emeritablog

MEDIAEVAL LESCAR: A GUIDED WALK

As this is my last Tuesday in Pau I signed up for a guided walk put on by the Tourist Office. It was my third visit to Lescar this year, or fourth if you count Decathlon on the outskirts, but there are still fresh delights to discover and more to learn about those I alreadyContinue reading “MEDIAEVAL LESCAR: A GUIDED WALK”

THE NEXT STAGE

After splitting the easy stage of the Voie d’Arles (GR653) from Morlaàs to Artiguelouve between two hot days, I had found ideal weather for the more challenging continuation to Oloron Sainte Marie: low 20s, overcast, very little rain. Just as well, as there are no drop-out points served by public transport, so I need toContinue reading “THE NEXT STAGE”

THE REST OF THE WAY

I made an early start, though not quite as early as I intended, to finish the walk I began last week before the heat of the day. I began where I stopped at the bus stop by the Hippodrome… … then followed a shady path beside a suburban road until the houses came to anContinue reading “THE REST OF THE WAY”

A SNIPPET OF A CAMINO

Yesterday I planned to walk from Morlaàs to Lescar (20 km) or even Artiguelouve (26 km). In fact, my watch showed 20 km by the time I came to a bus stop, maybe 5 km short of Lescar, and headed back to Pau. The disparity could be accounted for, in roughly equal shares, by theContinue reading “A SNIPPET OF A CAMINO”

RETURN TO BETHARRAM

Yesterday I returned to Bétharram, about 32 years after my previous visit when I arrived here on my walk from St Jean de Luz, on the Atlantic Coast, to Lourdes, and, tired as I was, followed the way of the cross on the hillside above the sanctuary. I felt, then, that I was following theContinue reading “RETURN TO BETHARRAM”

HALF WAY THROUGH

Three Sundays done, and three to go. Time for another blog post. This is the church where I have the honour to serve for the last Sunday of June and the five in July: three commemorating apostles Peter, Thomas and James (hence the red altar frontal and chasuble) and three in Ordinary Time (when theContinue reading “HALF WAY THROUGH”

WEEKEND IN PAU

This was a festival weekend: “FESTIVAL PEAUX À PAU”, literally “skins in Pau” but I think it’s a pun. Anyway, there have been free music festivals in Hédas, a ravine running through the middle of the city. Friday was percussion night with several corners hosting bands of all ages banging anything from drums to glassContinue reading “WEEKEND IN PAU”

GAVE DU PAU

What does “Gave” mean? It isn’t in the French-English dictionary, but the “Gave du Pau” is a wide, fast-flowing river on its way to the Atlantic. There was an indication that part of it may be used for white water rafting. But not today! Having succeeded in joining the Anglophones of Pau-Pyrenees, I signed upContinue reading “GAVE DU PAU”

PAU 2023

Well, I’m back here, six years after my last and only previous visit, and for six Sundays instead of three. The first shock was the prices in the local supermarket, Le Petit Casino. Back home at Aldi, I reckon an average shopping trip works out at £1.40 to £1.60 per item. Here it was 3Continue reading “PAU 2023”

WATER EVERYWHERE … BUT?

Once more, the forecast on my phone said that it was almost certain to rain every hour. Yes, but not every minute of every hour. The sun shone, and I often turned round to see if there was a rainbow. The route followed the Thames-Severn canal, running alongside the river Frome, past demolished locks. AtContinue reading “WATER EVERYWHERE … BUT?”