Strange days

Hello peeps. How you doin’? All good here; everyone is in good health and spirits, going into week 5 of the lockdown. It’s a strange time for sure, but it’s also strange how quickly one adapts to what is now our new everyday life. We are of course very lucky to live how and where we live, and so we feel grateful for what feels like a pause. And again, I stress how lucky we are to just be able to feel that we’re on pause, and not losing family members or our livelihood (not yet anyway for the latter, but that will hit hard once society opens up again, but there’s no point in worrying about it yet, as there’re nothing that can be done about it). It’s all so surreal, and equally surreal is how strange life just a few months ago seems, and how we just took it for granted. So, looking at these pictures from our summer holidays in France last year now feels like 10 years ago, from a bygone era where holidays were not an abstract concept like it feels like now. These were taken in the neighbouring villages to where we were staying, and weirdly that same feeling of being on holiday is where we are at now, but knowing full well of the nightmare that is going on at the same time out there. Strange days indeed.

Just read this blog post on the Modern House Journal, and I think it perfectly sums up what I’m feeling right now.

Painting with the moon

Aaahhh, the magic that is light painting with a camera, but this time with a twist! Using the moon as the light - yeeeeeah! So, back in the summer (when we were in France), after having put the kids to bed, we stayed out on the terrace, chatting away in the moonlight. I wondered what would happen if you tried to do a light painting with the moon, and this is the result. Mr Famapa had way better skills, and could actually draw proper things, where as I went for the more abstract style. There’s a super moon on Wednesday, so look out for it!

I capture the castle ;)

I’m going to be switching between current pics and catch ups from now on - I’m sure you don’t mind. So, let’s continue with pics from last year’s France trip in the summer. After our visit to the Marqueyssac gardens, we drove the 10 mins down the road to Chateau de Castlenaud, which was perfect, as the gardens were definitely more of a thing for the mamas. At the chateau there were trebuchets, armour and weapons to have a look at, and facts to learn about the castle itself and what life was like back then. I wonder if they ever stood waving at their own shadows too?

A trebuchet and the top of the castle. And a very blue French sky.

I spotted these birds perched on a ledge, and I was myself kind of hanging out of one as I took this, thinking that it would be so stupid to fall to my death taking this. I was hoping I might catch one of them in mid-flight, but no luck.

Window filter.

Taking it all in.

And finally, a beautiful evening sky on the drive home. The boys sat in the back listening to an audio book while we all gazed at the changing colours and the night creeping in. Seems so long ago now.

Dans les jardins

Apart from hanging out in the house we also went on excursions a bit further afield, and one of them was to the Marqueyssac gardens, which as you can see in this pic was a-mazing. I’ve never seen hedges like it!

The house in the grounds used to be someone’s fancy abode in the late 18th century.

Which we got to see a bit of on our way to the loo. Like you do.

A place ain’t fancy unless it has peacocks strutting around the grounds. Gosh, we humans are so boring looking compared to these guys. I mean, you couldn’t make it up. Those long back feathers, with their green and blue eyes on them, that then opens up into that display, and those little head feathers looking just so.

We went along a path in the boiling heat that took you through the gardens, and there was lots to look at along the way.

Like the Dordogne, flowing past way down below.

And here we all are, taking in the views.

I totally recognised this man’s hunched up camera posture, as I do it too when I take pictures. I would so love it if there’s a picture of me, hunched up exactly the same way, with my straw hat on, taking this picture, like one of those infinite mirrors :)