Au Marché

 Le Marché

The ancient Roman Ampitheatre ruins
at Saintes.

The amazing Cathedale de Saintes, dating
from the 12th century; restored in the 15th
century!

We went to the market town of Saintes, which is very old. There is a Roman amphitheater there, as well as the significant but less known Cathedrale de Saintes, an ancient and impressive structure! In the Cathedral I made the 'acquaintance' of my first saint! I guess I'll encounter more while I'm here. Seems there's a crypt under the Cathedrale floor where Saint Eutrope is buried. Saint Eutrope was Greek, sent by the Apostle Peter to evangelize the ancient Gauls in the new religion, about 250 A.D. He is also known as Saint Eutropius.

A beautiful variety of fishes at
the Sunday market in Royan.

The large selection of fowl--note the bird feet,
still attached, lower R. of center, at the
Sunday market in Royan.

Another day I went to the Sunday market in Royan. Open air markets like these are very common in France, and often have been held in the same place for centuries. These markets are a good place to do your shopping, as they often have the freshest produce and better prices than most stores. I was surprised it was so big. Not surprising is they have  lot of sea food here, plucked right from the Atlantic ocean. They also eat lot of different types of birds here in Aquitaine, not just chickens. Many enjoy guinea fowl, ducks, geese, and pigeons also.

Fruits de mer, seafood at the Sunday
market in Royan.

Buying clothing, bric a brac and house-
hold items at the Sunday market
in Royan.

It seems that fountain pens are rather common in France, they call them stylo plumme,"feather pens." I liked them, so I bought a "feather pen" at the market too!

 
 

The very modern Cathedrale
at Royan, built of cement,
simple lines, very little
ornamentation.

On the Way home From the Market: The town of Royan was bombed during World War II, so many of the buildings are newer, including its cathedral.

 

Le phare now a mile or so from the coast.

We went  also to the Phare de la Coubre; after many storms the phare, or lighthouse is in the middle of sand dunes.

 A Visit to Brouage:  Brouage is a fortified town in existence since the mid 1500's when it was an important salt market; later in the 1800's it was fortified with two sets of walls; gun powder was stored there.

An overview, explains the Brouage site.

The romantic story of Marie Mancini.

Examining the old fortified walls.

Amazing Rocks and Foods

An amazing sculpture museum!



I'm still in Aquitaine--
Near the town of Crazannes, located west of the market town Saintes, there are large deposits of very fine limestone, which has been quarried here for centuries.

Lapidiales Sculpture Museum-Workshop
Stone from this region can be found all around the Western world; in fact the stone base of the American icon, Statue of Liberty was quarried here. Also they say the French sculptor Auguste Rodin favored the stone here for his work too.
 One of the played-out quarries has been re-purposed into a museum of sorts, called Lapidiales. Artists from around the world come to carve new work into the limestone walls of the old quarry by invitation. There are many more sculptures here. These are a few I liked a lot.

 
Wonderful eats too!
We attended a soiree, apéritif dinatoire, or evening buffet at the neighbors for the New Year/ Epiphanie, also a holiday in France.
 All sorts of munchies: cut up sausages, cheese, shrimp, wrapped vegetables, champagne, wine, water, chips, dip, sliced dried meats, olives, breads and foie gras, or goose liver, a regional specialty; conversation, laughter, stories, more wine, (beer was a choice also), more laughter! and stories, small sandwiches of lettuce cheese and ham, more wine. All very tasty! It seems to be the way they celebrate here en famille! We were stuffed full.

Glad we're just 100 meters up the road. We walked home!

A neighborly feast!

Fresh from the sea Atlantic oysters.
A must have for the New Year.

Also this region is a major place for raising goose and ducks. They love pates, somewhat like meat loaf, of all sorts, terrines and stews. And the sea provides every type of fruits de mer that you can imagine. Oh, not to leave out wines. This is a major wine and spirit producing region here around Bordeaux. They also like fruits stewed in spirits for a treat.

 The neighbor had this odd specimen in their foyer. It was the first thing I noticed at their home! It's a kind of nocturnal badger called a Blaireau in French. They dig holes in yards around here and in the fields. People used their hair for manufacturing shaving brushes in the 19th century.

A blaireau or badger.