Snowy Stuff - Part One

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Linda wrote.....

We’ve been away from NZ for over a month now, it feels like the fastest month ever but also the busiest!! Our three weeks in France have taken us from Paris to the South of France, a day trip into Spain and we have just had three nights high up in the Pyrenees.

We find France, French life, the many villages and the varied landscape fantastic and fascinating …..but I’m still not anywhere near understanding the French language yet! Despite my obvious deficit I am finding all French people extremely helpful, kind and very patient with my pathetic attempts at their language! As Kirby has become fond of saying “We will get there eventually!!” I am fast drawing to the conclusion that so long as we attempt to speak French the help and smiles will continue to be forthcoming….confusion is often greeted with an attempt at English or helpful gestures and smiles. This friendliness I am sure is helped by the now habitual use of French greetings, thanks and pleases that have become almost natural to the girls.

We drove up the Pyrenees from our sea level base in beautiful Collioure expecting to walk and go mountain biking, but instead as we drove up it started to snow…and snow and snow. We passed the most beautiful mountain villages, uniform old stone houses surrounding the ever present and domineering catholic church and more often than not also enhanced with a medieval castle or surrounded by medieval walls protecting the towns from the past threat of the Spanish border nearby. The narrow streets of all these villages wind their way up the mountains tightly knitting the life of the village together. The compulsory Boulangerie, Pattisserie and Bar/Café ever present.

It took just over two hours and we found ourselves in a pretty village lightly covered in the first snow of winter! Formigueres and the little house we were to stay in were equally gorgeous.

It snowed all night and the next morning the snow was deep and fresh. Tim and the girls trudged into town for the essential morning baguette purchase with the girls throwing snowballs at their Dad all the way!! We changed the activities to tobogganing on empty ski slopes, snow man creating and hot chocolate drinking…….France is being kind!!

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