Tuesday 27 September 2011

Post Cards from La Bourboule – La Banne d’Ordanche



I have been up la Banne several times this holiday, but the weather was not good for photography and I took few pictures.  However, today was not bad, and since I wanted to deliver two rolls of toilet paper I trekked up again.

I had been up on Sunday and while saying Hello to the shepherd’s dog noticed that there was something wrong with the little toilet - water was coming out from under the door, which is rarely a good sign.  I unlocked the door and a gush of water greeted me.  There were ten centimetres of water on the floor, and the bucket someone had placed under the wash-basin was overflowing.  I emptied the bucket, swept the water from the floor with the broom I found leaning in a corner, and looked at the wash-basin.  A note stuck behind the basin said, Do not use the faucets! (in French).  I closed the faucets as hard as I could, put the sign into the middle of the sink where it could not be overlooked, and locked up.

Today I went to see whether the bucket was overflowing again, but I had closed the faucets well, it seems.  No water on the floor, none in the bucket.  I left my rolls of toilet paper and locked up again.  When I am on holiday I always buy too much toilet paper, so one of my little rituals is to bring it to this toilet a few days before I leave La Bourboule, as a service to the scale modelists and their glider-groupies.

Feeling sprightly today I proceeded to walk to the top of la Banne, which is not bad considering I had already walked all the way from La Bourboule, adding another kilometre or two to the six or seven already walked.  Then I marched back to Murat le Quaire, which is on the way from La Bourboule to La Banne, where I was meeting a friend for tea.  I was a bit early and parched, so stopped at a little café for an ice cold coca cola.

But enough blurb, here are the photos!

Point de Vue de la Croix, Murat le Quaire
The lake just beyond Murat le Quaire

A little detour off the road

On the road again

Getting closer …

and closer …
Part 2 will follow ...