Handmade

The Lot-et-Garonne region is the agricultural heart of france.  As you drive from ville to ville, your eyes feast upon the patchwork of fields, one after another, of the different crops that are grown here.  Unlike in the U.S., where we tend to grow one or two types of food in a region, here there are many diferrent crops grown side by side.  I have seen fields of apples, kiwis, corn, grapes, walnuts, tobacco, pears, tomatoes, squash, sorghum, onions, sugar beets, plums, sunflower seeds and I could go on.  It is an amazing sight everytime we get into the car.  They also strategically grow poplar trees next to the food crops, as this is the wood that is used for the crates that the food is packed and shipped in.  So smart!

poplar trees

kiwi field

Of course, the payoff is in the markets, as you walk through the aisles.  The abundance of all that hard work is in each  stall.  I am overwhelmed by a sense of gratitude.  How lucky we are to have so many fabulous things to eat.  To enjoy a fat plum, with the juice dripping down your arm! 

So many treasures to put in your bag, to take home and make into a beautiful meal!

Kate and I have also been able to hit some of the brocantes (like our antique malls). 

We picked up a set of antique cupping glasses (as used in chinese medicine) and I turned it into a candle lit chandelier before our company arrived for Sunday lunch.  This is the custom here to have a large meal on Sundays, where you invite friends and sit for a few hours to catch up.  It was a beautiful meal and I met some very nice friends of Kates.

chandelier on Kate's terrace

 Tomorrow we are visiting some of the commercial kitchen shops around Agen.  Can't wait to see how they compare to ours!