A weekend in Cluny
Our annual trek to France began in Burgundy this year; primarily to visit Lyons and our friends Narissa and Tony in Cluny. What a delight! Not only did we thoroughly enjoy Lyons (the gastronomic capital of France according to the guidebooks), but our visit with friends just outside of Cluny was fortuitous given that there was a major weekend fete to celebrate the 1100 anniversery of the founding of the city! First off, let me tell you that Tony and Narissa live in a wonderfully renovated old farm house complete with a number of outbuildings, an outdoor shower and two cats--just to make us feel at home! They are both generous hosts and it's easy to see how they became captivated with the area. Above, you can see us eating breakfast infront of the old "piggery". Our visit coincided with Tony's birthday so the wine flowed generously and of course there were meals to match. The meal at a local chateaux was only outdone by the picnic the following day in the streets of Cluny. Picture this--12 gates to the city that reflect the historic role as a gateway. Each gate and the street leading from it was assigned a designated color; as were the towns adjacent to those gates. The people from those villages were asked to dress in that color and come to town for a picnic. Each street was decorated by the towns and tables for picnic lunches provided. We were the green gate, so we wore green and ivy leaf tiaras The tables were set, food and wine passed along the rows--people outdid themselves in local specialties and we ate and drank enough to last us through that and into the next day! How lucky for us to be welcomed by all their neighbours and friends. If only I hadn't tried to run over several people as we were leaving the village!
Our annual trek to France began in Burgundy this year; primarily to visit Lyons and our friends Narissa and Tony in Cluny. What a delight! Not only did we thoroughly enjoy Lyons (the gastronomic capital of France according to the guidebooks), but our visit with friends just outside of Cluny was fortuitous given that there was a major weekend fete to celebrate the 1100 anniversery of the founding of the city! First off, let me tell you that Tony and Narissa live in a wonderfully renovated old farm house complete with a number of outbuildings, an outdoor shower and two cats--just to make us feel at home! They are both generous hosts and it's easy to see how they became captivated with the area. Above, you can see us eating breakfast infront of the old "piggery". Our visit coincided with Tony's birthday so the wine flowed generously and of course there were meals to match. The meal at a local chateaux was only outdone by the picnic the following day in the streets of Cluny. Picture this--12 gates to the city that reflect the historic role as a gateway. Each gate and the street leading from it was assigned a designated color; as were the towns adjacent to those gates. The people from those villages were asked to dress in that color and come to town for a picnic. Each street was decorated by the towns and tables for picnic lunches provided. We were the green gate, so we wore green and ivy leaf tiaras The tables were set, food and wine passed along the rows--people outdid themselves in local specialties and we ate and drank enough to last us through that and into the next day! How lucky for us to be welcomed by all their neighbours and friends. If only I hadn't tried to run over several people as we were leaving the village!
No comments:
Post a Comment