Holiday Nationale

Up at dawn today which is only 0800 here so I can cope.
Sun streaming through the windows as soon as it peeped above the horizon. I'll spare you the photos.
Not a cloud to be seen. I can cope with that, too.
Sat on the balcony with toast for a while and laptop for a while longer.

A stroll along the front, up some narrow steps and behold, we're back where we were last night.
Except that there's not a trace of popcorn or a sweet wrapper in sight. All has been hosed down and swept.
And every shop in the main part of town is shut.
A few streets we haven't seen get wandered through and we're in a recognisable place brought to a halt by the smell of baking bread. Led

by the nose we see a small shop front offering 3 baguettes for a euro. Had to be done. They were still warm. Wonderful stuff.
Back for coffee.

Now, it's not like I've never made coffee before, is it?
This time, however, I manage to pour the water over the hand holding the Aeropress and not quite into it.
With this I could not cope.
Coffee grounds everywhere.
Hand immediately under the cold tap and assistance appeared on scene in milliseconds, didn't need to be requested, either.
I was encouraged to shift to the shower room where I could comfortably sit and hold the affected hand under the cold tap. There I remained for quite some time. Just as well whilst walls were wiped, floors washed, breakfast things rewashed, etc., etc.

At this point I could tell you of how the locals use their seafront on the Holiday Nationale. But I won't although I have spent pretty much all day watching from the balcony with one hand in a saucepan of cold water on the stool by my side. I ought to mention the passing by of a barrel chested man in a kilt having what looked like David Coulthard's crash helmet wrapped around his torso, visor opening to the front, of course, with his hatted head poking out of it. So out of place and at the time I couldn't hold a camera so a memory unrecorded. We supposed that he was from up north. It was the first time I managed a laugh for an hour or three ... or four though, so I'm grateful to him.

At least I can now type, albeit not in my usual manner. The medical attention has been pretty good, frequent replenishment of the cold water has taken place and there's another empty brown bottle to be recycled.

I can also tell you that the palm fronds spare us the full on sun from dawn until midday. As long as there's a slight breeze to keep them moving it's lovely, but if the wind dies away, as it has done every day from mid morning till late afternoonish, then as the sun peeps through the fronds it's a bit much but I won't complain!  After that it gets too hot to sit there for very long but by 1530 we're in shade but then it all seems to get warmer. Until about 1800, when the lights outside come on. We'll need the fire tonight, probably earlier than last night as we won't be going out tonight, will we?.

There's still not a cloud in the sky.
I gather that tomorrow there will be.

By tomorrow I hope the hand can be a bit more useful than currently. I'm even having to have the amazing looking beef burgers from the market cut up for me. Serves me right for going into the kitchen in the first place, I suppose. I guess that if it meant that I was no longer allowed in the kitchen for the duration then the gain would be worth the pain. Alas, I may not be trusted to return to kettle
boiling duties for a while but I expect that eluding washing up duties will occupy a very brief period indeed.