Panic in the City!

The city is in a panic!

This was the first thing said to me by many a person this morning.  And my response was… welcome to Canada! 

There was snow this morning when the kids woke up, and the snow is still falling several hours later.  It is very wet snow, not leaving anything but slush on the sidewalks and roads, and only a hint of white on the grass. 

But it was enough to get everyone ready for school in a flash.  And enough to provide tracking entertainment for the few minutes left before school.  And enough to whet the imagination… especially as we have a ski trip planned for the end of February.  Noah even asked me if we could ski today!

Dropping off Noah at the school, the maitresse told me that there probably would not be outdoor recreation today due to the weather. 

When I went out to the bank, they were not open.  It turns out that only the manager made it in to work and she could not open the reception, being the only one there. 

When I went to the grocery, the proprietaire was apologetic as the delivery vans were not able to make it in to the store that morning.  She said that the store had been almost empty all morning.  The same thing happened in the convenience store where I picked up my newspaper.  The front clerk was solving the Sudoku puzzle and there was not a soul in the aisles. 

And in the bakery… all three store-front workers were standing at the front, which never happens, it is always bustling in the bakery.  They told me that no one except the Canadians had been out that morning!  Probably not quite true, but most people seem to be hibernating indoors. 

And so we have our first snow here in Provence.  I hear it may snow again on Thursday!