Time to dance

A big day for our village today. We are one of the smallest communes in a local authority (Communauté de Communes) with 54 members, and we were chosen to host the second annual Fête de l'Intercommunalité (last year's host is even smaller). Preparations have been under way for months, and it paid off -- the day was a brilliant success.

There'd been a thunderstorm last night (after we got back from the wine tasting) but today was clear, bright, and warm without being unbearable. S was joint organiser of a walk part of the way up Alaric, starting at 9 a.m., hence why we left the wine tasting early and sober. We thought there would probably be us, Ingrid, plus Laurence, S's fellow organiser. But we went outside to find 37 people waiting for their guided visit. The walk wasn't too strenuous, especially as we stopped frequently for Laurence and a winemaking friend to explain history, plant life, or geology. 

We got back to the square to find the band already playing. Eventually they stopped for the obligatory speeches from our mayor and various local dignitaries who had contributed financially so had to be allowed to speak. This is normally very boring and goes on for ages, but Serge excelled with a speech that was both rabble-rousing (as always) and funny, as ever expressing immense pride in his village ("It's not a village, it's a ... country!" he loudly proclaimed, to enthusiastic applause). A very hard act to follow.

Then the inevitable copious aperos, free wine and nibbles for the hundreds of people who had gathered by then. We avoided drinking too much and after an hour or so went home for a light lunch, ingredients bought from one of the producers who had set up stalls in the square. After lunch there was a siesta in the shade of the pines with a storyteller to prevent people from actually going to sleep (I turned up late and there was some audible snoring going on despite this).

Next, a concert of Pyrenean songs in the square. Serge was half-reluctantly dragged onto the stage with his brother to join in L'Estaca (previously heard here). Well, he had already been joining in from his seat. No time to spare before the next banda arrived to get people dancing. Along with more free wine of course. There were quite a lot of people by now.

Final course: giant cassoulet for 500 people on the terrain des fêtes. They had got a caterer in for this, and it was very well organised, so everyone got served in a timely manner. And the final act will be tomorrow's blip, because I've written enough and it went on till after midnight :)