Tag Archives: Couserons

Autrefois Le Couserons: The Grand Parade Of Tractors in St. Girons, France

A sunny Saturday was perfect for the annual Autrefois Le Couserons celebration of rural and traditional life here in the Midi-Pyrenees of France.

The barricades went up early and people began lining the streets, sitting in fold-up chairs (including right beneath our front windows!) or standing anywhere that there was a small patch of available space that was not on the road itself.
 

Parade spectators at the Autrefois Le Couserons parade in St. Girons, France


 

Parade spectators sitting beneath our windows in St. Girons, France


 
For just over two hours, they paraded through St. Girons — tractors, carts, bands, singers, dancers, vintage firetrucks, you name it! And all of it went right beneath the windows of our apartment where we each stood, camera in hand, taking hundreds of pictures on that bright and clear day.

I am dividing the coverage of this event into several articles and slideshows so that it isn’t an overwhelming amount to look at each time.
 

Vintage tractor on parade at the Autrefois Le Couserons festival in St. Girons, France


 
Now for all of you ‘tractor geeks’ (Ooops! Tractor ‘enthusiasts’ was what I meant!) — Enjoy!


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The ‘Teaser’ Parade for Autrefois Le Couserons in St. Girons, France

The light was thinning as we left the house on Friday night. We hadn’t realised that there would be an opening night parade — a teaser — prior to the multi-hour Autrefois Le Couserons spectacle that was scheduled on Saturday morning. But we were fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time once again.
 

Three generations of a French family watch the small opening night parade for the Autrefois Le Couserons festival in St. Girons, France


 
Up and down the streets of St. Girons, people gathered in the windows overlooking the small parade and they followed it on foot in some cases. The night was fast approaching, the temperatures were thankfully dropping, and there was an air of excitement all along the route of the parade.
 


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Come back soon for another slideshow from the hundreds of photos that I took over the weekend.

Coming up next? Tractors and farm vehicles from all eras!

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©Deborah Harmes and ©A Wanderful Life
Please respect the words and images on this page.
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Autrefois Le Couserons: Extended Coverage On The Way!

Hundreds — seriously — I took almost 200 photos last night (in spite of the people and cyclists who stepped right in front of my proposed shot again and again!) and well over 600 today. So I have a lot to wade through! Those numbers don’t even take into account the several hundred photos that Mark took, too.
 

Musicians in traditional dress at the Autrefois Le Couserons festival in St. Girons, Midi-Pyrenees, France


 
It’s been a glorious two days of vintage vehicles, traditional music, and people in historical costume and we are all quite relieved that the weather stayed clear and bright. As the parades went through St. Girons on both days, people clustered high above the street in front of their windows to watch the spectacle pass by.
 

Watching from above as the Autrefois Le Couserons parade passes through St. Girons, Midi-Pyrenees, France


 
I think I’ll create a couple of slide shows of the (turn down your volume if you don’t want to hear the music track on this link!) Autrefois Le Couserons festival here in St. Girons in the Midi-Pyrenees of France. This is an annual celebration of traditional rural life in the Couserons.
 

Shepherd on horseback with his dog tucked into his arms at the Autrefois Le Couserons parade in St. Girons, Midi-Pyrenees, France


 
We now live in such a fascinating place with layers of history and settlement over the centuries since its pre-Roman origins.

Stay tuned for more pictures from this activity-packed weekend!

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Cycling At Night in the South Of France

Daylight was slipping away as the scraping sound echoed up the stone walls and through the street. Barricades were being dragged across the end of the block, people began unpacking their cars in the parking lot across the street, and men in safety vests began taking up positions up and down the street.
 

Officials and riders preparing for a night-time road race in St. Girons in the Midi-Pyrenees in France


 
Cycling is such a passion for people of all ages in France and the Tour de France is not the only racing or touring event that attracts attention. We discovered yet another reason to love living in St. Girons 10 days ago when a night-time cycling event was held here that circled the town and passed right beneath our window again and again and again.
 

Cyclists preparing for a night-time road race in St. Girons in the Midi-Pyrenees in France


 
Hours passed, the light changed from twilight to darkness, the streetlights illuminated the pavement, and the cyclists went around and around the circuit until after 10 PM.
 
Cyclists on a night-time road race in St. Girons in the Midi-Pyrenees in France
 
Mark was a very happy man as he watched some fellow cyclists going around and around the curve at the end of our street. And he did it all from the best spot possible — out the front window of our apartment.
 

Watching the cyclists go by in a night-time road race in St. Girons in the Midi-Pyrenees in France


 

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©Deborah Harmes and ©A Wanderful Life
Please respect the words and images on this page.
All rights reserved.