To fill the corner

I am not loyal to any particular radio station. I flick and change at an unkind pace, determined by both ad placement and genre of music, usually with my most-obliging son in the back seat of the car saying little, but occasionally letting me know that "I like this piece" or that "the trumpets are pretty cool", which are amongst his euphemisms for, 'please stop being button happy and give this one a go'. Friday mornings are different. I look forward to radio station Triple J's 'Like a Version'... one band's artistic take on another band's song.

I try and favour Triple J for other reasons, too. They give the small-timers and the not-yet-known the opportunity to be discovered, or at least have their several minutes of fame. The band that caught my attention recently was no longer in that category. They had already had significant success and were combining their 'Version' performance with an announcement of their upcoming tour dates. But, it wasn't so much the song that they played that had me entranced, although I enjoyed that, too, it was what they said about their journey.

Like many bands, they had started doing small gigs - pubs mainly, if they could get them. Single-minded in their pursuit of glory they, nonetheless, set themselves smaller goals on the path to international fame and big concert hall billings. The first of which was 'to fill the corner'... the corner pub that is, with patrons.

Last night, I was invited to speak at a book club. It was my first such invitation and I was delighted. Most of the ladies present had read my book, copies of which were scattered around the coffee table. That made me happy, but it was at the end of the night when one of the attendees asked if we could stay in touch, and presented me with her phone so that I could write in my telephone number, that I had my first, 'I'm on my way to filling the corner' moment. She had already entered my name and, in the space for occupation, she had written 'author'. Me, she was meaning me. Most writers will confirm that being such is a hard slog, filled with self-doubt and financial dependence, but in that moment I did not mind that my total income for most weeks from book sales is less than my 16 yo makes in a night of work. Ok, honestly, in an hour.

PS Thanks to Rusty Marmot for the photos

Talloires from the inside out

To link with #allaboutfrance, I invite you back to Talloires and our French village house .

A BIG thank-you for reading and sharing...

Earlier this week, I proudly showed off our village, Talloires, one of the jewels of the Annecy Lake.

Today, I take you to Le Cormoran, our beautiful 4-bedroom 18th Century village house, available for holiday rental and situated close to all the action - boulangerie, poste, tabac, cafés, restaurants, cinéma, supérette ... and a short walk to the lake. Take a look, or visit our holiday rental site click here then contact me on cb222@me.com if I can help you to plan your next skiing, cycling or just-being-in-the-French-Alps holiday.

 

 

 

 

  

   

  

 Le Cormoran/ Our French village House

Tour de France beauty

The Tour de France is heading towards the Alps this week and will showcase our beautiful Haute Savoie region over three Stages. Take particular note of Stage 19 on Friday the 22nd July when the Tour will pass through our village of Talloires on the Annecy Lake. 

• Stage 18. 21st July. Time trial from Sallanches to Megève
• Stage 19.  22nd July. Mountain Stage from Albertville to St Gervais. Passing by Lake Annecy and through our village of Talloires before tackling the Col de La Forclaz
• Stage 20.  23rd July. Mountain Stage from Megève to Avoriaz passing over the Col des Aravis that divides the Haute Savoie from the Savoie.

Here is an avant-goût (taster) of the beauty that you will see. For more images of the village and the area do take a look at our personal site: https://lecormorantalloires.wordpress.com

The bay of Talloires

Looking across the Annecy Lake to Duingt. Look closely to see the castle on the tip of the promontory.

The Dents de Lanfon are in the background

Hop off and on the ferry to visit the Annecy Lake

The Bauges Mountains with Talloires in the foreground.

Our gorgeous village of Talloires

The village

The Abbey - now a hotel but originally a monastery. Due to celebrate it's 1000 years in 2018!

The water of the lake is perfect for swimming, boating...

If you haven't visited - it really is worthwhile.

And, for more information about the Tour - click here http://www.letour.com/le-tour/2016/us/stage-19.html

blood and tears

Today was no ordinary day.

Please stop the carnage.

Je suis dégoûtée. 

Je suis triste.

... mais 

A vos côtés.

Quick bites

I was asked recently, by someone heading for a short stint in France, if I could think of any obvious cultural pitfalls to try and avoid when she arrived. The need to greet all present before launching into the nitty-gritty of the reason for being somewhere, and the 'bise', (the delightful French custom of greeting by way of a kiss or kisses), came to mind immediately.








A little later, I was preparing myself a tisane, a herbal tea, made, in this case, exclusively from the plants in the gardens of the Talloires Abbey, when I remembered an awkward moment that I had experienced many years before.


Then, employed by the French government as an English-speaking assistante, my rather vague job description was to help out the English teachers with their classes in two French collèges. It was a nine-month position and, as I was young and carefree, it seemed like an excellent way to experience first-hand living à la française.

As luck would have it, I was posted to Grenoble, where the only person that I knew in France, lived. My friend suggested that she meet me at the train station and take me back to her parents' house for a couple of days until I found my feet. Hugely relieved at the idea, I accepted. Breakfast had finished for the family when I arrived, but the mother busied herself with preparing me a cup of tea ... only the cup was not like any cup that I had drunk tea from before. In my limited experience, soup would have been a more suitable liquid and I looked around for a spoon, thinking that it was strange that no-one in all my years studying French at school and at university had prepared me for drinking tea like the French. But, there was no spoon and I wriggled uncomfortably, hearing my own mother's voice concerning soup-drinking etiquette. "Don't slurp." "Tilt the bowl at an angle away from you and use your spoon to get the last drops." "No, Catherine, do not pick up the bowl with your hands." What was I to do? I procrastinated, waited until my host left the room, grabbed the bowl with both hands, downed the tea and slipped the bowl quickly back in place... precisely as I should have done, minus the haste and embarrassment.

And now, for a bit of cultural confusion in reverse.

Back in Australia, my daughter took a packet of Mini Bites (bite-sized brown rice crackers) to school to eat at recess. Hoeing into them, there was a loud guffaw from the boy to her right. Said monsieur then reached into his pocket for his iPhone. Still laughing, he took a photo to send back to his classmates in France. His language background took him on an altogether different mind journey ...  if further explanation needed click here