After a quick stop in Montreuil (near Paris), I headed for Angers. Angers is fairly close to where I am from; however, I had not been there since I was a young kid and the only thing I could remember of the town was the famous castle (we used to pass it when driving from Nantes to Paris). My expectations were not really high, but I was agreeably surprised. Angers is a really pleasant town with a great atmosphere.
I was there for a conference, but arrived the evening before. The sun was shining and it was warm and I was at leisure to explore this charming town. I love small and disordered streets and I enjoyed wandering in them.
There are many old stone buildings and a beautiful cathedral, as well as some maisons à colombage. I decided to have my dinner on a terrace facing one of them.
We were treated like kings at the conference and maybe it is not such a myth that the French like their food and their wine; I just did not grow up in such a family. On both days, two hours were allocated for the lunch break, and these were indeed spent eating and drinking. We had three-course meals in both places. The first was only the university cafeteria, but the food was delicious. The second day, we went to a café-bistro where we were able to eat on the terrace and enjoy a leisurely lunch in the sun.
You might notice that I am skipping a meal here. For the conference dinner, we were bought by bus to a village, Louresse-Rochemier, where a table had been reserved for us in a troglodyte restaurant, Les Caves de la Genevraie. Troglodytes are houses that are built in the rock. The temperature there can be quite low, but a fire kept the restaurant room warm and cosy. There, we were served a traditional and earthy meal. Each course was accompanied with some fouace, a traditional bread, which was made on the premises and served hot. We began with a fouace stuffed with some mushrooms (grown in some toglodyte houses), followed by some rillettes. Then, the main course arrived and consisted of a dish of white beans and rillauds (little bits of lard), which you spread on your fouace. Being in France, we couldn’t escape a plateau de fromage, to my delight, as well as a dessert. A filling meal, but as we took our time, we were able to fit everything. Through the meal, we actually took a break and went to visit another part of the restaurant where the baker makes the bread. It was a most enjoyable evening and a great food experience.
The conference itself was also a success. The theme of the conference was The Figure of the Author in the Short Story (you can read the programme here), a topic that I find highly interesting. It was a small conference and consequently very friendly. The plenary speaker, Charles E. May (whose blog you can read here) delivered a paper highlighting why the short story is a more writerly genre than the novel. There was also a roundtable led by Tim Struthers (whose first ever interview was of Magaret Atwood) on the topic of interviews. The highlight of the conference was a reading by Toby Litt, followed by a series of questions and answers.
Here is the complete set of photos:
11 comments
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July 20, 2011 at 10:08 pm
Albert Kleyn
Em, enjoyed reading this but have to admit it made me hungry as I have had very little to eat today. Never seen much of France, my days at IBM kept me in Nice and Montpellier or Paris. There is an author waiting to burst out of you so do let me know when we can look forward to your first book ? .
July 21, 2011 at 11:07 pm
Em
There will be a thesis before a book. Unfortunately, I doubt I have a gift for creative writing…
July 20, 2011 at 10:23 pm
Short Story Slore
Beautiful pictures! And I’m intrigued by that conference you attended. I need to find something like that 🙂
July 21, 2011 at 11:03 pm
Em
If I’m not mistaking, you are in the States. The next International Conference on the Short Story in English will be held somewhere there. I know, it’s vast but I can’t remember where exactly and can’t find the article I read online. Keep an eye out for it though. I really enjoyed the last one!
July 21, 2011 at 6:58 am
Corey
What an amazing-looking town! I’m so jealous of your conference-fueled European jaunting. 🙂
July 21, 2011 at 11:05 pm
Em
Eheh! I’ve been nicknamed the jet-setter by my fellow PhD candidates!
I must find one in Portugal now as I have never been there and would really like to…
July 23, 2011 at 12:47 pm
Corey
Good strategy! Identify places you want to go and then find a conference to match. Awesome plan.
July 21, 2011 at 7:48 pm
Zhu
I’m sure I visited the city back when I was in school (probably for a field trip) but I don’t remember much. All I know is the madatory 2-minute stop in “Angers St Lo” on the way to and from Paris!
I always read the name as “Anger” (in English) now 😆
July 21, 2011 at 11:08 pm
Em
Ahah!
Well, people were really relaxed when I was there, no angry vibes at all!
July 21, 2011 at 10:59 pm
Bellezzaw
I so enjoyed looking at all your photographs, but most especially the one of the paved street. Those little narrow passageways are so indicative of France (and Italy) to me, and they make me immediately nostalgic.
Perhaps the Little Prince is just around the corner?
July 21, 2011 at 11:10 pm
Em
Same here, I really like that type of town-scape. I usually associate it with the south of France and Italy, so I’m always surprised to find it in more northern towns.