Bastille Day Weekend was great. Here are some highlights: Friday, July 13: We returned to Villeneuvette, where we attended a "Soiree Tagine", complete with a French rock band singing Rolling Stones hits. Our little buvette, "A L'Ombre du Platane", can feed about 100 people in its lovely outdoor setting, by cooking feasts in a huge round gas frypan. This time the menu was tagine, a Maroccan dish made of chick peas, lamb, carrots, and potatoes, followed by a "tarte aux abricots". The real reason we go is the atmosphere (children and dogs, people of all kinds, water running right through the village street...) of this charming spot. To check it out, look at the video (Rock On!) and the updated Villeneuvette photo album. Saturday, July 14: We wanted to start Bastille day with a quiet hike in Pouzols, a village we thought was about 40 min. from us. When we arrived, we followed the directions from the "jeu de ballon" (every town has a ball field) where we were supposed to park, and then to the Place du Marche (every town has one of them as well) through the "Porte Ouest" (the old medieval door on the west of the village), and then asked for further directions from a woman in a boulangerie. She informed us, very politely, that we were in the WRONG village. The one we were in is called "Pouzolles" and we were supposed to be in "Pouzols". So off we went to the right Pouzols, about 8 minutes from our own little village, and repeated the directions from the "jeu de ballon, through the "Place du Marche, and on through the "Porte Ouest" and on to our "ballade-pique-nique" on the Herault River. See the Pouzols photo album for a look at an old granite quarry turned into a lovely fishing and hiking area. And don't miss our "dog of the day"! He/She was adorable! Because the Tour de France "etape-du-jour" (lap of the day) was in nearby Sete (about 30 min. from here) and Les had been following the race all week, we returned home for him to watch it on TV. We were both very happy we did NOT go in person this year! Too many people in a very small space, with only one way in and one way out. But good to watch on our little TV. To celebrate Bastille Day with the French, we drove to a little town on the Canal du Midi called Capestang for dinner, then on to Cessenon-sur-Orb for an ice cream and fireworks. Cessenon is on the Orb River, a former cloth town, with a beautiful supsension bridge, from where you watch the fireworks (which were fabulous!). See the photo album "Cessenon-sur-Orb for pictures of the town (gorgeous!), the "defile des flambeaux" (the torch parade--every town seems to have one of these right before the Fireworks), and the fireworks themselves. Sunday: We spent the afternoon in another town to the north of us called Lodeve. They have a wonderful little art museum there, and their exhibitions are well-planned and usually feature artists who, although quite good, are unkown to us. This exhibit dealt with a Belgian Impressionist/Post-Impressionist named Theo Van Rysselberghe, a colleague of Signac, and a contemporary of Georges Seurat. We also have an album for Lodeve in our picture albums. Thanks for checking in with us. We'll see what this week brings! Elise & Les