WELL I am pretty sure it is a parasol mushroom – but I spotted this whilst out this morning taking the dog for a walk.
Parasol mushrooms are fairly common around this corner of the Dordogne and are often fried in a little butter and garlic before being piled on top of some crusty bread.
Many farmers are also busy at the moment collecting chestnuts, and despite long lengths of netting being placed beneath the trees it is still a time-consuming task to collect them.
With crisp, fresh mornings giving way to warm, sunny afternoons there is a mix of autumn and summer in the air – click on the thumbnail to see the larger image.
The remains of a First World War gas mask recovered during the dig.
THE work on recovering the bodies of British and Australian soldiers buried in mass graves during World War One near Fromelles in northern France has turned up some intriguing objects.
I HAD to slowly back away from the computer screen after opening an email from reader Steve Pritchard with a photograph of this bug attached.
He is hoping that other readers of the site will be able to identify what type of beetle it is, he saw it whilst out walking near a vineyard at Peyriac de Mer just west of Narbonne (map).
Click on the thumbnail image to get a better view of the beast, and if you know what it is please leave a comment below.
Large round hay bales scattered across the fields of Loubejac
WHEN I moved to a small house in sight of the church tower at Loubejac in the south of the Dordogne, one of the first people I met was Roger Clifford-Banks.
He first arrived in the Périgord region in 1972, and over the years has lived on and off in Loubejac with his wife and three children.
Computer visualisation of how the cemetery will look once completed later this year
WORK has started on the new cemetery at Fromelles, in northern France, which will provide a final resting place for around 400 British and Australian soldiers.
A DOG’S life in France can very often be spent at the end of a chain in a dusty courtyard, with their owner seeing them more as a guard dog than a pet.
But James Conroy sees such dogs as an opportunity to help them have a better life, as long as their owners are willing to understand the psychology of owning a dog.
James has completed a course in Avignon, overseen by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, which aims to help people with dangerous dogs control their animal so that both the dog and others are safe.
I HAVE already had to make my apologies a couple of times for completely misjudging the distances involved and dropping in on friends 15 to 20 minutes late.
If there is one thing I had forgotten about driving around the twisting, turning roads of the Dordogne it’s that what looks a short hop on a map, turns into quite a drive once en route.
DOES travel and living overseas broaden the mind? I hope so as in just over a week I will be heading back to France on a permanent basis.
It is nearly four years since I packed up the car and headed out of the small Dordogne village of Loubejac, but I don’t think I ever really left the place behind as This French Life took up more and more of my time.
LA POSTE has a service that allows you to buy and print off stamps through your computer, for internal post as well as overseas.
The Mon Timbr en Ligne service lets you pick from over 200 designs of stamp and in a couple of steps print off a sheet or add a stamp to an individual envelope.
You can buy stamps for regular envelopes or larger parcels, and because you credit your account you can use them whenever they are required.
Printing sheets of stamps
Sheets of labels can be used, and it is also possible to print directly to envelopes or label makers and as a safety measure you can print a test sheet in advance to make sure everything is lined up correctly.
You first pick the design of your stamp, that includes areas of France or cities such as Avignon or Paris, as well as simple graphics and drawings with a touch of French life.
Small parcels and letters
You then pick the type of letter or small parcel you want to send which is based on the weight, so the lowest priced option covers a letter weighing less than 20g and that is priced at 1,13 €.
Your next step is printing the stamps onto a sheet of A4 paper, if you have paper with stickers you can provide the size of them and the online printing service will adjust the dimensions of the stamp.
You can print just one stamp or a number of stamps up to a maximum of 24 on one sheet of A4 paper, with the total number of stamps you can buy in one go numbering 500.
How to stick the stamps on
There is a small help notice should you wonder how to attach your stamps to the envelope and that is to cut out the individual stamps and then use a glue stick to attach them, sticky tape or liquid glue is not suitable.
It is possible to buy stamps for letters to be sent to the UK, the US and other countries, and the price is exactly the same as if you were to use the local post office.
And I suppose that’s one of the great worries about this service, is this another blow to local postal services especially in the countryside?
PROPERTY insurers Intasure have asked owners of properties damaged by the storm winds that hit south west France to contact them so that any claims can be processed.
Intasure are asking policy holders to take photographs of the damage that has been caused and to get written quotes for the work required.
Work up to a value of €1,500 will be covered if it is required quickly and a claim form is available via the documentation link of the Intasure website.
PROPERTY insurers Intasure have asked owners of properties damaged by the storm winds that hit south west France to contact them so that any claims can be processed.