My niece sent me this photo from a tiny village
near Bar le Duc in the Meuse area of France.
It feels like a sign of the times.
I thought maybe it was due to Covid
but another friend saw my post about it on Instagram
and sent me this NYTimes article .
Bakeries in France are closing at a sadly rapid rate
particularly in small villages.
Young people aren't interested in the work's long hours
and many people are no longer eating as much bread.
And when the boulangerie closes and people have to go elsewhere to shop for their bread,
often the butcher (boucherie) or caterer (traiteur) next to them must close as well.
As much as I hate this change,
If I was in a hurry and had to drive miles to another village to buy bread
and one of these was within walking distance of my house,
guess where I'd sometimes get my bread.
But also probably try to make sure I made errands in the next village
and stopped at their bakery as often as possible.
So many changes these days.
Another version of the Buy Locally idea.
Have you shopped at your little neighborhood market lately?!
(Photo credit: Victoria Delon)
A sign of the times indeed. Seems like it would go better in a city, but things are shutting down. My local french bakery has drastically cut her hours. Since she uses butter and local ingredients, her pastries are very expensive. Like $7. apiece. Pretty new blog design.
ReplyDeleteWow! $7 pastries. That does sound like a sign of the times. So glad to see you back! Miss you!
DeleteThat's so sad about the boulangeries. I haven't shopped anywhere in 11 months. Hopefully after my second dose kicks in I can go out again and do my own shopping. These days, Rick makes all the bread and his baguettes hold up with those from France. But oh, the pastries!
ReplyDeleteLove that Rick makes bread! My guy cooks but not bread and I've never been very good at it. But everybody's been trying it these covid days. Hope you are able to get out and about shopping now. Hugs!
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