colour – The Vigneron's Wife

Autumn in La Liviniere — Autumn colour in La Liviniere

It’s here!?!!

I must admit I often feel flat at this time of year, well for the first few weeks anyway – no more bare legs and t-shirts, no more swimming outdoors, cold dashes out of the shower… But finally I somehow get into the swing of it and embrace the warm fires inside, the hearty meals and walks in the brisk air. And after so many years of braving the cold INDOORS when I rented in Australia, I am loving and embracing the central heating everywhere.

orange plane trees — I must admit I took this shot a while back, but I still love it

Autumn plane trees — Plane trees along the Canal du Midi

Yes, Autumn has arrived but thankfully with all its magical colour. It’s making me think ORANGE!

kids marvelling at the famous 'Baked Bean' parked on a village street...the lady owner steps in, la proprietaire de la voiture, ...Rrrowrrrr — kids marvelling at the famous ‘Baked Bean’ parked on a village street
…the lady owner steps in, *la proprietaire de la voiture*, …Rrrowrrrr!

I’m loving this colour right now and thought I’d put together a few of my favourite ‘orange’ pictures… And f you’ve wandered around this blog already, you might have picked up on the fact that I do have a little thing for collages. I’m pathetic, once I like something, I can’t stop! (my lovely girlfriends had diagnosed me at the age of 14 with O.C.D).

So hulahup, Barbatruc, here’s another one for you.

poppies in the Minervois — Poppies in the Minervois

While I’m on talking about wildflowers, I thought I’d share these pics of the poppies (‘coquelicots’) and broom (‘genets’), in full bloom here, that never fail to delight me.

The roads and vineyards are all lined with these these gorgeous flowers and their strong red and yellow tones. And the smell of the broom is just incredible!

I hadn’t really appreciated the season of Spring until now, living here in France. The contrast of each season is quite dramatic and very different to my hometown of Adelaide. After the cold and harshness of winter (am I glad that we have central heating – something unheard of for me in Oz!) nature in Spring just bursts to life with colour and energy. Even the locals seem to get excited and step up a notch in energy.

Maybe it’s also living in the countryside that allows me to appreciate all this magic and colour.