Snow Yeti Again

Well, this is going to sound a bit like a broken record, but we have had snow again this week. But first, let me tell you about our little trip last weekend to Rennes le Chateau.

We decided, after reading about the snow forecast, to make the most of the fine weather on Sunday and go to the market at Esperaza. Sun bright and people chirpy and market a little quiet but still nice. On the way home we took a detour and went to have a quick look around Rennes le Chateau.

Tour de Magdalene

Penitence

Chapel of Mary Magdalene

Those of you who have read Da Vinci Code (Dan Brown) and Sepulchre (Kate Mosse) will know the story of Berenger Sauniere, who was a local priest accused of receiving funds inappropriately and even of spying for the Germans during WWI. His grave is in the churchyard of the Chapel of Mary Magadalene. This small chapel is beautifully decorated.

There are some nice windy streets and interesting buildings in the village, as well as stunning views over the Razes from nearby the Tower - the Tour de Magadalene. Inside the tourist office you can find a huge glass-covered excavation hole, which was dynamite blasted in the '60s to try and find "buried treasure", which of course was never found and probably never existed. But it did start fresh rumours about the priest, followed by a series of books and theories, some mentioned above. You can also visit the museum.

Feathered clouds on Sunday

Later in the day we had some lovely feather clouds which to us signify an oncoming storm. It was unbelievable as the weather was just warming up nicely and the day was so bright. But Monday morning was a completely different story. A large blanket of snow was everywhere we could see. The snowflakes started off wet and large and soon became thick on the ground. The temperature continued to drop and by the end of the day everything was quiet when we took Cassy for a walk down to the reserve. Wearing our good old NZ gumboots otherwise the snow would have gotten into our shoes!

Monday

Tuesday morning

Looking towards the back fence
Icicles on shed up to a meter long

After 4 days there is snow still sitting on the ground and in some trees. We have had watery sun occasionally during the week but not enough to get rid of all the snow. The icicles are beginning to thaw and crash to the ground. Now we feel we have seen enough winter and just want it to be spring! Poor birds are having a tough time finding enough to eat so we are putting out "fat balls" for them to nibble. It's quite lovely to see them all queueing up and then some underneath feeding on the bits that drop.

Robin in the snow

A couple of weeks ago we completed our new fence around the garden we planned to upgrade this winter. Before we could start we had to remove the privet hedge - one reason for getting rid of this hedge is that it looked rather straggly and another reason is that I am allergic to the flower pollen. We got a couple of the smaller ones out no trouble, but the others called for the more drastic action of pulley and block - I think Wouter likes to use these machines - like making cement is the grown man's answer to the sandpit.

Front garden with privet hedge

Wouter working wonders with the pulley

Wouter Kabouter......

I always hoped to find a kabouter (gnome) in the garden!

The posts are from acacia and were given to us by our vineyard neighbours. They just wanted to get rid of them and we said we would take them. Simple and great for us! We did buy a few small plants to pretty up the entrance (hopefully they survive the snow) and at some stage we will get something hanging on the rails by the gate. The other side of the fence will be covered with clematis once they grow. The centre part of this garden will also be changed, but we are not entirely sure how we will do this part.

Posts woven with Virginia creeper and pruned branches

By next Tuesday our temperatures will be into double figures again, so we are told, and then it will be a race against the clock to do all the chores that need to be done before planting, before trees sprout again, before fruit sets, and before weeds get too big to handle! After that's all done the snow will be long gone and we'll be looking at the next chores of building our outdoor guest barbecue making a cover for the well-pump.