On Monday the sun is shining, so we take the “Tour
du Poux” trail.
It’s clear and warm, Spring seems to be in the
air.
 |
| We pass the Experaza Cemetary... |
 |
| Approaching one of the abandoned huts Do you suppose this was a shepard's shelter? |
 |
| It's so clear today the snow capped Pyrenees are a sight to see |
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| Open fields are flowering |
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| As we get closer to town we find lots of garden flowers on the roadside |
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| Even townsfolk have blooming flowers |
***
Tuesday to Friday the weather changes
– rainy,
cold and a little windy –
we stay in.
Yoga and French class are our outings…
John does his reading and writing,
I finish my
book “Pillars of the Earth” and work on my watercolor
 |
| Reading is getting in the way of watercolor studies |
 |
| Beginning to get the feel of it... |
 |
| Need more technique and perspective but I'll keep trying - I'm actually enjoying this |
On Wednesday, we venture out and visit the
Musée.
We are economizing for our Barcelona trip
so we
only visit the free Hat Museum.
 |
| Hats galore! |
 |
| The first forms for the felt hat are on the floor... It's then pressed to set the felt |
 |
| More forms and steaming... |
 |
| Look how many kinds of Singers are used to finish the hats |
In 1929, there were 14 hat factories
in Espéraza which made the village
become the second largest in the world
of felt hats (after Monza, Italy). Hats were worn less and less in the mid-20th
century and plunged Espéraza into an economic depression. Now all that remains
of the 14 Espéraza hat factories is a museum.
 |
| Pretty fancy stuff was made here in Esperaza |
The sun comes out on Saturday, we take advantage
and walk to Fa
– a village about 2 kilometers from Esperaza along D12 road,
4 kilometers by the trail through
the foothills.
We made the full walking
tour from D12 to the village and “accidentally"
found the foothill trail back to Esperaza.
An hour walk
that turned into 3hour hike.
A beautiful
hike on a glorious early spring day.
 |
| The main road to Fa |
 |
| Red Poppies - not golden like our California Poppies |
 |
| Vineyard along the road |
 |
| We are approaching the village of Fa |
 |
| Approaching the village center you can see the Fa Chateau up on the hilltop. Tour Wisigoth de Fa |
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| The village Library in one of the oldest buildings |
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| Hiking on the trail... Looking down at the village of Fa |
 |
| We've come upon the Tour Wisigoth du Fa |
This video tells about the tower and a little about Fa
 |
| On our way back, we can just see Esperaza |
 |
| Now we can see the cemetary of Esperaza We're almost home |
We end the day with a glasses of wine and “French” fries
at the new restaurant
next door run by Gerard, who’s the chef,
and Lorenze, the waitress, hostess and
partner.
 |
| "ALLO, allo?" "Puis-je prendre votre commande?" |
 |
| Gerard and Lorenze |
Sunday the wind and rain come back.
We spend the day on our
computers and reading
after shopping at the cold and wet Dimanche Marche…
 |
| Sunday Market on a cold, rainy day |
____*____
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