Sounds of Menton

There are some common sounds in Menton that I'm writing for our memory and laughter later...

1. On the weekends there are "festivals", many of which are near the beach right below us. The announcers use a loud speaker to communicate to the crowds. Here on the hill it's like hearing a football announcer a block away, unintelligible but loud...on and off all day.

2. On the weekends, when the announcer is taking a break, loud music is played over low-quality speakers. Every other song is American; something like, "Set Me Free Why Don't You Babe". All songs are Casey Kasen favorites from 40 years ago.

3. It seems to me that in all Latin cultures there is a direct correlation between a man's masculinity and the rev of his engine. There are a lot of engines that rev here. (Maybe it has something to do with the main road going along the beach.)

4. Teenagers are only allowed to drive the smallest engine mopeds and they like to drive them fast, like...full throttle. This combination sounds like a manual car going 70MPH in second gear. The high pitches are excruciating!

5. When all the mopeds are finally parked in their little spaces and the coast is asleep we can hear the waves come and go. It is distant, but there. It makes me feel like I'm floating in bed!

6. Church bells are one of my favorite sounds in Europe (accordions on the street is another). There are two churches in town that play their bells a few minutes apart, maybe out of respect for the chiming of their bells. They chime every hour on the hour and half hour. The first several weeks we were here there were weddings on Saturdays and Sundays and the bells would ring for 5 minutes straight. They are so solid, and reliable.

7. Lastly, and my favorite here, are amazing songbirds that live in the palm trees right outside. We first heard them on Ceci's birthday and remarked that they had come to sing to her, but they stayed! There are a few of them, and they sing back and forth as if French lovers. Sometimes when I'm rushing around forgetting to use my senses it is the only thing to snap me out it...and it always pulls me back to a calmer place.