|
Hiltrud
and Jurgen Tiemann had built it up from raw bush over a period of
seventeen years, and they loved it. But now when we walked their two
small dogs around the 3km boundary before sunset Jurgen carried an
automatic pistol in the waistband of his trousers. It might have
made more sense for Hiltrud to carry it: she was the one who shot at
competitions in her youth. To explain their caution, they showed me a two
year old newspaper photograph of the pair of them, swathed in
bandages like the Invisible Man, after a violent burglary.
Now, before locking up for the night, Jurgen would set his
protective devices. Two wires, at neck and crotch heights, were
connected to the 240 volt mains. A fine wire across the front of the
carport was fastened to the trigger of a steel tube loaded with a
12-bore shotgun cartridge, aimed back along it. All windows were
already behind razor wire.
The gate of the property was one kilometre from the house. Going
home at night, I opened and closed it with my left hand, holding a
large knife in my right. Thumb on the blade – strike upwards.
* * *
Petite Pululu is peaceful. Find Lunas, just over the pass between Lodève
and Bédarieux, inland from Montpellier. Turn off to pass through
Joncels then make a 5km climb to the left along a cracked concrete
farm road and descend a little to the hamlet of Valeyrac. Petite
Pululu is the last of a group of stone houses on the left, looking
down across the valley towards le Pont d’Orb and le Bousquet
d’Orb.
Set back from the road, this skilfully renovated stone house
includes two self-contained studio flats created from cellars and
storerooms. In each, huge undressed stones break through the wall
plaster in places, and the spaces between the ancient ceiling beams
sweep upwards in shallow barrel vaulting. Shower and toilet are
furnished with quality German chinaware. Rustic furniture faces past
the lawn and across the valley, through multi-paned french windows.
At this altitude, it can be cool in the morning even in summer. Let
the daylight wake you, then slip out in bare feet to feel the
loneliness. Let breakfast wait until everything wakes up. Climb up
the path to the plateau which forms the kitchen garden, and look
away from the valley. Crane your neck towards the top of the ridge
which forms the rear boundary of the property. Huge boulders are
almost hidden by the dense covering of trees and undergrowth woven
into the ever-steepening slope.
This is ideal mountain bike country, but those who prefer the simple
life will also find walking a delight. Take the road down through
the forest towards le Pont d’Orb. On the right you will see a
stone slab, dished, with a drainage channel at one end. Make up your
own mind whether this was really a sacrificial altar in an earlier
age.
Walk quietly. Keep your eyes and ears open. Small mammals and
insects abound, and lizards sun themselves or flick their tongues at
passing prey. Watch the ground. You may see a dozen caterpillars in
crocodile formation, crossing the road as fast as their inchworm
locomotion will allow. As they reach the ditch on the far side, they
fall off the head of the line one by one and tumble helplessly down
the steep slope. At the bottom, the line re-forms for the climb into
the forest undergrowth. There must be a reason for the journey, but
I can’t see it. The vegetation looks the same on both sides of the
road, and I thought butterflies and moths always took care to lay
their eggs where the food was.
Hiltrud and Jurgen now dedicate their time to gardening, and to
further renovations and additions to their buildings. As an old
friend, I am privileged to revisit their collections of African art
and rare maps, and to examine Jurgen's collection of moths and
butterflies. We speak of old times, and even of their nearest
neighbour, who was murdered a year after they left Ndola.
The last time I saw him, Jurgen was considering starting a
collection of the local lepidoptera. This is their home now, and
they are adjusting to it.
They
still miss Africa, but
now they have company. German friends bought two adjacent properties
when they came on the market a year or so ago.
|
