To continue with the trip to France, one of the days we took a field trip to Albi, about an hours’ drive from our little village. There’s a massive cathedral there which dominates the centre of the town. Started in 1282 and competed 200 years later, it is constructed almost entirely of brick. Inside, the walls are covered in paintings. Many of these are geometric, quilt-like patterns; some, like the Last Judgment at the eastern end of the nave, are more realistic.
Albi Cathedral
Also in Albi is the cloister of St Salvi, a hidden gem tucked in between the town’s buildings and reached by a staircase. The church is well worth a visit too, but it’s the small cloister that you’d return to. It’s very small, and the centre has beds of medicinal plants and a few small trees – it’s a haven of quiet in the centre of the town.
Cloister of St Salvi
The Toulouse-Lautrec Museum is also in Albi, housed in the former Bishop’s Palace. Having visited it previously, this time I only browsed the shop and then went in search of a view of the parterre garden behind the palace. It has ornate plantings of carefully trimmed box hedges. It’s not possible to stroll through, but there is an elevated walkway to view it. The river Tarn flows below the Palace and is spanned by the Pont Vieux. Even covered in scaffolding, it dominates the river. I strolled down to the riverside and had my lunch in the shade of the trees, the river lapping at my feet.
Side chapel in the cathedral
Speaking of strolling, I also enjoyed my regular walks while there, wandering up the road above the valley of the Sor. I’ve always liked this walk, past the ancient village houses to the forested area beyond. There are some beautiful houses along the road; many of them were water-powered copper beating mills.
I’m still on my travels, having driven down to Northamptonshire for my brother-in-law’s funeral. I broke the drive in Edinburgh, staying with my very accommodating friends overnight, and completed the journey the next day, driving through the hot, sticky Midlands. I’ll return in the coming week, but this time stopping twice.
Carving on Gayton church
The funeral last Monday afternoon went well; many people commented it was a good service. The classic car club arrived in their classic cars, the morris men danced “Bonny Green Garters” at the end of the service. This dance, also known as “the morris men’s traditional farewell”, is usually performed at the end of a set of dances. They danced at the reception too. Former regulars of the side had come from near and far to pay their respects.
Not much progress has been made on the gansey these past two weeks. I’ve been rather occupied with funeral arrangements, travel, and getting to grips with paperwork, which will be a long term project. But there is some progress on the gansey, and that’s the important thing. The alternating pattern of waves and ‘fishbones’ should block quite well, to give an overall texture.
I’m back in Scotland now, after a week in foreign climes – half in the south of France sandwiched with days in Edinburgh. The weather was . . . disappointingly much like home. Arrival day in France was hot, but the intervening week was generally cloudy, cool, and breezy. Expecting tropical temperatures, I’d packed for warmer temperatures. Layering up as much as possible, I longed for ‘Caithness summer’ clothing.
View from my bedroom window
The ’art retreat’ I attended was conducted at a relaxed pace. With three leaders, each instructing in separate techniques, we explored three disciplines: polymer clay, embroidery, and sketching. There were two sessions of polymer clay, learning simple techniques and using them for jewellery. For embroidery, the instructor gave us kits for hand-sewn needle books, complete with needles and tiny scissors to put in them. With sketching, we explored ways to make a blank page less daunting by tearing holes in vintage printed paper which were then glued to a backing sheet. The holes were used as frames for small sketches of the village.
Rue des Martineurs
In the past, the village was known for copper vessels, with half a dozen copper beating mills in the valley of the river Sor. The copper was made into vessels in the village’s workshops. Now, the focus has shifted to art & craft, and the village has rebranded itself as an ‘artisanal village’. For the art, a street artist was commissioned to paint a forest scene on a building next to the square. Further commissions extended the artworks to other walls, and then residents could have their garage doors muralled. These have made the village a much more colourful place.
Inside the Market Hall
Part of our time was spent in the airy attic studio and part on excursions. On the Saturday morning, we went to the nearby market in Revel. The large market square, with a 14th C market hall, is encompassed by arcades with shops and cafes. The market radiates into the surrounding streets, with food in the square, and household goods and clothing in the outlying stalls.
A Lane in Albi
The gansey came with me on the trip. I didn’t knit as much as hoped, but there is reasonable progress. The split welt and a few inches of the body are done. To avoid interminable inches of garter stitch on the welt, I chose a broken rib pattern which is too ‘ribby’. A stern blocking should make it behave. The pattern for the body is from one of the Johnston photos. Sometimes I think of it as “Calm Seas and Prosperous Voyage” (rippling seas and lots of herring), or more prosaically as “Thos McKay”, which is the name on the glass plate negative.
In parish notices, Sigrid has sent photos of a delicate pink gansey cardigan with a shawl collar. Well done to her.
Next week, I’ll be on the road again. This time I’m travelling down to Northampton, for my brother-in-law’s funeral. I’ll do my best to get a blog out, but I know you’ll understand if I don’t.
