbook cover? — that “stress” is a normal and important part of life. We have a problem with stress only when we let it become “distress.” Here in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Life in southwest France | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Going deeper into duck fat territory

Posted on February 19, 2012 by

Here in Duck Country, better known as the Greater Daglan Area, we are always looking for more ways to get the most from our favourite bird. So I was pleased when I saw on a cooking show recently what looked … Continue reading →

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A taste of spring

Posted on February 18, 2012 by

This will be a brief, but positive, posting. It now looks like we are firmly headed into spring, after an unusual period of cold weather and even some snow and ice (“Curse you, Siberian Cold Front!”). Today was bright and … Continue reading →

Posted in Flora and fauna, Life in southwest France, Weather in the Dordogne | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Our Valentine’s Day? Just ducky, thank you

Posted on February 14, 2012 by

For the second year in a row, my wife Jan and I celebrated Valentine’s Day (Saint Valentin) with a lovely lunch at Le Petit Paris, the excellent restaurant right on Daglan’s Place de la Liberté that is less than a … Continue reading →

Posted in French food, Life in southwest France, Restaurants in France, Restaurants in the Dordogne, Weather in the Dordogne | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

Getting a bit saucy!

Posted on February 13, 2012 by

One of our everyday culinary challenges is working around my wife’s allergy to gluten. It’s not as tough a problem as some people think, because she can have gluten-free bread and pasta, and has no trouble eating other normal starches … Continue reading →

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On the road again

Posted on February 11, 2012 by

At last! Although the weather remains cold (as low as -12.5 Celsius this morning), the bright sun has been melting the ice off the asphalt roads. So for the first time since Sunday, we felt comfortable venturing out in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Life in southwest France, Weather in the Dordogne | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments