Thursday, March 11, 2021

A new walk.


Now the days are getting longer and warmer it's time to try somewhere new for our start of day walk. The map shows that there's a small bridge that leads over the railway track and canal to a newly opened footpath. We find the turning and park by the lock keepers cottage. He comes out to see who's out and about so early.

Sophie is greatly disappointed that the lock keeper doesn't offer her a biscuit. He does however call her ' a cutie'. Sophie wanders off. She would have preferred a biscuit.

The foot path deserted. Ten minutes into our walk we pass a hyper-nervous sixty something couple coming in the other direction. They are wearing a double layer of masks - black on the outside, blue peaking our from behind. For good measure they've also got scarves wrapped round their chins. As we approach they pull their scarves over their noses and put the crook of their arms across their mouths . This is perhaps overly prudent considering the brisk breeze that's blowing and the fact that they're six feet away on the other side of the path . They choose not to say 'Bonjour' and scurry past, heads down, hoping to put as much distance as possible between us and them. Perhaps the prudent couple are just being sensible. In Paris the ICU beds are once again full and patients are being sent to Belgium for treatment. Nationwide the numbers are trending higher again. More than 30,000 new cases yesterday. 

Here in the village the pharmacist has no idea when the vaccines will arrive.



Sophie starts off the lead and running wild. This freedom ends when my canine companion displays an enthusiasm for drinking from the canal. The grass on the banks is wet and slippery ... and the gradient steep. She is harnessed up for safety. 


Our local chocolate shop has gone on line. Not quite the same as going in person but something to look forward to next year. Angus orders an Easter Egg - and an Easter dog :https://www.puyricard.fr/fr/

This looks like a fun place to stay :https://tresanton.com/home/

Scroll down and you'll see that this little hotel has a Golden Retriever :https://lestilleulsetretat.com/







6 comments:

Lisa in France said...

The new walk looks to be a good addition to Sophie's morning repertoire. I wish I could order a chocolate Easter dog - we are sadly lacking in this department in Japan, all we can buy is whatever Costco is selling. I love the idea of hotel pets and animal hangers on. When we stayed on Kauai one time, a little flock of nenes would visit our patio every morning. My daughter still talks about it, that and the cat named Katrina we met at a hotel in New Orleans. In 6 minutes, it will be ten years since the earthquake in Fukushima. Given how badly the government has handled the whole thing, I have found all the talk this week about rebuilding and resilience to be very tiresome, but I will certainly honor the moment. I was pretty far away, on the 24th floor of an office building in Tokyo, but the size of the quake was shocking and I remember thinking God help the people at the epicenter.

Taste of France said...

I wonder whether the couple also leave their groceries outside for three days, or maybe they wear gloves to handle and disinfect them. But do they keep masks when seeing friends and family?
The NYT had an article about gyms, which went through a bunch of cases where instructors came to work while infected, some knowing they were positive. They infected lots of people and some were hospitalized. This is a problem--people continuing to mingle when they're contagious. Denial? Selfishness?
It seems that Angus is eager to travel.

WFT Nobby said...

Nothing right now can beat the excitement of finding a new local walk!

Coppa's girl said...

Lucky Sophie - a new walk, which looks exciting - so many new scents to savour!
After two days of rain it's a lovely day here, so maybe we'll take a walk along by the sea and stop for coffee now the cafés are open again.
Had to smile (though I know I shouldn't) about the couple taking extreme caution - I just hope they stay safe. Perhaps they are just being prudent and if everyone else in France took the same amount of care, virus numbers wouldn't be so high? I have been told to sanitise all my groceries too, and yes, I do wear gloves to handle them - in the supermarkets here it's obligatory. Possibly that's why our numbers have once again dropped?

Yamini MacLean said...

Hari OM
Love the look of that new path - less mud potential! There is taking care and then there is the apocalyptic approach. But as CG says, perhaps if more had been as cautious... YAM xx

The Life of Riley said...

Your new walk looks great! Perhaps the couple were trying to protect you. If either of them had a cold or had been around people with Covid-19 but were asymptomatic, they could be considering your health Angus. I often cross the road, when someone is walking towards me as, apart from a judgement based on age, I have no way of knowing if a stranger is vulnerable or not. Then a friendly wave as we pass gets a friendly wave back 99% of the time.