Sirocco Winds Bring Eerie Orange and Yellow Colors to French Skies

 

We woke up to a yellow-orange sky on the morning of Saturday, February 6. It was an intriguing, apocalyptic kind of light. The Sirocco had arrived.

This peculiar light even sprinkled tiny particles of sand to create an eerie contrast to the white basilica of Lyon as well as on the snow in areas along the Swiss border near Geneva, as the following 1:23-minute video shows.

The Sirocco is a phenomenon where the wind blows sand from the Sahara Desert in North Africa onto parts of Europe. Such an event usually occurs five to six times a year, but it usually covers the central southeastern part of France (Haute Savoie and Savoie) and not the middle of the country in areas like Le Puy. 

As the day continued, the sky became milky because the dust was gradually moving away from France and over the Alps to Italy. We caught a picture of it here where the sun was uncharacteristically magnified and left silhouettes of the mountainous landscapes surrounding Le Puy.

 

The sirocco arises from a warm, dry, tropical air mass that is pulled northward by low-pressure cells moving eastward across the Mediterranean Sea. The wind originates in the Sahara desert, and the hotter, drier continental air mixes with the cooler, wetter sea air to propel a counter-clockwise circulation of the mixed air across southern Europe.

Sometimes when the Sirocco passes over the Mediterranean Sea, it picks up moisture that results in rainfall in southern Italy known locally as "blood rain" due to the red sand mixed with the falling rain.

The Sirocco is commonly perceived as disturbing to some people. Many attribute their health problems to the wind either because of the heat and dust brought in from African coastal regions or because of the cool dampness further north in Europe. The dust within the Sirocco winds can get lodged in  mechanical devices and penetrate buildings.

Sirocco winds commonly occur during autumn and spring when it is very hot, and they can reach hurricane speeds of up to 100 km/h (62 mph).

This wind also has an impact on fishing. For example, the anchovies caught in the Gulf of Trieste near Barcola, Italy, which are a delicacy, are only caught during the Sirocco. When the cold winds return, the fish disappears into the vastness of the Adriatic.

For me, living in France after three-and-a-half years, it is still riveting to see weather maps of North Africa on the evening news. Riding a camel and spending two days camping in a tent in the Moroccan part of the Sahara in 2013 was a mystical experience. Today, realizing that those same desert sands were raining down on France was surreal, and I am grateful for the experience.

 

Sources:  

L'Éveil, February 6, 2021 -- https://www.leveil.fr/puy-en-velay-43000/actualites/du-sable-du-sahara-charrie-jusque-dans-le-ciel-altiligerien_13912575/ 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sirocco

 

Billom: Small Medieval Town Where Fr. Medaille Died and Was Buried

 

In 1669, when Fr. Medaille was ill and fragile, he was transferred to Billom where he lived in a senior care home for sick and elderly priests. He continued his ministry, however, by hearing confessions of the people in the town. He died on December 30, 1669, at the age of 59. Presumably he was buried in the cemetery next to the school but during the French Revolution, the cemetery was destroyed. There is no trace of Fr. Medaille's grave or remains, but the Jesuits do have a record of his death certificate. 

 

 

Billom is under 120 kilometers northwest of Le Puy. Fr. Medaille, the itinerant preacher, traversed the many miles of the Avergne region on horseback.

 

 

 

Fr. Medaille was known to live his life of mission with such a reputation of holiness that people often called him a saint. He was also known to be appreciated by the wealthy, the poor, and the bishops in dioceses where he worked. 

Click here for a video review of his life.

 

The open space next to the school may have been the site of the cemetery where Fr. Medaille was buried. The feeling of being there was desolate and a little sad, perhaps as a result of its history. Places sometimes retain sentiments of their past.

 

The Jesuits operated a school in Billom. In 1764, during the expulsion of Jesuits in France, the school was abandoned. From 1886-1963 the school became a military prep school for young people. Today, the building stands empty with some painted windows that look like a school project attempting to beautify the building. A newer lycée (high school) was built across the courtyard from the old building.

  The new lycée across the courtyard from the former Jesuit school.

Remnants from another time, a lion crest with a sword is displayed at the entrance to the school campus.

 

 

 

 

The Jesuit Expulsion

The Jesuit movement was founded by Ignatius de Loyola in August 1534. Under his charismatic leadership, the Society of Jesus grew quickly. The Jesuits’ ministries in education and charitable works spread all over the world during Ignatius’ lifetime, and eventually to the new European colonies in the Americas in the 17th century. The Jesuits played an important role in the Counter-Reformation in Europe and won back many people who had been lost to Protestantism. They also succeeded in converting millions of people around the world to Catholicism.  

However, with the rise of nationalism in the 18^th century the European monarchs felt threatened by the religious order. They began to suppress the Jesuits in what is known as the “Jesuit expulsion” from the Portuguese Empire (1759), France (1764), the Two Sicilies, Malta, Parma, the Spanish Empire (1767) and Austria and Hungary (1782). These moves were ultimately, albeit reluctantly, approved by The Holy See in 1773.

The Jesuit suppression was largely political in nature. As part of their mission and purpose, the Jesuits were closely aligned with the papacy as protectors, however, they were considered too autonomous for the monarchs who were trying to centralize and secularize their political power. Some historians also view the suppression as motivated by economics because by the mid-18th century, the Jesuits had acquired a reputation in Europe for their monetary successes. Monarchs in many European states saw the Jesuits as foreign entities encroaching upon their sovereignty.

In 1814, Pope Pius VII restored the Society of Jesus to its previous provinces, and Jesuits resumed their ministries in those countries.

The Medieval Town of Billom

Fr. Medaille would have been familiar with the old town of Billom that had been built in the Middle Ages. The narrow cobblestone streets, half-timbered buildings, sculpted doorways, and public squares are a common sight in French Medieval towns. People still reside in these towns although their buildings have been significantly updated with modern conveniences.

The Angaud River runs through Billom.

Interesting stone portals of houses.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stone sculptures rest high above the street. Many were used as directional street signs for the people who lived in the town and were vastly illiterate. They oriented themselves on the street by turning to the left or right of a sculpture.

 

 

The people usually washed their clothes in a river or in a fountain like this one. Small towns in the southern half of France typically have such fountains.

 

 

 

 

 

Troughs provided water for the horses. Today, they stand as decorative vessels on their own or with flowers planted inside of them. It is interesting that a commonly-used utility sports such intricate carvings.

 

 

This half-timbered house was the former home of a prominent, rich family as indicated by the crest (see close-up below) etched onto the center of the house. The juxtaposition of this medieval house with modern cars is striking.

 

 

Here is another crest over the door of a home

Signs outside doorways used to indicate artisanal shops. Today, they are more decorative, but just as engaging.

 

 

Narrow cobblestone streets make-up the intricate, winding  network of the town. Many streets have been adapted to accommodate cars while others continue to be pedestrian pathways.

A variety of houses adjacent to each other line the town's streets.

 

 

 

City squares were gathering places for markets, festivals, and milling about. A tower gives the town some height and prestige. This one has a clock attached to it.