22 October 2007
21 October 2007
Market produce: Bread
Posted by Jilly at 15:45 11 comments
Labels: Markets
20 October 2007
Market produce: Mushrooms
Posted by Jilly at 15:01 12 comments
Labels: Markets
19 October 2007
Those steeples
Posted by Jilly at 17:08 4 comments
Labels: The Old Town
18 October 2007
Market building
Posted by Jilly at 15:09 10 comments
Labels: Markets
17 October 2007
16 October 2007
Glory
(Back home from Germany - thanks so much for all the comments whilst I was away).
Posted by Jilly at 15:53 10 comments
Labels: Cemeteries
15 October 2007
Market produce: fish
Each spring, we see tiny, tiny fish for sale - these are poutines and are cooked into a local speciality: l'omelette de poutines.
What's your favourite fish?
Posted by Jilly at 15:24 8 comments
Labels: Food and Wine, Markets
14 October 2007
Market produce: preserved fruits
Tomorrow? Come meet the fish lady.
Posted by Jilly at 08:58 5 comments
Labels: Food and Wine, Markets
13 October 2007
Market produce: olives
The olives are in the middle section of this stall - on the left he sells prepared food like pickled onions, seafood salads, sundried tomatoes in oil, grilled slices of aubergines in oil, pickled cloves of garlic, anchovies - the choice is endless. At the other end, he sells fruit confit. Come back tomorrow and I'll show you the fruit.
Posted by Jilly at 09:01 10 comments
Labels: Food and Wine, Markets
12 October 2007
Market produce: cheese
Come back tomorrow - we'll be buying some olives.
(I'm in Germany to judge the Old English Sheepdogs at the Bundesseiger show so forgive me, but I won't be able to comment much before getting home on Monday evening. )
Posted by Jilly at 09:03 13 comments
Labels: Food and Wine, Markets
11 October 2007
Caged
The cages you see on the wall were for sale. I asked him what they were for and he told me for wild birds. 'Why would you keep a wild bird in a cage,' I asked. His reply: 'We keep them there until we're ready to eat them.' I didn't ask how he caught them but presumably with traps - obviously not by shooting, else you'd hardly need a cage, would you?
Later, when I bought some olive oil, he told me he'd sold the cages...oh dear.
Posted by Jilly at 15:24 9 comments
Labels: Villages near to Menton: Gorbio
10 October 2007
Velo Club de Menton
Posted by Jilly at 08:39 6 comments
Labels: Villages near to Menton: Gorbio
09 October 2007
Fête de la Branda
The right to distil passes through a family, and in Gorbio, this right is held by two brothers. I only saw one of them this year, so I hope the other one is alright as they are both getting on in age. Don't you think this brother looks rather like Popeye! He loves having his photograph taken and has appeared in magazines and television programmes that cover this annual event. He's holding a plate of socca which he'll eat for his lunch. You can read about socca on the above link too.
Do come back over the next few days and I'll show you more photographs taken at the Fête de la Branda.
Posted by Jilly at 14:50 9 comments
Labels: Villages near to Menton: Gorbio
08 October 2007
Villa Sans Nom
Got me thinking about house names and why we choose them? My house is called Lou Milou. Lou is Provençal for 'the' or 'le.' And Milou - well Milou was the dog of my life, an American cocker spaniel, who is now running around in doggy heaven, chasing his ball. What's your house - or apartment building? - called - and why?
Posted by Jilly at 11:33 12 comments
Labels: Doorways and Windows
07 October 2007
About turn
In yesterday's photo, by showing you only rough rocks, sea and fort it was all rather foreboding. Now this is a little more cheerful, isn't it? The thing is, the two photos were taken exactly one minute apart yet give a completely different atmosphere, don't they?
Posted by Jilly at 06:56 15 comments
Labels: Beach and Sea
06 October 2007
Le Bastion, musée Jean Cocteau - 2
Posted by Jilly at 13:56 11 comments
Labels: Beach and Sea, Museums
05 October 2007
The Ruins of the Château
The first record of Sainte Agnès (Sancta Agneta) was in 1150, when it was ruled by the Counts of Ventimiglia - in 1258 it passed to the Counts of Provence.
THIS WEBSITE gives the full history of the village, right back to Neolithic times - but you need to read French. If you don't speak French, it really is worth looking at tho just for the photographs as you go through the various centuries.
Posted by Jilly at 14:21 2 comments
04 October 2007
Walk to the Château ruins
Posted by Jilly at 10:46 3 comments
03 October 2007
Bird's eye view
Posted by Jilly at 11:08 7 comments
02 October 2007
Renovation
Renovating a house in a hill village is no easy task. All the materials need to be brought up from Menton or Nice. All rubble needs to be removed and taken down the valley. In the old days, of course, donkeys were used. See the donkey track from Sainte Agnès to Menton - a two-hour journey.
Nowadays, renovation means the workmen need to walk up and down the narrow, steep streets, moving materials, little by little. In addition, if scaffolding is used, then inevitably you'll need your neighbour's house to provide some of the support. Hopefully you get on with your neighbour!
And the cost of all this - well, it's not cheap - and it's slow.
Posted by Jilly at 12:55 11 comments
01 October 2007
Daily Photo Theme Day: Cemeteries/Tombstones
Menton, with its micro-climate, was a popular destination for sufferers of tuberculosis who now lie in this graveyard, all dying far too young. It's a fascinating place to explore especially in this year of the Rugby World Cup as you'll find, at this link, the grave of William Webb-Ellis, inventor of Rugby.
Today, being the 1st of the month, is Daily Photo Theme Day. Do please take time to visit the other cities in the Daily Photo family taking part in today's theme:
St. Louis (MO), USA - San Diego (CA), USA - Cleveland (OH), USA - New York City (NY), USA - Boston (MA), USA - Mainz, Germany - Hyde, UK - Arlington (VA), USA - Cape Town, South Africa - Saint Paul (MN), USA - Toulouse, France - Arradon, France - Menton, France - Monte Carlo, Monaco - Montego Bay, Jamaica - Ampang (Selangor), Malaysia - Joplin (MO), USA - Cottage Grove (MN), USA - Bellefonte (PA), USA - Mexico (DF), Mexico - Seattle (WA), USA - Baziège, France - Baltimore (MD), USA - Chandler (AZ), USA - Sequim (WA), USA - Stayton (OR), USA - Stockholm, Sweden - Austin (TX), USA - Singapore, Singapore - Greenville (SC), USA - Wassenaar (ZH), Netherlands - Nashville (TN), USA - Tenerife, Spain - Manila, Philippines - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Jacksonville (FL), USA - River Falls (WI), USA - Chateaubriant, France - Quincy (MA), USA - Rabaul, Papua New Guinea - Buenos Aires, Argentina - Crystal Lake (IL), USA - Inverness (IL), usa - Lubbock (TX), USA - Phoenix (AZ), USA - Moscow, Russia - Norwich (Norfolk), UK - Crepy-en-Valois, France - Minneapolis (MN), USA - New Orleans (LA), USA - Montréal (QC), Canada - West Sacramento (CA), USA - Toruń, Poland - Philadelphia (PA), USA - Christchurch, New Zealand - London, England - Paderborn, Germany - The Hague, Netherlands - Selma (AL), USA - Sunderland, UK - Kyoto, Japan - Tokyo, Japan - Stavanger, Norway - Fort Lauderdale (FL), USA - Weston (FL), USA - Portland (OR), USA - Forks (WA), USA - Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation - Maple Ridge (BC), Canada - Boston (MA), USA - Sydney, Australia - Wellington, New Zealand - Montpellier, France - Jackson (MS), USA - Wailea (HI), USA - Petaling Jaya (Selangor), Malaysia - Evry, France - Saarbrücken, Germany - New York City (NY), USA - Santa Fe (NM), USA - North Bay (ON), Canada - Melbourne, Australia - Port Vila, Vanuatu - Cypress (TX), USA - Saint Louis (MO), USA - Paris, France - San Diego (CA), USA - Wichita (Ks), USA - Haninge, Sweden - Prague, Czech Republic - Zurich, Switzerland - Budapest, Hungary - Paris, France - Saigon, Vietnam
Posted by Jilly at 19:51 42 comments
Labels: Cemeteries
30 September 2007
Église Notre-Dame-des-Neiges - 2
Posted by Jilly at 12:21 7 comments
29 September 2007
Église Notre-Dame-des-Neiges
Posted by Jilly at 14:58 5 comments
28 September 2007
Donkey Track
This is the old donkey track from Saint Agnès to the centre of Menton. The sign indicates it takes two hours. There are donkey tracks leading from all the hill villages around Menton to the town itself and at one time, this was the only method of getting supplies to and from a village.
Now these donkey tracks are used by hikers and it's one of the most glorious ways to see this part of the Côte d'Azur. I've walked the track from Gorbio to Sainte Agnès with my best buddy, Candy, and I suspect when she next comes to stay, we'll be walking this track. I'd better get in shape because if you walk down - guess what? - you've got to walk back up again for your car!
Note the viewing platform in the middle distance and below you'll see a better view of it. If you click on THIS LINK and scroll down to the second photograph, you'll see just how far we are from the sea and why it takes 2 hours to walk this track.
Posted by Jilly at 18:23 10 comments
27 September 2007
Le Saint-Yves
Posted by Jilly at 17:46 11 comments
Labels: Restaurants and Bars, Villages near to Menton: Sainte Agnès
26 September 2007
25 September 2007
Sainte Agnès - 3
Posted by Jilly at 14:54 3 comments
24 September 2007
Sainte Agnès - 2
Tomorrow we'll have far prettier photos of the village.
Posted by Jilly at 13:55 8 comments
23 September 2007
Sainte Agnès - 1
Legend has it that an Italian princess named Agnès was trapped in these hills by a sudden violent storm . She prayed to her patron saint and found shelter in one of the four grottoes in the area. Agnès then built a sanctuary in the rocks which quickly attracted local inhabitants and so the village got its name.
Come back tomorrow and I'll show you the fort that is part of the Maginot Line.
Posted by Jilly at 14:14 9 comments
22 September 2007
Wash down time
I know you don't want to hear me grumble about lack of rain this summer and now early autumn, but I wish it would RAIN for my poor dried up garden. I know the visitors don't want this tho, so you didn't hear me say it!
Posted by Jilly at 15:00 4 comments
Labels: Beach and Sea, Restaurants and Bars
21 September 2007
Through a restaurant darkly...
Posted by Jilly at 10:11 9 comments
Labels: Beach and Sea, Restaurants and Bars
20 September 2007
Randonée
Posted by Jilly at 13:38 3 comments
Labels: Villages near to Menton: Gorbio
19 September 2007
Le patron
Note: since posting this, sadly Franck has sold Le Balico and it's now under new management.
Posted by Jilly at 12:51 10 comments
Labels: Restaurants and Bars
18 September 2007
17 September 2007
Memories in the making - 2
Posted by Jilly at 09:20 10 comments
Labels: Beach and Sea
16 September 2007
Memories in the making
(Thank you so much to everyone who has kindly posted comments whilst I've been away in England. I hope to catch up with your blogs today and tomorrow.)
Posted by Jilly at 08:07 19 comments
Labels: Beach and Sea, The Old Town
15 September 2007
14 September 2007
13 September 2007
Border town
In the distance you see the port of Garavan and Menton Old Town.
Posted by Jilly at 13:15 7 comments
Labels: Beach and Sea