Bakin in the Boulangerie

On Monday I was invited into an organic bakery (owned by a friend of Bruno) to see how bread is made. It turns out they he doesn't make brioche, only different kinds of bread (raisin, sesame, etc) and brioche. But I was given an apron and put to work right when I arrived at 8:30am, weighing the dough into the specific amounts needed for each bread as Gerard Kot made the dough so that it could ferment for the three hours. Then he rolled the dough I had weighed into the specific bread rolls and put then on their linen paper so they could ferment for another few hours before going into the wood fire. He said boulangeries often use ready-made flour today (just add water) but he uses organic flour and then levain (which is an organic way of making the bread rise instead of using yeast, its fermented bread added to the dough). In order to make all of this dough he works from 4am until 11pm on Mondays and Thursdays, and on the other days he delivers his breads to organic stores in local towns for them to sell (and then his wife runs their small bakery).

Only 15 min Away

Heather and I have been doing language exchanges (half French half English) with Mary Bouchut, the sweetest French woman ever who wans to keep up her English after having been in Australia for six months. She took us to some towns right nearby St Etienne on Sunday that can only be reached by car but are breathtaking. We saw two castles, one near St Just St Rambert and one in Chmables before having delicious cinnamon and pistachio hot chocolates. Even better Mary lives one floor above our friend Jack who was cooking us all a delicious meal of shrimp salad and coq au vin that night.

Leaving Portsmouth

We spent half of our last day in Portsmouth saying goodbye to out host families and seeing a few scenic sites. Then it was off on our six hr boat ride across the Channel. I actually slept on the coash ride home but when I got back to St Etienne and saw the snow I felt like I had gone back in time. Everyone else got to come back to the smiling faces of their families and I was off to walk uphill feeling like I was back in December with over a month till I get home. But once I saw my friends that night and went to see local towns with Mary the next day (see next entry) I was glad to have time left.

Isle of Wight

When Alison said in the morning that there is a lot of countryside and not many factories on the island so a lot of unemployment, I thought well who would want to live on a small island with factories. I had no idea how big the island was going to be. Luckily our coach bus was taken onto the island because once you're on the island you forget its an island its so big. The coastline is beautiful, with white cliffs and no fencing to keep you from walking right off it. The countryside seems so pure, like it is cut off from the real modern day world, and the thatched roof houses were like out of a cartoon. I was so surprised that such a beautiful place has stayed so authentic and that there is not construction going on around everywhere. It was also like being on a safari, seeing all kinds of animals from llamas to pheasants to oddly colored cows. I think the island was my favorite part of the trip, along with Corinne trying to say into the microphone "Look at this magnificent castle we're about to visit" as Christine is mumbling "What are those ruins over there?".