gorgeous colors

A trip to Corbières and much more...

We spent two days in the Corbières Region, seeking for castles, abbeys and of course Flea Markets
We got all of that, plus a wonderful Hotel and an amazing encounter with an old friend,  now the miller and baker of Cucugnan, one of the smallest and most picturesque villages in the area.

We first visited Narbonne, only one hour from Montpellier and really nice, with an impressive palace and Cathedral.

Next step the medieval village, of Lagrasse, a jewel, bridges, stone walls, two abbeys...

 In one of the abbeys, this tower makes you feel like in "The name of the Rose" 

 An old market

 Another beautiful village : Termes

We spent the night at "La Fargo", a very nice hotel and restaurant, highly recommended, we think Sarah and Heath would love it (got a nice pool too)

 Next morning, we bought some Corbieres Red Wine it this beautiful place

Heath, we have to go back there Man !

 Then Villerouge Termenes, another Medieval fortress

 An finally Cucugnan, a small town, famous since Alphonse Daudet wrote a very funny story about it's abbey in "Les Lettre de mon Moulin". All the french schoolboys and girls know about "le curé de cucugnan". Lily had read an article about the town's bakery and how original it was, so we decided to visit the place.

But the biggest surprise was to find that the baker (and miller) of Cucugnan is an old friend, a guy that had almost disapeared these past ten years.
Rolland Feuillas is a unique character. Very creative. He used to work in a software company and we did some business together (maps, GIS...). Then he moved to multimedia creation, got an award for a DVD about Mozart. And at some point he had a severe breakdown and decided he nedeed a real change in his life style.
And ten years later, here he is, doing really good and looking so happy.

 Hey muffin man, what do you think  of this ?

Well, as you all know, cleaning man (cleaning freak) is my middle name

 This is the room where he organizes training sessions.

 His wife Valerie cooks all kinds of wonderful cakes

 We bought these croissants for our Monday morning breakfast.

 The oven is a very special construction, Rolland had a specialist from Columbia coming to build it.

This guy needs a new apron, Lily is working on it !

Rolland restored the old windmill of Cucugnan. A piece of art. He sometimes uses it for milling his own wheat ( he grows ancient seeds in the valley and all his products are highly authentic)

 This piece is called "Jesus's arm"

 You can learn more about the place at Farines de Meule

We left Cucugnan and drove back to Montpellier

This is the kind of view you get on you way home...

Makes you want to go back !

Pineberries

Has anyone ever tried a pineberry? It looks like a white strawberry with red seeds and apparently tastes like a pineapple :) I haven't found them yet in Chicago, but I hear Eataly sells them!

Photo source

Hey !
A few pics of my trip to Austria last weekend with my school. We were in Vorarlberg, extreme west of the country, where they care a lot about ecology and sustainability.
I just realized I have tones of pictures of architectural details and not many of my friends...
We had such a nice weather compared to Paris !

I've been to so many places within a year : the States, Amsterdam, London and Austria

Birthday gits + celebrations

I had such a lovely birthday this year, I wanted to share some of the highlights :)

A Swatch watch (I love their packaging). Plus they're a great alternative to leather watches.

 Roland Garros Paris edition

 Sprinkles cupcakes...

 Some for Heath (non-vegan)

 And some for me (vegan)

 And some amazing Chicago vegan pizza with Chicago (mostly) vegan friends.