Thursday 8 January 2009

Snow in Provence?

This is the fist snowfall around Avignon in 5 years, and more snow than I've ever seen in Provence. Below is a picture of my village - Chateauneuf de Gadagne - taken yesterday.

Some of the vineyards of Chateauneuf de Gadagne, blanketed by the snow. Generally, "snow" in Provence is just a few flakes: the kids rush outside for about an hour to try and play with it before it melts, then they wait patiently until next year. But those lucky kids were able to play in it yesterday and today, seeing that all the buses were cancelled due to 10cm of snow...

Indeed, there isn't a single snowplow in Provence, though I did manage to snap this shot of an ingeniously improvised plow, fashioned out of a tractor normally used in the vines... I was stuck in Avignon yesterday without public transportation to return to my village: the afternoon buses had been cancelled and so I decided to cycle home on the snow. I managed far better than the cars I saw sliding all over the road and getting into accidents.
A view from atop my village, looking out toward the plains...

Snow cacti?

A walking path in my village...

Here's a picture of Christine in front of our home, and the bike I had just ridden from Avignon.