I was woken up by the chatter of restless children outside my bedroom. They don’t have school on Wednesdays so they usually hand around Caroline and I but today is my day off I’ve decided and I’m going into town for the market.
For such a small quiet town, Barbotan has a huge local market with everything you need. I’m a little frightened of sparking up a conversation with a vender, they seem to like talking and explaining their products in detail. I want to buy some of this Armagnac that this region is so famous for but even buying it directly from the producers is outrageously expensive, maybe I’ll just buy some staples to get me through the week.
Anyway, I finally got a good picture of the front of the château and where we eat lunch everyday. It seems that every time we’re out there now we catch the geese eating the grapes and have to chase them out of the vines. This is not usually the job for me simply because those geese are out to get me and will literally go out of there way just to chase me and bite at me; apparently they can sense my fear.


As for “The Idiot” Davor, it’s going really well. I’m only about 35 pages in but I like it so far, it’s a little hard to remember the names of people because I can’t pronounce them at all.

It's true, we can still smile after a 10 hour day and a face full of paint.

Green arrow - Yo La Tango
les filles et Les Chiens - Jacques Brel

Chateaux Tour Blanc

Cazaubon

Le Velo

Cazaubon

The sun is setting quickly again here in Barbotan and I should get back to the farm for dinner soon. It was another long day of fermentation tank preparation today, taking off old paint, covering up rusty metal, painting in confined spaces... Fortunately it was another beautiful day and we at on the patio of the chateaux with a few glasses of Corsican red.
A few days ago I bought a very cheap bottle of wine to have for my dinners, this turned out to be a major mistake that I should have foreseen, for now every time the topic of wine comes up around Philip (and it does often one could guess) he is quick to make joke of how I drink shitty wine. Sandra must of somehow found out that I was desperate to improve my French so she has employed the children to help out, but of course nothing has come of that yet, but I’ll just keep talking to them until they respond. “So you must be a connoisseur of Washington wines then right?” I was asked by Philip. “I guess I should know, I’ve lived there my whole life, but I don’t”
I’m not going to edit this because my batteries just about dead, I hope it makes sense.

The photo behind the title was the sun rising over my farm this morning.

The pain in Caroline’s mouth had gotten so bad that it’s hard for her to eat and this morning she was given a ride to the family doctor. I on the other hand woke up at four with a horrible sore throat and had to make some hot tea with rum to kill off the bacteria and sooth the pain. I was sent to weed the grapes on the far end of the vineyard at eight, it was hard work as usual and my back hurts quite a bit.
After eating a spectacular lunch Sandra had prepared (it always is and I never leave a scrap on the plate) I prepared the inside walls of a holding tank for painting tomorrow. The afternoons here seem to always be much more laid back and by five I had decided I was done and took Caroline’s bike into town.
Right now I’m sitting in the park watching a few games of Boules. It’s pretty much exclusively older people in town but just a minute ago I was lucky enough to catch eyes with a cute girl walking out of the activity center where I get wireless. I’ll have to get on top of my French if I ever want to speak with her though, where are you when I need you the most Amanda?!
Anyway, the whether is once again perfect and the scenery is exactly what I pictured it would be. The days are moving fast though and I can’t wait to take a day off and explore. Maybe I’ll go to the coast; I hear that’s where I need to go first.
As soon as I take some better pictures of the farm and the châteaux I’ll be quick to post them, it’s an amazing place that’s for sure.
au revoir…