France 2024 - Days 77 and 78 – Unsettled

I am unsettled. With less than a week to go before my date of return to California I am having a hard time concentrating on anything in particular. I could go back to my writing, but I can write back home whereas I probably won’t be back in Périgord for many years to come. I feel I have to soak in the spirit of the region, and of the town of Bergerac, so I can see them in my imagination at a future time.

For starters, I went back to Lascaux to once again immerse on the beauty of the paintings, taking my time to imagine the hand of the artist who, 20,000 years ago, “saw” the power of the horses and auroxes that surrounded them, or the herd of deer swimming across La Vezere, and immortalize them on the walls of a cave of difficult access, as some sort of message to future generations.

On getting back, I faced another of my last challenges: To continue eating some the magnificent dishes that make French cuisine so unique. Tonight I am trying Moules Frites at the small restaurant at the Regional Park of La Pombonne. I have been waiting for this treat for a good couple of months, first because they only offer this dish on Thursday evenings, and second because it is so popular that you have to make a reservation days in advance. Moules Frites could be translated as Fried Mussels, but that would give you the wrong idea. They should be called Moules et Frites, to convey that they are steamed mussels (cooked in a wine mariniere sauce, a Rochefort creamy sauce, or a wine parsley sauce), served with a big serving of pommes frites (French fries). I chose the Rochefort mussels and they were divine. I will need to make them back at home, for Ronnie. The only problem is that I started dining at 9 pm, and was not out of there until 11 pm, way past my bed time!

The following morning I went on a long bike ride along the right bank of La Dordogne, from Bergerac to Lalinde (east of Bergerac), and saw with great satisfaction that (1) two months of biking have increased my stamina to the point that the 50 km round trip was no big deal, and (2) La Dordogne still has many beautiful spots that I would do well to discover. Maybe on Sunday, two days from now, I will try to the path between Bergerac and Libourne, to the west.

Back to food, which is becoming an obsession. I want to try a rabbit aspic, again, so a couple of days ago I ordered two pigs feet, which I have to cook to get the gelatine. Oh dear, they are huge, so now I have the challenge of cooking them today so I can do the aspic (that would be tomorrow’s meal, Saturday), and then make a dish with the cooked pig trotters (I think I will do them in a tomato sauce) for my Sunday dinner. Today Friday, I think I will do a fondue, with veggies and shrimp instead of bread croutons. I still have fish and fruits de mer in the fridge, so maybe do a fish soup on Monday, and … My problem is that I only know how to cook for a small army, so I fear there will be a lot of left overs for Tuesday and Wednesday and then it will be time for me to take off!