Our convoy merrily drove past a 'Road Closed' notice and up into the clouds rolling round the Chartreuse peaks. I was one among many in the Oxford contingent who weren't equipped, sartorially or mentally, for a hike at 5°C in limited visibility. We were content to admire the swathes of daffodils surrounding us as we shivered - though shocked to learn that it is permitted to pick as many as you can hold in one hand, as many people were doing - but we didn't really want to head off into the grey unknown. After a lot of discussion we all retreated for a picnic in the woods below, then a walk, still challengingly steep for some, through a different host of wild flowers. 

All of us had the music we've been singing running through our heads and every now and then it surfaced and we sang.


An extra of the range of greens in the spring forest. It is a beautiful time to be here.