Yesterday we spent the morning looking through the Amphitheatre in Nimes and then we set off for our next location near Agen in the Lot et Garronne area of South Eastern France. After some initial difficulties getting onto the freeway, we found our way onto the motorway and drove for 4 hours past the amazing walled town of Carcassonne and around the outskirts of Toulouse. We turned off the highway at Moissac and made our way through the narrow country roads following the directions emailed to us by the owner of the Gite where we will be staying for the next week.
We were greeted at the Gite by the owners' two golden retrievers much to Oliver's delight. The owners Judy and Tom came out to say hello and show us around. We have a lovely large stone cottage which appears to be an old farm building which has been beautfully converted into a holiday house. There are 3 little cottages and the owners house on 10 acres of gardens and fields, but we are the only guests this week so we have the run of the property. There is a lovely swimming pool on a sunny terrace and we have a little terrace on our house where we can sit outside and enjoy the peace and quiet.
After settling in for a couple of hours, at 8 pm we followed Judy and Tom into the closest village, St Maurin, for the annual village Bastille Day dinner and fireworks display. The little town square was filled with long tables and we joined in for an incredible fixed menu. For 18 euros per adult we had 5 courses including all drinks. To start there was an apricot flavoured aperitif, with cured ham, melon and a country style pate. This was followed by a duck gizzard salad which was much nicer than you might expect. The dinner was accompanied by unlimited amounts of local wine, with a choice of either rose or red. The main course was Duck breast with a green pepper sauce with pommes (potatoes) Dauphinois, followed by local cheese. The final course was choux pastry case filled with a coffee cream filling, served with coffee and a choice of local liqueurs. When dinner was finished Matthew and Oliver joined the local kids on the dance floor for the start of the disco, until it was time to light our flaming torches for the parade of the village folk to the local football field for the fireworks. The fireworks lasted about 20 minutes and were really impressive for such a little village. We had a fantastic night.