Sunday Sep. 15 - A Damp Day

The wet weather rolled in late Saturday night accompanied by lightning and thunder.  It continued into the morning and we had to go to Plan B for the day (no hiking today).  When we hiked the Perreal the other day we learned that the old church at the top of the hill would be open for mass the only time this year at 11AM.  So we decided to head that way and had planned to walk at least part of the road to the church.  At the end of the pavement the car ahead of us proceeded up the dirt road so I decided to give it a try.  I put the front-wheel drive car into four-wheel mode (just kidding) and we proceeded up the hill, collecting the gooey dirt on the tires as we made our way up the hill.  We decided to stop a few hundred yards short of the church and pointed the car downhill for an easier exit.  When we got to the church we were joined by the couple who were in the car in front of us.  As it got closer to 11AM we were joined by a few more people brave enough to drive up the slippery road but the average age stayed about the same - 60+.  A young family did arrive that just slightly drove down the average age.  Unfortunately the priest never arrived so we left about 11:20 and slid down the hill.  We met one other car on the way down and it was fun navigating around him on the narrow road.  Probably a good thing he had four-wheel drive.

 

 

So being it is Sunday in France most everything is closed.  The cupboard was very bare at the house so we headed to the only market in Apt that we knew was open on Sunday (we had the same problem two years ago).  We arrived just as they closed so on to another Plan B.  We drove through Apt and then darted into a lavage to wash all of the dirt off of the car (and there was a lot of it in the wheel wells and on the side of the car).  Got that done and headed to St. Sat to make arrangements for dinner (since we had nothing to cook at home).

 

We then headed to Villars, a small village just a few kilometers from here.  It is a lovely quiet village and we walked around a bit and took in the sights.

 

 

 

 

We again had dinner in the village at L'Estrade.  Each couple shared a salad with chevre et bricks.  For the main course Jim and Judy had faux filet of beouf, Charlotte had porc and Steve had sardines - all with bread and rose of course.  Followed by a walk home in the brisk evening air.