January 11, 2010

I love France in the winter, when it's snowing!

Okay, we were completely wrong about how much snow fell here in France….and it became more evident as we got deeper into the countryside. Finally, we saw a news announcement posted in the window of a French bakery that said it was a historic snowfall in the region with almost 40 cm (16 inches) of snow. Some of our French friends we saw today said they haven’t been out in four days and that this is the kind of weather they only hear about in Russia or Canada. Our car did end up stuck in the snow as we returned to our bed & breakfast last night at the end of a long jet-lagged day. Despite the cold, the snow really makes France even more beautiful.

Today was an eventful and productive day. As always, in order to find the unique and unusual, we stopped to meet with six different contacts resulting in only about thirty acquisitions. However, what incredible finds!

We found a spectacular 18th century polychrome blackamoor from Venice holding a removable fan of palm leaves (photos unavailable). All hand carved and hand painted, this piece is in pristine condition and is a very rare find.

This early 19th century Louis XV style armoire from La Sarthe is in amazing condition and is a very unusual size – less than seven feet tall!

Now THIS is a copper piece! Standing over 5 feet tall, this yellow copper cauldron stood surrounded by a double staircase in the foyer of a mansion in Le Perche.

We ended our shopping day at a creperie recommended by one of our French friends. The fish soup with baguette croutons, crème fraiche, and gruyere cheese was just what we needed to warm us up. As a main course we each had what Renee kept calling “the best crepes I’ve had in thirty years of travelling to France.” It was quite a reward after digging so hard for antiques today. But, after finishing dinner at 9 p.m., we headed back to our B&B for several hours of computer work.