The daily diary of a wandering restaurateur
May 11 - At Home in Dordogne
When we have a down day, it is really a down day. I don't think we went out the front
door until 5pm! But I got caught up on all my trip reports and e-mail, we got the laundry
done, had a nice little in-home picnic and generally reloaded and recharged. Particularly
on a trip this long, it is an essential part of the program.
Lessons learned: on a three-week trip, we will usually rent a house for a week of it and travel around before and after. This time we had two weeks of travel before settling down for a week. Renting the house in the middle is the way to go. You break up the trip, can get caught up on laundry at the beginning and end of the week and generally enjoy a more leisurely trip.
Our hosts, Mike and Jean Wragg from Great Britain, dropped by for a glass of wine in the early evening. They are delightful people who haven't quite decided if they live in the UK and make extended visits to France, or live in France and make frequent trips back to England. We had a lively conversation that ranged from local attractions to the state of world politics. We would probably still be talking had it not been for the need to eat.
They had dinner on at home and we headed back to the bistro in Tremolat that sent us away last night. The meal was simple but much higher on the food chain than usual. Still, there is something about fresh food prepared superbly and presented with pride that transcends considerations of price. Tomorrow, though, we will eat more simply.
© 2004 Restaurant Doctor
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