In case you missed it on Monday, I was on CBC’s Canada Reads site talking about scary motels in New Mexico, a city with an official donut, and, of course, The Scottish Ambassador.
I’ve rabbited away on BBC Radio 1 and a slew of times on RTE Radio 1 and 2FM in Ireland, but this was my first time on anything in my newly adopted land, so I smirked quite a lot.
A few people have asked me about the marmot theme park I mention in the CBC interview. La Montagne aux Marmottes! A whole park devoted to the furry wee beasties! “The Mountain” is in an obscure corner of Provence in a wee, tiny village called Le Sauze du Lac and I insisted that my entire family accompany me to experience it. Twice. Only my mum was lucky enough to escape the outings. I think we saw the sum total of two actual, live marmots between us.
Here are a few shots from that fabulous family escapade…
Note, no actual living marmots feature in any pictures. Seriously, if any of us even thought we caught a glimpse of a marmot, the entire clan would gallop over to the alleged place of sighting, pointing, jostling, scanning, ever hopeful that we might see a famed Provencal Marmotte in real life. Each time it’d turn out to be a particularly bushy tussock. Or a rare owl. Or a pygmy donkey. Or some other such disappointment. Dammit, we came to see marmots. We were a family with a focus and that focus was marmots.
The majestic, little known Dance of the Marmots
In North America, there is Sasquatch. In Scotland, there is Nessie. In Provence, there is L'Enormous Marmotte.
Tea avec marmottes
[…] Games, run into the mayor of Glasgow in New York, argued with Mary Queen of Scots in Vegas, been interviewed by CBC, been piped out of a parking lot in Florida, tested my allergies to the limit at a Scottie festival […]