20 years in the south of France

Not everyone knows exactlyu where we live in France, so here is a recap.  Next year we'll have been in Lunel for 20 years.  We have few regrets other than distance from family.  We are midway between 2 historic cities, Montpellier and Nîmes, on a rail link which can tansfer us rapidly onto the TGV line to Paris, and with 2 local airports less than 30 minutes away though we rarely fly now.  We are close to the A9 autoroute (the busiest motorway in France apparently) which takes you quickly t o Spain, Toulouse and Bordeaux as well as to the A7 north-south route up the Rhône valley.  Lunel is less than 10 km from the Med,, and not much further from those hills to the north, the inland Cevennes; but we often escape the heavier rain inland - the risk here is often too little rain rather than too much.

Another crop of lemons on the way

I started this post at the end of April in bright sunshine after a quick overnight shower - nevertheless I was able to mow the lawn first thing in the morning, and  (starting early) I have also been for my annual round of blood tests.  Like a lot of French healthcare these are precautionary - an underactive thyroid is the only known concern, but there are 15 tests on the prescription.  We find the blood testing service very efficient, and for those like me who wake early the lab opens at 6.30!  And by the end of the afternoon the results were with me by email - all well except the marginally high uric acid which I know is the result of liking alcoholic drinks, and causes twinges of gout.  The price of being a wine enthusiast!

tortoises sunning themselves this spring

Some lovely white flowers from the garden this Mayday, and of course the white flower sold everywhere in France today is the lily of the valley.  It has been a flower symbolising good luck in France since Charles IX in the 16th century, and has been officially recognised for the Fête du Travail since 1936.  It is pretty but deadly poisonous, and we have none in our garden.  The production of the flowers is a multi-million euro market apparently centrered around Bordeaux.

The yellow iris is called baroque prelude, one of Mary's favourites