Citotel Hotel Cheval Blanc Cognac

... can still be seen throughout the city today, including infrastructure of a large amphitheater, a triumphal arch and a thermal bath house. Of course, the city is also uniquely French, with its small streets lined with stone building of red tile roofs, grand and small homes adorned with flowers and quaint cafes. The city is also home to two impressive cathedrals: St. Pierre and Eglise St. Europe.

Taking an afternoon self-guided walking tour of the city, I ...

9:15AM

Most of my writing has been done on my laptop, making it easier to send out in emails and/or copy and paste onto my this blog (my first). I've also recorded shot vids on the laptop and "voice memos' on the iphone. So many choices!

i've awakened late and haven't even gotten out of bed yet. Sounds like someone went into the bathroom, so I ...

... been coming back from the l’etang/the swimming hole, otherwise known as Brossac Lake. I haven’t gone in the last few days, but will treat myself to a swim tomorrow or the next day.

John, an English English teacher (!) and Dave, are grilling chicken breasts marinated in lemon, onions, oil, salt and pepper and I’m going to try to make some Thai rice for dinner and maybe use the leftover peas to make soup ...

8:42 PM

It was hot today and will be hotter still tomorrow: probably about 90 F. I spent the day doing a variety of jobs, from updating my blog to sweeping floors and helping with the laundry. Dinner, grilled hamburger patties and sausage with fixings (no cheese, alas!) is almost ready.

We have another new guest/volunteer, Charlotte (Charlie) from Britain. There's a Russian applicant, Julia, who’s been having trouble securing her visa and ...

... 16 out of 22 correct. I even ID'd the "mystery writer" as young Shakespeare but one of the local writers with whom I was talking played a joke on me and said that the picture was of a French writer and that I was wrong. It was all in good fun.



We saw Celine the French teacher and showed her the autographed, autobiography we collectively ...

... thank goodness!). My pommes de terre a la LiLi were rather tasty, merci. Made with leftover, two day old mashed potatoes, some grated mystery cheese, milk, a bit of sauteed onions, ham, and garlic, a little olive oil and a lot of trepidation, with a topping of herbs de provence and more grated frommage.

I also helped with the clearing and cleaning, answered the phone, replied to La G program emails and cleaned & ...

... br>

As expected, the acoustics were superb. In between the 1st and 2nd parts of the program, which featured among others, Saint Saens, Mozart, and Vivaldi, I climbed the steps all the way to the top of the church (whew!). That, plus the walk back up the very steep hills to the car, was my only physical activity today, but it was pretty good.


Tears kept filling my eyes during the performance. I wasn’t ...

... imagine heavy London type accents....)

"Ello Trev, what you doin' 'ere?"

"Ello Paul, we was just havin' somink to eat."

"Ooh, nice. Whatcha 'ave?"

"I 'ad the omlette. Omlette and chips. They do a right good omlette and chips 'ere you know."

OMG!!! We are in the gastronomique centre of Europe and the bloke has an omelette! Qu' est-ce que c'est?!! I had to walk away to stop myself ...

... ceilings. From Tours we drove to Angouleme. I have been wanting to visit this city for 22 years as Melissa had been a student there in 1986 and both Fletcher and Lucy had visited since then. We arrived in mid afternoon after a forgettable lunch stop at a roadside café and parked near the city centre. We walked to the Hotel de Ville and then down the pedestrian streets to a new shopping complex ...

... DOT-shaped licorice flavored morsels, which in general I find disgusting, but to top it off these little guys were covered in salt and this fishy flavor. I mean, we're talking Willa Wonka gone horrifically wrong here. After the three of us politely smiled and thanked her for the nice gesture, we turned and walked (at a speedy pace) around the corner and spit them out on the ancient palace steps. Note: If ever in Denmark, NO CANDY.