Bunnies and seasand

Blog is slowly starting to lag reality a little less. Recently, for the long weekend we made the bunny schlep to the seaside for Easter.

Many moons ago, when travelling to Paris for the first time, I remember another guy with his house on his back telling me that you have not been to France until you have been to the South. This kinda blew the wind out my novice traveller sails, as my plans limited me to Paris and the East, humph! Back in 1999, I think the reference was to the Riviera, now we had the more 'normal' Montpellier in sight. Nevertheless, after many an adventure, I was still excited to finally be heading south after having not seen 'France' for all these years.

Another first, I also set my personal land speed record, well without considering take-off and landing, and those buses in Peru. This time it was in the duplex TGV that gets up to 320 km/h, what a great public transport!

Our TGV (train à grande vitesse) in Gare de Lyon. Arrive 2 minutes before departure, and arrive in the city centre, all in it rivals flying on a short haul.
















Sun setting at 300 k's an hour...

Beach at Carnon, beautiful spring weather.














































Sour fig on the beach, could be Cape Town.

Montpellier is mostly beautiful with an old inner city surrounded by an architects wet dream; a modern pseudo Greek suburb, not my idea of pretty. The inner city has narrow tall alleys, walls decked out in a Montpellier cream, it all helps keep the streets cool in the heat of summer.

Spring showing its gorgeous colours in Place de la Comédie

Just up the road from Montpellier is one of France's most beautiful villages, and I'm not just making that up. An association established in 1982 (Les plus beaux villages de France™) has nominated 146 villages that are promoted and looked after to protect this heritage. One of the 146 goes by the name of St Guilhem le Desert. It also has historical significance in that it's along one of the pilgrimage routes to Santiago de Compostela.

The perfect place for crêpes and cider, the place in St Guilhem le Desert.

Along the coast from Carnon is the old walled town of Aigues-Mortes (dead waters), which makes sense I guess given all the lagoons around. An intriguing spot with many a quaint street and scrumptious smelling crêperie. Worth the visit, an especially good spot to chill for lunch or a glass or two of wine, I imagine.

Something about beaches that just call for sunset photos, so forgive me, couldn't help myself.

I am sure the Easter bunny enjoyed using us as an excuse to hit the beach, must've been hell to stop the eggs melting...

Sun, snow and châteaux

A month full of spoiling gone by, spoilt by the presence of family and friends from faraway coasts, and by the coasts themselves. It has been a crazy month that needs a bit of reflection to allow the senses to take it all in; wildlife and the bushveld, Cape Town and the sea, Jura mountains for a wedding reception, skiing in Flaine and wrapped up by the beautiful châteaux of the Loire valley. Best of all, being able to catch up with faraway friends and fandamily over some bubbly.

It's a lot of blogging to do, so time to bring in the photies...

A good place to start, the beginning... Kruger Park, bigger than Switzerland, and more exciting, well maybe that's a bit unfair since I have only ever been to Switzerland twice, and both time only about 5 km in to the airport. Though, doesn't strike me as a wild place! Kruger on the other hand is wild, albeit it a civilised kind. Ah magic! One of my favourite places in the world, it seriously resets the soul.

The light was just special that morning.
















They can be a bit tatty and war torn, but she was just beautiful.











































No too schabby a set of tusks.
















Elegance and grace antelopified.

View from Skukuza camp, it was amazing to see the bushveld so green, but then parts of Mozambique were a few feet under water after a cyclone made landfall.

Almost comical in proportions.

Jock Safari Lodge spoiling, our own private sala looking out over the river, awesome spot, thanks!

Now that's a big boy, not sure he agrees about that 'king of the jungle' thing.




























Sundowners African style.
























































A special morning light.

A farewell encounter.

A real highlight tour of South Africa, from Kruger to the Cape, summer just calls for a beach picnic. Wonderful to be able to chill on the beach into the evening! Not many cities like it...

From savannah and surf to snow, off to the Jura mountains in France, there is some celebrating to do!!!

Guest starring dj Bond

March, a time of plenty of cold and snow in the Jura mountains, hmmm not this year. Played havoc with the cross country ski season...

Although, when it came to leaving, the snow arrived... for a week, beautiful to wake up to fresh powdery white stuff.

The cemetery at Lamoura.

Leaving the Jura, although we would be staying with the powder... off to Flaine for some downhill skiing. Scarier, but less strenuous than cross-country. The storm had arrived and dumped a fair amount of nastiness on the roads, so after the 1st try we invested in some chains, turning our 307 into a worthy competitor for Raul's 4x4 206, amazing how much more you can do in a hired car.

Flaine was great, fresh powder all week, albeit falling all week as well so we weren't able to take in the splendour of what I imagine a clear view might bring. As for the village itself, hhmmm not somethign I would be proud to put my name against as an architect...

View from our apartment. Despite the unimaginative concrete, a cool spot. But I guess if you lack imagination the worst thing you could do is try make imaginative concrete... he really knew his limits.

One of the mogully ways to get down the mountain.
















Hmm who said no cross-countrying?
















View of the ugliest ski station in France, in the most incredible setting
















And as the weather is prone to do, on the eve of leaving it clears up and says a bright 'howzit!'.































The most spectacular evening, light to rival a morning in the bushveld, brrr missing 40 degrees or so...

Flaine also played host to a hundred odd nutters who do what is call ski randonnée. That's where you put a velvet like 'skin' (otter in the old days, I imagine before the bunny huggers got hold of that) on the bottom of your skis so that you can go straight up mountains. And so they did, 800 vertical metres, in the dark, up a red slope, wow! Have a drink and some nosh, and then bail down said route with a Petzl strapped to your head... hmm sounds like a sane evening out.

It was a great few days but then it was time to dig the car out and head from the ugliest to of the most beautiful buildings on display in France, to be found in the Loire valley.

Azay-le-Rideau, a small but beautiful château right in the village

Langeais, a little less pretty but I guess it was for pouring hot oil off the top of, or some such pleasant welcoming. Fit for purpose.

And Chenonceau, still the prettiest for me, and since you have seen it in previous blogs; a little taste of spring.

I don't expect future months will easily be able to live up to this one gone by, a little bit of everything.

Wishing you the chills of animal calls at night and some fresh snow to collect your backside when you wipe out.

Holy Cow!

Well I now know where all the cheeses come from... last Saturday Paris played host to the 140 somethingest agricultural show. More cows than the main drag in Mumbai at rush hour.

Wishing you a moovalous weekend!

Life...

It really isn't right! I'm ashamed; a blog left lurking around for over a month without so much as a 'hoezit'. It's just not cricket...

Like all things my fault I will now go about blaming someone or something else, scapegoat time... this time I blame life, it just seems to have gotten in the way of quality blog time.

A while back life began to take a small change in direction, so this month apart shouldn't be too much of a surprise, it has been a year in coming.

This is life!

Ribbit

Hunting season is over but don't fret, frog season has just kicked off! Yes just as winter seems to be arriving, finally... My theory is that the little guys voluntarily get out the lake and march up to the restaurant so that they can go to a warmer place. Besides, they know that they will live on in the cholesterol of the lucky diner. So my first brush with the jumpy end of a frog... and bring on the cholesterol, cause they are very yummy! No, they don't taste like chicken, they taste like frog's legs. Well, now that I think about it, maybe the frozen ones in Paris would taste like chicken. I was lucky enough to get the freshest kind, only a few hops from the lake in the Haute Jura.

Last legs standing...


















The three steps of gastronomic evolution of the frog...
















A fitting end to a wonderful night out, one of the more beautiful drives 'home' in a long time...

















The driveway... the Jura had just received a good coating of the white stuff, so in the interests of battling the cholesterol and to see if springy frogs legs lead to springy human legs...

















A bit of cross country skiing was in order in the Lajoux valley. Such a beautiful blue sky day!!!

















A perfect weekend of taking on and combating the evil that is decadence deep fried in butter, the perfect balance... Maybe the frogs don't think so...