Belmont was cold. I haven't been so cold in a long time, especially at night. When we arrived there were small patches of not yet melted snow on the ground, although with the sun out the temperature was actually quite pleasant. Once the sun set, however, the air got colder and colder, and crawling into bed at night felt like crawling under sheets of ice. It reminded me much of my childhood. The house was heated by a wood stove in the kitchen, and although the kitchen was nice and warm, the rest of the house remained pretty chilly most of the time. It was so cold that I didn't want to take off my clothes, so I just went to bed every night in the shirt and sweater I had worn that day.
The Martinals lived a pretty simple life. Many conveniencies that most people would consider necessary, they had no problem going without. The bathroom had no door on it. A wall hid the shower and toilet from sight, and turning on the light warned the rest of the house that the bathroom was occupied, but this didn't stop Jessica and I from the constant terror that someone would walk in on one of us. It was also awkward to know that there was nothing much muffling the noise of your tinkle ( or whatever else you happened to be doing), as the bathroom was not far from the kitchen and the entryway. Then there was the toilet, which was missing its' seat. I've gotten used to squatting here at the Cité Universitaire because of the dubious cleanliness of the bathrooms, but something about the closeness of the wall to the toilet at the Martinals made relieving one's needs even more difficult.
Aside from the bathroom, the house was more or less normal except for the kitchen, which didn't have hot water or a fridge. As the days passed, I got more used to the family's way of life. We would wake up in the morning, eat a breakfast of tea, oatmeal and dried fruit, and then set about doing the tasks the farmer found for us. Meals were simple and healthy, and mostly consised of things that the Martinals either produced themselves, bartered for, or bought at the bio store in town. We ate goat cheese every day for lunch and dinner, no matter what else we were eating.
The area around Belmont was absolutely stunning. From the hill in front of the house you had an amazing view of the whole valley and mountains behind. Jessica and I took several long walks up into the mountains, down into a larger village called Artemare, and up on the hill where a 14th-century castle looked down on the farms below. The night before we left, Jean-Yves invited an old historian to dinner to tell us about the history the castle and the rest of the area. He stayed for at least three hours telling story after story about old ways of life, community festivals and traditions, counts, barons, and revolutions that changed the people and the countryside.
We had a great time. I'd love to go back.
