September 2005
Caen (Abbaye aux Hommes) in early September
The beginning of September has been scorching - possibly the best run of weather we have had while staying at La Basse-Cour since buying the farmhouse in 1999.
Gradually our wedding guests have departed and the farmhouse is getting back to its normal, quiet existence.
In fact, inland Normandy has been quieter this year than it has for the past two or three. A combination of factors (last year's huge influx to see the massive D-day 60th anniversary celebrations, the weakness of the American dollar to name just two) has meant that many gîte owners in the area have reported far fewer visitors than over recent years.
Most farmers have harvested their maize and the fields have been prepared for their winter crops. Bales of all types now litter the fields; old-fashioned rectangular ones, round ones, round ones wrapped in plastic wherever you look. The cider and calvados apples are ripening nicely and many fields have their resident cows again, being fattened for winter.
