Allen Guest Blogs From France

La couleure exacte du cherry ale.

"WHOLE RABBIT FOR $5.75/kg" These advertisements have been plastered over every bus/tram station in Montpellier. Rabbit meat advertising... I must be in France!

The city center of Montpellier is completely closed to traffic, so walking is perfect. Endless shops of out-of-this-world designer clothes. Colorful, clean, lively, and very, very French!

Wine tasting with my new German friends Nina and Elizabeth at the "Les Estivales", held every Friday night in downtown Montpellier. I'm so excited I got to take the glass home!

Montpellier train station where I arrived Thursday from Paris by the TGV (rapid French train).

Delicious French breakfast at a street-side cafe: baguette, strawberry jam, and espresso.

Cathedral au centre ville de Montpellier.

Fountain at the center of La Comedie... where everything happens in Montpellier, day or night. I wish you could hear the accordion playing live in the background near the cafes!

View from my classroom.

After months and months of anxiously waiting, France is here! My scholarship study at L'Institute Europeen de Francaise starts on Monday, but since arriving on Thursday I've done everything but hit the books! Just a few miles from the Mediterranean, I've been very busy at the beach so far, my favorite place to be. I met some students from Germany and Holland, and after exploring the beach with them Friday, we all went wine tasting at a downtown night festival. Paradise found.

People At Monterey Fair

Christina and Mom enjoying the fair. Christina is the show secretary of the American Fuzzy Lop specialty show.

Three hardworking ladies at the secretary's table. Karla at the right has been volunteering at Monterey Fair for over 20 years.

Randy judging Jersey Wooly while Nancy looks on.

Randy Cler From Alaska

Randy and Randy, one from California and another from Alaska. Randy S caught the Salmon in Alaska and Randy C smoked and vacuum packed them. Yummy.

Randy C discusses fiber stuff with Betty.

Randy and Allen went to Alaska for the state convention, judges' conference and did some fishing. Randy C. was their host then; now he is the guest in California.

Randy C. started raising rabbits in 1993, became a judge in 2006. He apprenticed at the Monterey Fair in 2006 when he appeared in our blog for the first time http://ncag.blogspot.com/search?q=randy+c He holds dual license for both rabbit and cavy, is one of the two judges in Alaska.

Randy C. judged the youth rabbits at the Monterey Fair on Friday, and then went down to San Diego area to judge the Cardiff shows on Saturday and then back to Monterey on Sunday to judge the American Fuzzy Lop specialty show.

He is interested in fiber things; his daughter works in a Musk Ox farm. Betty and him had quite an interesting conversation and he was quite taken by the Angora products. He ended up buying two Angora hats.

Musk Ox is well known for its down fiber Qiviut. It's a very expensive fiber and it's very warm. Carol G. has recently visited a Musk Ox farm in Alaska, see http://aflrc.blogspot.com/2008/08/stuffed-with-animals.html She saw some Qiviut yarns for $90 per oz. With that in mind, our Angora products are downright reasonable.

Young Spinners And Fiber Animals At Monterey Fair

Shannon is really into spinning. She carries her drop spindle with her when going places.

Ellie, 9 years old, is a very good spinner. She gave a talk about spinning on Saturday to 4-H groups.

Ellie shows off her spinning skill on a spindle while little sister Abby looks on. Abby says, "I am 6 years old, I will be a spinner when I am 7".

There was a wool show that includes fibers from various animals. Alpaca is one of them.

The cute Alpacas are attracting attention from fair goers.

Betty's Fiber Display At Monterey Fair

In the Monterey Fair, in addition to showing rabbits, Betty also put on a display of the products made from her bunnies.

People were fascinated by the hats, scarves, yarns and the raw wool from her rabbits. In one of the other buildings there were wool auctions going on; and lots of people were familiar with wool from sheep, alpaca, llama, goat... etc. They thought that all wool needed to be washed, picked, carded and cleaned; they were amazed to learn that Angora wool from rabbits do not need to go through any of these process. The rabbits are impeccably clean, and the wool would go from the rabbit's body to the spinning wheel directly.

Marie Wins All Breed Reserve In Show

Marie in the sunset.








Randy examining the two colored does. Marie at the left.








Randy examining the two colored does. Aaliyah at the right.








Nolan wins Best Opposite Sex.









It's Monterey Fair time again. There was one all breed show held in a leisurely pace. It is very uncommon to have single shows nowadays, but this is an easygoing fair show.

Randy is our judge; he had a hard time deciding the English Angora colored senior doe class. He went back and forth between Betty's two colored senior does, Marie and Aaliyah, for a long time before he went with Marie. Marie is a month older than Aaliyah thus more mature in her development.

Marie went on to win Reserve In Show. Best of Sex of the breed went to Nolan, Betty's white senior buck.

There were lots of Fuzzy Lop, Jersey Wooly, Dutch, Mini Lop, English Lop, French Lop, Netherland Dwarf, Mini Rex, ... but English Angora was the only Angora breed shown.

I've Got A Secret Video Available Again

For a while, the video disappeared from Youtube.


It is now again available on a separate blog. Go to http://englishangoraontv.blogspot.com/ or click the link on the right to get to the video.