The French Connection

Adventures from a year living in France

Of Sheep and Turtledoves

Posted on July 6, 2013

Standing outside our front gate today, Ken pointed high into the chestnut tree and asked how many doves I could see. At first I saw only one, balanced on a limb in the cool shade of the broad leaves. And then I saw another and another, at least five, all standing perfectly still in the deep green shadows. They didn’t make a sound, quite unusual for these vocal birds. But it’s no wonder they were perched so silently by our gate in the full shade – the temperature was just about 40 degrees C. or 104 F.

Hurray for summer. Break out the sundresses and hats, settle around the table in the garden for an impromptu picnic supper, search out a swimming hole or beach, and by all means get many scoops of artisanale ice cream down the street just past the city hall. If you are lucky enough to have tickets, you might see Rigoletto tonight in the Place Archivèche, or you can come with us to Les Écuries (stables) de l’Aube for a dinner outside on their terrace. Everywhere there are musical and theatrical events, the outdoor cafés are filled, and even the man who sells me newspapers started up a chat today about the weather. It’s the first time he’s talked with me. He prefers snow, he said, and he’s read about the fires in California; and we smiled and he complimented me on my french. It’s taken 10 months for this conversation to happen. Hurray for summer and open doors.

And summer has brought Dominique and Monique out onto the golf course with us – it’s taken ten months of consulting calendars and weather to finally make this happen. Both are just learning the game, and they have good natural talent and are “sportif”. Dominique is passionate about golf, and Ken is a willing coach, so a new team has formed, with mutual respect, and absolute glee. Each enjoys encouraging the other. Monique will try to find more time to play, and like Karen will enjoy the outings.

: golf with the Faillards

While on the subject of golf, I promised a few photos from our trip to Scotland where Ken played in the Scottish Senior Men’s Amateur Championship in June. While his score was modest, about in the middle of the pack, his spirits were great and we enjoyed immensely the whole experience of being in Scotland (except for driving on the tiny roads on the left side). The links course at Elie where the tournament was held, just down the coast from Saint Andrews, provided beautiful views of the ocean and castles of this rural “kingdom of Fife,” a peninsula north of Edinburgh.

: Ken at Elie

At the bed and breakfast homes in Fife I felt as if I was “at home” in Philadelphia with the same furnishings and manners. Everyone was welcoming and helpful. The Park House at Kinneswood, with its ivy walls and sheep in the pasture (yes, sheep with horns) was very special.

: Our bedroom is at the top left.

: Sheep from Arran Isle

Sheep were everywhere, on every possible slope and in every country yard.

: Babe and mom

While it may sound a little “woo-woo” I do think I felt a strong sense of my Scottish ancestry as we traveled around, especially on the Isle of Skye, the main site of the Donald Clan. My grandfather, Robin Macdonald, is sure to have descended from these smart and testy folk. We visited the Clan Donald museum and talked with a nice lady who will try to help us trace our ancestry, but I have a bit of work to do first to find out more about my grandfather’s family.

: Sleat, Isle of Skye

The southern tip of the Isle of Skye is the Sleat Peninsula, a moody, hilly place that yields a frugal living for man and animal alike. I loved it. It’s that family feeling, I guess. In Sleat, on Skye, it is most always cool to cold and drizzly to downpour. But what magnificent greenery. Whitewashed stone-walled farms dot the countryside.

: At Eilean Larmain, Sleat

Did I mention the sheep?

: Standing by the road on Skye

: Tucked into a rock

At the Eilean Larmain hotel with its gentle view of the sound and the lighthouse (above) we were thrilled to hear a group of young musicians, all from the Highlands, who are carrying on the traditions of Scottish music. Below is a still picture of them playing. Unfortunately I couldn’t upload the video that I took of them playing.

: Traditional music

All over Scotland the spring flowers were in full bloom and rhododendrons were not just the decorative garden plant I’m familiar with, but were wildly cascading up and down mountains and hills in every part we traveled. I was astonished. Like so much of Europe, Scotland experienced a prolonged and unusually cold winter and spring, allowing us to see spring at its peak in mid-June.

: rhododendrons everywhere

Our last night in Scotland we stayed with Mary and Tom in their B&B, South Whittlieburn Farm, outside of Largs, not far from Glasgow. Mary loves to travel, and had just returned from a trip to France, but it’s hard, she said, to take time away from their farm of 500 sheep (a small herd).

: Mary in Scotland

There’s much more to write and photos to share of our recent trips in France, but not now. This coming week I’ll try to catch up on sharing recent events on the blog before we take off to England on July 17th where Ken will be playing in a qualifying competition for the British Senior Open Championship. It’s a BIG DEAL, and we’re excited to go. If all goes well with the golf, he will play five days there. He’s in top form, and has been winning regional team amateur events. Next week he plays in a national team tournament at a course by the Mediterranean not far from here. While Ken is golfing, I’ll be doing more painting. I’ll close with some photos of a recent lunch our painting group enjoyed at the home of one of our painting friends. It was a great day and plein-aire painting at its best, with good food and good friends.

: a toast to painting with friends

: a pot luck fit for Cezanne

Okay, just one last image from a recent drive. The poppies and other flowers are still in bloom in areas just a short drive north of Aix.

: Wildflowers near Digne-les-Bains

Stay tuned for coming attractions! Next installment will include photos of the french Alps. Oh, it was glorious.

Thanks for sticking with us on our journey. You can write us at karen@karenmerriam.com or kensmokoska@gmail.com We would love to hear from you.

Bisous, Karen and Ken

Show and Tell

Posted on June 29, 2013

With any luck, I’ll be able to share in this post many photos that will give you a sense of what we’ve been up to in the last month since I’ve written here. We’ve been traveling and exploring, golfing and painting, and all the while with a heightened awareness that we will be leaving here in just two months. Oh, that now sounds like much too soon. Yet our plans for re-entry move forward with a landing date in SLO of September 7, with a stop-over in Philadelphia for a few days before.

First, a little vignette from a recent day here in the garden in Aix. It was Tuesday, a day when a small group of painters gather to work on various projects, and I was there planning my next painting. Simone, the 92-yr-old mother of Monique (our landlady and art instructor/artist), was sitting in the sun nearby, enjoying all the activity. Along with guiding the artists, Monique was fielding myriad questions from some of the building’s new tenants about school for their children, how to navigate health insurance forms, where to find the best stores, etc. The languages circling around the garden like hummingbirds were Russian, French and English (with strong Australian accent) and the ages ranged from 8-92. In a quiet aside I mentioned to Simone my continuing amazement at Monique’s ability to respond with such openness and generosity to all the demands that her work as artist and proprietor require. Simone replied -” it is UNESCO here”. (“United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization – encourages international peace and universal respect by promoting collaboration among nations.”) She went on to explain that this house that has been in the family for six generations has always been like this. Before Monique, her uncle served the same kind of role. But it takes a special kind of open mind and heart to do this. Monique’s passion and joy in life is to bring people together, to connect them to each other and to the pleasures of life in Provence. She is a most remarkable person. As is Dominique, her husband.

Now to the pictures:

From everyday life in Aix-en-Provence you will see Evy at the Barrage de Bimont. She arrived as the poppies came into full bloom. Then you will meet Adrian and Vincent, my two favorite guys. Adrian runs “Coffee to Go” where I get my favorite latte almost every day. Vincent is an instructor at Aix-Marseille University, loves to speak english and explain french to us neophytes. He is a fund of information. Then you will see Jacques, my coiffeur, from whom I’m learning to understand the strong accent of southern France.

: Evy, Barrage de Bimont

Evy came from SLO to spend almost a week here in Aix, her former home during student days not so long ago.

: Jacques & Karen

In mid-June we drove to Milan, Italy with Monique and Dominique to see their daughter Charlotte dance principal roles with the Aterballetto company at the famous Piccollo theater. It was magnificent contemporary ballet, and Charlotte is a true star. During our six days in Italy, we also drove to lake Como and lake Garda, and spent a night in the city of Bergamo. The mountains of northern Italy are spectacular.

Can you guess who the dancer, Charlotte, is?

: lake Como

: basilique in Bergamo

It’s hard to take photos of these enormous churches. This one fills most of a city block and opens onto a plazza. Like so many of these famous buildings that were constructed and re-constructed over many centuries, it represents many different styles of architecture.

: I love mimes – Bergamo

Can you guess what this sign is saying?

: Our B&B in Bergamo

So many old homes all over Europe have been converted to include rooms or suites or cottages for tourists. This one is tucked into a hillside in the suburbs of Bergamo with gardens, forest and swimming pool. The beautiful renovated building is the main one for guests and there is another wing of unpainted stone walls where the family lives. This home has been in the family for several generations. Three generations live here now, the middle one serving as hosts for the B&B as well as holding down day jobs as lawyers in the town of Bergamo.

: by Lake Como

Our trip home from Italy took us through Turin and into the Alps. It was a thrilling sensation to be surrounded by snow-capped mountains for hours. The roads were narrow and winding along cliffs and by lakes. Quite fun. The only downside to our time in Italy was to see the extent of the serious air pollution in the northern industrial areas, including Turin, which has made its way deep into the mountain landscapes. We were surprised that the mountains didn’t serve as barriers, but instead trapped the foul air in valleys. Further along, into France, the air was much clearer.

I wanted to include in this post our trip to Scotland which we made right after we got back from Italy, but I realize it’s just too much for one sitting. In a few days I’ll write about golf and Scotland and sheep, and share a video of the fiddle & bagpipes I recorded at a little pub on the Isle of Sky.

Stay tuned – I’ll be right back after a quick trip to join Ken at Digne-les-Bains where he is competing with his local team in a regional golf tournament. We will peel off for a little excursion into the french alps and Grenoble for a couple of days. What a life!

We wish you well.

Karen and Ken

Of Latitudes and Attitudes

Posted on May 25, 2013

Neither Ken nor I had ever visited Norway, so we thought – why not now, since we are in the neighborhood? Well, southern France is closer to Oslo than California is. And we have a special reason to want to get to know Norway now because of our new friendship with fellow golfers Erik and Helen who live in Oslo. We met Helen and Erik on a golf course in Cannes this winter where they take regular breaks from the rigors of living in the north-country. As you can imagine, a little lunch on the Mediterranean can be a mighty pleasant antidote to a long, dark winter.

: Cannes with Erik and Helen

From southern France it’s about a three-hour flight to Oslo, if all goes well. For us the trip became a lot longer because of a plane delay. Our unexpected overnight stay outside of Munich, Germany led us to a small-town, once-a-year beer-garden festival right behind our hotel. Lederhosen and polkas, right? Nope – more like ear-splitting punk rock music, kids in American-logo tee shirts, and lots of cigarettes & beer. Oh well, we needed an early night anyway.

Expectations are so often based on misinformation. Not being much of a geographer, my idea of the world is fairly flat, the way you find it in a book of maps. I would do well to look at globes more often to get a clearer view of the real world I live in. I would then have been better prepared to see the striking resemblance between Oslo, Norway and Anchorage, Alaska; Bergen, Norway and Juneau, Alaska. If we go to Tromso, Norway next summer (a possibility) I now understand it will be like visiting Fairbanks or Barrow, Alaska – not that I’ve been to any of the far north outposts of any country. There’s a great Wikipedia site that gives latitudes and the major cities that fall within them. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cities_by_latitude It was stunning to see how very wrong I was about so many of the correspondences. Who would have thought that Cheyenne, WY is at about the same latitude as Naples, Italy; or that Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Marseille, France are also at similar latitudes. I won’t bore you with the rest, except to note that San Luis Obispo and Rabat, Morocco share the same latitude. I like that – it’s cozy.

Back to Oslo. What a beautiful city. It sits at the head of the Oslo fjord and hosts major shipping and sailing activity as well as a thriving economic center. In both Oslo and Bergen we were treated with the site of a tall ship in the harbor. It seemed quite natural in the setting. Life is oriented to the sea, and to the forest.

: Oslo tall ship

: Oslo Folkmuseum

Skiing is, of course not just recreation, but also transportation. It was a spectacular experience to go to the top of the famous ski jump, Holmenkollen in Oslo and look down toward the finish far below. A new adventure, possible on days less foggy than the one that greeted us, is to clip into a zip line that follows the exact trajectory of the ski jump and fly down the hill in a harness at 60 kmh. Yikes! Ken was itching to give it a try. Another day.

: holmenkollen ski jump

One of the highlights of our days in Oslo was a walk through Frogner Park where 212 granite and bronze figures sculpted by Gustav Vigeland are arranged throughout the many acres of land. It was a grey and drizzling day–not good for taking pictures. But I highly recommend taking a look at websites that show Vigeland’s sculptures. What moved me so much was not only the sheer size of each one – larger than life-size people, alone or in pairs, groups and masses – but the tender, joyful, aware, concerned, and deeply loving relationships between the figures: fathers and children, two older women in grief, lovers in a trance-like gaze, all intense, powerful, and filled with life. I could have spent an entire day in the park gazing and reflecting and walking, if only it had been warm with at least a little sun.

There were many wonderful sights throughout Oslo, and even though the Munch museum was closed to prepare for a big anniversary exhibit, we were able to see an excellent selection of Munch’s paintings in another museum. Very satisfying.

Helen and Erik suggested we might enjoy a trip from Oslo to Bergen on the Bergen Railway, a train ride that crosses the snowy Hardangervidda mountain plateau, with the highest point at 4,009 ft. We had a fascinating 12 hour day on the Bergen train, the Flam railway-small train down the mountains to a fjord, a boat trip up the fjord, a bus back up to the plateau, and back on the Bergen railway to finish in Bergen on the west coast. Traversing Norway this way gave us a good sense of the climate, the geography, and the beauty of this part of the country. What we had not appreciated until this trip is how huge Norway is. As Erik explained, if you tipped Norway upside down, it would reach well into Italy. Distances are long, population sparse, and life quite rugged.

Following are some photos we took along the way between Oslo and Bergen

: The Flam railway

: Flam train with Ken

Stops along the way down from the plateau to the fjord to see waterfalls and navigate steep terrain.

: Waterfalls everywhere

: heading down

Did I mention that there are over 170 tunnels on this trip across Norway? It’s the only way to keep passages open year round for the trains. The length of the tunnels is mind-boggling.

And then onto the water in a sturdy boat for a couple of hours cruising the fjord in the rain.

: rainy fjord view

Finally in Bergen a supper with friends from the train and a day of sightseeing. Again a tall ship anchored just outside our hotel window, next to a ferris wheel.

: tall ship and ferris wheel in Bergen

Home in Aix continues to include golf for Ken, with almost weekly tournaments, and sometimes a practice round for Ken and Karen together. One day recently we finally walked to Cezanne’s workshop, not far up the hill from where we live. Karen kept going a bit further to discover the wonderful “Painter’s Terrain” at the top of the hill where Cezanne painted many of his famous renderings of Mont Sainte Victoire. It’s easy to see how creativity flourishes here.

: Karen – in Cezanne’s footsteps

We are always amazed at our luck that we find ourselves in such a warm and welcoming community in Aix, with Monique, Dominique as our “hosts”, and neighbors from around the world, including Marianne and Bob from Cape Cod.

: dinner with friends at home

Our travel plans for June include a week in Italy with Monique and Dominique to see Charlotte, their daughter dance with the Italian National Ballet. Then we spend a week in Scotland anchored to the All-Scotland Men’s Senior Championship just down the meadow from the famed St. Andrews golf club. We’ll be looking into Karen’s Scottish ancestry on a visit to the Isle of Sky-the home of the Macdonald clan. There looks to be fabulous walking in in the mountains and along the coast wherever we go.

There’s always much more that we could have said – but it’s best not to try your patience. Feel free to write a note if you have questions or feedback on what you’ve read here. We always love hearing from you.

Bisous, from Ken and Karen

Short Timers

Posted on May 4, 2013

“Time keeps on slippin,’ slippin,’ slippin’ Into the future.”

Here we are in May. Time feels like a landscape, and we are rushing through it on our personal “train à grande vitesse” –tgv, traveling fast now not because we are anxious to get to the other side, but because the speed is already set and we have to be quick to savor each passing scene.

An expression here in Aix says that summer arrives in a day. Suddenly all the chestnut trees are in full bloom with new leaves and flowers. The platane trees (a variety of sycamore), pruned back so hard only a short time ago, are putting out new growth to create arcs of summer shade along the roads and for the terraces in city squares.

: St.Sauveur & chestnuts

And the tulips! About an hour north of Aix, toward Manosque, Monique led us to rolling hill country of small farms, and the village of Lurs, where just below we found the tulip farm of friends. Monique and some fellow artists set up their easels, while Ken, Renée and I laid out a picnic on the grass. To one side we watched a herd of sheep grazing and gamboling (yes, really!) in the clear spring sun. Below us a field of tulips in perfect flower was slowly being cut to preserve the bulbs. The painters worked furiously to capture the colors before the tops of the flowers lay scattered on the ground. We, on the other hand, stretched out in the sun to become part of the painting-perfect landscape, à la Cezanne.

: painting in Lurs

: Renée in the tulips

: Monique’s painting

Finally I’ve begun to paint also – not in the fields, but in our apartment and in Monique’s studio below in the garden. Far away from the comfort of my acrylics in my studio at home, I’m learning from Monique the nuances of painting in oils. And thanks to previous work with Tricia Reichert in Arroyo Grande, I’ve been able to do some watercolors, the best of which is a little portrait of SweetPea. Fortunately my neighbor Sophie had taken some very good photos of SweetPea in the fall that I could use to help me with this painting I just now completed.

: Watercolor of SweetPea

Ken is fast-becoming a hit with the Set Club teams for whom he plays in golf matches regularly. He has a team logo polo shirt and our shelves are filling with winnings of wine and champagne. To match the bonheur of playing well, he has also acquired the attire of a bonhomme, which Renée liked so well she went right out to find for herself.

While Ken went to Paris to visit with his nephew Michael & his wife, who had won a trip from Michigan, Renée and I explored some familiar and unfamiliar places in the Luberon. At Isle sur la Sorgue, we perused the Sunday market, finding many things to admire and some to buy.

Thinking of Renée and Andy’s biking ventures, I had to take a photo of this “sympa” biker girl we found in a side street.

: biker girls

Saint Saturnin-lés-Apt has always been one of my most favorite little villages in the Luberon. Now it is at the very top of my list, since Renée and I spent several delicious hours exploring the forest behind the old chateau on the hill, finding remains of bories hidden deep in the woods. In a little restaurant we learned that Joseph Talon “discovered” in these same forests the truffles that would become a delicacy dear to the tastebuds of his fellow Frenchmen. Et voila, a statue to reward him.

: borie in the forest

: Care for a truffle?

At the end of the day, one needs a little rest – so in Lourmarin, on our way home to Aix, Renée and I stopped at the same little café where Colleen, Ken and I had huddled in the cold in early March. This day was a bit warmer, and as we rested a bit, a local cat strolled down the street across from us, crying out loudly for some much-needed attention. I had only to look in his direction and he trotted over, checked me out, and jumped up in my lap for a few caresses (the French word for “pats”). The men of the café were much amused and wondered/joked aloud, in French, if they made the right noises would they also get caressed? When I replied, in French, they were a bit chagrined that I had understood them. It was fun. We all laughed.

: karen and the cat

Alors, it’s time to end this entry. There’s so much to try to share – so many pictures and experiences. We thank you for your patience and perseverance with our little blog. Remember, if you want to talk to us – just email – karen@karenmerriam.com or kensmokoska@gmail.com.

A bientôt.

The French Connection

Of Sheep and Turtledoves

Show and Tell

Of Latitudes and Attitudes

Short Timers

Journals

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