Venerable Vezenobres

Another butterfly to chase

Sunflowers on the road to Vezenobres

Vezenobres Clock Tower

Town Hall

Rooftop views

Eating figs under a fig tree

....and the carpenter said.....

Typical beauty in this village

Russ feeding my obsession on sundials

Walking trails are well marked

It's amazing how quickly time has gone on this trip, but we still have the morning to explore before the big event this afternoon. Russ and I are heading for a hilltop village called Vezenobres. 

But first we have sunflowers to admire, bike riders to photograph and stories to tell in our car journey. We arrive in no time and Russ gets the car into a good parking spot. Off we head, straight up in the baking sun, I see why we gave this a miss yesterday afternoon. The heat is punishing but on we go under the clock tower and slowly wind our way up the narrow, picturesque streets. Oh, there is a sundial, I seem to have a new appreciation (obsession) for these marvels of mathematics. Now we find a cat, and say hello and take a photo.  There is the Marie (town hall) another new French word for me, the Le Mayor is not in, but maybe he is the guy watering the plants. This is the cleanest village I have ever seen. 

On and on, till ultimately we make it to the top, this was an old Fort from before the Romans, the layers of history in these places is hard to comprehend. Time for a break in the shade, under a leafy tree, out with the figs and almonds from Uzes markets. Ok, I am a bit slow to catch on we are sitting under a fig tree, this village is known for its figs and what’s this Russ has just identified the tree in front of us is almonds. They look so big on the tree compared to the one I have in my hand.

Oh my, Russ has just spotted the number one thing on my nature list a Hummingbird Moth, a few weeks ago I did not even know they existed. Video on, photos not working, moth too quick, now back to video. Wow, this little patch of ‘bush’ at the top of the village is a treasure trove of nature.

Eventually, its time to head back down the steep slope and box around the street sweeper, no wonder these cobblestones are so clean. Russ and I should have brushed the dust off our shoes before we stepped on the path. Down we go, green, purple and blue shutters to photograph against the stone houses, through the covered slot below the town hall and back to the centre of the village. 

The town hall has public toilets, so it’s time for a quick pit stop. Hmm, that toilet looks a bit weird, I think I am in the mens. Hmm, no this is the right spot. What am I meant to do here, ok I get it, put my feet there, and with a bit of gymnastics, mission accomplished. Travel the world and the only thing that ever confounds me is toilets, apparently, this one is ‘Turkish style’.

Lots of steep slopes and we wind our way to the bottom it's probably time to head on but Russ has something in mind in the lower village I can just tell. A peek inside the church with decorations for walking pilgrims, one of the major routes that goes through this town, is the GR700, called the Regordane Way and goes 249km from Puy-en-Velay to St Gilles. Around the last corner and here it is on the back wall of a house, just visible from the road is another sundial!

Time to head back to Uzes, Russ programmes Gypsy the GPS, he has picked the same route as where the Tour de France bikes will go in a few hours. Will we make it before they close the roads? Yes! People are starting to pick their spots, there are pic knickers, motorhomers, old car clubs, we even see another le tube (Citroen H Van), one of my favourite unique French cars.