Wheelin’ ‘Round St. Rémy de Provence

The curtains may be closed around the carousel for the season, but other things keep going round and round here in St. Rémy de Provence—as long as the sun shines.

Though the temperatures have dropped, there are many days when the wind is calm and the soleil is warm. This inviting weather brings out post-summer tourists for adventures on wheels, including electric bicycles, motorcycles, and vintage cars.

During July and August, the height of the summer season, Europeans couldn’t fly to sunny destinations, due to Covid restrictions. So instead of winging off to Spain and Greece, they drove–to the south of France—and we saw many of them here.

St. Rémy is a popular summer destination any year, so it’s typical to see cars from neighboring countries. But things were different during l’été 2020. On our daily walks around town and into les Alpilles, Ralph and I noticed car tags from an inordinate number of the 101 French departments, including a few from the overseas departments. (License plates list the individual department of car registration, but this will soon change, we understand.)

Instead of counting birds, like he did last year, Ralph decided to count off the French departments by car tags. By summer’s end he’d found autos from 98 departments. Only Department 90, Belfort, plus Mayotte and French Guyana were outstanding. He also saw vehicles from the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Belguim, UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Bulgaria, Monaco, Romania, and Luxemburg. Our town was a place to see and be seen, albeit in a masque. 

The coronavirus situation remains a challenge here. Folks must wear masks in downtown St. Rémy (except when seated at a table). Restaurants and bars in both Marseille and Aix-en-Provence are closed this week, and a second week of closures may follow, depending on how the government assesses the risk.

So life in St. Rémy is more quiet than usual as we move into autumn. But nature marches on. The grapevines have been picked, and the olive trees are heavy with fruit. Birds are busy, flying and chirping, and they brighten our day. Birdlife also cheers us up at night. Many evenings around 10 p.m., owls hoot from the ancient plane trees that line the field to the west. They’re like a sweet, soothing bedtime story.

Stay well, safe and hopeful.

Bises, Gayle

PS

In place of traveling, I’m using the time to focus on The Birdwatcher’s Wife. I’m now working on revisions based on the insightful perspectives of my wonderful first readers. Progress is in the works, but much remains to be done. On y va!