tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18071407.post5102096387340132364..comments2024-03-28T11:41:43.558+01:00Comments on Living the life in Saint-Aignan: Speeding train takes aim at wallKen Broadhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04430899802705818716noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18071407.post-1906565775186791462007-03-22T22:08:00.000+01:002007-03-22T22:08:00.000+01:00Congrats to you and Walt, Ken! I'm sure she will b...Congrats to you and Walt, Ken! I'm sure she will bring you much love and joy. The new puppy experience can sometimes be like the new baby experience, but, fortunately, each phase doesn't doesn't last as long. Maybe a few nights of crying, a few weeks of potty training, and a few months of obedience training. No guarantees about the chewing, though! Keep us posted and congrats!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18071407.post-57787583096441383932007-03-22T20:05:00.000+01:002007-03-22T20:05:00.000+01:00Hi Ken !There was a typo in Amerloque's text. It s...Hi Ken !<BR/><BR/>There was a typo in Amerloque's text. It should have read:<BR/><BR/>"... for many, many years, from 1977 through 2001 ..."<BR/><BR/>Apologies.<BR/><BR/>Yes, the wine co-ops are the very soul of France. (grin) They are all similiar, yet different. Some are far more professional than others. There is a nice one down in Gaillac ... <BR/><BR/>The whole part of the world around Chateaumeillant and Culan can be very, very depressing in foul weather: Amerloque is most certainly on the same wavelength.(grin) <BR/><BR/>Best,<BR/>L'AmerloqueL'Amerloquehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03447075237256204460noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18071407.post-48253613921610425822007-03-22T18:13:00.000+01:002007-03-22T18:13:00.000+01:00Bonjour Amerloque, we did indeed drive back throug...Bonjour Amerloque, we did indeed drive back through Culan, around Châteaumeillant, and through La Châtre from Montluçon to Châteauroux. I thought the countryside was pretty, but it was an afternoon of sudden, cold downpours (<I>les giboulées de mars</I>) that didn't encourage getting out of the car. I didn't know about the Châteaumeillant wines and will try them the next time I'd down that way. I buy from a similar coop (I imagine) just up the road from St-Aignan in St-Romain-sur-Cher. Thanks for the info on Montluçon. I was last there in 1995, and I don't remember the place being quite so gritty.Ken Broadhursthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04430899802705818716noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18071407.post-88072643405426193042007-03-22T17:54:00.000+01:002007-03-22T17:54:00.000+01:00Hi !Saint Pourçain sur Sioule has many, many excel...Hi !<BR/><BR/>Saint Pourçain sur Sioule has many, many excellent "petits vins", which are fairly well known regionally. For some reason they seem to go down far better in the summer months. If one is interested in horse racing, one can do worse than to attend a "Journée Saint-¨Pourcain" at the Vichy racetrack during the summer racing season. A host of wines for the tasting. (grin) http://www.auvergne.chambagri.fr/pages/rubsav/fiches/aboire/stpou.htm<BR/><BR/>Montlucon was run by the PC (Parti Communiste) for many, many years, from 1997 through 2001, and by the Socialists for a full quarter century before that. Dunlop was "the" company which made the city hum and, of course, contributed to quite a bit of the grime. When the tire industry folded, that was it, industrially speaking. It has been losing population: in 1962, the population was something like 55,000, while by 2004 it had dropped to 39,000 or so. Sad, indeed. The town has changed significantly for the worse in the past 40 years, according to members of Amerloque's (French) family. <BR/><BR/>If one drives from Saint-Aignan to Montluçon on the main national road, one passes through a town named Chateaumeillant. On the east side, along the highway, one can find the local wine cooperative, the "Cave des Vins de Châteaumeillant". Amerloque can unhesitatingly recommend the Châteaumeillant Rouge "Vieilles Vignes". It is a very good petit "autumn" wine: Amerloque sometimes serves it on his Thanksgiving menu. The "Rouge Prestige des Garennes" is excellent with Valencay chevre cheeses, as the Cave recommends. These are not great wines: they are good, honest beverages, representative of the French terroir and the marvellous - but disappearing, alas - French quality of life.<BR/><BR/>Every year Amerloque picks up several cases of Chateaumeillant, including the "blancs" and the"gris". He usually offers quite a few of the bottles as part of the "etrennes". <BR/><BR/>At a time when many products available to the general public worldwide are counterfeit (yes, even in supermarkets), and at a time when greedy hypermarkets are crushing the "exploitants" to cut margins to the bone, purchasing one's "daily" wines at a Cave such as the one in Chateaumeillant ensures that one is buying a genuine wine from reputable winemakers at a fair price, and not some relabelled plonk from the Common Market Wine Lake. <BR/><BR/>On the same road, if one passes through a town named Culan at lunchtime of a sleepy summer day, one could do worse than dine at the Hotel de la Poste. (smile)<BR/><BR/>M et Mme Amerloque are "dog, cat and horse people", and wish the new arrival - and her family, <I>tout naturellement</I> - many years of happiness ! <I>Ca passe trop, trop vite.</I><BR/><BR/>Best,<BR/>L'AmerloqueL'Amerloquehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03447075237256204460noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18071407.post-50595398164146419052007-03-22T17:23:00.000+01:002007-03-22T17:23:00.000+01:00YAY, I'm glad u found ur puppy....I was waiting to...YAY, I'm glad u found ur puppy....I was waiting to hear! Montlucon looks pretty good to me too.....much more picturesque than a dirty old American city...plus the food was good!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18071407.post-48096958444925989062007-03-22T17:18:00.000+01:002007-03-22T17:18:00.000+01:00I'm more of a cat person, but I've never heard of ...I'm more of a cat person, but I've never heard of anyone who's regretted getting a border collie. They seem like really good-tempered dogs. If the dog needs a job later, golf courses around here "rent" them to herd the Canada geese away from the greens. Any golf courses near St Aignan? :-)<BR/><BR/>Note: even Vieux Lyon and Florence look grim under cold, rainy skies when everything's closed.chrissouphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00398602853402174732noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18071407.post-36705566761848644522007-03-22T16:02:00.000+01:002007-03-22T16:02:00.000+01:00Dogs born in France this year are given names star...Dogs born in France this year are given names starting with the letter C. We haven't picked a name yet, but have several candidates. We have to live with them for a few days and decide which one feels right. We have until about April 10 to make up our minds.Ken Broadhursthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04430899802705818716noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18071407.post-19196627679891723692007-03-22T16:00:00.000+01:002007-03-22T16:00:00.000+01:00I am so happy for you both!!! I look forward to h...I am so happy for you both!!! I look forward to hearing about the new addition to your family. We hope to find our furbaby around Christmas time when we move into our new house.Glenda Jhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09688217071407508835noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18071407.post-87749313105250904492007-03-22T13:52:00.000+01:002007-03-22T13:52:00.000+01:00I'm with Claude- Montlucon looked good to me. You ...I'm with Claude- Montlucon looked good to me. You are just a great photographer I guess. Perhaps you were wanting to see your pup more than Montucon...<BR/><BR/>Ten weeks will be a good age. We got our Lucy at 5 weeks which should be illegal. I thought she might die the first weekend we had her b/c she refused to eat Eukanuka fancy puppy chow. Our vet suggested puppy chow and she thrived after that.<BR/><BR/>The rainbow is an excellent sign. I don't think I've ever seen one on such a cold day as you had. <BR/><BR/>Will you name your BB according to the french custom of the alphabet? Dogs born in '07 will have a name beginning with a certain letter...Evelynhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10778535302848508224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18071407.post-4614916934051383982007-03-22T08:55:00.000+01:002007-03-22T08:55:00.000+01:00Good luck with your soon to come puppy, guys. I li...Good luck with your soon to come puppy, guys. I liked your photos of Montluçon. In the rain, a lot of stuff just looks boring and not scenic at all ;)<BR/>But as I've never been there, I enjoyed the photos.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com