Out of the ashes...

There are villages in this area which were destroyed in World War 1 and which have been left as memorials to those who died or were displaced to other parts of France, never to return. There was nothing for them to return to.  Sometimes churches were left or memorial chapels built and services are usually held once a year.

Yesterday we found a village which too was completely destroyed but which was partially re-built.  It is called Regnéville-sur-Meuse.

A notice board shows the re-build after the war

From the notice board, the nearby village of Samogneux and The Meuse Heights in the distance

 

 A pretty garden adjacent to a picnic area...

and a pathway to the river

The village is now a pretty and peaceful place which has risen out of the bitter ashes of WW1.

Autumn Fair

Well, it’s certainly Autumn but the weather far from fair!  After a long spell of dry, sunny, warm days, today, Sunday 5th  October, presented unbroken grey cloud with light, cool rain showers forecast to go on until this evening.

Parked cars have been banned in 14 roads and squares in and around the town centre from 6a.m. to 8.00p.m., roads are barred and diversion signs have been erected.  Cars were parked elsewhere yesterday afternoon and evening.  The market traders erected their stalls early in the morning, complete with rain covers and canopies.  Apparently many of the brocante (second-hand) stalls did not appear at all.  Food stalls were set out with chairs and tables getting damper by the minute.  The beer van and accompanying tables and benches were set out. At midday, one brave soul sat on a bench and held up her umbrella while eating a kebab and supping a soft drink from a can; three others stood under the beer van canopy, having their food and glasses of beer from the narrow counter. A few people wander about and purchase goods throughout the day although there are spells when, apart from the stallholders, the fair is deserted.

The place outside our front door (from a first-floor window) - an area that is usually crowded with people chatting, laughing, eating and drinking.

 A sad contrast today.











There is an exhibition of painters’ work in the salon at the Mairie and another exhibition in the salle des fetes.  Perhaps the good people of Damvillers and the surrounding area have taken shelter there, although I suspect that a lot, like me, have remained indoors hoping for an improvement in the weather this afternoon. It’s so chilly, we put on the central heating and the improvement looks unlikely as showers join up in a steady drip and raindrops bounce in the puddles. 

A few more people venture out after their midi in a parade of umbrellas and/or glum faces.  I join them in a leather jacket with hood so that I don’t have to juggle umbrella and camera. My back doesn’t like the damp and seizes up, with the rest of me at a slight decline, like an old woman.  Oh, of course, I am an old woman! Just don’t like to be made to feel like one…I take a couple of photos and head back home, no longer in the mood to take in the exhibitions.

The streets are usually packed with stalls but a lot have packed up or are in the process of doing so and some small and larger vans drive slowly in between the stalls.  It will not be easy for them to get out.

It just needed another 24 hours of a good old Indian summer…obviously not in the Weather Man’s plans!

A lot of work and planning goes into these events and it’s sad when they turn out to be such a disappointment.  Some would even say, a wash-out.

A Day Out

Friends wanted to take us out for the day and we agreed the date - 1st October 2014.

We set off at 9.30.a.m. in foggy weather which cleared at times.  In just under two hours’ travelling, we left France, went across Belgium and Luxembourg and arrived in Trier in Germany when all traces of fog lifted upon our arrival.  Although we have lived in north-eastern France for seven years now, it still surprises us that we can so quickly pass through so many different countries.

Trier is the oldest town in Germany and boasts some beautiful and fascinating architecture, not least a gateway built by the Romans in 200 AD.  Once white, by mediaeval times it had turned black so its name was changed to Porta Nigra.

A little road train goes from this point on a tour of the streets surrounding the centre and past the cathedral (The Dom), the impressive ruins of the Roman Baths and a long mediaeval wall. It also passes a white house in which Karl Marx was born and a Synagogue which replaced one destroyed by the Nazis.

The ‘train’ returns to the same place - in front of the Porta Nigra at the top of the main centre road lined with shops and cafes with the permanent market square at the bottom. The fountain and its statue there have been recently refurbished and its gilding glows in the hot sun which now shines for a clear sky.

 

  A little street theatre

After a delicious lunch at a café in the market square, we walked up a side street to The Dom and its adjacent church both of which are fascinating both inside and out.

The following two photos were taken inside the church next to the cathedral.

We returned to the market square and the nearby car park and set off again through lovely countryside in Germany alongside the beautiful River Mosel, with a view of the surprising number of vineyards in Luxembourg as the hills slope to the river which is the border between the two countries.  We later crossed a bridge back into Luxembourg to the pretty place of Réimech.

From there, a drive to Schengen where Germany, Luxembourg and France meet.  It was here on a boat on the Mosel that the Schengen Treaty was signed allowing open borders throughout most of the E.U.  We visited the Schengen museum.

Soon after, we left Luxembourg and were back in France, returning to our little part of it at 7.00.p.m.  A long day but an interesting and enjoyable one.  Our thanks to Emilie and Roger!