You know the expression you wait ages for a bus then three come along at once; it’s not true. You have to work very hard to get the first one and when it comes you are beside yourself with joy. On the 23rd of September the Van Blanc appeal handed its first fully fitted bus to the Redway extra special special school in Milton Keynes. I can’t describe the joy this brought me. There I was with my good friends from the Lady Taverners who have been a great help in helping organise the whole Van Blanc thing, when this large minibus appeared resplendent in its new livery; at this point I have to admit that, pleased as I was, my emotions were relatively neutral. A nice bus no doubt but “sans plus”. The revelation was the arrival of the children, parents and teachers from the school. As a father myself I understand the bond between parents and their children... READ MORE »

Food archaeology
potato

Is it not odd that a whole continent, hardly renowned for its cuisine, should supply us Europeans with such a wealth of ingredients. To the tomato and chilli we add the humble potato. The potato started life in the dizzying heights of the Andes some 6000 to 7000 years ago. The local Aymara Indians soon cultivated over...  READ MORE »

Il faut cultiver son jardin

With Winter nearly upon us, we must ready ourselves and our gardens for the harsh weather. Oddly enough if a frost is coming , but there has been no rain, water the plants. Frost will damage dry roots much easier. This is the month to plant daffodils and hyacinths and to move anything so the roots can settle in...  READ MORE »

Bring a Friend and save

Book a place with a friend in The Raymond Blanc Cookery School before the end of December and Save £100. The Cookery School is for everyone who has a passion for food and wishes to have fun preparing it. You will leave the Cookery School with a new-found confidence and enthusiasm, impatient to return to your own kitchen to...  READ MORE »

Ma Belle France
Le Languedoc Roussilon

The Languedoc Rousillon is a place of mystery and poetry subdued for the greater good of the greater France. It may come as a shock to most that France, the country that boasts the Academie Française whose “immortals” police the language, only forced the whole of the country to speak French in the 16th century. Before this the area had its own language - the Tongue of Oc. The word came from the Latin but the language itself is closer to Basque, it was also known as the language of troubadours. This area also gave rise to the Cathars, a religious sect who believed in the separation of good and bad, God reigning on a world of beauty, light and spiritual wellbeing. Though they denied the existence of Christ they did however set about emulating Him. As you can imagine this liberal but austere stance did little to enamour them to a Catholic Church that believed in grand statements and the use of Latin in church. The Cathars were declared heretics and violently repressed in the 13th century. Whether the countryside took its lead from history, or its people took inspiration from the countryside is a moot point, it remains, as I said before, a place of mystery and poetic beauty.
 

Carcassonne
Don’t be surprised at a real sense of déjà vu when you first set eyes on the city, it has been used on many occasion for filming for that perfect Medieval castle look. I, on the other hand, immediately think that vandalism is not a modern sin. This is a story of “art” imitating life. In the mid 1800 a gentlemen called Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, took to “restore” the city.  Read more »

Le Canigou
Most of France has heard of Canigou, but be warned, not regrettably due to the outrageous beauty of this spot, but rather because it is the name of a popular dog food; you have been warned.  Read more »

Albi
Why such a stunning town is not better known is beyond me. It is no mistake that the first thing you see as you approach the town is the Cathedral of St Cécile rising above the local red brick buildings and framed by its white cliffs. Your first impression will be that of a fortress. This building is a sign, a warning sign. Read more »