What IS That Thing

Yes, it's a steam locomotive, but all is not what it seems

Outside the Cité du Train in Mulhouse, mounted on a plinth beside the car park, it's a survivor from the early days of French railways: a PLM 030 TB steam locomotive. Built for the former Paris-Lyon-Méditerranée (PLM) railway it was intended primarily for freight and shunting work.

The locomotive dates from around 1860, making it a genuine 19th-century machine and a reminder of how compact early steam locomotives were. Its open-sided cab, small driving wheels and exposed mechanical equipment make it look primative compared to the large express locomotives that dominate railway museums.

But here's the "what is": although displayed as PLM 030 TB 2 the locomotive is a confection, reconstructed from components of several early locomotives, rather than a completely original survivor.

Assumption Day Gathering

We have previously been to the Lésigny Assumption Day car gathering (held in conjunction with their brocante, to which we have never been) five times: 2017, 2018, 2019, 2024, and 2025.

Now make it six.

This year we went with John from "Anne and John across the road". We had invited them in 2024, but only Anne was able to make it. This year John was free, but Anne was busy.

Claudette wearing her rally plaque. This is a new development this year, and at 5€, a bargain.

As is traditional we arrived just in time for breakfast (excellent home made terrine and camembert on a serve yourself basis), and then departed on the 30km circuit (theoretically 10am, but actually about 11am). We drove through la Roche Posay, Boussay, and Chambon, having taken a short cut at the start which placed us near the front of the convoy when we rejoined. The shortcut was because the signage in Lésigny was obscure, and the Jaguar driver in front of us was confused. Hey ho...

Through the Arch at la Roche Posay

As is now traditional, once we were on narrow country roads going up a fairly steep hill, the lead car (possibly the oldest car there) declined to proceed, leaving the rest of us fretting about the state of our radiators. It wasn't as long a technical pause as last year, so Claudette didn't come anywhere close to boiling and soon cooled down again.

You can see volunteers trying to push start the stalled car. That's not Claudette, we were following another Traction Avant

When we arrived back in Lésigny Susan claimed a table in the shade by a simple expedient of laying a tablecloth. We had a convivial lunch of melon and ham starter, followed by salad niçoise, and flummery, looking elegant with our period correct looking picnic hamper (and accoutrements).

You can see how hot and dry it has been

After lunch we forewent the swim in the river and came home. It was too hot.

Zucchini Slice

Every summer the dreaded zucchini glut arrives. Friends (Huub and Ingrid I'm looking at you) and neighbours insist on offloading gigantic marrow sized things on your doorstep. Or you have yourself made the mistake of allowing more than one zucchini plant to grow, on the grounds that the last time you did that it was the coldest summer on record and your zucchini did not thrive. Well, I think you are safe from that one in these days of increasingly record breaking hot summers...

Half a marrow sized zucchini, seeds removed and tediously grated by hand as we don't own a food processor.

Ingredients

2 large zucchini, grated
1 large onion, chopped
150 g chunky lardons
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
Half a cup of oil
4 eggs
1 cup of grated cheese
Salt and pepper to taste.

Method

Turn the oven on to preheat to 180 C.
Grease a deep square baking dish or a lasagne dish.
Mix all ingredients together thoroughly and pour into the prepared dish.
Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes.
Leave for 5-10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Can serve 6 as a main, or 12-18 as part of a series of small plates (tapas, aperodinatoire, etc). Serve warm or room temperature, with salad.

A serving for two that I cooked in the air fryer because the weather is so hot at the moment and I didn't want to turn the oven on.

It is curious to think that Europeans have really only been eating zucchini since the 19th century. The ancestor of this rampant and productive squash had arrived from the Americas earlier, but it was so different to anything anyone was used to eating that it took a while to catch on. Zucchini and marrow are the same species, Cucurbita pepo, and the difference is size/maturity. The word zucchini first appeared in Italian cook books in the 1840s, after Milanese gardeners developed a small tender cylindrical dark green squash that became C. p. var cylindrica. The word marrow first appeared in British cook books in the 1820s. Zucchini is first mentioned in print in Britain in the early 20th century, a couple of decades before the word courgette is used in either France or Britain.

Zucchini Slice was a mainstay of Australian summer gatherings when I was growing up. Everybody made it, because everyone had too many zucchini. It has that extreme simplicity and low cost that makes it popular when you are cooking for a gathering or a family. The cheese and bacon ensure it tastes of something, without complication or too much cost.

Extra Added Insulation

At the end of June I wrote about putting tinfoil on the outside of our windows that don't have shutters. This has worked really well, even though it's fragile enough to need taking down every evening in case it blows away during the night.

I knew there had to be a more durable solution, and this is it. I went into Norauto, the car people, and bought 3 very cheap (2€99 a piece) car windscreen sunshades. They're foil covered on both sides, with bubble wrap in between. A bit of judicious scissor work and the house is as dark as a boot, but 20°C (at least) cooler than outside.

I can fill in that inconvenient gap with offcuts

Yesterday the temperature inside was 26°C, in the shade in the back garden 40 °C, and by the back door 47°C (and climbing). I still have to work out a definitive way of attaching them, but I'm getting close.

There it Goes

Like the rest of south western Europe we spent the past week unsuccessfully looking for eclipse glasses. This meant that yesterday evening we had to resort to holding binoculars up to the sun and looking at the resultant projected image.

19:38

19:51

19:54

20:05

20:13

20:20

And then just when it started to get light again, it started getting dark.

Some of these photos aren't as sharp as I'd like. It's a function of trying to hold the binoculars perfectly still at arm's length, with the correct combination of focus and distance from the target piece of paper.

The precision science team in action.

The next total solar eclipse is in Sydney the day before my birthday in 2028. We might have to start saving.

Revisiting Saint Benoit du Sault

 Once again we ended a lovely day trip into the Anglin Valley in the very attractive small town of Saint Benoit du Sault. We'd been here once before, on a wet day exactly twelve months before. This time it was stinking hot. It's very picturesque, well worth visiting and wandering around its medieval sandstone streets. 

Medieval gateway into the old town centre.

Belfry.

A medieval street.

Further reading: Simon's post on Saint Benoit du Sault from last year https://daysontheclaise.blogspot.com/2025/07/saint-benoit-du-sault.html