The Eastern Skies
Sunrise in Sète
10/5/20254 min read
When we purchased our tiny pied à terre in Sète, we were forced to make compromises. However, after spending the past few days here, I can say we are pleased with our choice, and one reason for that is because it faces East! That has come as a bit of a surprise , because I always believed that it was better to face South or West. Certainly not North, I thought, but East? That can't be great! How wrong I was.
Of course , things have changed since I formed my original opinions. Is it really so great to be South facing in these days of climate change? Our first summer mornings in Sète did feel extremely hot as the sun poured relentlessly through our East facing patio windows. Very soon we learned to close the blinds , and felt enormously relieved as the sun swung away and seemed to lose some of its intensity. If we ate our breakfast outside on the balcony, we had to make sure it was early before it grew too hot.
"But what about the rest of the year?" you might well ask. Well , it is autumn now, and I am still finding it better to be East facing. One of those delights comes in the morning as the sun begins to rise. We watch the colours intensifying over the clay tiled roof tops opposite as we read the daily news in bed. It is such a pleasure, and far better than any T.V. screen. Large seagulls fly languidly over from East to West as the day begins, and then starlings, who seem to have taken over the plane trees at the moment to roost, decide it is time to move on too. It is as if some signal has been issued, for they all rise at once, and with an enormous flurry and grace, they head off as one, for 'better pastures.' They will most probably return later as evening falls.
I have never been particularly interested in starlings . Other birds have tended to catch my eye, but rarely starlings. Apart from watching those enormous and impressive gatherings they call murmurations, I have felt them to be rather mundane birds. However, they really are fascinating. They exist in most part of the worlds in some form or other, apart from in the Americas or parts of Australia. Last evening they returned to the avenue once more, arriving as one and dropping into the plane trees to settle down for the night. But to some people they are not welcome, as we soon came to realise. At twilight, there came a sharp bang and, as one, the starlings flew up into the air, gathered together in great number , and swooped around the sky in a giant murmuration, swerving and changing shape like an enormous speckled amoeba. It was a wonderful sight . Unfortunately I was too slow to snap this image in time. All too quickly, the starlings dropped out of the sky to settle in the trees once more, before another bang scattered them again. But whoever it was with this scaring device did not ultimately succeed in chasing them away, for they eventually settled down, undisturbed for the night. Early this morning we watched them all rise together and fly off. What seems so utterly amazing is how they communicate messages to each other to do this, let alone as they swoop, swerve and change shape in their giant gatherings. Wikipedia tells me that they communicate through movement between themselves and those adjacent to them in groups of seven, and this is spread within microseconds throughout the flock. And we humans think we are clever?
There is one other advantage of facing East, for when the moon is full it appears in the East as the sun sets in the West. And so we can see it above the rooftops opposite us at night. It is a magical sight.
P.S.
I must confess here that any information that I may give about the phases of the moon, the names of stars and planets, or anything else to do with the night sky , has been supplied by B. When it comes to such matters, my complete lack of spatial awareness leaves me utterly confused, and I must look to him for explanation. Maybe it is because he grew up in Central Southern Africa, where the night skies are vast and awe inspiring. Of course as he points out, there, Orion the Hunter is upside down! Conan, is a character in my latest book ' The Scent of Wild Garlic ,' who also spent an idyllic childhood in Ruwanze, a fictional African country. He loved to watch the night sky too, and now he longs to return. If you should read my story, please let me know what you think of it through this blog, as your opinions do matter to me. My story is a reflection on Love, Longing and Belonging. Here is a short extract:
