When I heard what wonderful weather my neighbours were enjoying while we were away, I despaired that my roses would wait for me to enjoy their blooms — while I have quite a few that keep blooming all summer, there are also quite a few wonderfully-scented pink roses that put on a one-time-only show in the spring — including the richly-fragrant Fantin-Latour shown above. Walking down the road to our home this morning, we could smell the roses even before we could see them — what a welcome! Indeed, rather than missing the annual show, we seem to have returned home right in the prime of it.
Here’s a charmingly-named Rosa Complicata, in fact a rose of the simplest structure.
Sadly, I was too jet-lagged to make the light work for me here, but you can still perhaps see how these roses have taken over, festooning the garden gate with pink blooms.
Other reasons I’m glad to be home:
For lunch: pita pockets stuffed with a mixture of chopped cauliflower, mushrooms, green onions, tomatoes and goat cheddar, microwaved for 2 minutes, or just until the veggies are nicely chewable and the cheese is melted — not very French at all, but one of my staple meals, and oh, how I’ve missed vegetables!
For dinner: a huge salad of spinach, sweet onion, chickpeas, tomatoes, cauliflower, and sliced barbequed steak. Again, this wouldn’t fly in Paris, but weeks of eating out had me craving dishes from lower on the food pyramid — I usually try for a base of veg, even if I don’t always live up to that. In both London and Paris, we tended to eat far more carbs and more protein than I find is good for me, so I was happy to have a bit more flexibility in my own kitchen. Not that I’d say no to some pretty little macarons for dessert should they magically appear, or to some beautiful croissants with my morning tea, but perhaps to say that too much of a good thing can make the taken-for-granted good things look even better.
Weeding, dead-heading, and just wandering my garden — there are hours and hours of work here, and I’m looking forward to letting this replace my last few weeks’ daily activity of wandering big-city streets. I love Paris and London — big cities in general offer so much to the senses, but I’m glad now to make those senses pay closer attention to a different, perhaps more subtle, set of stimuli.
The Wire, Season 5. After weeks of entertaining ourselves outside and in public spaces, Pater and I have been looking forward to coccooning in front of the television screen, and, in anticipation, we stopped at HMV in Montreal to pick up the last season of this brilliant, brilliant show. We’ve just watched the first episode, which didn’t disappoint, and we will probably hunker down for the second as well. Unless, that is, Pater finally succumbs to jet lag — he’s been going strong all day, running, gardening, cooking. While my “little nap” this afternoon stretched to 4 1/2 hours (he was supposed to wake me, but decided I needed the sleep), he’s been sleep-free since 5 this morning, and may be crashing shortly. I, on the other hand, may well be awake in the wee hours again tonight. . .
And one last reason I’m happy to be home — it’s so satisfying to watch our new pergola being claimed by the surrounding climbers. Here, the Felicité et Perpetué rose is working its way onto the structure while the Darlow’s Enigma in the background keeps its distance for now.
Glad you made it back safe and sound! I know what you're saying about eating out on holiday – it can get a little tiresome after a while. However, I am looking forward to our big holiday this summer – a week on a campsite (in a very well-appointed caravan) near St. Tropez. We'll be mostly cooking, so looking forward to the French grocery stores and supermarkets. Anyway, rest up – you know we are all looking forward to your Paris reports!! Patricia
Wow, such beauty.
The little bit of Vancouver we saw at 12am last night from the windows of our cab made me sigh…trees, so many trees, and a verdancy that tugs at my heart.
I am so glad you found the hives; I too would love to find them. I toyed with keeping bees recently but you need to be a member of one of those ginky clubs which I would not enjoy so I gave the ideas up. To try and do it solo without the support of those more knowledgeable would be too stressful.
I am surprised you have had so much rain; I went into Notre Dame when I was about 5 the sheer beauty of that place has stayed with me since. I think it is because it is so much darker than English Cathedrals, ours feel like warehouses by comparison!
Hope you have a safe trip home, I bet your garden has doubled in size.
I wrote that last week, it has taken this long to find a computer thats free!
So glad you got back safely, as a traveller I too can tire of the relentless buffet breakfasts and crave toast and marmalade. with a cup of tea. I can only drink tea in England! it's the water, it has to be very hard for me. I try hard to eat salads when we go out, but i know what you mean about missing veg.
The roses look divine as always.
Since I saw you I have only managed to see 3 episodes of my mad men DVD and each one of those received constant interruptions. So enjoy yours. DO NOT envy you the jet lag though there is always a sting with these trips.
Patricia: That sounds like a wonderful holiday you have planned and it sounds as if it has the potential to keep everyone happy. I like the idea of having my own kitchen (even a caravan one — and I know some of those can be very nice) in France — what wonderful markets to take advantage of.
Pseu: And next weekend you'll see it in daylight — I'm crossing my fingers it won't be raining. So looking forward to meeting you!
Alison: Tea is such a comfort drink, for me at least, and part of the comfort resides in its being precisely the way I'm used to it, so I really sympathize/agree with you about the difference in the water. And I can't abide a cup that's not piping hot!
Remembering what it was like to have a full house, including several adolescents at once, I am even more appreciative of the quiet I have now — you'll be here someday 😉
I'm waiting for Mad Men, Season 2, but it's not released 'til July sometime — can't wait!
Stunning roses! I know what you mean about vegetables; my returns from Paris are vegstravaganzas… need to (as delicately as I can put it) get my digestive system running up to speed with roughage. Welcome home!
Duchesse: Precisely! Up and running (although hopefully not quite "running"!)
Oh yes, the craving for vegetables upon the return. I forget how many vegetables we actually eat until I go away and then I miss them terribly.
Wow, the roses are amazing. The first one looks more like a Peony. I think I will now change my name to "Komplicata." It would suit me well in my mid-forties!
Komplicated Karen: Yes, and that first rose smells unbelievably wonderful, such a deep rich fragrance!