Upon Reflection..Let's Have Lunch

A sunny day, and those are rarer than hen's teeth round here, and the beginning of lunch time; the tables are laid and the staff are eating their lunch under the arcades.
This bar/restaurant is immensely popular because of its situation but when we first moved here it consisted of two or three tables under the terrace during the summer and a smoky, dingy room inside through the Winter. I reckon that the present arrangement is a change for the better.

Valbonne Cats

If I water her will she grow?
Mopsa, supervising spring planting..

Roofline

Looking up towards the roofs of the buildings on the main street. Most of the lower floors are given over to businesses or restaurants and the upper floors have been converted into apartments.

A Quiet Moment: The Yucca

A potted Yucca plant basking in the winter sun...

Big Ears

Am I mistaken or is that Mickey Mouse hanging from the roof? Definitely mistaken, it is, of course, the shadow of two satellite dishes which are becoming more and more common as Valbonne embraces modern technology. And not before time. My daughter lives in one of these picturesque apartments and I can only get her on the phone when she's standing in her kitchen...

Strawberries

Strawberries from Spain in all their juicy red perfection...could Spring be on its way?

Fete de St Blaise: The Flowers

The parade does two turns round the village and on the second one the participants get really serious about throwing the flowers into the crowd and there's a kind of an ungainly scramble for blooms. Some people even bring baskets to collect as much as possible and the pavements and roads are covered with mimosa blossom and confetti. It's really very pretty.

Whoops! I've just realised it's Valentine's Day...I should have found something red or heart shaped. It just shows how much romance there is in my soul..

Fete de St Blaise: The Flower Child

Out of all the photos I took at the parade this was my favourite...just something about the child's expression. She's, or maybe he's, definitely not sure if dressing up in hippy gear and throwing flowers at strangers is all it's cracked up to be.

Fete de St Blaise: The People.

By the time I'd got myself organised all the best places were taken and I found myself with the mid afternoon sun right in my eyes. It was impossible to catch a photo of the parade but this guy, a stranger, was standing up on the wall right next to me and he and his small companion were having such a great time throwing confetti, I caught them on camera instead.

Fete de St Blaise: The Floats

The carnival floats are a delight to see as they trundle up the road pulled along by tractors. Each is decorated with bundles of flowers mainly mimosa and carnations arranged according to some theme. I noticed a Moulin Rouge, an Eiffel Tour and a Lion King float. There were hippies and cheerleaders and marching bands.
The parade does two turns round the village while the occupants throw flowers at the crowd...

More tomorrow...

Fete de St Blaise

du raisin et des produits du terroir...which is a mouthful by any one's standards. Basically this is a local festival called after St Blaise, the saint after whom the church is named, and the idea is to celebrate local produce which included grapes, the variety the Servan.

This is the square all dressed up for the party with mimosa and carnations, which is where I started. It's also the place that is the most crowded when the carnival floats come through so I didn't linger long, just long enough to greet some friends and then I headed out to the main road to find a place to watch the parade..
Tomorrow we'll take a look at some of the floats..

It's not still Christmas, is it?

In Valbonne it is..The decorations stay up till the Fete du Raisin et du Terroir at the beginning of February. This is the central decoration hanging from the Place aux Arcades. Unlike most decorations it looks quite impressive by day glinting in the sunlight as well as by night.

The Mediatheque

Because of space constraints and to serve a rapidly increasing population expansion has to happen away from the old village so the new Mediatheque is located in Garbejaire, the "modern" part of Valbonne. It's where I took the last photo too.

The Mediatheque opened last year and houses books, CDs and DVDs which you can borrow, and a snack bar. It's a pleasant airy building which provides a focal point for the community.

Light and Shade.

I'm looking out into cloud, the sky is down round my shoulders and my hair is frizzing with the dampness of it all so when trying to decide on an image for today I went for bright and bold. This is Valbonne's alter ego, the modern part known as Sophia Antipolis, a high tech. business park that provides Valbonne with revenue and jobs..

Trees

A reflection of the pruned plane tree in a window. The shop sells beautiful linen and cotton clothes..

Vallis Bona

Here you can see a map of the old village of Valbonne in its grid pattern as it has existed for centuries. Any real expansion on this site was always going to be difficult as the village is bordered by main roads and a small river so the newer development happened on the other side of the main road and is called Vallis Bona, the good or fertile valley, the original name of the village.
I can't find a date for the construction though it happened during my time here as I can remember the passionate debates against it at the time.
It's hard now to remember what all the fuss was about. The building, one large block housing apartments over a pharmacy, a vegetable shop, bakery etc, is in sympathy with its surroundings and pleasant enough to look at. The development also included a desperately needed car park.
This is the Italian delicatessen sporting beautifully wrapped panettone with the fruit and veg. shop behind..

Shoes

Tell me: when is it NOT about the shoes?

The sales have started and shoe shops are exhibiting what's left of the party season stock outside at knock down prices. Now's the moment to snap up a bargain.

Skywatch Friday

We've been having a lot more weather this Winter than we're used to in this part of the world though I'm heartily glad that the blizzard that struck Marseilles, just a 2 hour drive away, passed us by.
Snow is all very well in its place like up in those hills but, please, not in my back yard!

If you'd like to see more great Sky watch images check out the Sky watch site.

Recycling.

We take our recycling very seriously round here though as yet no one's thought to install a Barbie recycling bin..

The local councils will take away large stuff: furniture, appliances and electronic gear on certain days of the month. The custom is to leave things on display in advance if they're still usable so someone else can profit from them. The Barbies were naked but in perfect condition..

Time To Move On

I would love Christmas just for the decorations. I enjoy the colour and sparkle at a grey and dreary time of year. It cheers me up enormously to see the style, elegance and exuberance of some of the local decorations.
However, with tomorrow being the Feast of the Kings, the Epiphany, it's time to move on so this my last holiday photo till next year..though the decorations will remain up till the end of January when we celebrate the Fete du Raisin. It's all party, party, party here, you know!