March 2014

APRIL FOOLS DAY

I know that most will open this on April 1st. It is called the Poisson d'Arvil here in france

He is showing off for the female not far away..

He is looking good, isn't he!

Spring is here. 


Days flucuate between warm and wonderful, and cloudy and cool. Nights still down into the 30's or 40's. 
Boy we had had a lot of rain Jan and Feb. It has slowed down and actually getting very dry!

I had to mow the grass twice already! It appears that this new grass that was planted last fall grows faster than the old grass. Looks like a summer of mowing!!  sigh

I have taken a few walks, as usual. Sometimes I go to the ponds just east of Gevrey. The ducks have started to migrate through.  Although the ponds are fun to walk around and watch the pond life, the train tracks are not far off, so the quiet is interrupted by trains and some traffic on the nearby road. I usually prefer the woods where there is more solitude.
The good news is that some spring flowers have started.

Mr Cormorant...He was on the other side of the pond!
 I used the telephoto, but he must have moved his head slightly!

Vineyard in Gevrey..first day of March. What a
stream flowing through the vineyard!!

Another vineyard in lower Gervey, plowed and ready for spring

Tree in bloom as I walk around the pond

We took a couple of days and went down to Marseilles, south of France on the Mediterranean. We took the train down and back, so walked around the old port (Vielle Porte) for two days to see the sites of this very ancient city.
We explored a couple of museums, the one of the "old" port was excellent; old as in very old and a distance back from the port of today. The shore has moved out from this previous port excavation. It is interesting to see how far it has moved! 
Another museum called MuCem opened last year. New architecture, but the museum does not feel organized. Some interesting pieces to see, but a real sense of disorganization.
We were a little weary, so we took the ferry out to the Château d'If. We did not get off the ferry, just enjoyed the ride in the sun and on the sea.
March is a out of season, so some restaurants were closed, and so were some of the excursion by boat. The seasons appears to start in April.
We ate some very good fish..mmm, this close to the sea, what else. Keith tried bouillabaisse, the famous fish soup from Marseilles. There are many versions of this soup, he said it was good fish soup.

Port full of sail boats

Fort St Jean on the old port

Basilique Notre-Dame de la Garde at the top of the hill

Fort St Nicolas below- on on side of the port

Post from another angle and Fort St Jean at the left

Who would of thought he was here in Marseilles

Château d'If ... Le Comte de Monte- Cristo

Was taking a photo of the daily fish market, Keith is there
with his head in the shade

My association (history and heritage) has a group called Flora and Fauna (renamed to Nature, Flore et Faune this last month). I am responsible for this group. We made a decision to do the window at the Office de Tourisme. The window always features something from the area. We have about 61 photos to exhibit and want to add some fossils, rocks and maybe some flowers. Here are a couple of my photos that have been prepared for the this exposition. We prepare the window on April 23, so more info and photos to follow.

ELECTIONS :
We were able to vote in our first elections here ( we have dual nationality, France and US).
All of France had mayor elections for all of the cities and villages. Elections started March 23rd for the first round. 
Here is how it works, at least for Gevrey. We are a city of over 1,000. If someone wants to run, they make a "list". This list is made up of members that will be the city council if elected. They are put in order of priority. The one that makes the list and intends to be mayor is at the head of the list. This list is then registered with the Prefecture before the end of Feb. Elections have two rounds..23rd of march and the second on the 30th. 
Gevrey had two lists. You go to vote, you pick up an envelope and copies of all the lists on the table. Then you go into a booth and put the list of your choice into the envelope. After you have made your choice, then you go out and are checked as a  registered voter and eligible to vote, then you drop your envelope into a clear box. It is called out that you voted. There is no automation.

If one list wins a clear majority, then there is no second round. If not, the two top lists go for the second round on the 30th of March. 
OK so far? In Gevrey the one list got 65% of the vote, so we did not have a second round. With the new regulations though, the second list gets a percentage of people from their list on city council. So the first list that had 65%, here in Gevrey, they get 19 people on city council, and the second list gets the 4 top people from their list on city council.

Then the newly elected city council votes in the person to be mayor. whew!!

Messanges had only one list. M. Christian Hoquet (husband of Marie Therese) is now mayor of Messanges.

So this was our first experience, and it was very interesting. 

Recipe of the Month

Céléri Rémoulade

This month’s recipe is an alternate to Cole Slaw. It is Céléri rémoulade, made with celery root. By the way, cole slaw is slowly coming to France!

INGREDIENTS 

• 1 celery root grated
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tsp of Dijon mustard
• 3/4 cup oil
• 2 tbs vinegar
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• Salt and pepper to taste

PREPARATION

1.  Peel the celery root and grate and sprinkle with lemon juice-set aside
2.  Making the mayonnaise
•   Put egg yolk in a bowl
•   Add the mustard and a few drops of vinegar
•  Whip in the oil a little at a time...slowly as the mixture expands in volume 
•  Add additional drops of vinegar and then the oil until all is incorporated and you have the consistency of mayonnaise.
• Add the salt and pepper
3. Mix in the grated celery root 
4. Chill for a least two hours