Ornaments, decorations and a tree oh my! Last year I left the house to Randy and the kids to decorate for Christmas. I came back to a Christmas tree covered in ornaments and randomly placed rubber bands. Inquiring I heard excitement and laughter. I saw shining eyes, smirking smiles. The story of shooting rubber bands from different locations in the room and seeing how they landed on the tree brought an incredible amount of joy to my kids. Fantastic!

This year neither our family nor the Ferrieu family thought about being away from our houses over the holidays. We decided to make the most of it. Mazie picked out our tree, something different than normal, yet perfect (makes the presents seem more when the tree is small). I ordered one thing from Amazon France. We started making our own ornaments out of anything we could find. Sliced and dried oranges, egg carton creations, cut out snowflakes, images from food boxes, hot cocoa packets tied up with string, these are a few of our tree decorations.

When the brother comes to join us, he makes paper airplanes and flies them toward the miniature tree and says, “VOLIÀ!” 

I think we like making recycled ornaments and may have started a new tradition. I guess we will see next year.

The stockings were made by my mom in Oklahoma in hopes that Saint Drézéry would soon receive.

I am sure if we had embarked on this adventure several years ago questions that would have been asked would have been, “How will Santa find us? Will we see him on a couch, in DC, at Grandma and Grandpa’s house, on a train, in Colonial Williamsburg, in France? Will there be snow?”

While we do not have to contend with Santa’s navigation we do have to help our kids see Christmas in a different light. The weather is not constantly cold, barren stick deciduous trees of winter common to our eyes hide amongst the multitude of evergreen species painting this landscape. Christmas apparel, music, and decorations can be experienced shopping however the kids don’t typically go shopping here with us. The shifting experience of “Christmas” through the eyes of a young child would be shifting anyway as teenagers have emerged in our family. We continue with some Christmas traditions, we make new ones, and we focus more on Jesus’ birth and the landscape back then, pointing out what we see and finding experiences to observe.

So let’s back up to Barcelona, visiting Sagrada Familia was an unexpected amazing way to start off the Christmas season for us. The outside of this ongoing construction of a church strategically depicts biblical truth. Above the front doors display Christ’s birth with the 3 wisemen, angels, shepherds, cow, donkey, and common people looking at Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus. As I write this I continue to study each photo trying to take it ALL in. I see something new with every look.

In a nutshell Barcelona consisted of seeing our friends JJ, Susan, Tim and Sarah, watching the world cup, exploring the nearby parks, strolling through festive lights and eating chestnuts roasting a fire,

touring Sagrada Familia inside, outside, complete with a tour of the nativity tower,

eating at Five Guys, navigating transportation, grocery store shopping Spain (different food for sale than in France), attending church, being reminded of Advent, listening to the Catalan language,

watching more World Cup 2022, crossing into Spain from France, seeing an animal crossing bridge, children sharing a virus at 2:30 and 5:30 AM…think Goonies…with bunk beds, and snow top Pyrenees mountains, and

before crossing back into France we drove by Salvador Dali’s museum in Figueres, Girona, Spain, seeing eggs on roofs, and statues of cows and horses on balcony railings. Despite sickness the last hours of our visit we had a great family weekend.

We had no complaints on this tour! Everybody was excited and interested. Portcullis, turrets, spiral staircases, inner wards, loopholes, arrow loops, merlons and crenels, oh my! Who knew my kindergarten teaching days of a unit on castles would bring me so much joy here? I enjoyed the colors and different geometrical shapes against each other.

The kids enjoyed role playing archers.

Medieval faire surprise and Ramparts

The next morning we hiked up the hill hoping to find a Christmas market. The market was set up outside the walls and had a Medieval theme with animal skin clothing, iron and leather goods, jams and honey, and crafts of the earth, not really sure what that means but it sounded appropriate for what I saw. A band occasionally played and drew a crowd.

When we crossed the drawbridge, what to our wondering eyes should appear, but a miniature medieval camp and 8+ stations to learn.

Blacksmiths, weavers, archers, and knights, jesters, horse trainers, printmakers and cooks. All jolly and ready to share their wealth of knowledge to those who ventured by. I love this kind of stuff.

The rest of my crowd, not so much. Their eyes were set on touring from above via the ramparts, so off we went.

After a brief walk through the town we headed back to the hotel to get settled and add on a few layers for the night. Walking from the hotel office to our room felt as if we were on the set of Oliver. Lots of turns and straight tight walkways. We decided to start the evening with a walk around the outside of the city wall.

The path took us high and low, close and far, around the towering walls on dirt and cobblestone led paths. Joshua and the Battle of Jericho came to mind as we walked, wondering if this was anything like the Bible story.

Back at the entrance we observed the Christmas lights and adventured inside for dinner. Our eyes saw the city anew enjoying the holiday atmosphere.

Ten minutes after we sat down for dinner an Irish bachelor party arrived and shared the space with us. The guy pictured below led the group in a traditional pre-wedding ballad. Our evening meal consisted of salmon, a sirloin, French onion soup and Cassoulet, a local dish. https://www.grand-carcassonne-tourisme.co.uk/  has a wonderful description of the Cassoulet, “The serving dish, made in Castelnaudary: with a squashed cone shape for better distribution of the heat, contained Lingot beans: these white beans are now only grown in Lauragais and confit duck thighs. Slow cooking on a fire, preferably, breaking the crust regularly. A bubbling appearance at the end of the final cooking, when you serve it delicately. Accompany it with a red wine from Corbières, Minervois, Cabardès or Malepère. And don’t forget some crusty bread to mop up the sauce!”

Friday we took to the road heading west. This was our first road trip in France lasting over 45 minutes. We took the road less traveled and that made all the difference. (Actually we had google maps set to “avoid highways” until we realized it was going to take us FOREVER to get to our destination.) Every village we experience in France has an entry road lined with sycamore trees. It is quite impressive, beautiful and enjoyable to our eyes. We came upon a village whose tree entry was the longest and straightest we have seen yet! Wind turbines are strategically scattered on the rolling hills and plains reminding us of other trips out west to Kansas and Oklahoma.

We made it to Carcassonne midday and immediately took to the medieval streets looking for a late (American time) or normal (French time) lunch. Carcassonne Cité is a French fortified city, containing 53 towers, a drawbridge, a dry moat, and all protected by double walls. The Romans built this city on rock and roll or in 122 BC.

Written on the Carcassonne tourist website, https://www.grand-carcassonne-tourisme.co.uk/carcassonne/, “The legend of Dame Carcas: a princess, a pig, and a victory… According to legend, Dame Carcas, wife of a Muslim prince of Carcassonne, drove back Charlemagne’s Frankish army, using various strategies. She had a whole pig, which had been fed on the last bag of wheat, dropped from the top of the ramparts to show her enemies that the Cité still had plenty of provisions to withstand a siege. This pig was the deciding factor in Charlemagne’s decision to lift the siege, as he thought the residents were not going to give up. In reality, it was the last pig, and there was not actually anything else to eat! Dame Carcas decided too that the bells should be rung to celebrate victory, from where the name ‘Carcas Sonne’ comes, “sooner” meaning to ring.”

Maggie, a rescued black great dane dog, entered our lives in 2014, through Uncle Greg and Aunt Sarah. She was very skittish and shy.

Our kids fell in love with her and treated her as a real human cousin. Dog cousin activities often included reading books, taking walks, running in the backyard, eating waffles on Sunday, dressing up, vacationing at the beach, lounging on the couch together watching TV, posing in family portraits, playing with our dogs, opening Christmas gifts and ALWAYS being greeted with huge hugs every time they saw each other.

We gave her HUGE stuffed animals every Christmas. Maggie loved her stuffed friends and never destroyed or hurt them.

The last 8 years, out of 10+ years of life, were her best years! She will be missed even in France.

New or Now Normal

Randy takes Mz to the orthodontist for her appointments. We found a great ortho who speaks English, has the tools for Mz’s American brackets, was willing to take her as a patient without removing brackets and replacing them all with French ones, and is in a brand new office.

School work is often done in pjs and with Cody. Z’s unique design project, a cell phone charging holder, was an engineering project this month.

Randy and a buddy, Lez, took off to a guitar shop located in Nimes. When they arrived the store was closed because they were moving locations and did not bother to update their web page. So the guys went to the art museum.

Bike rides meander through villages, sometimes displaying outdoor art in the form of murals.

Randy found Steak-n-Shake nearby and it is LEGIT and YUMMY!

A Christmas market in France with a history lesson for all

Sunday after church Mz and I, along with Alli and Emily, our friends from church, took off to our first Chrstmas market of the season. Valmagne Abbey Christmas Market, known as the ‘Cracker Fair’ hosted 220 international & local artisans & artists, food trucks & entertainment. 

The history of this particular abbey is quite amazing and would not be known to the naked eye. 

•I read about the information listed below here https://www.valmagne.com/

•Founded in 1139 and attached to the order of Cîteaux in 1159, the completion of the church and cloister was built in Romanesque style according to the principle of the Cistercian plan. 

•The church could not hold the growing congregation and in 1257 the more Gothic appearance of the church was built.

•Hundred Years’ War and the Wars of Religions saw the abbey attacked. Monks were murdered and the places ransacked. Valmagne remained deserted for about 40 years, becoming a den of robbers.

•Monks returned to the church in the 17th Century.

•17th and 18th century Valmagne turned into an episcopal palace and was restored to its past splendor.

•The Eve of the French Revolution, the abbey witnessed 5 monks fleeing to Spain in 1791. The monk population had decreased in number from around 200 to 5.

•Revolutionary peasants looted the place and eventually the abbey was considered national property.

•A winemaker from the area purchased the property and turned it into a cellar. In 1838 it was sold again this time to a Count, who transformed the property into a wine and agricultural estate.

(Side note here are all of the Count’s titles: Henri Amedée Mercury Count of Turenne, Knight of Malta, Marquis of Anac & Monmurat, Baron of Felzins, 1st Baron of Quercy, Marshal of Cavalry Camp under Napoleon)

•I found this to be an interesting part of the history, “being quite shocked by the use of the church in a cellar,” Suzanne de Turenne, the 3rd owner now, gave back a place of worship to the abbey between 1890 and 1920, building a small chapel.

•Vineyards and wine cellars keep the place alive to date. 1n 1998 organic wine was introduced.

•Church bells were replaced in 2000, since the original bells were melted during the French Revolution(1789-1799).  FASCINATING to me!

We ended the night in Montpellier, seeing holiday decorations and drinking coffee and hot chocolate with Alli and Emily.