Frozen

The temperatures have warmed some, but the wind still has the potential to force us indoors, as we found on our last excursion here in Clermont-Ferrand. I feel as though there is so much right here in town to show my mother, but we’ve been slow to see the sights due to the combination of cold weather and little children.

Last Friday we made it to the Jardin Lecoq. The fountain was a little frozen.

You know, it usually looks more like this...

La Pyramide Desaix wasn’t faring much better.

The “pyramid” is the name that the people of Clermont call the giant obelisk at the intersection northwest of Jardin Lecoq. It celebrates the memory of the general who died at Marengo in 1800. The urn on top of the obelisk is believed to contain Desaix’s heart, and the decoration, which was begun by the sculptor Chinard, was never finished.

Monday we stopped in the Cathédrale Notre-Dame-de-l’Assomption and then, after passing through Place du Terrail we visited Basilique Notre-Dame-du-Port. However by the time we got to Place Delille we started feeling like icicles ourselves and chose to hop on a tram back home. Not before I snapped this picture of one of the Fountaines de l’Hôtel de Ville…

The twin fountains were built in 1848 to beautify the entrance to the Town Hall. And yes, that is what Hôtel de Ville means, it’s not a hotel, but I only learned this after 7 months in France.

Although the temperatures are supposed to keep climbing through the week, I'm lucky to have two personal lap-warmers to get me through this cold spell…

Photo: Leigh Jones