The Holiday

All Saints Day (November 1) is called La Toussaint here in France and it's a national holiday.  Schools get 2 weeks off.  Everything will be shut down on Monday.  I saw many people buying and selling chrysanthemums at the market this week and now I find out that people put chrysanthemums on the graves of their beloveds on La Toussaint.

I've also read that the French have a special midnight meal of bacon, black grains, pancakes and cider on La Toussaint. I don't see why the deceased would be honored by such a meal, but there must be something I'm not getting because of being an American.

We may take a day trip tomorrow to Perouges. A friend told us this would be a good idea, so we're going to give it a try.  We're taking the train.