Daglan Brocante

I always feel that summer is around the corner when the Brocante season starts in and around our village.  Last weekend it was Daglan’s turn to host a Brocante, the sun was shining, and the heat was rising. So armed with a mental picture of possible purchases we set off for the Brocante.

It was a fabulous turn out of antiques and people from Daglan and the Perigord Noir, we where glad that we had arrived early.  In the Salle des fêtes (village hall), no pictures were allowed to be taken, which is always a shame but understandable given the really expensive items on display. I did fall in love with an armoire but too expensive at nearly 900€ and a few very interesting amphora that looked like they had just arrived from Pompeii.

Temptation over with we slowly walked around the various outside stalls, meeting and “kisses” on both cheeks, our friends in the village. Who helped us to find what we had come to the Brocante for, a large mirror for the bathroom.  But I digress, other items first.

 

These two gorgeous chairs I have called the “gun powder plot”, you can just see in the left hand chair two cavaliers carrying the barrels of gun powder.

 

The mirror.

Paul and the seller trying to place our new or rather old mirror into a bag.

If anyone knows what the items are on the table on the right please let me know. I am unsure if the thatched witches’ hats belong to the oriental wooden objects or not.  I should have asked the seller!

Here it is, it needs cleaning but no other work is needed, we love it.

 

Another purchase, our “slug” or rather fish shaped dressing gown hook for the bathroom. I think you will need to look at the picture from the side in order to see the fish.  It was painted white with bits of bronze peeping through.  Paul cleaned it and voila, it was transformed a fish balancing a chess pawn on its head (please don’t ask why).

We were all ready to go back to the Brocante on Sunday after a planned visit to the market at St Cyprian.  We wanted to look for another mirror for the guest bedroom. Unfortunately we only got as far as Castlenaud when thick heavy black storm clouds were seen gathering over the castle. Needless to say a quick retreat was in order; we made it back to Daglan just ahead of the torrential rain and thunder that lasted most of the day.

 

The most interesting event on Sunday was the fact that the stall holders in La Place de La Liberty market just pulled their parasols further down to keep the wind and rain out then continued on selling their fresh produce. They are more hardened to the weather than Paul and I.  Which is strange due to the fact that Paul and I lived in Blackpool which is in the north of England, were it rains most of the year?

 

Events:-

Castlenaud : 4^th and 5^th June : Brocante and vintage cars in the main car park.

Sarlat : 21^st June : Fête de la Musique. Live music throughout the Medieval quarter.

 

 

 

 

La Cantine by Fabrice Le Chef

This was our first time at the new Cantine of our friend Fabrice, we were looking for somewhere special to take my sister for a meal and quite frankly we could not have picked a better place to go.

During the week Fabrice has a four course set menu with a vegetarian option.  Its great value.

We all started with a lightly spiced vegetable soup, it was gorgeous.

 

I had humus with rice and roasted vegetables, the taste was wonderful I really need to get the recipe.

Paul and my sister had escargot with chorizo but I could not take a picture I had to look away sorry.

 

My main course looks like chicken but it is salmon, incredibly tasty and may I say worthy of a Michelin star.

 

Paul and Michelle had chicken cooked in a red wine and served on a bed of vegetables; They said that it was delicious and that the chicken was cooked to perfection.

 

For desert we all had tarte tatin and fresh strawberries, I could have eaten another and another after that.

Not forgetting the Rose wine of course, which we all enjoyed, salute.

To finish coffee and biscotti to dip.

It was an excellent meal and we met quite a few of our friends from the village who were also having luncheon there.  We were introduced to their friends, which was great, a real homely atmosphere. I do love the kisses and the friendly “ca va?” that we get every time we meet, it makes it even more special.

 

Fabrice is open every day for lunch and Friday and Saturday for dinner until October.   In July and August the restaurant is open for lunch and dinner. So check out Fabrice le Chief website and book a meal for your next visit to Daglan.

Phone 05 53 30 34 54

http://www.fabricelechef.fr/En/

 

 

Our New Bibliothèque (library)

Daglan’s municipal library had a grand opening last Monday afternoon.  A speech was given by our Maire Pascal Dussol in the garden at the back of the Maire.

Maire Pascal Dussol presenting the inaugural speech.

 

The building was once a presbytère for former priests of Daglan.  After the revolution it became a school and now the Maire has transformed the building to become the Maire, offices, post office and art classes for the primary children of Daglan.

A “glass of friendship” was shared by all, plus biscuits and tarte tatin.

 

Last year the French Government stated that children should receive more education outside of the classroom and more art classes.  This was taken on board by the local school and community.  Now part of the curriculum for children is to go out into the forest which surrounds Daglan with experts to gather a few flowers, insects etc to take back to the classroom to study and then draw and create models of their finds. Now they have the added bonus of the library which is in the room next door to the classroom where they can find any information that they might need.

Books for the older children to study and enjoy.

 

On these shelves are books on the local area and different parts of France.  In the boxes were books for the very young.  The carpet is a colourful road map which the children loved to play on.

 

Adults can also join the library, I found a few French versions of books I have read in English which I intend to borrow, which I hope will improve my French.

 

The library is open every Monday from 16:30 until 19:00 and Wednesday afternoon from 16:00 until 19:00.

 

 

Château des Milandes

A visit by my wonderful sister is always a treat after a thirty year separation; the more we see each other the more we find out that we have a vast amount in common.  One of which is our love of gorgeous Château’s, so we had to take her to see Château des Milanders.  I fell in love with Milanders from our first visit years ago and it never looses its charm.  It was called “Sleeping Beauty Castle” in 1937 when Josephine Baker first looked at the Château, so it comes at no surprise that she rented and then purchased the Château in 1947.

A visit to the Château is like a journey through the genius of Josephine Baker, who lived with her husband, Joe Bouillon and their twelve children, adopted from all over the world. Through the fourteen fully furnished rooms you can see the famous “banana belt” and the magnificent costumes of Josephine’s stage performances.  Not forgetting the very “diva” bathrooms that were designed just for her, one of which has gold leaf around the ceiling.

What is not commonly known is that Josephine worked extensively in the French Resistance and she was awarded various medals, one of which was the Legion of Honour.  She was a passionate campaigner for human rights walking along side Martin Luther King in his various marchers in the USA.

My sister and I with Château Milandes in the background, we were not saying cheese to the camera, but saying “this is our home” – well maybe if we win the lottery, who knows.

 

One of the highlight’s of a visit is the birds of pray demonstrations held in the garden at the rear of the Château.

A magnificent falcon which flew around our heads several times before he got his treat, wonderful.

 

The Eagle Owl considering my camera

 

Here is my sister admiring the statue of Josephine Baker giving a hug to one of her children.  The statue was unveiled in 2006 for the centenary of the birth of Josephine.  It is to be found in front of the bus shelter that Josephine had built for the children to shelter while they waited for the school bus to arrive.

 

In the bus shelter are pictures of Josephine and her husband with their children.

 

The letters are from famous people to Josephine, one of whom was Charles de Gaul.

 

 

Events: – Daglan this Saturday and Sunday for the Antique Fair.

 

 

Muguet (Lily of the Valley)

It is traditional on the 1^st May to give loved ones a sprig or a bunch of Muguet to celebrate May Day which is sometimes called the Féte du Muguet or just for luck.  The tradition dates back to the turn of the century when people made a little extra money from the sale of the flower. Today they are found in markets and supermarkets; we bought our Muguet outside the Boulangerie/Patisserie at Castlenaud last Sunday, where students were selling the flower for charity. There is no tax to pay on Muguet sold on the 1^st May which helps.

I must say that the perfume from the flower is absolutely gorgeous it permeates the downstairs area of our lounge beautifully.

In Pagan times people adorned themselves with Muguet to celebrate the new season and to invoke the good graces of the god Beltane for good harvests.