Work in progress

The work on the streets of Sauve restarted in September. There was a pause over the summer months to allow tourists to come and spend their money without falling down the numerous holes in the road which were necessary to install new cables and drainage systems.

The not so Grand Rue

To facilitate all this, the main place has been closed to traffic for the best part of two years. The debate continues as to whether parking will once again be permitted there, as it was before the work started. The two factions are both quite passionate in their convictions. Those who have spent the summer months watching kids play without being in any danger of getting squashed by the pastis drinkers who drive into the square as though they were competing in the Monaco Grand Prix and said PD’s who clearly think that the general aesthetic would be improved by leaving their rusty second hand vehicles to drip oil on the restored eighteenth century square.

But is it art?

For the moment, it isn’t possible to drive into the square, as access is via the Grand Rue, which is all dug up. However, some of the more determined residents have still tried it. To prevent them, wooden palettes with large stones on them have been strategically placed in every conceivable spot where parking might be attempted.

For those of you who don’t know the place, Sauve is well known for its large community of artists. As a result, I’ve been asked several times if these rocky happenings are some sort of installation; a question not as silly as it sounds when you look about, as other mysterious objects have started appearing. As a more enlightened resident once remarked: art is what makes life more interesting than art.