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Monday 7 April
Our walk in the high country started from La Godivelle (“un bled perdu” – or complete backwoods in other words). Even this little hamlet has an old Roman church and beside it a substantial fountain for watering the cattle – 25 at a time according to the sign. Michele told us the school here was the dreaded destination of all teachers because it was snowed in from the end of October to Easter. There were indeed very few habitations to be seen but it wasn’t what we would call a desert! We saw cows and horses grazing in the greening pastures again with the backdrop of magnificent mountains, forests of pines and lots of birds. A comfortable walk of 1 & half hours brought us to the Auberge, sitting all alone at Brion on the high prairie. After aperitif outside we adjourned to the interior where we were served a hearty country meal of soup of endives, cow’s cheek from local breed (Salers) and stewed vegies. The meat was very tender and tasty and the vegies delicious. There followed the obligatory cheese platter and then apple cake for dessert. All washed down with plenty of Bordeaux. The meal lasted 3 hours(!) and was served by an very elderly gentleman who had come in especially to help with the sudden influx of people. At the end he was persuaded to sing for us – some very old folksongs in a melodious quavering tone. Altogether a very satisfying experience!
By now we were quite behind schedule arriving at Noel and Maryse’s house but it did not matter as Noel was at golf and Maryse had been otherwise engaged babysitting. We were able to catch up on the washing and after a very light supper, were glad to retire early. The next morning, we explored the old centre of St Galmier; it never ceases to amaze the age and history of the buildings. After lunch, our hosts took us to visit a hat museum which demonstrated how the felt was made and its origin. Supposedly, it originates from the time when the knights of the crusades stuffed their boots with camel fur to keep warm whereupon, over time, the friction and moisture caused the fur to meld into a thick cloth. The hat factory managed to duplicate this process, firstly with manual labour, and later with machines and at the peak of its production employed more than 2500 people in a town at that time not much bigger than 5000. Nowadays the hat is quite out of fashion so the factory is only for displays of the many styles of hats in vogue over the centuries and their significance regarding social status etc.. For fun we were able to try some on as well. We sat up quite late talking with Maryse’s boarder from her Chambre d’Hote – an interesting fellow, a chemical engineer, who works for a big mulit-national company making a material call floc ? which permits manufacturers to purify waste water. His English was impeccable so Ray was disappointed in his efforts to practise his French.
Yesterday was a full day’s outing to several historically significant villages, Montarcher, Marols, and St Bonnet le Chateau where we enjoyed an excellent 4 course lunch including wine & coffee for only 12.50 Euro ($18). This is just the sort of excursion we love, exploring a 12th century Roman church, finding a fortified village still intact, or walking the paths of the pilgrims. So many French people have renovated homes in the little villages rather than build anew and this keeps the real French countryside very much alive. The soft beige/rose coloured stones of the villages blend into the beautiful countryside. This wonderful day ended with a visit to see Noel & Maryse’s grandchild, Leon, and his mum, Sophie (Dad Loic was at work). At 2 & 4 months, he is very smart and full of energy. Finally, Noel showed us the full sized bus which has been converted into a travelling home/workshop by Loic to take him and his friends to their motorcross competitions. Noel gets to go along as live-in chef for the weekend. Again we sat up far too late talking! Tomorrow we go to Brigitte’s where Carmen & family will join us on Friday.
- comments
Christine La Godeville might be a dreaded destination for French teachers but I'm sure it would beat some of the places EQ thought appropriate!