Sunday in France - Fun with friends & Automne du Bourgailh

Le Bassin Cap du bois

Sundays....

I really enjoy Sunday's here in France.  They are low-key, quiet and very much about family time.  Since for the most part, everything is closed on Sunday - it is really about quality time together.  Hang out with family or friends, go for a walk, a bike ride or just relax.  It's just time to mellow out and unwind. Today was no exception.

We were invited over to a friend's house for lunch.  So nice to get families together.  Turned out to be 3 families who all had kids of similar age.  So while, we adults socialized and snacked - the kids went off and all played together.  Love when this happens!  Our host had gone off to the market this morning and returned with a delicious fare of delicacies to enjoy and try. Ah -French markets - you can find some delicious food.  We dined on smoked salmon, seafood paella and finished with the local specialty of canelles.   It was so delicious and truly relaxing to enjoy a wonderful meal with friends.

As is typical French culture, we talked, ate, and drank for several hours.  Again..this is what Sundays are made of here in France - socializing, relaxing and enjoying time together.  No errands, no running around trying to get things done...just hanging! I Love it!!

We returned back to our house around 5 pm.  We would have stayed longer with our friends and enjoyed a nice walk around the city, but my oldest who is in 5eme (grade 7) still had some homework to finish.  I was feeling so relaxed but it was so sunny and fairly warm out, that I talked my middle daughter into going on a bike ride with me. I figured we would be gone about an hour.  Off we went - heading out on my favorite route - across town and biking to the Site du Bourgailh. - a wonderful park near us that is great for walking and riding bikes.

Taking a break from riding

As we entered the park from the far end, I noticed that there were more people coming out than usual.  But it was a beautiful day!  As we rode further in, we were passed by a horse drawn buggy and noticed even more people strolling.  It turned out there was a festival going on today. - Fete de l'Arbe et de la Nature

Entering into the festival

They say...when in Rome, do what the Romans do...so we got off our bikes and walked slowly through the festival.  It was super!  Lots of booths selling all kinds of natural juices, wines, jams.  Other booths had handmade goods, plants, candles. On one end, there were lots of trees, scrubs and small plants for sale. There was even an old-fashion wooden game area for kids and a giant lawn chess game set up.  Older kids could also be harnessed to scale up a tree and zip line down and of course - there were pony rides.  It's was a wonderful surprise.  We even stopped and enjoyed a snack and bought some fresh pressed Apple juice.

Time to walk the bikes through....

Family game area

More festival booths

It was a great surprise and a fun little break!  I have enjoyed festivals at this park before - they never seem to disappoint - & I think are growing bigger.

Always fun to find a snack

After our lovely little diversion, we headed back home....to enjoy some homemade chili and salad!  As I said at the beginning of this post - I love Sundays!

Finally Spring & Warmer weather in Bordeaux - Mid-week update

Ah, it's Wednesday - mid-week break as I like to say in France.  My two younger daughters get their day of R&R and I get some fun quality time with them.  I am so excited that the weather has finally taken a turn for the better.  It's been in the mid to upper 20's C (70's-80's)  and sunny since this past weekend.  We took advantage of the great weather and went for a couple of walks through two nearby (& favorite) parks.  It was wonderful to be outside, basking in the sun, frolicking in the grass and just taking in the gorgeous weather.

 First up is our walk through Parc Majorlan...this unique park is always fun to walk through and never disappoints.  I first blogged about it here.  This trip we enjoyed exploring inside the old grotto.

After we cooled off inside with the grotto exploration, we walked over to the playground and enjoyed a snack.

It's just always so nice to be outside and enjoying the wonderful weather.  On Sunday afternoon, we headed out to Le Site du Bourgailh, another fun walk.  This time the kids could take their bikes.  My oldest who is still recovering from her skiing knee injury even brought her rip-stick to fool around with...I guess nothing stops you when you just want to enjoy yourself!

After we enjoyed our super afternoon, we headed home to enjoy some market fresh food.  - White Asparagus, purple beets & a white bean & tomato salad.  So delicious and fresh on a warm Sunday evening!

So here's to Spring and the return of sunny warmer days!  Looking forward to exploring more parks and sites nearby!

If you want to read more about Le Site du Bourgailh - There are older posts - Spring Festival at Site du Bourgailh & Readjusting our concept of time.

Life this week in Photos..Parks, Friends and Baking

A little fun, a little sun, a little socializing and baking...

 So we enter into the final long weekend of May...I can't believe how many holidays there have been in France this month.  I was uploading photos from my small camera and enjoying all the parks, and fun times we have had just in the last couple of weeks..


The first photos are at the Site du Bourgailh - This great park in Pessac has so much to offer.  The other day we decided to walk through their tropical greenhouse...needless to say, my youngest enjoyed the hanging moss!

We enjoyed hiking in the Dordogne last weekend - our 4 day weekend.  I'll have to write a separate post on that whole hike in Campagne - a small village near where my in-laws live...but I had to share my youngest daughter just having fun...maybe her mother takes too many photos?

So this week, I spent time getting my oldest daughter ready for a trip with her class called Classe Verte or roughly translated to Outdoor Class - This is an 8 day trip and they are off to the Pyrenees Mountains for some hiking, exploring and outdoor learning.  Needed to outfit her with hiking boots, heavy socks, hiking shorts (not something a fashion conscious 11 year old automatically owns..).  We did fit a bit of time meeting up with new English speaking friends at Parc Bordelais in Bordeaux on Wednesday afternoon.   My oldest loves to order her own ice cream and beverages...I think she has a lot of fun using her French and I get a kick out of listening to her.  I still sit back in awe as I listen to my daughters speak French...just amazes me every time I  hear them rattle off a sentence and/or tell a story in French.

We were quite a group sitting at the cafe stand.  I think we totalled 4 families and 12 kids.  My oldest bring water to her sisters and new friends...and below my youngest enjoying her favorite snack - Ice Cream!  It's been a lot of fun here to socialize with both French speaking families and kids and also meet English speaking families.  My older girls find it fascinating to hear where everyone is from and what they think of Bordeaux.  

One of the fun things about heading off to a city park is to be able to take the scooters, bikes, skateboards or rip-sticks to ride on.  The girls always have a blast riding.  It's still though, funny seeing them on their way to or from riding on the city sidewalks!  City life is definitely different than suburbia!  They can even take their bikes and scooters on the trams - actually you see everything on the trams - bikes, scooter, strollers and even animals.  

Finally I ended my week, having a group of women at our house from the Bordeaux Women's Club.  This club has become my social network and I have met so many interesting women.  Anyway, one of the members held a healthy baking session at my house.  We made the best Banana Bread on earth and also coconut macaroons (not the French kind).  The best thing about these recipes is that they are healthy!  You should check out her blog at Healthy Indulgence - some great recipes and tips!   So as I head into our last long weekend in May - the weather is warm, sunny and lovely!  I'm thinking healthy foods and fun exercise! Looking forward to a fun weekend ahead!