Going to the synode

On Thursday we set off for the National and General Synod of Bagard ( le Synode National et Général de Bagard ) in the Cévennes. The name is a bit of a joke in French because the place name Bagard sounds like bagarre, which is the word for a punch-up. Would the name be prophetic ?

Samy had booked a hire car so we headed into town for 2pm. I anticipated catching a train from Pessac at about 13h30 or thereabouts and certainly in the morning about 5 minutes later you'd be at the Bordeaux station. However the next train was at 2 and it would take 1/2 hour to get to the station, so I hopped on the tram to Victoire and then the bus to the station.

The Clio Samy had booked was not yet back from hire so they gave him a Modus - not a car I like, but this one was super for the three of us with its comfy seats, adequate boot, aircon and cruise control. The cruise control was especially useful on the French motorways where you can just drive on and on and on at a steady 130 but where speed cameras are always ready to catch you if you stray above unwarily.

We collected the third member of our party and headed off via Toulouse, Montpellier - then smaller roads to Bagard. We stopped once for coffee and once to eat : I had a chicken tajine with apricots and prunes. We arrived at the centre at Bethanie where the synod was to be housed and fed and I settled into my room - a conference centre style dormitory with 5 beds and a bunk-bed, but I turned out to be the sole occupant.

We drove through southern sunshine but at night it still gets REALLY COLD and the centre has thin bedcovers so the first night I didn't sleep too well, especially since I wasn't sure whether anyone else would arrive in my room. The second night I knew nobody would so I stole the covers off all the other beds and slept long and snug.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

A bit about music exams in UK and France

The Kitchen