On the way back from the airport I catch up with what has happened in my absence.
'The Font' collects Madame Bay and her friend Renee ( pronounced Re-knee ) and drives them to the May 8th Victory celebrations in the little market town. Monsieur Bay and the retired gendarmes, resplendent in their maroon berets and blazers, have gone on ahead an hour earlier to ensure everything is in order. '' They have things to attend to " explains Madame Bay. Our saintly octogenarian is in a knee length white cotton jacket, blue leggings, gold sandals and a rather jazzy red and blue polka dot turban held together at the front by a facsimile of the Kohinoor diamond . Renee is more demure in a brown trouser suit , a purple pashmina and what appear to be white plimsolls. They both think the Volvo is too high off the ground. Madame Bay makes it out of the front seat with relative ease but Renee has more problem exiting from the rear. A helping tug from Madame Bay does the trick.
A 94 year old veteran reads out President de Gaulles call to arms. In the middle of his reading a gust of wind blows away the text. It is retrieved by the cafe owner. The old veteran starts over again.The local children sing the song of the Partisans accompanied by the depressive physiotherapist on his accordion. It is taken at a notably slow pace. Madame Bay weeps copiously. The lady from the newsagent faints ( which causes an intervention by the Sapeur Pompiers who laboriously reverse their van down the street ). There is much shouting. The newsagent lady is helped to her feet and is placed on a white plastic chair outside the cafe. The mayor reads the names of the dead on the war memorial. Madame Bay weeps some more . The Marseillaise is sung, lustily. Everyone repairs to the Salle Polyvalente for a glass of wine. After two of these Madame Bay has recovered somewhat and informs 'The Font' that 'On a day like this you know that fallen leaves return to their roots '.
There are now, according to 'The Font', twelve types of tomato in the greengrocers.....
... and five varieties of Strawberries.
12 comments:
So the Font's keen powers of observation are not limited to the stars.
This really could be a great sitcom.
French village life really is like Clochemerle. Being criticised for having a car that is too high off the ground sets the tone.
The victory celebrations must have been a very emotional time for all attending.
Those tomatoes nearest the camera remind me of the ones we used to buy in France and Spain, many years ago, often from a road side stall. Totally misshapen but packed full of flavour. The ones we buy here look similar, but have little or no taste at all. Yet another thing to blame on EU directives !
So much happening in your absence!
Hari om
Crikey. Don't blink, something'll get missed!!! YAM xx
And they would have criticized our car for being too close. What a selection of produce you have and it all looks tasty.
After reading your post, I feel compelled to relate the events since 6:00 am this morning. A couple of friends of mine attended a Robert Burns lecture last night. At 6:00 am I receive a text guestioning me why I never told her about the Robert Burns Cottage in Atlanta, built in 1910. Not knowing about Robert Burns Cottage in Atlanta set off a series of text to almost everyone I know. Not one person I text knew about this either, and one of them is living almost on top of the Cottage! I also discovered there are Robert Burns Cottages all over the US. Just wait until these same people want to know about the “Wrens Nest”. I have that one covered!
Well done for knowing about the Burns Cottage. I have to admit to only having seen it once when studying at Emory. There is a v strong Scots presence in Georgia although probably more on the coast stretching up into SC. Many of the first members of the Piedmont Drive in Club ( is it still there ? ) were linked to little Alloway.
What a great ceremony. Ours are so mundane.
I knew we had the Highland Games at Stone Mountain each fall, which is a huge event in Atlanta! Also remember you rode the bus to the games in full Scotsman attire, while at Emory. But did not realize there was a strong Scots presence in Georgia. And yes, the Piedmont Drive in Club is still going strong! The Atlanta Botanical Gardens have grown to the point they now surround the Piedmont Drive in Club!
There are also highland games in western NC, which is really a geographic continuation of the GA-SC area and with very strong Scots presence. i think they're out around (general area) Asheville. Now I have to go look for a Burns Cottage.
What a wonderful account of the V-E Day events. 'The Font' is being wasted on astronomy, she should be writing narrative -- had me laughing out loud.
Yumm strawberries.
Actually I have been thinking about yesterdays post. It is a shame when you have to go to the UK to get a better selection of French pastries. I think that even here at our market we get a better selection than you normally face.
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