Day 1452 (Sunday) 30th May 2021.

What a lovely day! We had a bit of a lie in and after breakfast we did a bit of gardening with the plants we bought yesterday in the garden centre. Huw got out our painting plastic sheet so that we could do the planting in the blue room so we wouldn’t make too much of a mess and Badger thought all his Christmases had come at once and went berserk.

Huw removed the almost dead basil plant to replace it with a new one and I planted the three new small flowerpots and Badger kicked the crap out of the old basil plant. He made such a mess but we were both laughing too much to stop him. When we’d finished I had to follow Badger around the flat with the dust buster to try to get rid of all the soil that he’d rolled in.

The new basil and the magnificent geraniums and the bougainvillea, lavender and new flowers.

I did all my pay claims and Huw did my taxes so all in all it was a very productive morning. We had planned to meet Kevin and Angie in Le Phare at 1pm to go to the happy whale for lunch and when we got to Le Phare there was quite a crowd having Sunday lunchtime drinks and the atmosphere was electric.

It was very exciting to see Villefranche come back to life; there were buskers, tourists and a lot of laughter. We had planned to leave just after 1pm but the atmosphere was so wonderful that we ended up leaving it too late to get to the happy whale before it stopped serving lunch. Pat and Dee were there as they we going to go to lunch in the square so we ended up all going to Cosmos together at around 2pm.

Huw and I shared a chicken burger and it was enormous and delicious.

The conversation flowed accompanied by a lot of laughter and the dogs Phoebe and Junior enjoyed some special treats.

After such a lovely convivial afternoon I thought this article to be rather appropriate…

Bottoms up! Five things to know about proposing a toast in France

Proposing the good health of your friends, family or colleagues is a serious business in France, so here's how to do it correctly.

1. It’s more common than you might be used to

Most countries have a culture of proposing toasts, but in Anglo countries they tend to be reserved for more formal occasions, or perhaps for people you haven’t seen for a while. In France it’s more common to toast even on a casual night out or a family dinner.

Of course it varies depending on the situation, the age of the people you are drinking with and the social group, but don’t be surprised if there is a pause and a toast before people take the first sip of their drinks.

If you want to discuss the custom, it’s known in French as l’art de trinquer – the art of toasting.

2. It’s brief

But you won’t be expected to make a speech or indulge in a Viking-like exchange of toasts lasting all evening. In France a toast is a simple clinking of glasses before taking the first sip of your drink. It is then not repeated unless you are marking something special like a wedding.

The most common phrases to use when toasting are santé (or the more formal or plural à votre santé depending on the situation) or tchin-tchin. You can also toast to something specific – Trinquons à notre réussite (here’s to our success) or the more general à la votre (here’s to you) or à la notre (here’s to us).

Foreign toasts are also popular – the English ‘bottoms up’, not often heard these days in the UK, is quite common in some circles in France.

3. But it’s all in the eyes

Eye contact is crucial when toasting, as is clinking everyone’s glass. Don’t think you can get away with just waving your glass in the general direction of others and then taking a drink.

It’s considered polite to clink glasses with each of the people you are drinking with and you must make eye contact with them while doing it. You then wait for everyone to finish toasting then take a sip before putting your glass down. 

There are no rules on the type of drink you can toast with and it’s not considered unlucky to toast someone with a non-alcoholic drink. 

4. You really don’t want to get this wrong

Foreigners in France get used to being tutted at as they make a mistake in French etiquette so why is it particularly bad to get this one wrong? Well, legend has it that people who do not toast correctly are condemned to seven years of bad sex. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.

5. Cul sec is not a toast

The other drinking phrase you might hear is cul sec (dry bottom) which not a toast, but an invitation to down your drink in one.

Although cul is often translated as ‘arse’ or ‘butt’ this phrase is not in itself vulgar – it’s just telling you to make sure the bottom of your glass is dry – but there is a time and a place for it. Your French mother-in-law might be slightly surprised if you order her to ‘down in one’ her pre-lunch kir.