We had rain off and on during the night, but today it is variably sun and clouds...cool but not cold. Our lovely land lady left us a bunch of daffodils and 3 bottles of wine!...all local vintages! She also planted pansies in the planter boxes on the terrace! Kitties got to go out on the lower level terrace in the sunshine today. I think it will be their favorite place when it is warmer!
- Well, we headed to the big town of Uzes today, to go to our friend's house to pick up our boxes that we shipped...and had our first tangle with French bureaucracy! Only 1 of the 2 boxes arrived, and they taxed us $150 Euro because the value for which it was insured was $650.00!
Yikes! We'll try to get it back, but I wouldn't bet on it! In the future, all boxes need to be marked "Used clothing!
- Have decided to have lunch out in a restaurant, and have a light dinner at home. They eat too late, and the food is too rich for us to eat dinner out, most days! The "plat du Jour" at lunch is about $15.00 and includes wine, a full sized dinner, and dessert! Bruce ordered a salad and it came with chicken, potatoes, sliced almonds, zucchini shavings, lettuce and tomatoes...a huge bowl! I had the special of pork with a creamy sauce to die for, rice, and three veggies...a bit of carrot, Chinese pea pods, and ratatouille.
Observations:
Sounds?
No noises at all. Although the town is all stone buildings and streets, the streets are SO narrow, that people park down by the town center, and walk in (not far) about 2 blocks. We hear morning doves, and an occasional rooster. That's it! No airplanes! The house is silent. We now hear the church bells!
They chime out the hour/quarter hours. There are two sets of bells, so one chimes on time, the other 2 minutes later! At Easter, they stop chiming on Maundy Thursday, and do not chime again, until Easter Morning, at 6:00 am.
No noises at all. Although the town is all stone buildings and streets, the streets are SO narrow, that people park down by the town center, and walk in (not far) about 2 blocks. We hear morning doves, and an occasional rooster. That's it! No airplanes! The house is silent. We now hear the church bells!
They chime out the hour/quarter hours. There are two sets of bells, so one chimes on time, the other 2 minutes later! At Easter, they stop chiming on Maundy Thursday, and do not chime again, until Easter Morning, at 6:00 am.
- Smells?
In the house, there is a slight smell of stone, but slight, and not unpleasant! (For those of you coming to visit here in Provence, bring slippers. The floors are all tile or stone, except for the kitchen!) There are some flowers in bloom, daffodils, pansies, and early Spring flowers, but it is still cool, so the air is fresh, but not floral.
- We smell bread baking, food cooking and wood burning.
In the house, there is a slight smell of stone, but slight, and not unpleasant! (For those of you coming to visit here in Provence, bring slippers. The floors are all tile or stone, except for the kitchen!) There are some flowers in bloom, daffodils, pansies, and early Spring flowers, but it is still cool, so the air is fresh, but not floral.
- We smell bread baking, food cooking and wood burning.
- The fields have recently been plowed, but are not yet planted with crops. The soil looks deep and is a rich, reddish brown. There are NO guard rails on the roads...and mostly country roads with deep, 3 foot ditches on the sides! On the open road, we are not going slow, but many/most cars pass us!
- The teenage kids here are teenage like kids everywhere! They are well dressed.The cluster with their friends, buy and eat sandwiches & fries, and coffee at the cafes. Some smoke! All have huge backpacks on their backs. It's easy to tell the rebels and bad boys...the dress like "Rebels Without a Cause", but with high top sneakers and baggy jeans. Many have phones, but not all.
- Many adults smoke, but not as many as in years past! Most people like to sit outside if it's not raining, even if it's cool, and they have to wear their winter jackets. People actually sit on the benches in the square to get some sun on their faces.
- There are few/NO blonds in France!
- Thank God the cars are small! The streets are so narrow, most times in our village, you must flip the mirrors back! Even the streets in the bigger town of Uzes, are small. Trucks are not as big as the 18 wheelers in the US, but they are still huge, and carry dirt/stone, oil, thru the towns etc.
- Many of the stone buildings are in some type of repair.
- There seems to be an influence of art. Our village is Saint Quentin la Poterie there are several potteries here in town. Flyers advertise concerts, art shows, galleries etc.
- What looks like an old heavy double wooden garage door (not mechanical) is actually the entrance to a lovely courtyard and restaurant....not much of a sign till they open, then a chalk placard appears, and voila! A restaurant! There are big old wooden doors and bars on many windows. A book I read on Madame Clicquot (of Veuve Clicquot champagne) attributed the heavy shutters/doors/bars to the fact that the buildings are hundreds of years old and have endured several wars and revolutions...I believe it!
The house has a washer, but not a dryer....and it looks like they don't iron much here.
Bruce is happier than a pig in mud! The coffee is stronger than dirt!
Irene and BruceThe fields have recently been plowed, but are not yet planted with crops. The soil looks deep and is a rich, reddish brown. There are NO guard rails on the roads...and mostly country roads with deep, 3 foot ditches on the sides! On the open road, we are not going slow, but many/most cars pass us!
The teenage kids here are teenage like kids everywhere! The cluster with their friends, buy and eat sandwiches & fries, and coffee at the cafes. Some smoke! All have huge backpacks on their backs. It's easy to tell the rebels and bad boys...the dress like "Rebels Without a Cause", but with high top sneakers and baggy jeans. Many have phones, but not all.
Many adults smoke, but not as many as in years past! Most people like to sit outside if it's not raining, even if it's cool, and they have to wear their winter jackets. People actually sit on the benches in the square to get some sun on their faces.
There are few/NO blonds in France!
Thank God the cars are small! The streets are so narrow, most times in our village, you must flip the mirrors back! Even the streets in the bigger town of Uzes, are small. Trucks are not as big as the 18 wheelers in the US, but they are still huge, and carry dirt/stone, oil, thru the towns etc.
Many of the stone buildings are in some type of repair.
There seems to be an influence of art. Our village is Saint Quentin de Potterie...there are several potteries here in town. Flyers advertise concerts, art shows, galleries etc.
What looks like an old heavy double wooden garage door (not mechanical) is actually the entrance to a lovely courtyard and restaurant....not much of a sign till they open, then a chalk placard appears, and voila! A restaurant! There are big old wooden doors and bars on many windows. A book I read on Madame Clicquot (of Veuve Clicquot champagne) attributed the heavy shutters/doors/bars to the fact that the buildings are hundreds of years old and have endured several wars and revolutions...I believe it!
The house has a washer, but not a dryer....and it looks like they don't iron much here.
Bruce is happier than a pig in mud! The coffee is str
Lots of love!
Irene and Bruce, Easy & Breezy
- The teenage kids here are teenage like kids everywhere! They are well dressed.The cluster with their friends, buy and eat sandwiches & fries, and coffee at the cafes. Some smoke! All have huge backpacks on their backs. It's easy to tell the rebels and bad boys...the dress like "Rebels Without a Cause", but with high top sneakers and baggy jeans. Many have phones, but not all.
- Many adults smoke, but not as many as in years past! Most people like to sit outside if it's not raining, even if it's cool, and they have to wear their winter jackets. People actually sit on the benches in the square to get some sun on their faces.
- There are few/NO blonds in France!
- Thank God the cars are small! The streets are so narrow, most times in our village, you must flip the mirrors back! Even the streets in the bigger town of Uzes, are small. Trucks are not as big as the 18 wheelers in the US, but they are still huge, and carry dirt/stone, oil, thru the towns etc.
- Many of the stone buildings are in some type of repair.
- There seems to be an influence of art. Our village is Saint Quentin la Poterie there are several potteries here in town. Flyers advertise concerts, art shows, galleries etc.
- What looks like an old heavy double wooden garage door (not mechanical) is actually the entrance to a lovely courtyard and restaurant....not much of a sign till they open, then a chalk placard appears, and voila! A restaurant! There are big old wooden doors and bars on many windows. A book I read on Madame Clicquot (of Veuve Clicquot champagne) attributed the heavy shutters/doors/bars to the fact that the buildings are hundreds of years old and have endured several wars and revolutions...I believe it!
The house has a washer, but not a dryer....and it looks like they don't iron much here.
Bruce is happier than a pig in mud! The coffee is stronger than dirt!
Irene and BruceThe fields have recently been plowed, but are not yet planted with crops. The soil looks deep and is a rich, reddish brown. There are NO guard rails on the roads...and mostly country roads with deep, 3 foot ditches on the sides! On the open road, we are not going slow, but many/most cars pass us!
The teenage kids here are teenage like kids everywhere! The cluster with their friends, buy and eat sandwiches & fries, and coffee at the cafes. Some smoke! All have huge backpacks on their backs. It's easy to tell the rebels and bad boys...the dress like "Rebels Without a Cause", but with high top sneakers and baggy jeans. Many have phones, but not all.
Many adults smoke, but not as many as in years past! Most people like to sit outside if it's not raining, even if it's cool, and they have to wear their winter jackets. People actually sit on the benches in the square to get some sun on their faces.
There are few/NO blonds in France!
Thank God the cars are small! The streets are so narrow, most times in our village, you must flip the mirrors back! Even the streets in the bigger town of Uzes, are small. Trucks are not as big as the 18 wheelers in the US, but they are still huge, and carry dirt/stone, oil, thru the towns etc.
Many of the stone buildings are in some type of repair.
There seems to be an influence of art. Our village is Saint Quentin de Potterie...there are several potteries here in town. Flyers advertise concerts, art shows, galleries etc.
What looks like an old heavy double wooden garage door (not mechanical) is actually the entrance to a lovely courtyard and restaurant....not much of a sign till they open, then a chalk placard appears, and voila! A restaurant! There are big old wooden doors and bars on many windows. A book I read on Madame Clicquot (of Veuve Clicquot champagne) attributed the heavy shutters/doors/bars to the fact that the buildings are hundreds of years old and have endured several wars and revolutions...I believe it!
The house has a washer, but not a dryer....and it looks like they don't iron much here.
Bruce is happier than a pig in mud! The coffee is str
Lots of love!
Irene and Bruce, Easy & Breezy
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