Tour de France

The floats came through Olonzac starting at 11am. The Tour itself came through between 12:00 and 1pm. The town was full of people and we had a great view from the Chateau and the scaffold I set up to view it. Hopefully our lone Canadian saw our sign!

Morning walk to Minerve

Yesterday morning before the Tour de France came through town we walked in the hills around Minerve an ancient perched town 10 kilometers from Olonzac. It was raining in the early morning but our concerns about the barbecue and gathering for the tour were unfounded as the day got sunnier and sunnier.

Last night we walked to the lake for the fireworks display celebrating Bastille Day. The fireworks are positioned on pontoons floating in the lake. A great display this year but hard to photograph with my slow camera. Hundreds of people were there. Some visiting Canadians went to Carcassonne were the annual display is only rivaled by Paris

We've had another glorious weekend. I moved a small mountain of stone on Saturday but Sunday was spent on bicycle or walking through the countryside.

Jack and I headed out from Tourouzelle into the hills where we found this 19th century Chateau set in a huge walled park. There is a road at the edge of the property that passes 4 major Chateaus in various states of repair.

Tour de France

The glossy magazine about Olonzac and the region arrived yesterday. Have a look at the cover and imagine what we'll be doing for 7 seconds at about 1:45 July 17th. The approaches to town have been paved anew.

Sunny south of France

Another hot day for sitting by the pool.

Last weekend I did our annual 28Kilometer walk from Spain to France over the high Pyrenees.

My friend Rui threatened to stop a few times to be driven back by the organizers but he soldiered on to the end as usual. Next year we may pick another location in Spain because it's only 2 hours away. The draw of tradition may likely mean we'll do the same trip again.

Ancient ice storage?

This structure sits on a hill just outside of Olonzac. I can't decide if it's an ancient ice storage or perhaps it's for grain. There are also piles of stone on the hill that was once buildings. A place of retreat in times of conflict?