Claude the cat
What a weekend! First we find our cat Claude immobilised with pain from a punctured eye. So he is under house arrest for five days on eyedrops and painkillers. It’s not so easy when his siblings are out and about. You can’t open a window as he is hell-bent on escaping.
A Renault Alpine tackles the roads round Cortambert
But good news, summer has arrived at last and it was hot for this year’s Rallaye des Vins. One of the stages began in Cortambert so the roads through the hills were closed for the day. Our foyer rural committee had set up a buvette amongst the vines overlooking the course and most members took a turn serving behind the counter. The hot sunshine ensured a roaring trade in beer and cold drinks. Hot dogs and chips were popular and the new gaufre machine was well and truly christened.
Chris demonstrating the gaufre machine
Meanwhile several of our neighbours were occupied with Cant’Azé, the local choir, which put on three concerts over the weekend. We went to the final concert today at the church in Azé. It was just superb. The songs were cleverly linked by the theme les sens et l’essence de la vie. We were taken on a voyage from the announcement of a birth through childhood, love and romance and eventually to death – le pont des âges. The five senses were examined during this voyage through life. Il n’y a rien dans notre intelligence qui ne soit passé par nos sens. To help us appreciate the sense of smell a machine disguised as an old shoe was puffing out the smell of old socks (or French cheese?). Then the church became perfumed with roses. In the programme we found a sealed envelope, ne pas ouvrir. Suddenly we were told Ouvrez-là, allez-y, goûtons ce plaisir! It was a jelly sweet. Mine was orange, not pissenlit! Tous les goûts sont dans la nature.
Cant'Azé in concert
After the concert we were invited for a glass of wine and a buffet of savouries and cakes made by the sopranos. Everybody was ready for a snack and the plates were cleared so quickly that you would have thought a plague of locusts had descended.
The hospitality of Cant'Azé
Cant’Azé showed the results of a year of hard work and dedication. One narrator asked the other, As-tu senti la chaleur du public ce soir? As-tu vu comme ils semblent satisfaits? The answer is a resounding Oui!
