Sunday 8th February

Yesterday it was cold.  No.  Actually it was bloody freezing.  The coldest I have ever known in Eymet.  The temperature dropped to minus 2 degrees Centigrade, but there was a vicious wind  – cut like a knife.  Lowering clouds covered the sky and there were blustery snowflakes in the air which swirled around but refused to settle.  At times the icy wind took your breath away, and we scampered around from shop to shop.  Taking the dogs for a walk was a chore, standing there willing the poor dogs on to do their business.  We stumbled to the Café de Paris and never was Vin Chaud more welcomed.  The little Indian Restauarant Poppies was re-launching tonight and we were invited.  Nice Cremant wine and canapés and the food was delicious.  Homemade Vegetarian curry, sweet potato, courgettes and tomatoes in a light and spicy sauce – really lovely.  We were also booked in to watch the live music at Gambetta and scurried across the square and into the warmth of the tiny pub.  The solo singer, who nobody seemed to quite know who he was, was singing Dylan and Neil Young songs quite well, but conversation was in full swing and the poor guy had no charisma and seemed to be singing into a void.  We met a few old friends and had a lovely evening.  As we left around ten the wind had dropped and it felt a bit milder.

This morning the clouds had dispersed and there was a wide blue sky.  The sun came out and we had a beautiful day.  It was still cold, the temperature hardly rising above six degrees Centigrade but oh, what a difference a day makes.  It almost felt like spring.  We sat in the sun drinking coffee and sharing the best croissant amande in the world at Comptoir M. Kanter and we were basking in a weak but warming sun.  There was absolutely no wind at all, and off came the thick coat and gloves and we turned our faces to the glow of the sun.  Such a gorgeous feeling of contentment; whether it was the sunshine or the superb almond croissant I really don’t know, but at moments like this life doesn’t get much better.