Ey oop, lad

Tha's back in England now, tha knaws.  Theer be none o' them scheduled posts left; it be oop to thee to pen summat fresh.

Yep, we've been enjoying ourselves doing absolutely nothing much in France for the past week.  The temperatures were not exactly tropical - in fact, it was damn cold - but the gas-fired central heating quickly warms the house up and the two-foot thick walls keep the heat in really well.  I think we both managed to read the better part of a book a day and we gorged ourselves with lunches of fresh baguettes, butter, a soft French cheese with not a lot of flavour washed down with a glass of pinot noir.

I even managed to do without the alarm clock waking me in the mornings and much to my surprise was still up soon after eight.

One thing we did notice: the restaurants were a lot busier this week than we have seen for a couple of years or more.  We couldn't quite decide why this should be.  Is the economy picking up?  Is it a sign of spring around the corner?  Or are people so fed up with a winter that seems to have lasted well over six months that they have all decided to splash out and eat out?

Spring is coming.  We saw quite a few primroses on the road sides and plenty of lambs.  But then, French farmers do tend to lamb earlier than English ones.  And speaking of things natural, I was delighted to see no fewer than three barn owls during the week, a bird I have not seen for several years.

And the wine rack looks a lot better now.