Angry Aude

The "wicker" man in sunnier, drier days.

 It has stopped raining--for now.  I had to buy a new umbrella this morning, because I was getting soaked.  The wind whipped the ribs out of my old one.  So, now that I have a new, clear umbrella that covers me and my purse, and allows me to see where I am going, I will probably never need it again.  It is the way of such things.

He looks like he's calling for help.

 But I wanted to see what the river was doing after all this rain, so I left for my hair appointment a little early so I could make a detour.  Bob and Chris had told me that the "wicker" sculpture was okay, and the island wasn't under water, although the little cement bridge was water-covered.  That was yesterday.  Today brings a different story.

The police were parked at the entrance to the Pont Vieux, just checking things out, I guess.  The bridge was still open to pedestrians, but the river is not happy.  The island on which the wicker man sits is completely under water, and his heart is partially submerged.  Now, instead of looking like he is celebrating, he looks like he's calling for help. 

Looking downriver (east) to the "new" bridge

I had to wonder about the Pont Vieux. Built in 1369, without the aid of modern power, and without perhaps good blueprints, because the arches are not evenly spaced or sized, it has probably withstood more than one inundation.  Actually, given the state of the bridges and infrastructure in the US, I was probably standing on the safest bridge. The river was swift, full of debris and dangerously close to overflowing its containing walls. 

Full of debris

I struck up a conversation with a man who'd also come to the bridge to satisfy his curiosity. Nature on the rampage does make us curious--maybe we need to see it every so often to remind us where we are in the grand scheme of things.  He informed me that this surging, roiling waterway below our feet was a result of really, really heavy rains up in the mountains. According to the paper, all of this precipitation will be turning to snow up in the Pyrenees, and maybe even here. I noticed that it was a bit chillier when I returned home this afternoon than it was when I left the apartment this morning.  

Looking west.  The cement footbridge is completely under water.

But it has stopped raining-for now.