And the year is almost over

Kaye's hair cutter has moved again, now practicing in Celles-sur-Belle, a pretty town just beyond Melle in Deux-Sevres. For her first visit, Ed went along for the ride and after the haircut, we visited the abbey church. The main door, under the tower, opens onto the square. Some of the church is 12C but rebuilt in the gothic style.

 

The stylized scallops over the archway leading into the soaring gothic nave let you know that this was another stop on the St Jacques de Compestela route.

On the weekend, while Ed was practicing with his choir in Rochechouart, Kaye went to a marché de noël in nearby Montemboeuf. Lots of crafts to be seen, but also a bucking bronco à la Mickey Gilley's being enjoyed by kids.

The following week our pellet-burning stove got its annual cleaning and we got a delivery of pellets. They had called to set an appointment in September on a day we were away from the house and December was our next chance to get this done. Very popular, these pellet-burning things.

Ed's Montemboeuf choir did two carol concerts again this year, one in Pressignac, then two days later in Montbron, their home turf, shown here.

Here's a little clip of them singing. Steeleye Span fans might recognize this.

Late last year Ed had to replace his French driver's license when the original was damaged. Following this he got a letter saying this one had to be replaced by the end of 2014 with the new card-style license that's become standard throughout Europe. He took his license, the letter, and another photo to the préfecture in Angoulême and patiently waited in line, only to be told that he could continue using his old-style folding pink-paper license. Everyone was puzzled about the letter. We are puzzled too.

The weekend before xmas we went to our "regular" marché de noël at Chassenon. This year we'd already planned our meal and ordered a lamb's rack from our local butcher, but we still enjoyed looking at all the food on offer. We came away with some candles (that turned out not to be beeswax as advertised), fruit and veg, cheese, and some figs stuffed with foie gras.

Capons of various sorts (chicken, duck, etc.) remain very popular. (We had caponized quail a few years ago and were a bit disappointed.)

For macaroon fans, there was a table full of those.

On our way home we stopped for a little walk with Pogo by one of the Haute-Charente lakes. This was the first sunny day in the month, and we were happy to see the blue sky. It got cloudy again after this.

This year we got a live tree and will put somewhere on the South Forty sometime in January. No animals in the picture this year, since cat corralling seemed like too much trouble.

After xmas we had a few lovely days, cold and crisp, ending as the clouds rolled in with this spectacular sunset.

We wish everyone a healthy and happy 2015!