Incongrouity & Snickers.

8/5/12

Location – Aire at Port-Vendres. Little bit further down the coast from Collioure. A pleasant Aire and popular with motorhomes. At Euros 5.50 per night really good value and the local Police, who collect the fees, say I am allowed to stay for up to 4 nights. Hmmmm! Y'know what....I might just do that.

Also met my first solo male motorhomer too. A 66 yr old German guy who, reading between the lines, survives his marriage by being away most of the time. He also was a very good photographer and had some amazing slide shows on his computer of all the places he had visited. Funny thing though was the fact most of the photo's included pretty young ladies and he was very enthusiastic in his description of where and when and how “seeeempleee beeeeeuuuuteeeful,” all these young ladies were. Lovely guy though and he had been travelling round for about 5years.

So off we go for a good bike walk and this is what followed.

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It was the incongruity of it that struck me. I mean, you just do not expect such beautiful Clarinet music to come wafting across a cove on a breezy day half way along a coastal walk above the Meditteranian sea in South East France. However; I think you would have had a bit of a chuckle if you happened to be a humorous God in a silent helicopter just floating above and viewing the overall situation. Stood on this steep, not quite a cliff face but nearly so, was a guy with a bike. There was a Marks and Spencers bag hanging on the front [with his lunch in it by the way] and a green plastic bucket on the rear. A dog was running along behind too wearing a harness thing with flourescent yellow tape on it. The guy had pushed / nee carried this bike up the hill and was now carefully manouvering it down this, well let's just say cliff face, toward the bottom of the cove where the only way to go was up the other side which let me tell you, was also a cliff face.

He was stopped now, holding the brakes on the bike to stop it running on down the cliff, and his head was cranked to one side and he was listening. The little dog was sat on the path, scratching herself and overall looking rather bemused and bored with this unscheduled stop on what was turning out to be a good doggy day out.

The other side of the cove which if there were a bridge across would be no distance at all, had a level area and a track leading to the ruins of an old militaty fort. Parked at this flat area was a pink VW camper van from which was emerging the beautiful Clarinet music.

You can't manufacture such moments of incongruity. They are invariably gifted you. Which is why I was stopped on the cliff face and hanging onto the bike brakes to stop it bouncing off down the cliff path. Incongruent and once in a lifetime moments such as this warrant a stopping and a few precious moments given over to just being with the incongruity. I did have my head cranked to one side in order to filter out the wind noise so I could hear the clarinet music clearly as it wafted across from the pink VW camper van. It really was very good.

I had noticed the pink camper van and it was not lost on me that was where I was headed . Muscles and my sense of balance were severely tested though before myself plus bike plus Marks and Spencers bag [with my lunch in it!!] plus big green plastic bucket finally clamberd and clattered over the top of the cliff path and onto the relatively level track and parking area where pink VW camper van was situated.

Tanya meanwhile was about ten doggy sniffs behind and up, down, smooth or rocky, it makes no difference to her. She emerged out onto the track shortly after with a look and a stance that said; 'Hey Ho! Even more doggy smells and pooh on this level track. Good day out this eh! Stevey ma man!'.

Overall I was in a good mood because we had made it without involving French air sea/cliff face rescue. I was not too exhausted either and only had one minor blood smeared scratch on my leg. Pretty good for me. Bike was left to one side and we spent a pleasant half hour exploring the old fort perched right on the cliff edge. Wonderful.

Then I just could not resist it so walked up to Pink VW camper van, politely knocked on the side and introduced myself. I was thanked for my musical appreciation and invited to sit on the little stool just outside. Rosie was a German lady with a bright and sparky, almost impish looking face who spoke good English. The Pink VW camper van was her home. Which, by the way, made me think what on earth am I doing travelling around in a luxurious, all mod cons, bungalow on wheels when a simple van such as this suffices.?

Rosie was well known locally as a musician and earned her keep by playing on the front in Collioure and also by selling little flutes she made herself. She was a lady very much in touch with, and at home with, the beauty of her surroundings and her own 'artistic' place within them. A pleasant half hour was spent chatting with her as she prepared her salad and noodle lunch while sitting cross legged on the floor of her van with a simple gas stove in front of her.

We bid our farewells and set off once again further up the hill to the highest part of the ruins where Tanya and I enjoyed the gastric delights of our Marks and Spencers bag. Nothing too exciting I can assure you. Apart from the Snickers bar to re fuel my energy. As we rested and sheltered from the sea breeze behind one of the old walls I pondered on my own good fortune. Clarinet music, beautiful day and surroundings, impromtu and rewarding meeting with another human being and to top it all, a Snickers bar. You don't get much better than that in this life!!