A gathering for apéritifs
The apéritif is a ritual especially popular in France. Having a glass of alcohol before a meal is said to stimulate the appetite. But the main benefit is the gathering together of friends and neighbours for a good discussion at the end of the day.
This evening we held our first ever apéro for our neighbours. Earlier in the week we had been invited out twice so we were pleased to take our turn. We had been able to observe the modus operandi closely. The drinks tend to be light or sweet. The most popular is kir which is white wine with crème de cassis. Kir is named after Felix Kir, the mayor of Dijon from 1945-68. Cremant is often used instead of wine, cremant being the locally produced version of champagne, much nicer in my opinion. Another favourite is pastis which is mixed with water and drunk with ice. The water makes the pastis milky and releases the flavour.
Snacks are provided to accompany the drinks, often crackers and nuts, saucisson and dips. Chris made tapanade which is a mixture of olives, capers, anchovies and olive oil. Tapanade originated in the South of France and had been introduced to us by our neighbour from Narbonne. Chris also made hummus with chick peas, tahini and garlic. His homemade cheesestraws were very popular although you are not supposed to eat cheese before a meal.
We find have not quite adapted to life in France. On days when we are invited out for apéritifs we try to have a good lunch à la française as we know that after a couple of hours of drinking and talking we will not be wanting any dinner!
Lily of the Valley
In France the merry month of May is made even more merry by all the public holidays. Unfortunately the Fête du Travail and Victoire 1945 (8th May) fall on a Saturday this year so there is no extra day off if you do not work on a Saturday. If the holidays are midweek the French try to use a bit of annual leave to ‘faire le pont’ (bridge the gap) between public holidays and weekends so nothing much gets done in May. The other holidays this month are for Ascension on Thursday 13th and Pentecôte on the 23rd.
In our part of France May Day is not associated with workers’ rights but is a further celebration of Spring. It is called La Fête du Muguet because of the wonderful custom of presenting one’s friends and loved ones with sprigs of Lily of the Valley. It is a ‘porte-bonheur’, the bringer of happiness. The flowers are said to cheer the heart and lift the spirits.
Many people go out into the forest on May Day morning to pick bunches of Lily of the Valley. In Cormatin you might find a child knocking at the door to sell you a little sprig tied with a ribbon. People are able to sell Lily of the Valley to collect money for charity, and this is the only time that you can sell flowers on the street without paying for a permit.
This custom was started in 1561 by Charles IX who was given Lily of the Valley as a lucky charm. He started to present a bouquet of it each year to the ladies of the court. It is traditional for a lady to give a kiss in return. A hundred years ago it would be just the men who gave the flowers to a loved one, but now they are given by everyone as a sign of affection between friends and family.
Old folk tales claim that planting Lily of theValley protects your garden from evil spirits. Also, carrying a posy of the flowers is said to improve your memory. So I think I’d better get down to the woods and find a large bunch!
Poisson d'avril
On April 1st there is an interesting variation on April Fools’ Day. The children try and stick paper fish on the back of unsuspecting people who are then declared the fool when the fish is discovered. This person is then supposed to give the child a chocolate fish but I haven’t actually seen this happen. The custom was said to originate from the time the calendar was reorganised in the 16th century and the news of it was very slow to reach rural France. So anyone who still celebrated New Year at the old time of the end of March was deemed a fool. I’m not sure why this involved sticking a fish on his back though.
There are the usual leg-pulls to be found in the papers. There was a ‘tall’ story about how Sarkozy is going to have his legs stretched 5 inches to make him taller than Carla (disclosed by the government spokesman Luc Bigger!). SCNF announced that they would run their night trains during the day so their customers could take a nap. I was also told of a more complicated story about Sarkozy and his tax caps of 50% (was that a joke or not?). However the old ones are the best, for example the one about the sphaghetti trees. By the way, don’t miss the TV documentary about the flying penguins tonight!
Jonquils
Spring has sprung in sunny Burgundy and it is the time to seek out the jonquils. Jonquils are like tiny yellow daffodils and they appear in vast numbers in the woods to the northwest of Cormatin.
Going to pick jonquils seems to be a popular outing. Signposts direct you to the parking places in the woods where, at the weekends, little stalls or buvettes are set up in true Burgundy style. Visitors are offered wine and snacks before they set off into the woods to collect the jonquils. This is very alien to us as in the UK the picking of wild flowers is prohibited. But we enjoyed a walk through the woods and came back with a small bunch.
 "The chateau at Pierreclos")