Fresh August Air

I went walking again today, and while walking probably sounds like a total non-event to most people, for me it’s quite the celebration. Something to write home about, as they say.

I haven’t been able to walk much for the past three and a half years because my hips went wonky on me, both my gluteus Medius tendons fraying like weathered old ropes from decades of riding horses. I also developed bursitis, which if you’ve had, you will know how painful it is when it flares.

I couldn’t get any doctors to take my pain seriously for ages, which was very frustrating. No matter how much I told them that walking any distance was becoming more and more painful, they shrugged me off, telling me I should just move more, or prescribing a bit of physiotherapy coupled with anti-inflammatories. Anyway, eventually (long crazy story, best saved for another time!) a team of doctors halfway across the country figured out that a couple of cortisone infiltrations might make me more comfortable. I’ve felt a lot better ever since being injected, although I have to remember to pace myself, which has never been my forte. I’m also a fervent believer in the benefits of Pilates, which I do regularly. The main thing is that I can once again enjoy the countryside on Shanks pony (does anybody still recognise that expression or am I showing my wrinkles?).

Distance-wise, I can’t go mega far. I can manage about 6 kms, tops, beyond that I get too sore. But there’s a lovely 5,7 kms loop that starts from my house, does a gentle meander up the Jura foothills, and then wiggles softly back home again. Of course, if your gluteus Medius’ and other bits are ship-shape you could keep on meandering right to the top of the mountain, all the way to La Barillette, which would be wonderful. Personally, if I ever feel the inclination to go up there, I’m afraid I have to get the car out.

But no matter how you get there, the views from La Barillette are phenomenal, sweeping right across the plateau and the Lac Léman, and if I recall correctly you’ll also find nice little fondue restaurant where you can indulge in some serious sustenance.

Anyway, up my little loop I meandered in this weird August weather. To be honest, the cooler temperatures we’re experiencing are perfect for walking, although a little more summer sun wouldn’t be frowned upon, right?

Having only moved here recently, I’m not yet very familiar with the area surrounding my house, at least not as far as going for walks is concerned. But nature is spectacular, and I love how quiet it is compared to where we were before. Apart from the occasional roar of mad motorcyclists racing up the mountain on the main road, or speed fanatics in cars abusing their accelerators, it’s pretty tranquil in this part of the world.

I always feel a sense of pride at what my body has achieved when I reach the top of my circuit. I tend to even stop for a while, smiling at the view and talking to myself like a weirdo. Someone very lucky is building a house up there, and I bet that when they finally move in they’ll never go anywhere ever again, because they’ll be stuck on their terrace, or at their living room window, staring at the view and saying “wow” over and over!

On my back way down, I saw a beautiful fox strolling through a freshly cut wheat field and once again paused, watching him, even attempting to take a couple of photos with my phone. Then I stood quietly, taking in all the different colours and patterns merging into each other: the prickly golden stubs of cut wheat, the deep green of the elegant cornfield, the trees and the mountains and the crazy clouds in a schizophrenic sky.

If you look closely, you can just about see the fox in my photo, which makes me happy, but is nothing to write to David Attenborough about.

What else did I see? I saw a house fit for a princess, complete with a tower. I saw dozens of little wooden chalets, many festooned with colorful bunting featuring all the cantonal flags of Switzerland, presumably set up for the 1st of August, which is Swiss National day. Some of the more permanently patriotic residents had installed proper flagpoles flying big Swiss flags.

I walked and watched and listened. I saw people walking dogs, and cats walking themselves. I heard people raking leaves in gardens, I heard the snip-snip of secateurs, I heard a father ask his little boy to go and find another big bag in the garage so that they could get all the leaves and twigs and deadheaded flowers out of the way and make everything look nice and tidy before mama got home. I saw groups of cyclists with red faces and impressive calves, pedaling up up up, probably looking forward to the nice fondue and glass of white wine they’d order when they made it to the top.

I saw an elderly lady sitting on a bench all alone, looking a little sad as she stared out into the wide-open space that stretched out in front of her, and I wondered whether she might be thinking of someone she loved who is no longer be around. I saw people enjoying a picnic at a pretty little barbecue spot, and a little further on I saw an empty bottle of wine set on top of a roadside bin and wondered who’d enjoyed it. I saw three geese resting in the middle of the road by a higgledy-piggledy farm. I saw wildflowers, some mingling merrily in a festival of colours, some just plain party-poopers, happier alone. I saw a huge old oak tree with a bench underneath it and almost sat down for a little rest, but didn’t in case my hips thought they were finished with walking for the day and wouldn’t let me get back up again. I saw elderly horses swishing at flies in sun-dried fields, young cows bouncing around like unruly children. I saw a mother and daughter out on a run, and a family of five out on their bicycles, the children lined up like little ducks. I walked for just over an hour, enjoying my own company, dreaming up bits to feature in the book I’m writing, listening to the wind in the trees, and breathing in the gorgeous fresh medley of country smells.

And then I came home and thought I’d write to you and tell you all about it!

Do you like to go for walks? How far can you go? What do you see in your area of the world?

Tell me! I’d love to know.

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