Sainte Foy Tarentaise : 07 June 2020
A few days ago, I was able to rip another page off my calendar and welcome the sunny month of June into 2020. Only it hasn’t been very sunny so far in Sainte Foy. It started off with fabulous sunshine and I was able to get some great photos for our blog about the new chairlift which is replacing the old and rather slow Arpettaz chairlift, but it didn’t last.
Summer rainfall is always welcome, and this time the ground needed it. Plants and trees are thirsty at this time of year, and our autumn harvest is dependent on a good growing season.
Visually, clouds floating past at eye level from the balcony are always a spectacular sight. My ‘pause café’, coffee break, sat on the comfy cushioned balcony furniture, is a relaxing experience, and if I wait long enough on days like these, the friendly clouds will even water my balcony herb garden for me.
The 2nd of June was a momentous day for France’s return to normality. The bars and restaurants were officially allowed to welcome guests into their seating areas again. This of course is subject to a range of Health and Safety measures designed to ensure our continued protection against the deadly Coronavirus.
Taking coffee with the locals is something I particularly enjoy in France. There’s an unwritten rule that while you are working your way through your morning coffee ritual, you are allowed to talk to anyone. Indeed you are expected to exchange pleasantries, and share small observations that are likely to impact the daily lives of those around you. It’s all very pleasant and genial, and has been sorely missed.
This reopening of the local eateries is in no small part due to France’s determination to get their tourism industry up and running again. They want to achieve this before the national workforce downs tools for their sacrosanct two month summer holiday period, which is July and August. (We can safely add this to the basket of rights such as two hour lunch breaks and a day off to celebrate a famous prison break, which are in no way to be interfered with.)
I feel sure that ‘les citoyens français’, French people, are more than ready to go off and enjoy their summer holidays after having been cooped up for so long, but for how long social distancing and mask wearing remain fashionable, waits to be seen.
I learned a new word this week, ‘Sophrology’. It’s so new that my spellchecker contests its very existence! At first glance, and after saying it out loud, I mused to myself that it had something to do with a sofa-life existence in a post virus world.
Turns out I wasn’t far off. It’s supposedly popular in continental Europe as a self-help method, combining Western science and Eastern wisdom, to help manage stress, sleep better and discover mindful living. Sort of like yoga really!
It ties in with my new hobby, and something I can do from the comfort of my balcony sofa – satellite spotting. All the planes are all grounded, so there’s no distraction from red and green lights flashing in the night sky, and even Elon Musk is blowing his fortune pinging more satellites up there for us to spot.
It is also a very social hobby. Spotting satellites, and there are lots of them, is a game best played as the sun goes down, with the company of a few good friends. Your fellow lookouts can also help you empty a few bottles of wine while they keep watch, and on a lucky night you might even see the space station whizzing by.
These are the evenings which I relish and savour here in the mountains, and now that we can meet up in small groups, my balcony is primed to host many more ‘apéro’ evenings like this.
All the photos in this article are of views seen from the balcony of Chalet Nido dell’Aquila in Sainte Foy and this last photo was taken on one of those fabulously sunny mornings after a heavy winter snowfall.
