Wednesday, April 12, 2017

The tale of the donkey and the window box.


The Old Farmer waves at us from his balcony. ' I've heard the first cuckoo. Summers here ! ' he shouts out as dogs and master head off along the lane. By the crossroads a deer scampers out from behind a laurel bush and goes bounding off across the fields. It must have been three feet away at most. Neither of the PONs notice it. They're busy chasing a flock of pheasants that take off with an explosive flap of their wings and glide gracefully into the safety of the walnut trees. Stealth is not a PON trait. 

Peak pilgrim season. A donkey tethered to a tree outside the newsagent. A father 'bonding' with his eight and ten year old sons by walking the route to Compostella. The donkey their ' carry it all ' travelling companion.


The father and his two sons stop to talk to two Danish girls and two German boys who are also walking to Spain. While they chat the donkey purposefully eats the shrubs in the window boxes outside the restaurant. No one seems to notice or care.


Traffic light design is a topic of conversation that rarely rears its head. ' The Font' observes that new traffic lights have been installed by the zebra crossing. They are rather more stylish than the standard three lights in a box on top of a pole variety.


Here's the earliest dental work ever found : http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/d-brief/2017/04/10/ancient-dentistry-tooth-filling/#.WOzrvIiGN3h






9 comments:

WFT Nobby said...

Well my sympathies are with the donkey. It must be hungry work, walking to Spain loaded up with the luggage of three humans.
Toodle pip!
Bertie.

Coppa's girl said...

A donkey is much better company than a wheelie suitcase, but it does need to be fed !

MOPL said...

Glad to hear that the old Farmer is reasonably bright. Augurs well. The donkey looks a little sad but the PONS look content. It must the approach of Easter and all the wonderful food delights in your part of the world.

Unknown said...

Perhaps the donkey has taken a lesson from Bob's page to seize the moment.
Windowbox shrubs may be to a donkey what pate and bread is to Bob.

Jake of Florida said...

Donkeys always seem so sad to me. Their braying must be trying to convey something, but noone can understand so it is impossible to respond.

rottrover said...

Judging from Google maps, that looks like a long trek for the donkey and his companions!

Angus said...

Not everyone does the full journey but a surprising number still do. There are hostels and restaurants that cater for them , as they have done for six or seven centuries, along the route. In high season the little lane that runs outside The Rickety Old Farmhouse will see twenty or thirty pilgrims pass by, on weekends maybe four times that number.Some folk do a little every year until they've completed the whole journey to Compostella. A strange reminder of a different world that pops up in our modern one.

BaileyBobSouthernDog said...

In the last picture, Sophie appears to have a flower at the top of her right ear. Such a nice touch for a diva!

Bella Roxy & Macdui said...

Hiking with a donkey....that sounds like fun.