We were at our home in France for the last three days. It was a good visit, the builder is reliable and skilled as well as becoming a friend and the final works are being finished. We may even have a courtyard and lawn by our next visit!. Thursday Morning we went for a walk along the little track on the other side of the river. At one point it is quite steep where,about five years ago, a snake, a couleuvre, slithered out of the hedge and wrapped itself around Valerie’s right ankle. It was so fast. I heard a rustle and suddenly it was there it was well over a meter long, perhaps even one and a half metres. It kept head butting her as she hopped along trying to shake it off. Suddenly it let go and was gone. Valerie was totally unfazed and kept on walking. It was olive green, a female and according to Wikipedia the one that the Romans consider a healing snake and a pair of them the form the caduceus which is strictly the sign of Hermes or Mercury not Aescalapius who was the god of physicians and has only one snake. Wikipedia is wonderful isn’t it. This time we found masses of wild garlic and the air was full of its delicious smell but no snakes.
There were lots of other wild flowers and a few sheep in the
adjoining field.
One little lamb had only just been born.
That evening we went for a meal at my favourite (non-Indian) restaurant anywhere, L’Orangerie and wild garlic appeared, again, at the meal. This time the beautiful little six-petalled star, white flowers were used to decorate my hors d’oeuvre or starter. It was beautiful and the dish which was chicken liver mousse, crispy Vendée ham and a spear of fat, white asparagus wonderful. The other sprig was a leaf of celery.
