Carol funds

The carolers have returned with the proceeds of the night's 2 hours caroling. The youth from the church are here for 2 nights and they decided they wanted to help fund this year's Christmas party. 

They came back with an impressive 4 days wages that would be earned by a labourer here. And they plan to go out tomorrow too. 

So the young people have effectively paid for transport and the location hire. That's very well done! 

The photo is of some of them practicing before they went. 

Terry Westoby
terrywestoby@gmail.com
+33 6 75 91 87 71

Free travel in Paris

Free travel. So it is a good time to visit this capital, see the Christmas lights, do some Christmas shopping, and enjoy the French food.

Or is it?

The travel has been free for three days now. On day one I wondered if it was the cold weather. I arrived at work and heard my boss complain of a bad throat (avoid him, I thought). Then a colleague suggested it was the pollution.

Yes, he agreed. Most likely now it is so bad.

I asked my colleague if that is why the transport was free. Exactly, he replied. This has happened before in an attempt to get cars off the road.

I saw that only even numbered car plates were being allowed on the road. So when the transport was again free the second day I checked the cars to see if odd numbers were circulating.

Odd, even, even, odd, even, odd, odd.

Perhaps I live and work too far out from the center of town.

Day three and I pick my way through the gridlock of cars, busses, and lorries that are stuck at a crossroads. There are vehicles going nowhere in all directions.

The bus was packed too and my boss has just arrived after 2 hours in a jam.

Because pictures of static busses are uninteresting, here is a picture I took as I walked rather than waited in the cold for a crowded bus. It is an outside decoration filled with plants that you would be able to see if it was daylight.

Perhaps the still cold air is keeping the dust down and pollution up. We need some good old English rain!

The rain in Spain

So if you go to Spain you could hope for warm(er) weather. But my arrival was greeted with heavy rain (and flooding on the autoroutes) and the next morning I was greeted by damp fog. It is a good job that modern cars are dry and have heaters.

I took the car to work in the morning, with the fog lights on. Photos. But by lunchtime the cloud was on the nearby hill.

The best place for it if you ask me.

Spanish measure

I ordered my food tonight and the waitress asked if I wanted wine. I did and she came out with a bottle and promptly doubles back.

I thought I had lost the wine but she returned with s larger glass. You can see the pair here.

Here in Spain there are no official measures.

Brexit post 2017

A university based conference was organized last night to hear experts talk rationally about Brexit. It was a ticket-only event at the British Council in Paris. I got a ticket and went.

There was a business expert, a legal expert, and an expert representing international research, and therefore us all (so she said). They sought to give a balanced view from their perspectives.

It filled out a lot of detail, and otherwise generally confirmed what I suspected.

In business, nothing has yet changed and the expectation is that Britain will adapt well to whatever change results there are. Britain imports more than she exports to Europe. She needs to improve her infer structure and efficiency, but that is true anyway. Bankers will change as little as possible!

The legal perspective is that while experts are saying "no problem", there will in fact be lots of renegotiation. As usual with lawyers, so he said, there is a simple statement followed by pages of caveats. Most trade in Europe currently appends English terms and conditions.

The scientific community is likely to lose access to Horizon 2020 funding, and is already experiencing some reluctance with investors concerning British participation. EU students are likely to experience large cost increases to study in Britain and that is a concern for attracting the brightest minds. Scientists are fighting for transparent access and international cooperation and the British government is aware of the problem.

In summary, the current uncertainty is the difficulty and the sooner things are resolved the better.

During Q&A an Italian man suggested Britain was the problem. Nobody took up his point, but I am sure from an EU point of view he is right. From a British viewpoint the reverse would certainly be said.

The council building is in a great spot near the Hôtel des Invalides and the balcony afforded these great nighttime views of Paris. On the left the Hôtel des Invalides, centre picture- guess what! And to the right a distant view of Le Grand Palais.

Snacks and drinks are already consumed, so enjoy the photos (click to enlarge them).

Gâteaux Entrées

It is the midweek church meeting (ok it's Friday) and as we are in France, that means food.

They asked me to bring "gâteaux entrées". I had never heard of this but I said ok and consulted Google.

I did not like the examples in the local shop so I decided to try the recipe I found on-line. The first try on Wednesday was flat and not enough of them. I bought the topping on the way home on Thursday and tried again but with bicarbonate of soda in the flour.

Much lighter.

The Wednesday ones are in the small box for a laugh. Hopefully they will appreciate the home made efforts.

Gâteaux Entrées, by the way, are little savory starters. In this case flour, butter and cheese topped with confit de tomate.

And yes, with a little rising agent.

Snow

This morning started with rain. Quite heavy, steady, and my phone warned me it was only 4 degrees. Once on the train, at the first stop I began to notice the "rain" had taken on a white aspect and appeared lighter. The ground was still wet, but umbrellas started to go white.

By the time we passed the airport, the snow was heavy. Usually I can see the control tower and some planes behind the fields. Today it was a white-out. I knew the airport was there, but there was no evidence to confirm it.

The snow eased, and came back heavily as we journeyed. Then on the bus, everyone was packed on, cold and wet. You can see the bus in one of the photos. The other photo is the car park where I work.

Those who come by car are complaining of the time it took. All traffic going very slowly. "It was hell" one said. "It couldn't have been!" I replied and he saw the joke (too cold).

Well I will be traveling later this week and I am glad to have left several hours slack in my plans. But the forecast is warmer than today so the worst I should expect is rain.

Normal for this time of year.

The Senate

A grand palace now housing the workings of government. It is on one edge of the Luxembourg Gardens and is usually so well guarded by armed men and women that you even look at it with caution. 

So to be able to go inside today, and at no cost, was an invitation difficult to refuse. 

We went toward the queue, but the normal path was fenced off. To gain access you needed to exit the gardens and rejoin them further round. 

First the armed check on your bags. Then a half hour wait in the queue (not too bad on a nice day). 

Blocks of queuing people were released along the fenced path to the entrance. Once inside, all accessories went through the x-Ray machine and us through the metal detector. 

If anyone used to own this place before the French government did, they have been completely forgotten. Everything here is French government, even down to the amazingly painted ceilings, and at times, the walls. 

Here are some phone pictures. The library, the reception hall and central dome, and the senate meeting room itself. I have often seen this in the news, it looks just the same in reality but the high half dome is out of shot. 

We walked round it all and retired home well walked out. 

The Senate. 

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How to Luxembourg Garden

Luxembourg Gardens. 

And there are lots of events on to celebrate world heritage day. Our first stop is the Orangery. 

Here are exhibits and explanations about the planting in the gardens. There are outside displays too. 

The photos show the pot plants, and how they have to be repotted every 10 years (if I remember correctly). Looking at the roots here, this tree is due for a new pot, but it is huge! There is a gantry system just to put it in this place. 

Then they explain how to graft and train fruit trees, and why. But more exotically, and very Frenchly, they show how to mask the fruit so that it grows with the producer's badge coloured on its skin. 

Next stop is the Senate, France's seat of government. 

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Do it yourself lunch

You can see some lovely food being cooked in some tiny frying pans. This is our lunch date and our French host quipped "you can blog your friends that you were invited to lunch and had to cook it yourselves!"  So I have. 

In fact there is a lot of preparation involved before we arrived and started cooking. The meat is beef but is quite red from the delicious marinade. There are peppers and vegetables cut up and marinaded too; and with some rice on the side. 

And we have 2 sets of chopsticks each. A short pair to select and place food in our pan(s), and a long pair to eat with. 

And so we spent a happy lunchtime with our French host and his Filipino wife. But the food is Taiwanese. 

The cooker on the table is an electrically heated hot stone where you can fry on top or grill below. It is for cheese dishes but our hosts did not find that to their taste. So here it is adapted to their Asian menu, and very nice it was too, as you can tell from the smiles on our faces!

Sent from Terence's iPhone

Sent from Terence's iPhone

Cup final

I am ready for bed but the cup final between France and Portugal has no score after normal time. I came intro the bar at 8pm to watch it but here it starts at 9pm. I forgot about the time difference. 

I was 36 centigrade outside today. It felt like walking through an oven. So the air conditioned bar is a pleasant change. As I wait for the match to start, I am given a piece of cake. It's the owner lady's birthday today. There is a little party celebrating but she is also serving. I wish her a happy birthday. 

In the second half, the ex-owner (the lady owner's father) offers me a brandy. I chose the 1886 special and pour a little in the warmed glass. It changes as it sits in my mouth becoming light and oily and quite delicious. 

The match is even. Most of the Spanish, but not all, appear to support Portugal. I elect to be among them which is clearly a pleasing decision. I can't lose, if Portugal win, I am among friends. If not, I can return to Paris and celebrate there. But so far it is even. Whatever the number of chances, it will be the one who puts it in the net in the end; and as I write, no one had done that yet. 

The brandy is refreshed for extra time (or is it to celebrate the birthday?). I should sleep well tonight. 

Terence Westoby

terrywestoby@gmail.com

+33 6 75 91 87 71

Sent from Samsung tablet

For the record, Portugal 1,France 0 after extra time.
The statistics had France on top. 

2 o'clock and the world is still

Or at least it is here in Spain. Earlier in the day there were people everywhere, some, like me, relaxing in the shade of a tree. And as I was reading, moving slightly to stay in the shade, I became aware that fewer and fewer people were passing. As you can see from the photo below, the promenade is now empty. 

The children's play park is empty. 

The paths are empty.
The fountains have been turned off. 

The traffic has all but stopped.

But the noise is still there! 

Because just below this park area are the cafes and bars that offer tapas and fast food; and the noisy sound can still be heard coming from there. As a Spanish lady told me on Friday, "Spanish people are noisy". Before you consider this description too badly, remember that she was speaking her second language,  and know that she was contrasting the English on holiday who she found noisier still.

That said, the voices from down below suggest that the eating places are doing a roaring trade!

And here on the promenade all is still.  

Terence Westoby

terrywestoby@gmail.com

+33 6 75 91 87 71

Sent from Samsung tablet

Lollipop Trees

If I cut a corner walking to my Spanish workplace, there are some lines of trees at the perimeter of a small park. Their shape is particular and so regular as to have required the careful attention of a Spaniard who knows about these things.

Reaching the tops must have been difficult!

Terry

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Frailes and Sin

Saturday; Clare's moving day but I can't be there since I am in Spain. Hope it went well!

And this Saturday I went to a village party. It was at the invitation of a work colleague who is an officer of the village and, if his friends can be trusted, who was the sole organiser of the event.

The village was "Frailes" in the Jaên district hence part 1 of the title. The event hosted 2000 people.

There were some local product stalls and the eating was to start at 2pm when the gates were opened to the covered seating. At 2:20pm I still had not found the people with my ticket so Antonio, Mr Organiser, called me on my phone and met me at the gate. He must have some influence since on his word I was admitted without question.

I was seated among Spanish people with 3 of whom I could communicate since they spoke English.

We sat down and, if your hearing was good, conversed below the noise of 2000 other conversations all around you. It was probably after 3 that the first dish arrived. Up to then we enjoyed bread dipped in olive oil and unlimited wine.

The appetiser was a selection of black and red puddings and cubes of local cheese. The black pudding was surprisingly creamy and very rich.

Amazingly the organisers managed to then serve bean and meat stew hot to everyone. It came from one of the largest pots I have ever seen and it compensated a little for the effects of the wine. Many people were local and could walk home but I had come an hours drive in a brand new car.

Course 3 was meat and potato, shared in the centre of the table, then the sugary pastries so loved in this region.

There was seconds of everything if you wanted to be a pig.

I found that it was the done thing to mix the wine with lemonade. "Do-it-yourself sangria" I joked but it was taken seriously and I was put right that this was "summer wine" and sangria was quite different.

I am sure it is so.

So it finished when I guessed it would at around 6pm. Up in the hills (1000 meters they said) it was getting a little cooler and I was glad of my jacket. "Now we have part 2" Antonio informed me. "We go down to the pub". And so we did. It was quite a long way down too.

The pub was just as noisy as the open-air meal, but indoors! At 10pm I was informed that it was too late to sleep so we would eat. Tapas Spanish style. I sampled everything and it was all good. The pub had a children's room to one side and the children in our party helped polish off the sweeter dishes.

I made sure I drank "Sin beer", that is, without alcohol. It was a late night for me and a long drive.

I was almost glad when we could settle up with the bar and head off home at 11pm. I had an hours drive and the walk back up the hill to the car felt much longer than the walk down. I wondered if the hotel would still be open at midnight or whether I would have to ring the bell, but whilst the key was in the lock, the hotel door was open and the bar still running when I returned. I waived them good night so they knew I was back and left them to it. Spain parties late I remembered.

So my afternoon out in the mountain village also took half the night. I photographed the rustic village from the pub, and here are some of the other photos too.

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on the road again

I am on the road again. This time to England. It's a flying visit, literally. Out Monday evening, return Tuesday evening. And an all-day meeting the meantime.

It's a job!

On Friday last we discovered that I had not visited a "works doctor" for just over 2 years. So I was banned from international travel. Then we found a slot with the doctor for Monday morning.

So Monday started with a doctors visit and I am fine so I can go. All sorted, I declared when I returned to work. We set off for the airport.

At the checkin I asked for my ticket. Ah! When you weren't going, we booked ours and not yours.

No ticket.

I called and had permission to make an emergency reservation but the flight was full. So I am on the flight 2 hrs later and I will have to use a taxi not the hire car.

Do I have a room at the hotel?

No.

I called them and now I have a room.

Whilst queuing for the 2nd of what will be 4 times, waiting our turn at passport control, the lady in front asked, in French, where I was going. She expressed her like for the Shenzhen accord (no borders in Europe) and expressed her sadness should Britain chose to leave. Yes, I joked, I could need a visa to visit England. She asked why Britain wanted to leave and whilst I don't know, I suggested it could be rule from Brussels. Ah yes, she agreed, no one likes that!

Just then she was called forward and she quickly went on her way. My turn next and the passport officer looked at my documents and said Oh, I thought you were with that lady? No I said, just a moments encounter. She is going somewhere quite different.

The third queue delayed me a little. My home-made English to French electric adapter cased the X-Ray lady to turn my bag over and send it through again. Satisfied, I was allowed to continue unquestioned.

And now I am rather early for checking in, hence this blog.

All's well that ends well.

The saga continues:

Well the ticket was good. Expensive but good. There was priority boarding and a free sandwich and drink (a small bottle of white wine). The flight was a short hour and disembarkation didn't take too long.

Now I need a taxi. A handy policeman pointed me the last 100 yards when the signs ran out (they are still handy for that) and I climbed aboard a taxi that claimed to take credit cards. A man got in behind me.

We are not together, I said and told him my destination. I don't know where he is going, I added but my stop was on the way so I said he could come along. He was Italian and it was his first time to his destination if not in England.

I gave the taxi man the full address and he plumbed it into his GPS. It was dark and we drove along following the electronic English voice. After a while I recognised a roundabout and since this was my first time in the area I started to worry.

The GPS gives wrong information sometimes, the taxi driver informed me as he took a different exit.

Turn round insisted his navigator. No don't, I protested. I had spotted the hotel. Keep going, I will be your GPS! And so we arrived and I paid the man. Good luck, I wished the Italian. He was going to need it.

The others were in the bar and had eaten. I said hello to the new man who had joined them. They had pint glasses of water on the table. I chided them for coming to England and drinking pints of water. No wonder the French think English beer is weak.

I checked in and ordered an Old Speckled Hen to wait for me as I deposited my bags. The bottle caused some comment. I poured some into an empty glass for them to try. Soon there were 3 more bottles on the table.

The hotel (no adverts) served food 24/7 so I had a good plate of pasta and retired to bed. There was a very wet patch on the carpet outside the bathroom which explained the electric fire that I found full on in my room. I had turned it off because the whole room was far too hot. Now my socked foot was wet! Still it was a last minute room so I didn't mind.

I set my phone alarm noting that the local time on it had not reset. It went off in the morning but only after having realised it was in England (and so resetting the time) and now I was late!

Nevertheless a quick shower was in order. But no, after running the water a long time and getting only cold, I gave in and had a simpler wash in the basin.

At the English breakfast, that only I had in full, I was asked if there was no hot water in England. Not any more, I joked, not since the recession. We blame it on the EU, it's why we want to get out.

The day went well and we finished in good time to get to the airport for the return flight. Early enough, indeed, for the early flight. But the extra cost per person was far too high so the Frenchmen decided to wait. However, my ticket was flexible, I transferred at no extra cost and was given a Fast-Track ticket since boarding was soon. I waived goodbye and was guided passed the long queues to security. I will see them again tomorrow.

Whilst waiting to be escorted passed the long queues, a tall man appeared and begged to be allowed to pass. His hand was visibly shaking as he presented his documents. He didn't have a fast ticket like me but his plane was already boarding so a man was summoned.

He explained to me that he was afraid of flying and had been in the toilet. I had not asked. This was too much information.

A man appeared and took him first to catch his flight. That's what walky-talkies and yellow jackets should be for! He soon came back for me.

My little penknife often flys with me. I forget it is there and it is small enough to be acceptable. This time however my luggage was searched. There's what looks like a penknife in here somewhere the security man claimed. I fished it out for him and he laughed and waived me on.

The flight was uneventful. I had 2 seats to myself which was comfortable. I popped back to use the facilities. It was engaged but the only other one was at the front of this small plane. I waited. The stewardesses arrived and busied themselves. After a while they asked if I had waited long? Well I had. They unlocked the door from outside and cautiously knocked and peeped inside.

Sorry, they said and I was allowed in.

So my last minute ticket had scored again and I was home early. Not so bad, a little crisis can be quite a benefit as well!

One last adventure. After a long walk and a long wait for passport control, I reach the train station. I already had my ticket so I could just catch the fast train. The sign said Platform 12.

I climbed onto an empty carriage on the train on platform 12. Another train pulled in on platform 11 opposite. I popped my head out of the door to be sure and noticed that my train said "no passengers". Just then the doors closed and we set off. The signs we passed as we left the station confirmed the message.

But it was wrong and I am nearly home and not stuck in the depot. Perhaps that is why the carriage was empty?





Sorry, no photos!
Terry

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