Who knew?

Bonjour

We haven’t been anywhere new lately, just revisiting some places we have been before, so this post is about some “I didn’t know that” items.

In breaking news, the local mayor has just announced that Cherbourg will be the first town in the Channel area to ban the use of synthetic pesticides. This is part of a campaign to help the bee population and try and get the dwindling wildflower vegetation (like red poppies) to recover. It’s a nice idea, but the ban will only apply within five metres of homes and the state rail operator is still allowed to use glyphosate along the train tracks.

This may already be a thing in Australia, but banks are now issuing debit cards to children from 12 years of age. This is supposed to help them and parents by not having to rely on cash and reduce the risk in case of loss or theft. It appears like a prepaid system, (like mobile phone plans) and will only be available for limited amounts of money, set by the parents.

Speaking of children, school lunches are quite something. Canteen workers are employed by the school to cook hot meals every day from fresh local produce. Prices vary between French municipalities and depends on family income. In Cherbourg the average price is €3.50.

Here is a copy of the weekly menu posted on the school gate for parents to see.

We are about to receive some free iodine tablets. These are being issued to anybody living within a 20 km radius of the nuclear power plant. We are slightly outside that radius but, lucky us, we get the tablets anyway. Apparently, in the event of a nuclear accident, the release of radioactive iodine into the atmosphere “could constitute a risk to health”. When it is swallowed or inhaled, it latches on to the thyroid gland, so taking the tablets will saturate the gland and so the radioactive gremlins don’t latch on. How comforting.

One thing that French take very seriously is their butter. It is a part of every meal, both for cooking with and eating with baguettes. The type of cows, the seasons, the type of grass, even the type of soil on the dairy farm all contributes to the taste and quality of the butter. The more expensive butter will come packaged in waxy paper in a more rounded shape than your standard block of Western Star from Coles or Woollies.

But the really odd thing in Normandy is that, for a region that is famous for its dairy industry, 95% of the milk sold is long life milk. Very few people buy the fresh stuff and one of the explanations is that the French never drink plain milk or add it to tea. They are a nation of coffee drinkers (until it’s time to pour the wine of course). It’s also easier for the retailers to not have to worry about refrigeration and use by dates for all the milk they sell.

Well that’s enough trivia for now.

Sante bonne

L & M