The end of an era?

That’s the cover of this month’s municipal magazine. The major item is the motorway. It’s reminding us we’re in the final stage before the concession. It’s also reminding us this part of the region is the last zone in France of over 100,000 inhabitants which isn’t connected to the motorway network. Once the project is completed people will be able to get to Toulouse and the airport in 40 minutes. (Hurrah, the Ryanair classes will have better access to us!) This will apparently completely transform the local economy, as has been the case with every other urban zone connected to the network. I feel ambivalent (thank you, Mr. Ruis 🙂 ), but that’s irrelevant because the project has 80% support.

I know it’s excellent for business, tourism and it’ll have major impact on property prices (projected increase in values of 50 to 100%), at the same time… I enjoy the splendid isolation. The same way I enjoyed the isolation in Sotogrande before it got its motorway. I feel followed. Like the world keeps trying to make me be a part of it against my will. Anyway, that doesn’t matter either because this is it. That delicate balance of civilization and isolation never lasts too long. I’ve seen it disappear time and again. Below is where my grandparents’ beach house is as it looked when I was born. If you can find the red and white light house, you’ll see it’s to the left of it. When my father was a child he called it the last house before the moon.

Now it looks like this:

Also in local news the abandoned factories on the river are being transformed into hydroelectric plants. Fabulous idea. The town is renting them out to private companies. And the winter market has moved to new indoor facilities about 200 metres from the house, which is convenient 🙂