The only normal people you know are the ones you don't know very well.

The meringues have gone from the bakers window. They've been replaced by a seasonal display of polar animals. Incongruously, a small yellow and brown bird livens up the foreground. Is this tiny burst of colour artistic license or a sign of an iconoclastic spirit at work ?

The Old Farmer spends his day working outside. The Christmas Star is being refurbished, its framework stripped down to the bare metal,  rusty patches sanded down and repainted. By dusk three rows of multi-coloured flashing lights have been strung across the front of his balcony between the tobacco plants. The reconditioned star, replete with sixty new lightbulbs, will rise on Wednesday.

Bob and Sophie spend their day barking at pilgrims. Bob displays his terrifying ( he hopes ) overbite. The pilgrims laugh. Some stop to ask what sort of dog he is. A reminder that you can never be alone in France when you have canine companions.