Beautiful French villages abound ...

Bonjour mes amis,

We continue to be amazed at the number of absolutely beautiful French villages and towns. Particularly, the villages; they seem to be all over Provence. As you would imagine, tourists abound in many of these alluring communes.

Last week, we joined Natasha, Lawrence (oldest daughter and son-on-law, living in England), and Annika on a tour of the Provencal villages of Roussillon and Gordes, about fifty miles or so from Aix-en-Provence. These gorgeous, adorable villages seem to abound in the Provence region here. We continue to delight in their combination of history, antiquity, quaintness and the stunning beauty of the surrounding countryside.

The elements that make for this beauty start with their antiquity. The villages/towns are built on hills or hilltops--clearly for purposes of self-defense against possible invaders. Virtually every village has a castle and a church of some sort--all elegantly hand-crafted by the artisans of the era. Cobbled streets (made of stone), passage ways, steps and archways are everywhere to be found.

On our day tour, we visited the village of Roussillon, famous for the ochre that lines the hillsides, many views of which can be enjoyed over lunch or dinner (it was lunch for us). Ochre (pronounced oker) is a clay-like pigment used by artists in their painting. It is also used for general painting and decor. During the period of French colonization, the French would often have ochre shipped to their colonies to remind them of their homeland. After the French left the colonies, for a time, the use of ochre was disdained. However, it has apparently been making a comback in recent years. In any event, glimpses of this ochre are all over Roussillon.

We next visted the village of Gordes (pop., around 2,000), with its steep climb into the town center. As you approach (up the hillside), the community, built of stone, just sits there, chiseled, it seems, into the hills. At the viewing stop, tourist's cameras were non-stop, trying to capture the beauty of the visage.

We strolled the narrow streets and walkways, showing off 11-month old Annika and Niko (the dog) along the way. (Can't believe all the sights Annika has seen and, of course, will not remember.) The village of Gordes claims that everything in the town is made of stone. In fact, no fences are allowed, only stone walls.

The castle in the town centre was built in 1031, rebuilt in 1525 and no doubt upgraded, as needed, over the passing decades.

On leaving Gordes, we drove a few kilometers to the renowned Romanesque Senanque Abbey, whose construction dates back to 1148. The entrance to the Abbey features fields of lavender plants, an irresistably stunning and pictoresque presentation for the visitor. You've perhaps seen some of these beautiful lavender fields on postcards over the years. We browsed briefly in the Cisterian Abbey bookstore and learned that the Abbey is still inhabited by five monks.

Soon we were on our way back to Aix for our last couple of days with Natasha, Lawrence and Annika. We continue to be grateful for these special times with family. Yesterday, their month-long visit ended and they returned to England (in a phone conversation earlier today, I could hear Annika's perky voice, chirping away in the background).

We return to South Florida one week from today. Lots of details to take care of, but we're looking forward very much to getting back.

A bientot from France ...

July en Provence and the joys of grandpa ...

Bonjour mes amis,

Sorry to have not blogged for so long. I think it's been nine days or so. July en Provence is hot (mostly in the 90's) and tourists of all stripes (mostly French) seem to be everywhere. There's an energy to these summer days that pulsates throughout la ville.

Yesterday, on my way to the nearby supermarche (a journey I make four or five times a week), I saw at least four street, music groups--sharing their talents with the passersby. Two or three times per week, there are booths set up all along the Cours Mirabeau (the famous boulevard that denotes the center of this vibrant town) with folks selling their wares. The Cours Mirabeau is where everything happens here in Aix.


Since June 27th, our oldest daughter, Natasha, has been visiting with her family, which includes our first grandchild, soon-to-be-11 month-old Annika (son-in-law, Lawrence, is also with us). Annika is obviously the center of our lives--from the time she awakes in the morning, til her bedtime around 8:00 p.m. She is a bundle of energy, curious about everything and everybody. Not much of a cuddler, she loves to explore ... which means to touch and pull and push and inspect everything within her reach.



I have been doing lots of "Annika-care" and love every minute of it--even the diaper changing can have it moments of drama and fun. I pretty much have my routine with Annika worked out when I'm doing "solo" duty. She plays for a while (which requires constant supervision), then she's ready for a bottle (milk) and some down time in the cushioned crib/play pen we have in the living area. Then she'll play for awhile, entertainng anyone around (in the crib) and soon it's back to more time of exploration and moving about. She's standing more and better each day and is probably a couple weeks away from walking.


The lovely Annika is having the time of her life, with mommy and daddy close by and grandma and grandpa eager to jump into the fray. Of course, from my point of view, watching and delighting in little Annika is only part of the good times. I also derive great joy watching both Natasha and Lawrence parent. They are sooooo in love with their precious little girl. Seeing their young faces light-up when they are playing with Annika or reflecting on some event of the day warms the heart. Memories from 30-plus years back (when we were raising our babies) come flashing into conscientiousness.

Anyway, good times continue in Aix and my days as grandpa are precious days to both celebrate and treasure.

We return to South Florida two weeks from today. I can see, now, that I'll be eager to jump back into the fray ... into the joys and challenges of the local church and the life I love in Miami Lakes.

A bientot for now ...














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Visiting some of the countryside of Provence and Arles

Bonjour tout le monde,

At the invitation of Nicole, one of our conversation partners, we decided to visit her summer home in Roaix, a small village of some 500 inhabitants in the Vaison-la-Romaine region of Provence, about 80 miles north-west of Aix.

As we soon discovered, this Vaison-la-Romaine area boasts some of the most beautiful villages (all within a 15 mile area) in Provence. Nestled in the foothills of the nearby mountains, with an altitude around 200m, the villages overflow with ancient, Roman/medieval architecture--castles, churches, bridges, amphitheaters etc. In some of the village areas, narrow stoned passways/roadways wind up the hillsides with residences and an occasional restaurant on both sides.

There is an unmistakable quaintness and historical beauty to the these villages. You get the feeling that everybody knows everybody ... and that people don't seem to be in a hurry.

We enjoyed roaming the streets of Nicole's village, Roaix (where we spent the night), seeing the historical manor (castle) with its expansive grounds (boasting fountains, columns, pools, gardens, lawns, and even a tennis court). The nearby ville of Vaison-la-Romaine (6,000 inhabitants and by far the most populated of the 14, or so, villages) sports a rich tradition in the arts over the decades. The evening we visited, they were preparing for opening night of some renowned dance festival, to be held in the ancient amphitheatre (capacity, well over 2,000). There was a buzz all about and people--everywhere--on their way to the theatre.

The next morning and early afternoon, we visited the village of Entrechaux (population 869), the native village of Nicole's grandparents. We purchased some breakfast breads at the local boulangerie and enjoyed some vibrant French conversation with Nicole's childhood friend, Michel, an opera buff, whose family still lived in the village (he was currently living in Avignon).

Mid-afternoon, we were off to Arles (some 75 miles away), passing through St. Remy en route, both renowned villes where the famous impressionist painter, Vincent Van Gogh, both lived and painted. Along the way, we saw first-hand some of the beautiful sunflower fields (which Van Gogh had included in some of his paintings), with the mid-day sunlight glistening, radiantly, off the sunflowers.

St. Remy is a cute small town. Much larger (over 50,000), Arles is a blend of the late 20th century with the ancient and historical periods of its robust past. Its ancient amphitheatre (from the Roman era) is still used for local events, including (we were told) bull fights. The Rhone river (one of Provence's major rivers) runs through Arles and there is a scenic walk-walk along the river side.

At numerous points in Arles (where we spent the night), Van Gogh's presence is remembered and celebrated. Soon, after touring (mostly by foot) the town center and most of the historical sites, we were on our way back to Aix to dine at our flat and watch the finals of the World Cup with Natasha, Lawrence and our beloved granddaughter, Annika.

A bientot for now ...

Back to our flat in France

Bonjour mes amis,

When we returned from our ten-day trip to Greece and Turkey, our daughter, Natasha, and granddaughtger, Annika, had already arrived (earlier the same day) from England. Our son-in-law, Lawrence, arrived as few days later.

Some of Natasha and Lawrence's friends, Pierre and Jessica (from England; Pierre had also been at UC Santa Barbara with them), had been dog-sitting Niko during our time away and spent a couple of days with us after our return. Great young couple! Pierre is off in two weeks for the Congo where he'll be doing public relations for an NGO named Oxfam.

We are enjoying immensely Natasha, Lawrence and Annika's visit. Our ten-month little granddaughter is, of course, the center of our daily routines these days. She is utterly adorable (as you would expect any doting grandfather to say), crawling all over the place, standing up and sitting herself back down all the time. She works hard at exploring her environment, with an insatiable curiosity about virtually everything and an inborn desire to touch, pull, push and, in some way, handle everything. She's a great sleeper which is a blessing for all of us.

We continue to have sessions with three different conversation partners, each of whom is able to help us in different ways. One of them--Nicole--has invited us to visit her at her family home some 90 minutes from here, which we are planning on doing this week end. Her family home is apparently in a small village with lots of history and appeal.

Fortunately for Yvette and me, Natasha and Lawrence seem to love cooking. They have meals planned for both tonight and tomorrow night's World Cup soccer matches. Tonight it is Holland vs. Uruguay; tomorrow night, Germany and Spain. It's both fun and exciting to see all the cafes on the rues and boulevards with their TVs tuned into World Cup soccer when the games are on. These games bear all kinds of meaning to the participating nations and to the various allegiances of sports fans around the world.

The summer heat is definitely with us here in Aix at this point. We hear that a heat wave has fallen upon the east coast as well over the July 4th weekend. Of course, in Miami, heat is our way of life.

If you haven't already, check out Yvette's blog today for her reflections on a most interesting outing she had with her painting class (her teacher, Monique, is apparently a one-of-a-kind sort of personality, in addition to being a skillful instructor). The class had a picnic/ painting outing more than an hour from Aix ... and all I know is that Niko and I were waiting for Yvette when she arrived home around 12:30 a.m. Apparently a great time was had by all.

As the world turns in Aix-en-Provence. We feel so fortunate to be able to spend this special time with Natasha and her budding-young family from England. Lots to be thankful for and lots to look forward to as well.

A bientot for now ...