Busted!!!--No Not Me

The towers were particularly colorful in today's light.

 

The day got off to an exciting start.  I had not slept very well--Orion made too much noise when he walked by, and kept me awake most of the night.  After finally getting to sleep, I was awakened at about 7:30 by the sound of a shutter banging.  However, as I rose up through the layers to consciousness, I realized that there was no wind.  I got up, threw open my own bedroom shutter to see the street FILLED with gendarmes.  One of them caught my eye--poor fellow.  I am a mess when I wake up in the morning. I waved and then raced to make myself presentable so I could sit in the windowsill and snoop.

The Aude looking west, but from the south bank.

They were raiding the two apartments of the screaming banshees that have made this street unbearable at times.  I don't know what they were looking for, drugs, probably.  Or they could have been from Immigration.  I know that they took away some young man from the apartment across the street, along with his computer.  Handcuffed and put into the van.  This is the apartment where the kid screams/cries nearly nonstop.  I haven't heard a peep since.  It was all very exciting, but I think my neighbors slept through the entire thing, because they have external shutters, which were closed.  

The cite makes its presence felt.

The police, other than banging on the doors, didn't scream or yell or do any of that "Freeze, dirt bag," business.  They were calm and polite and efficient.  The guy who was obviously in charge had a clipboard with tons of paperwork.  How the French do love their paperwork.

Well, after all THAT excitement, I was off to the market.  Came home, put away my groceries and headed out the door.  It was nearly 70 today, and sunny--too bloody gorgeous to stay inside.  I walked over the Pont Vieux to the Chapeau Rouge, because I wanted to buy a ticket for the concert/dance tomorrow night. But the box office was closed.  I will get one this evening when I go back for the lecture about how Simon de Montfort defeated the Count of Toulouse 800 years ago.  You can do this on line, but I don't have access to a printer.  

My first magpie.  They do indeed chatter.

Then I decided to simply go exploring. I had packed a sandwich and some clementines and a bottle of water for a lunch in a beautiful spot.  I headed west on the south bank of the Aude, and came across the most charming parks.  There is some kind of waterway, an irrigation ditch that runs parallel to the Aude, and the path is used by walkers and bikers and joggers.  In less than a ten minute walk, I was basically in the countryside.  It felt very familiar to me, like where I grew up.  

Less than 10 minutes from my apartment on foot.

I had my lunch, then I walked this jogging path along the ditch.  I don't know what to call it. At first, I thought it was the Canal du Midi, but soon realized that it was much, much too small to be that.  Charming, but small.  There were no signs, nor is it marked on my map.  (No, I didn't take it with me, I looked when I got home.)  

The "ditch"

I took seventy gazillion pictures. It took some time to download them all and then sort through and choose the ones to use for this blog. For obvious reasons, I didn't take any photos of the gendarmes this morning; I want to give them no reason at all to look at me...I am a guest here.  Legal, but still a guest.  I was going to choose six photos, but I ended up with sixteen.  I hope you don't mind.

A nice place to walk.

The stone wall adjacent to the path is crumbling.

There are warnings to stay out if it's rained hard, as there might be flooding. How many inundations has this guy seen, do you think?  And how many more before he finally topples?

Today was the day for birds--the magpies were my lunch companions.  The ducks were in the ditch.  The males just know how handsome they are.

 

On the way home, I found this apartment building that has water flowing right under it.  I wonder how loud that must get when the water is really flowing through there.

 










The hills to the east of Carcassonne are so blue.  They have a wind farm there; maybe you can see it in the photo.

Hills east of Carcassonne

 
 And over everything, looms the Cite.  I can't decide if it beckons or if it forbids.  Maybe both, depending on your intent.

Tomorrow, in a car and out to the countryside.  I am going to an abbaye with my downstairs Australian neighbors, Bob and Christine. Jason is driving and we are splitting the cost of the gas.  I am looking forward to it.

Sentinel

Interesting shapes