For folks back home, the heat here has been relentless. I don’t think there’s been a day this week under 100 degrees. And although my AirBnB is in a stone cottage that retains much of the coolness from the night before, even here it has been unbearably warm with no fans to even move the air. Yesterday, I basically drove all day not seeing anything in particular, just to be in the air-conditioned car. Last night, I opened the door and window to bring in as much of the night air as I could, even though there was no breeze. The houses here have shutters on all windows and doors to keep out the sun during the day. It is no joke - the heat from the sun is pretty intense. This morning there was a really nice breeze, so I opened up everything again, to bring in the cool 80 degree air and exchange it all until I had to close it up again. I spent most of the day doing laundry, dishes, reading, writing, and watching a couple of movies. It was a low-key kind of day. I’m off to Dijon tomorrow where the heat isn’t quite as intense, although it is still quite hot. I’ve been keeping an eye on the train schedules, as well. Several trains are not running in various areas because the tracks are too hot. And wild fires have broken out everywhere. Thankfully, they have not done so here, although yesterday I saw the aftermath of a wildfire that had evidently occurred a few days ago. I understand that the US is beginning it’s own heatwave now, as well. Keep everyone in prayer to be safe. Our planet is definitely heating up in the cycle! We’ve had record heatwaves every year for the last decade. Nearly 1000 have died from the heat here in the EU this year alone.
I’ve confirmed that I’m definitely an extrovert, if there was any question about that. Although this week was amazing for the sights that I got to see that have been on my bucket list for years, I haven’t had much interaction with others. I didn’t schedule any tours, I didn’t take a class, I didn’t interact with my hosts (they went on vacation this week), etc…And I’m bored out of my mind!!!!!! The heat didn’t help, as I just wanted to quickly see things and move on to get someplace that had air-conditioning or at least, back to the car. Thankfully, most of the rest of my trip will be spent with various friends from back home or abroad in France, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Belgium. I’m so glad that it is ending this way.
Here are a few pictures I’ve taken since my last post. Most of the church pictures are of Cathedral of St Sauvuer. It is not a typical church in shape. Most of the churches built between 1100-1700 have the cross shape to the sanctuary. You can see the shape of the church from one of the photos below that show a blueprint of its layout. Also note the green coloring of the church pipe organs, another rarity. The photo that looks like a whole in the ground is the ancient baptismal font. Originally, it had stone steps that led to the bottom.
I was told that the Provence area had a specialty cookie called a calisson. It is made of ground almonds, candied melon and oranges. They are the top three cookies in various flavors (I ate the other 3 - oops). I think I like the original flavor best. The others were not that great. The bottom three cookies, however, are maybe the best cookies I’ve ever had. The woman at the shop called La Cure Gourmand in Avignon said that they were homemade. I believe it. Although there were thousands of them in various flavors in bins. They sell them by the pound and in tins. I’m trying to find a recipe for them. Each is filled with a thick jam - apricot, peach, raspberry, orange, or caramel or chocolate. Seriously, they were so good!
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