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Published: August 19th 2011
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Site of the Old Castle.
Where is the castle? This picture didn't show up last time. Man it was a good feeling to get back to Avully last night at 9:45 pm. We arrived later than we would have liked because we had another annoyance on our trip. Looking back on our time in France we had a little annoyance, a little problem or a big problem every single day. We did not have one day where all went smoothly. Maybe God is testing our resolve. Anyways, we saw many beautiful things in France, however it was so sweet to see our apartment. We all breathed a sigh of relief.
Anyways, Wednesday started out beautifully. We woke up and drove to the home that Paul Cézanne lived in during his painting days. It was a neat place to see and the property was absolutely peaceful. At his house, I felt like one got a sense of creativity. Paul Cézanne painted 87 different pieces about a local mountain in the area called Mont Sainte Victoire. After visiting the house, our next objective was to go to Mont Sainte Victoire to see first had what Paul Cézanne was so obsessed about.
Before heading to this mountain, we had to make a pit stop at our hotel and
go to the pool for a refreshing dip. In Aix-en-Provence it was 33 degrees and humid. Anyone who knows me, knows that I was sweating buckets. So, we went for a dip in the chilly pool and we were all refreshed to the core. I then said to Avery, we should go to Mont Sainte Victoire before it gets too late. We wanted to get the kids into bed on time.
This day had been seemless. All was going well. We were heading up to see this mountain. We were getting good views of it on our way up. It is a beautiful mountain. I can see why Paul Cézanne painted it so much. Of course, the road up was skinnier than a bean pole. We were going up and there was another car coming down that wasn’t staying to his side. As a result, I veered to the right to avoid him, ran over a rock and heard the tire deflate in 5 seconds flat. Now we have a headache.
What were we to do? We don’t have a cell phone. Denis is covered with roadside assistance from Toyota. Thank God. But still, we have to find
The Family.
In front of Paul Cézanne's house. a phone so that we can call for a tow truck. The nearest town is 5 km away. So, we start walking down the way we came. Luckily, a younger woman picked us up and drove us to Tholonet. I think that she had pity on us because she was pregnant and maybe had a few more motherly instinct hormones kicking in. Needless to say we were blessed by her kindness.
Once we arrived in Tholonet, the only place to call from was a local restaurant. They were kind enough to let me call Toyota Assistance. I got through to Toyota Assistance in France, however, I needed to talk to Toyota Assistance in Switzerland. France patched me through to Switzerland, however, no one was picking up in Switzerland. I was on hold for 25 minutes in the restaurant and their kindness was wearing thin because they needed their phone line for reservations. I then decided to catch the bus back to Aix-en-Provence and then call Toyota Assistance from our hotel. I finally got through and they said that they would send a tow truck the next day at 9:00 am to tow the car to a garage. I said
Go Habs Go!
I found another Habs fan in Aix-en-Provence. no way José! I was not going to leave Denis’ car overnight on some mountain road. They finally found a tow truck and we went to get the car. The driver’s name was Gérard Veillard. He was quite the character and I enjoyed our trip to get the car.
Sidenote - It seems like things are opposite over here. Things that should be easy are hard, and things that should be hard are easy. Getting the tow was easy. The driver picked me up, we drove to get the car and then Gérard drove me back. It was like I had my own taxi service. Whereas, something like finding decent facilities on a beach should be easy, but in the end it turns out to be a pain in the butt.
The car was towed to the Garage St. Donat. We needed to buy another new tire. In 16 years of driving, I have only had 1 flat tire. This summer we have had 3 already. One on the Saturn and two on Denis’ car. It’s funny how things go sometimes. The next problem - it was Thursday and they couldn’t get our specific tire in until next Tuesday. There is no way we are hanging around Aix-en-Provence for that many more days. We decided to take option B. We had to buy 2 new front tires for the car so that they match.
We then got a cab ride to the garage - 25 euros. We picked up the car at 3:35 pm and made our way back to Avully. The way back only took us 6 hours. Whereas the trip down took us 10 hours. We were thankful to have the Autoroute. However, the one drawback about the Autoroute is that you have to pay at certain intervals. They have things called “péage.” It cost us 40 euros to drive approx. 520 kms from Aix-en-Provence to Avully.
To add a little salt to the wound, I think that I got a photo radar ticket coming into customs in Geneva. The irony of it all is that the whole way up until that point, I was driving under the limit of 130 km/h. Coming into customs, I didn’t slow down quick enough and then I saw a big flash. Denis must think that we are crazy drivers with all of the stuff that has happened to us.
Lastly, sometimes I wonder if there is a reason why things happen. In the grand scheme of things, a flat tire is not that big of a deal. I think of the story of Balaam and the donkey in Numbers 22. Balaam is riding the donkey and the donkey seems to be doing funny things and then Balaam gets mad and beats his donkey. In the end, the donkey speaks and we realize that there was a reason for all that the donkey was doing. I think that this might be the case with us sometimes. Sure it was an inconvenience for us to get another flat tire. Yet, maybe God was sparing us from something worse that could have happened. Maybe we would have arrived at the Mountain and I would have wanted to hike it. Perhaps on that hike, I could have fallen and something serious could have happened. You never know. Some food for thought.
Needless to say, we are glad to be back in Avully. I got to visit my school today. I met 3 of my colleagues and I am looking forward to getting into the teaching routine again. But I have to say that all of the information that I am taking in is like trying to drink from a fire hose. However, I am excited to start the school year.
Jarod
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Amy
non-member comment
still enjoying your posts
Hi Jarod - just wanted to let you know that you continue to be in my thoughts and prayers as you all prepare to settle in to your new home and as you prepare to start school. I am also beginning my own new beginning at MY new school, and your "drinking from a firehose" comment made me laugh - it sure does feel like that for me these days! How does the copier work? Who do I ask for this or that? Where are the staplers?......the list goes on and on - I am definitely the new kid at school. It's nerve-wracking, but exciting, all at the same time. Keep writing - I was telling Thom the other day that I love reading your blog because it sounds just like you. Blessings, Amy