Soccer in Winter

Soccer fields look a bit eerie and deserted in Winter over here.

Although walking with Ninio always brings you some surprise…  he was all ears and run along a smaller field.

A few boys, the real passionate soccer fans, were enjoying themselves playing football in the snow !

He watched with great attention hoping the ball would roll his way 😉

No such luck today, Ninio 😦 we’ll come back in the Spring !

Frost

Frost, snow, grey sky and coldness are still very present here. We all seem to get used to those low temperatures (-5°C or less in the morning, a few degrees higher during the day). One thing though keeps me wondering every day and I look forward to my walk in the woods : it is the extraordinary and fabulous transformation of vegetation through the frost. How can one ever get used to the beauty of these branches  ?

or those dry  flowers which seem to have gotten a new life  with the frost ?

I find that Nature is a never ending source of wonder and beauty. Everywhere, at all Seasons.

As the French saying goes “Année de givre, année de fruits”… “A frosty Winter gives a generous harvest of fruits in Summer” 😉 So, let’s look forward to warmer days !

Blue shades in town

Walking through Fribourg on a grey and cold day, I was attracted by

a big blue glass ball seen through the workshop window of a jeweller in the old part of the city

I could not miss the deep blue old Vespa and a shawl waiting for her owner to drive off

A sculpture in brilliant blue shades and its green cat by Niki de Saint-Phalle

and a few solar panels trying to catch the very weak sun on that day.

Hands

Thinking of Haiti…

Reaching out to those in dire need

Working hand in hand to help saving lives

Giving a helping hand to heal bodies and minds

Being together hand in hand to reconstruct

Being on hand to listen, comfort, support.

Back from the Alps

Just back  home from a stay in our Alps which happen to be in my home state, Valais. These  mountains stand at the border between Switzerland and France/Italy. Most of them are over 3000m high, some (including the Matterhorn or Cervin as we call it in French) over 4000m high. A mighty landscape some find overpowering. Personally these mountains fascinate me because they  seem to change according the season, the day and even the hour. Although we did have some patches of blue sky and luminous sunsets, the weather was rather grey and freezing during the Holiday Season. This year there were more icy paths and roads, violent storms, fog and avalanches than in the previous years . This is not really like the usual weather we enjoy up there. This area is well known for its ever present (or almost) sunshine.

At night time the landscape take a whole different look. Mountains look like a skyline in the horizon and the hills are covered by a multitude of lights. Villages are built  on the steep slopes and when the night falls around 5.30pm, the view is just breathtaking. Try to imagine the fireworks on December 31st in the same night… magic !

A last look at the Rhône Valley in the plain below before closing the shutters at night. Dreams can only be good 🙂