Important dates for the diary 2023. Well in my opinion anyway.
2022 is not yet over, the Winter Solstice has yet to fall. But already we are looking forward to 2023 in the Corbieres.
Foires des Plantes Maisons
Fistly our little plant festival in Maisons, the first one in April and then a tree and plant festival in November went incredibly well. A good spread of local producers, great support from the local community, as well as folk coming up from Narbonne and also from the PO, and it has to be said very fortunate weather conditions means that short of another outbreak of COVID or an earthquake we are set to continue in 2023. It is too early days but if we continue the same pattern of holding it the Sunday after the Prades plant festival the likely dates are the 23rd April and the 19th November. Watch this space for confirmation. Lots of discussions have to take place on how we can build on our success this year, budgets et al but we have built a firm basis, have a lovely team, and a basic structure that works so there is no reason why 2023 should not be bigger and better. Who would have thought that a little village like Maisons could do such a thing?
Fete Paysanne Corbieres 21st Mai 2023
The second is that a small team have decided to rebuild and re model the Corbieres Bio festival at Bonnefous. We have been doing this festival for 10 years but the combination of COVID and an association stretched to their limits have seen it been cancelled for the last two years. Sophie, Titou and the team from the Vallee du Paradis association, who organise the moving market in Durban, St Jean, Villeseque and Villeneuve amongst other things have deided to take up the reins. It has long been one of Caroline and mine bugbears that the concentration of organic has led to some strange inclusions and exclusions at this festival. Neither of us can forget the long day of being lectured by our obese neighbour about the miraculous dieting properties of his crystals, while a natural rose grower and transformer told us about being excluded because they did not have an organic certificate. The organic festival is now to be a Local producers and artisanal festival open to all non chemical using producers from primarily the Corbieres and the Aude. We have also decided to try and autofinance this festival, so we are free from the constraints of local politicians, a constant problem for small associations in rural areas. The food has always been a problem at this festival so we will organise it, and a bar as “profit” centres for the association, and also provide much better service to the festival goers as well. The venue itself has been handed over from the Intercommunity to the village of Villesques des Corbieres, and the Mairie seems very supportive to see this space being used again. The date booked is Sunday the 21st May.
I am sure I will be writing more soon on both. Something to keep me busy will this Winter.
