The Cevennes

My dear Friends

On the next day my friends Andre and Marie Odile took me to the mountains where they have a lovely house. The house is situated in a village one hour's drive from NImes, also through lots of villages with the lovely plane trees.We arrived in the early afternoon. The mountains were tall and covered with trees. The village itself dates back to the 12th Century and there was a portico to prove it. The house nestles above a river, now sadly lacking in water because of the summer heat. There are several beautiful houses facing the one of Andre. This house belonged to his parents and he was raised there, so lots of happy memories. There is even a vine overshadowing the terrace and giving some badly wanted shade from the blistering sun.

That evening we dined on the terrace and a full moon rose above the mountains, making a really beautiful sight. We had walked a little way round the village and discovered it was on the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostella in spain-the famous shell of St James was embedded into one of the buildings. The steets were narrow, emerging into little squares now and then.

The next day we drove into the mountains, high up into a village where there was a 12th Century church. The stone was immaculate in this rounded building and we were able to discover a little of the history of the church from a tape playing inside. Services are still held there. The villages are mainly Catholic but in Andres village there is also a Protestant temple.

On our return to Nimes Andre took me to the coliseum, a very ancient building where they stilll have bullfights! And we made a brief tour of the city although there will be much to see when I hopefully make another trip next Spring.

So-lots of happy memories!
Shalom from
Sister Gila