Dull & drizzly weather always gets me down. Today has been one of those days so I decided to find a way to lift my spirits. I didn’t have to go far. Right outside L’Atelier is a flowering shrub. In Spring it’s always full of deep pink flowers which usually last into September. This year they have lasted until now and  they’re still going strong.

Quince bush - still flowering in January

I stopped to look at them thinking about how all the seasons have been turned upside down when I noticed the quince.The only quince I’ve seen on this bush since we came here 6 years ago. To be honest I didn’t even know it was a quince tree, I thought it was just an attractive shrub. Maybe now we’ll start to get more of these heavily scented fruits. That cheered me up!

The only quince I've seen on this bush in 6 years!

When I went back inside I found Amar preparing to tile the farmhouse bathroom. He had just taken the old shower head off the wall and I saw this underneath.

hand painted walls hidden under years of paint

At first I thought it was paper but on closer inspection I’m sure the flowers are painted on to plaster. I must remember to ask Madame Faure if she remembers this. Nearly 4 score and 10 she was born at Les Crouquets and is a wealth of information. I love finding little pieces of “history” which you just don’t get in new builds.

Coloquintes or gourds

Then I went into the kitchen and saw the bowl of decorative gourds, some hollow & biscuity coloured, dried from last year’s crop and some still heavy and glowing with vibrant colours which we picked at the end of the season. We always plant these to hide an uninteresting corner behind Le Cerisier and they never fail to cheer me up.

All in all, not a bad day!

Another lovely weekend -perfect for a stroll in the  Dordogne countryside. This week we started our 8.5km easy amble at Saint Crepin, just a 15 minute drive from Les Crouquets.

Not long after we set off we met a gaggle of turkeys on the road ( well, only 3 actually, but they were making enough noise to constitute a gaggle!). I was amazed at the speed they could move at, almost as if they were still trying to avoid becoming last year’s Christmas dinner – not that they would fit in your average oven- they were HUGE!!

Further on we came across a very picturesque hamlet , a group of old buildings dating back to the 17th century. All the roofs were meticulously restored with the original roof covering of the region – lauze. These aren’t tiles but huge overlapping blocks of stone. They are extremely heavy & difficult to work with and they add an enormous weight to the building. Amar once helped a friend repair his lauze roof and he & his head (often bumped & scraped due to working with heavy stones in cramped conditions!)  can testify to how labour intensive it is.

 I often see roofs round here with a small section of lauze at the bottom and the rest recovered in terracotta tiles, understandable I suppose but sad at the same time knowing that this unique craftsmanship is fast becoming a dying art. Part of the charm in living here is that I often imagine I’m part of another era . You can almost feel how people used to live – a welcome change from our past busy & stressful lives.

St Crépin  & Carlucet are listed as being among the most picturesque villages in the Perigord & it’s easy to see why.

Definitely worth a visit!