Lovely cool nights, warm bright blue days. Everyone is commenting on the weather. After sleeping until 10am, taking a leisurely breakfast, and hanging out washing in the sunshine (which was actually enjoyable, as whenever one lifts the eyes, there are vineyards climbing up hillsides in neat serried rows, their leaves turning yellow and glowing in the light), fly set out on a little promenade. In the immediate district, the car is not needed, at least as long as this weather lasts. Andlau, a very pretty village, is just 2 klms away, and Barr, bigger and not so pretty, but more facilities, is 5klms. Good walks. Called at the boulangerie, to get some bread before it closes for lunch. Madame la boulangiere was very friendly. She spoke ein biscchen Deutsch, and un peu francais, comme la mouche, but her main tongue is Elsass, the Alsatian dialect, a mixture of both really. So we had sentences of words from German and French, and when really stumped, she lapsed into Elsass and I lapsed into English. We communicated well and both felt pleased with ourselves! Maybe I have chosen just the spot to be with my little bit of German and little bit of French!
Later in the walk, a woman was at her letter box, and she was not going to let this stranger pass without a chat. Mainly in French this time, she very patient with my stumbles. We discussed the weather – safe subject for the fly – and she said that each year it is staying warmer longer and then getting colder when winter comes. She showed me where they had put in ropes to hang on to when going around the garden and to the garage so as not to slip in the ice and snow. She also told me where to proceed for my promenade, so I followed instructions. It is glorious. The grape harvest is on, workers everywhere snipping bunches which are loaded into crates on a tractor. (there are pics). The host here set out very early this morning, 5am in fact, and les caves here are quiet. They are all out in the fields.
I know it was 5am, because I always know what time it is. There is this village clock tower. It strikes every quarter hour, one bell at quarter past, two at half past, three at quarter to the hour. Then at the hour, a different bell strikes the number for the time. I don’t find it irritating, it has a kind of “10pm and all is well” feel to it.
This is a test. Repeat. This is a test
ReplyDelete