Peace and quiet....well almost!

After a late flurry of B&B guests we are now into winter mode at Le Farat. Which means to us crack on with the work and get on with the marketing!!

But hang on a minute, its October.......here in France it is still T shirt weather and the sun is shining brightly. Yes of course it is cooler but to have 27 degrees in Mid October would be unheard of in Blighty!

So why waste it we thought.... why not have a BBQ. Toulouse sausages on special offer at the supermarket 3.95€ per kilo, pork chops on offer too, French bread with fresh salad from the local market finished off with BBQ bananas, Armagnac and cream; washed down with a number of bottles of the local wine. All consumed in the name of market research of course, we couldn't have wished for a better couple of evenings!

Why is it most people still think that holidays are only for July, August and September........ clearly in France the holiday season can go on way into the Autumn!

The scenery is changing slightly now as the cool mornings are turning the leaves beautiful shades of burnt oranges, reds and yellows. The fields are ploughed for the winter and the spring crops are planted. The views are shrouded in a blanket of mist until the heat of the sun burns it away and the chasse (huntsmen) are out in force most mornings with their hunting dogs tracking down rabbits, deer and wild boar. The pool covers will soon be going on and the mowers being serviced ready for the flurry of spring mowing all over again from April.

Events are still on going here too, last weekend we had a pottery fayre in Auvillar that was attended by many craftsmen, the village was bustling with locals and people from "out of town". There was a section put aside for the children to have a go at making something for themselves. One local potter created a kiln out of clay and straw mixed together by the children in wellies and all the creations were fired in the kiln overnight and put on display the following day.

Next weekend in Valence d'agen there is a Chrysanthemum fayre and the following weekend no doubt another fayre in a neighbouring village. It really is all about village life and local produce here and everyone gets involved, the community spirit is great and just like we used to have in the UK many years ago, such a shame it no longer exists.

For those of you tempted to book with us, contact me via my website www.lefarat.com which I have just spent the last three weeks updating, still a bit to do in the events section and some of the layout to tweek but nearly there!