AUDE FLYER

04/2004

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Bonjour,
 
Well, Christmas is nearly upon us and for the few years I have been here
I have noticed that many people get into a discussion over where to find
their parsnips for the big meal.
 
 I have made a massive purchase of 80kgs, which I think may mean we will
be eating parsnip soup till April or there will be a riot not seen since
that problem in Ireland with potatoes.
 
On Saturday 18th December we will organise a get together, both to
dispense parsnips and meet some new people, here on the terrace at
Domaine des Etoiles in Routier.
 
WE CAN BE FOUND OPPOSITE THE WATER TOWER IN THE VILLAGE OF ROUTIER, THERE IS A BRUSH FENCE GOING ALL AROUND THE END OF THE GARDEN, HEAD FOR THE SIDE GATE NEXT TO BIG GATES, PLEASE PARK CONSIDERATELY ON THE ROAD HEADING TO ALAIGNE
 
 11am until 2pm light seasonal refreshments provided
 
PLEASE EMAIL BY RETURN YOUR REQUIREMENTS, THEY ARE 3.00 PER KILO,
cheap as parsnips.

parsnip   

LETTER FROM A NEW LIMOUXINE

Hello from my freezing front room.

The rain is persisting, the washing has been outside on final rinse for three days, and for some reason I’m listening to Leonard Cohen,,,sometimes you just have to wallow in melancholia.

HOWEVER as we all know who live here and can remember the small grey island, this is fairly unusual, and I expect, as we pay our taxes foncières, to see the sun back tomorrow.

 I have been feeling strangely festive this week, for someone once involved in advertising (Christmas usually commenced in June). It is due to the fact that Christmas here, in Limoux anyway, seems to start on December first. Some very tasteful street decorations appeared, then the half christmas trees strapped to drainpipes in the main streets, which although increasing the chances of one being squashed by a farting moped, look wonderful.

I think it was thus attired that we first saw Limoux about four years ago, and were struck with how charming it looked, rather like a town might have looked in Britain a great many years ago. Before the invasion of chain shops and over dressing of everything.

Learning plateau….

Mark is making his way through an intensive french course at the moment like a cruise liner, leaving me in his wake ..a small rowing boat with one oar…

While he’s coping admirably with the past subjunctive of the verb for resting your elbows on the table, I am still tentatively throwing out a quick future of something on an unsuspecting native french person to see the reaction. It so much depends who you are talking to and how confident you are feeling. Most of our friends listen patiently and occasionally correct something when it’s too painful. Some people seem to be able understand everything I say and we muddle along happily, and then there are a few who look at me like I have a pink ferret strapped to my head, and am obviously dangerous.

In fact it has just happened while writing this, Iv’e just answered the phone to a man who I think wanted to sell me an industrial ice cream maker, I’ve no idea….I asked him to phone back after five, to speak to Mark, or I probably said something completely different.

I seem to reach a plateau of smugness every couple of months, I can suddenly communicate, I can talk about boring insurance problems on the phone, I can ask the man in the pet shop why our budgies haven’t produced any eggs, then it is all dashed again….back to seeing the vast planet of french to learn…this happened yesterday when I told someone I know very slightly at Ezra’s school that we have a problem with Ezra sucking fleas. The difference between ‘pouce’and ‘puce’.

 I find the la and le thing difficult. Who on earth first suggested that things like wardrobes, stepladders and thumbs for that matter should be male or female, it probably just started as a joke…”o.k what about a sausage then, le or la…”ummm..la saucisse”…”er but it’s a bit you know..er male” “mmmm true, well lets have le saucisson then, that’ll confuse them..hahaha”

The other thing I have realised is how phrases or words that you hear over and over but don’t really know what they mean sometime suddenly magically become useful. ‘Quand même’, for example. I heard that all the time for months at first, and although people tried to explain it to me the brain cells just wouldn’t accept it until I really needed to use it, well not that one really needs to say ‘even so’ all the time, but its one of those things that make you feel more at home in a new language.

I solved a language mystery from the past the other day. I used to work for a small and belligerent French chef in a horrible pretentious restaraunt in Surrey in my college days. When things got very heated, like the time I dropped a vat of white chocolate sauce behind the fridge, he would hop from one clogged foot to the other and shriek “au bord de la mer”. I always felt sorry for him, he was under a lot of pressure and obviously he needed a break at the seaside.

Work it out for yourselves…..

 Right, time to tackle the pile of wet washing and let the howling cat in.

FOOD

As some of you will know the first newsletter I called curry in the Aude because I thought it would make people realize it wasn’t spam. It largely worked although some people thought I only wanted to rattle on about curry. Well here I go again, I made a suggestion of trying and supporting the new Indian restaurant in Carcassonne, some have and I have had mixed reports back. I have now talked to the proprietor, who I think Is happy for me to try and find a way to spice up his dishes for a British pallet, not easy as the menu is quite large and that could mean having to prepare 2 versions of each dish.

We are also talking of AUDE FLYER DISCOUNT VOUCHER, I will keep you informed.

A recommended Indian restaurant in Toulouse is –

Shakuntala

26, rue de la Chaine     31000 Toulouse                   

tel 0561217674

I am told you need to go for what they call' hot, medium is mild.

Perhaps combine a trip to the Christmas market in Toulouse Capitole which opened yesterday, if you haven been it quite a jolly event some 140 wooden chalet’s in the square selling a variety of things (happily no plastic flowers when I was there last year)

with a curry and some brewpub frothy ale in the Frog & Rosbif  in rue de l’industrie (walking distance to the market depending on quantity of beer consumed) the Indian food is delivered from the Gandhi Indian restaurant on the same street, this obviously was a fish restaurant in another life. No flock wallpaper.

An oriental restaurant recently recommended to me by an extremely well traveled person,

It is on the way to Toulouse in Seuil de Naurouze:

    La Rivière Kwaï

    80, route du Ségala

    Seuil de Naurouze

    11320 Montferrand

    Tel:    04 68 60 37 56

              06 10 43 18 34

The restaurant is situated at less than a 100 yards from the Nationale 113 and, at the intersection of the 113 and the Route du Segala, there is a pottery shop.

All the very best for your Christmas if we don’t see on Saturday,

Steve Hedges
Domaine des Etoiles
2 chemin des moulins
11240 Routier
04 68 69 18 46/06 89 29 74 24