my car is dirty

Saint-Martin-du-Mont, France on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Ain (French pronunciation: [ɛ̃]; Arpitan: En) is a department named after the Ain River on the eastern edge of France. Being part of the region Rhône-Alpes and bordered by the rivers Saône and Rhône, the department of Ain enjoys a privileged geographic situation. It has an excellent transport network (TGV, highways) and benefits from the proximity to the international airports of Lyon and Geneva.
Ain is composed of four geographically different areas (Bresse, Dombes, Bugey and Pays de Gex) which – each with its own characteristics – contribute to the diversity and the dynamic economic development of the department. In the Bresse agriculture and agro-industry are dominated by the cultivation of cereals, cattle breeding, milk and cheese production as well as poultry farming. In the Dombes, pisciculture assumes greater importance as does viticulture in the Bugey. The high diversification of the department’s industry is accompanied by a strong presence of the plastics sector in and around Oyonnax (so-called “Plastics Valley”).
Due to its industrial character and a close-meshed tissue of small and medium enterprises, Ain ranks among the departments with the fastest growing economy in the country. Its unemployment rate lies far beneath the national and regional average. Besides the export-oriented SME’s, several large enterprises with a leading position on national and international markets have settled in the department.
Although looking ahead, Ain attaches nevertheless great importance to its historical and cultural heritage as illustrate its gastronomy (restaurant of Georges Blanc in Vonnas), its annual poultry competitions in the Bresse (“the three glorious”) and its tourism (346 classified monuments such as the famous church of Brou in Bourg-en-Bresse, 14 museums of France, eco-tourism and ski tourism).
It should also be noted that Ain is an uncommon surname that often (if not, usually) suggests an Estonian background.

Saint-Martin-du-Mont, France on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Ain (French pronunciation: [ɛ̃]; Arpitan: En) is a department named after the Ain River on the eastern edge of France. Being part of the region Rhône-Alpes and bordered by the rivers Saône and Rhône, the department of Ain enjoys a privileged geographic situation. It has an excellent transport network (TGV, highways) and benefits from the proximity to the international airports of Lyon and Geneva.
Ain is composed of four geographically different areas (Bresse, Dombes, Bugey and Pays de Gex) which – each with its own characteristics – contribute to the diversity and the dynamic economic development of the department. In the Bresse agriculture and agro-industry are dominated by the cultivation of cereals, cattle breeding, milk and cheese production as well as poultry farming. In the Dombes, pisciculture assumes greater importance as does viticulture in the Bugey. The high diversification of the department’s industry is accompanied by a strong presence of the plastics sector in and around Oyonnax (so-called “Plastics Valley”).
Due to its industrial character and a close-meshed tissue of small and medium enterprises, Ain ranks among the departments with the fastest growing economy in the country. Its unemployment rate lies far beneath the national and regional average. Besides the export-oriented SME’s, several large enterprises with a leading position on national and international markets have settled in the department.
Although looking ahead, Ain attaches nevertheless great importance to its historical and cultural heritage as illustrate its gastronomy (restaurant of Georges Blanc in Vonnas), its annual poultry competitions in the Bresse (“the three glorious”) and its tourism (346 classified monuments such as the famous church of Brou in Bourg-en-Bresse, 14 museums of France, eco-tourism and ski tourism).
It should also be noted that Ain is an uncommon surname that often (if not, usually) suggests an Estonian background.

beaune on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Beaune is one of the key wine centers in France. Indeed the annual wine auction of the Hospices de Beaune is the primary wine auction in France. Beaune is surrounded by some of the world’s most famous wine villages; the facilities and cellars of many producers large and small are in Beaune.

It is an ancient and historic town on the plain, by the hills of the Cote d’Or. There are features from pre-Roman and Roman times, from antiquity, medieval, renaissance and modern times.

Beaune is a walled city: about half of the battlements, ramparts, and the moat, remain in good condition. The central “old town” is extensive. Historically Beaune is intimately connected with the Dukes of Burgundy.

Route des Ducs de Bourgogne; Château de Commarin on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
The Château de Commarin in the commune of Commarin in the Côte-d’Or département, Burgundy, France, has passed through 26 generations in the same family; never sold, though it has often passed through heiresses, Commarin today is a seat of the comte de Vogüé.

Commarin avoided pillage during the French Revolution and although the Germans occupied it in World War II, it was treated with respect and retained its magnificent parquet floors and tapestries.

FR

À proximité de Châteauneuf, en Côte-d’Or, au centre de la Bourgogne et à 40 km à l’ouest de Dijon, le château de Commarin retient l’attention par son architecture, son parc et son aménagement intérieur richement meublé qui retrace son occupation depuis les origines par la même famille.

(via A Lens On Life In The Kentucky Hollows : The Picture Show : NPR)

beaune on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Beaune has a major fine food market on Saturdays, where there are a large number of stall holders supplying a broad selection of products and specialties from Burgundy and the surrounding regions. For example, Bresse chickens, Jura cheeses, small goods, spices, produce of every variety as well as seasonal specialties such as truffles.[1] There is a smaller market on Wednesday, and special-event markets and fetes are held throughout the year.
Although Beaune is not primarily a tourist town but one centred around the wine industry, it nevertheless attracts a large amount of tourism. About five traditional smaller hotels are located within the city walls with around five chain hotels on the outskirts.
Technically Beaune is a commune in eastern France, a sub-prefecture of department 21, the Côte-d’Or department, in the Bourgogne region.

beaune on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Beaune is one of the wine communes of the Côte de Beaune subregion of the Burgundy wine region, which bears the name of this town. Although Beaune is lacking a Grand Cru vineyard in the commune, it is the hub of the region’s wine business, as most of Burgundy’s major négociants are here. Beaune is renowned for its annual charity wine auction on behalf of the Hospices de Beaune.
It is on the route des Grands Crus tourist trail among the vineyards. The road runs north from Beaune to Gevrey Chambertin and Nuits-Saint-Georges and south to Nolay, Saisy and Autun.

one last look for seal

« Place des Anges » par Les Studios de Cirque on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Un moment qui soulage les âmes. Allégorie pacifiste, les anges sont porteurs d’une douceur joyeuse, envahissent le ciel et jouent de leur apesanteur. Ils tracent la nuit de nuées blanches. Des plumes, des tonnes de plumes dont le public se saisit à pleines mains pour mieux distiller son bonheur… un moment magique !

A moment that soothes the soul. An allegory of peace, the angels bear with them a delightful calm, invading the sky and playing with their weightlessness. They draw white clouds in the dark. Feathers, tons of feathers, that the audience grasp by the handful to exude happiness more easily!

Après ce spectacle, il vous sera proposé de continuer la magie (et la fête !). Ces musiciens vous entraineront dans leur bal, où plumes et musiques d’ailleurs vous feront passer un moment unique !

Mise en scène : Pierrot Bidon et Stéphane Girard
Toute l’équipe du festival a une grosse pensée pour Pierrot Bidon, fondateur d’Archaos, et co-fondateur des Studios de Cirque qui nous a quitté en 2010.
Création : Arles — Festival drôles de Noëls
Les Studios de Cirque sont soutenus par la DRAC PACA.

“Gluten, gluten … isn’t that the stuff that’s killing innocent celiac-afflicted children, ruining our digestion, and single-handedly destroying America?” Wheat gluten is, admittedly, dangerous to some people and anathema to the many, many more who believe they have a gluten sensitivity (via Stop eating tofu. Start eating wheat gluten. - Slate Magazine)

(via The Château de Laborde - Site Friends of La Ferte Vidame)

(via trackosaurus rex - Les éditions de la revue “CAMPING”)

Boulangerie on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
En France, il y a 34 200 artisans boulangers, dont la production représente 70 % des ventes totales de pain (chiffres de l’Institut national de la boulangerie-pâtisserie, 2004).
Depuis la loi du 25 mai 1998 née sous l’impulsion de Jean-Pierre Raffarin, et suite au « décret pain » du 13 septembre 1993, les dénominations « boulanger » et « boulangerie » sont réservées aux professionnels artisans qui choisissent leurs matières premières, pétrissent la pâte, en contrôlent la fermentation ainsi que la mise en forme et enfin cuisent le pain sur le lieu de vente. Les textes prévoient par ailleurs que dans ce cas, les produits nécessaires à la fabrication du pain ne doivent à aucun moment être surgelés ni congelés.

(via Diver Comes Face to Face With 23-Foot Anaconda (Photos) : TreeHugger)

austerity (via PhotoBlog - As austerity bites, Greeks line up for food handouts)