Fiona Alderman’s blog: Winter Is Coming
When I saw my neighbour bringing in huge wooden logs – I thought this is early, non? Life in rural France has its peculiarities but this still seemed strange. However, nothing much surprises me now after 20 years. He was hard at work with the chainsaw cutting them into smaller pieces –often very early in […]
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Saturday, September 26, 2020 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman’s Blog: A Sunday afternoon in sleepy Salignac
Opening the front door this last weekend I was greeted with the sound of accordion music coming from my neighbour’s open window. So French. Lovely. Another neighbour was on the phone to someone and his voice was raised drowning out the music, until he slammed the phone down. I decided to go for a little […]
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Wednesday, August 26, 2020 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: Blogging from Rural France, July 2020
The New Mayor and a Tent for Sale A busy month here in rural France with the local elections for Mayor. Monsieur Laurent, from this village won the battle, but it was a close shave. We have known him for a long time as he used to live down the road from us and when […]
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Thursday, July 30, 2020 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman blogging from Rural France: The End of An Era
I don’t know where to start this month, so will begin with the end. I have just lost my lovely cat, Toerag, who I had to put down last week. The French call our pets “animaux de compagnie”. So true. They are our companions, giving us unconditional love. It is the end of an era […]
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Thursday, June 25, 2020 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman Blogging from Rural France, May 2020
Making Masks. (Photo by Elena Djelil) This last month has been long and strange during the confinement relating to Covid-19. However, we have all rallied round and tried to keep our spirits up. The local hall has been transformed into a hive of industry, making masks for the population in Salignac. People have been asked […]
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Wednesday, May 27, 2020 | Filed under: Coronavirus, Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: Stuck in Salignac and Just Waiting
A month later and we really are housebound here during the Coronavirus lockdown. It seems never ending but we are all pulling together and obeying the restrictions. Going out for a very necessary walk for health reasons each day in the beautiful sunshine is not a hardship however. We still have to have our piece […]
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Saturday, April 25, 2020 | Filed under: Coronavirus, Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France, Pat's Home Page Blog
Fiona Alderman: France Has Shut Down
It is extraordinary to see and one I never thought I would experience in my lifetime shops, cafes and restaurants are all closed in France. Only shops selling food essentials, pharmacies and hospitals are open. Schools and universities are now closed for the immediate future.There is fear and worry about what is going to happen […]
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Saturday, March 28, 2020 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman blogging from rural France. UK is out of Europe.
Brexit What a disaster but it is now done after a tortuous 3 years. We are waiting to see the effects for us and what will happen next. It is still uncertain but there will be a transition year to put things in place. However, because we have lived here so long now, it might be […]
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Tuesday, February 25, 2020 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
From Glasgow to Salignac: 20 years on. Fiona Alderman.
This time 20 years ago, I was amidst boxes and paper packing up for the big move to France. How quickly the time has whizzed by? I can’t believe it but it’s true. I remember that my beloved had gone on ahead to start preparations at our new house in France. Setting up the phone, […]
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Tuesday, January 28, 2020 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman Christmas in Salignac
The Yellow Liqueur of Christmas Once again, our local corner shop L’Epicier has some unusual items for sale at Christmas. I had seen a poster in their window, very eye catching, advertising La Gauloise, a strong liqueur. Named as a Liqueur Hygienique it comes in a beautiful bottle which lists all the prizes it has […]
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Monday, December 30, 2019 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman blogging from Rural France – time is marching on
Local News from Salignac A strange time here with one thing and another. The village is quiet before the mad rush for Christmas starts. I am thinking what a year it has been and how quickly time goes by. We have had health issues and we seem never to be away from waiting rooms and […]
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Sunday, November 24, 2019 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: The Lady in Black
From time to time the old Convent in Salignac hosts cultural evenings and the other weekend we were invited to a musical tribute to the French singer Barbara. A lovely lady, Mireille, sang and accompanied herself on piano, recalling the life of this wonderful singer. Born Monique Serf in 1930 with Russian background and Jewish […]
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Thursday, October 24, 2019 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman Blogging from Rural France – The Final Fete
The Final Fete The last summer fair in Salignac was at the end of August, and already the feeling is one of closure and the start of Autumn. There was a slightly bittersweet reunion of the long term association which had broken up during the last year and then reformed. Depicting a Medieval theme, the […]
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Thursday, September 26, 2019 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: Rural Living in France
Computers and Local Fetes Last month I regaled you with stories of banks and computer problems? Unfortunately they are still not resolved and seem to have become worse, if that is possible? With further hassles at the bank because the card fraud happened again and never ending difficulties getting the computer up and running. The […]
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Sunday, August 18, 2019 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: Summer Stories from Salignac
A very hot spell here with temperatures reaching 40 degrees at one point, it has been a bit overwhelming. This past month we have had a lot of technical problems,which proved time consuming as well as annoying. We first discovered something amiss with one of our bank accounts with several unknown withdrawals. It was a […]
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Friday, July 26, 2019 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: Updates from France
A strange but busy time this past month. The terrible bins are still a nuisance and people are complaining but to no avail.Two associations have now begun from the ill fated Vieux Metiers and I went along to a meeting recently for one of them. Adventurous plans are being discussed in true French manner, with […]
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Sunday, May 26, 2019 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman blogging from Rural France: bins, earthquakes and threats
Yes, this month has been lively with all of the above happening in a quiet rural village. The new bins were unveiled and it is still a mystery why they were changed in the first place as they are hopeless. It is a daily nuisance sorting everything into the correct bags before hauling it all […]
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Monday, April 29, 2019 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: Blogging from Rural France – The cat that got the cream
The famous couturier Karl Lagerfeld died in February at aged 85. His equally famous Burmese cat named Choupette is looking to inherit supposedly a vast chunk of money. However, there are strict laws leaving money to pets after death in France,but as Lagerfeld was German then it could be allowed. With over 200 million Euros left […]
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Thursday, March 28, 2019 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: New roofs and new beginnings
From new roofs to constant health concerns but we are on the up and enjoying the promise of Spring. Yes, everywhere there is the annual wake up after a very cold winter. We thought back to February 19 years when we first came to look at the house here. Will we? Won’t we? The weather […]
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Wednesday, February 27, 2019 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: A Winter Tale from Salignac
Wishing you all a very Happy New Year from France.They say here Bonne Anné mais surtout la sante. Above all, health is everything. When you don’t have it it is a different thing. We are undergoing these problems at the moment but with a lot of help and consideration.Plus the French Health service is excellent. Locally, […]
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Sunday, January 27, 2019 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: The Capital of Christmas
After 5 weeks of riots and strikes throughout France we are now once again on a high state of alert.A few days ago the beautiful city of Strasbourg was also hit by a terrorist attack.When people were enjoying this historic Christmas market they were suddenly taken by surprise. The President Mr. Macron is not very […]
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Thursday, December 27, 2018 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman blogging from Rural France – From Strikes to Yellow Jackets
The French do like to have strikes and really they are quite effective.However this month it has touched us locally in France Profonde. Firstly, the post office.This is a tragic one unfortunately.A woman post mistress in Sarlat killed herself after enduring months of harassment which went largely ignored by her superiors. She kept making complaints […]
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Friday, November 30, 2018 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: Superstitions French Style
I thought I might talk about something different this time .Why not? I am sure every country has its own personal superstitions and I think we can learn from them. 1. The first one is about la baguette. Something very important in daily French life, if you can’t afford a baguette things are bad. Simple […]
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Monday, October 29, 2018 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: A Snapshot of Salignac
A busy month again but it is now the end of the season. Visitors are leaving and the exodus of cars and camping vans are noticeable on the roads heading Northwards and everywhere of course. It has been a strange time with tourism though .It was deemed to have fallen even during August, normally the […]
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Saturday, September 29, 2018 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman’s Blog: A Shower at the Chateau
A shower at the chateau There has been so much going on here the last few months that I hardly know where to start? From hospital visits to leaking boilers it has been a test of the French language in all its wonders. We have had a boiler problem for a while now, but it […]
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Monday, August 20, 2018 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman blogging from Rural France: Red Gates and Rendezvous
This month has been a busy one.We have had numerous appointments for doctors unfortunately. The French word is rendezvous which has a different meaning in English and rather makes me smile.A secret liaison comes to mind? However there is nothing secret in the amount of time we have spent recently in waiting rooms.Too much. […]
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Thursday, June 28, 2018 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman, Blogging from Rural France – A Sweet Story
Tarte Tatin (Image by Loslazos [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons) There is a famous French dessert called Tarte Tatin, which I love.I wondered about its origins? Apparently it was named after two sisters, who ran a hotel in the 1880’s and within it a fine restaurant.It was called Hotel Tatin about 100 miles […]
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Saturday, May 26, 2018 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: Blogging from Rural France – Works in Progress
After a very long winter we are finally into Spring and waking up to the sound of…… machinery. Yes, Salignac is starting to move again with re-openings and renovations. I mentioned last month about the ruined house next to the Convent? After nearly two years of the whole road being blocked and barriers everywhere they […]
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Tuesday, April 24, 2018 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman: The Crusaders’ Convent
It is one of the most beautiful and also one of the oldest buildings in Salignac, probably built in the 13th century. It is South facing onto the street and consists of six huge arched doorways and three pairs of gothic style windows on the level above. All of this topped by great wooden beams […]
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Monday, March 26, 2018 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
Fiona Alderman. Blogging from Rural France – the story of Nutella and more
This month’s headlines here were surprising. The brand Nutella, which manufactures a very sweet chocolate spread, recently had huge discounts at a popular chain of supermarkets. From costing 4 euros it was reduced to just over a euro, leading to stampedes in the aisles! I couldn’t believe it when it was reported on the local […]
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Friday, February 23, 2018 | Filed under: Fiona Alderman blogging from The Salignac Foundation France
