Who doesn't love a painter who splashes such vivid color on the canvas? Although Matisse spent several summers in Collioure, the summer of 1905 was his most productive. That summer he invited his friend, Andre Derain, to join him. Both artists were inspired by Collioure's beauty. Both artists were part of a group of loosely-organized painters known as the "Fauves" or wild beasts. This school of art was short-lived existing between 1904-1907 giving way to the Cubists who followed them. The Fauves used pure primary colors to convey their view of the world and were considered the first to paint "Modern" art.
Help me choose! As I look through lodging possibilities in Collioure, I've narrowed my choices down to two. The first is this lovely old 'hermitage' set in the hills above Collioure, Ermitage de Consolation. The dictionary defines an hermitage as an abbey or monastery. When I google this one, the only information I can find about its history is in French and since my French is so rudimentary, I can't comprehend what it says...darn! This was surely a religious retreat of some kind since it boasts a chapel and religious artifacts. Its setting looks very peaceful, doesn't it?
This is a photo of the other place I'm considering, Les Templiers. It's a hotel and restaurant located right in the village and close to the sea. The draw to stay here is the hotel's collection of art. Apparently in the early days, the proprietor accepted works of art from his patrons in payment for their bar bills. The hotel is hung with paintings and drawings by such famous artists as Dufy, Matisse and Picasso. I suppose I could stay at the more reasonably priced Ermitage and have dinner here at Les Templiers and enjoy the best of both worlds, eh?
Searching for information about the plague for my last blog entry reminded me of another epidemic that marched across Provence in 1832. This time the disease was cholera, a bacterial infection that still causes death in many parts of the world. Spread primarily by contaminated water, it can be prevented by simply boiling or chlorinating the water supply and practicing good hygiene. We know that now, but in 1832 the citizens of Provence had no idea how to stop its spread or treat those ill with it. My French friend, Isabelle, recommended this movie, "The Horseman on the Roof," some months ago. I bought the DVD. Set in Provence during this time of cholera, the lovely French marquise played by Juliette Binoche teams up with the handsome Italian huzzard. Together they flee from both the plague and those set on murdering the Italian freedom fighter. Isabelle was right...it's a good movie...full of romance, sword fights, wonderful riding, beautiful scenery, and gorgeous actors punctuated with scenes of horrible death and hysteria. Isabelle just commented on my blog entry about Cucuron that this movie was filmed in part there. If you love Provence, history and swashbuckling movies, please brave the French with subtitles in English and watch this movie. It's a peek into romance in 'another time of cholera.'
I continue to be haunted by Ste. Tulle's story. Maybe 'haunted' is a bit too strong a word, but she is a saint after all! Why can't I find any historical reference to her? Thank goodness for the internet...how did I ever satisfy my curiosity before its invention? Sleuthing with Google, I discovered that I had the wrong year for Ste. Tulle's plague. The year was actually 1720; it was truly the Plague, la Peste, that came ashore at Marseilles that year. There would be other epidemics, notably the cholera epidemic that swept through the area in 1832, but in 1720, la Peste struck fear into the hearts of villagers. So much fear that they built a wall to keep the plague from spreading north. I discovered a document in French that lists the mortality rates for Provence from the deadly epidemic. In Cucuron, the plague lasted from 1 October to 15 December 1720. The village population was 3,500 souls; of these 730 died from the plague. 20% of the village's inhabitants died; every household must have been touched. Kind of gives these empty old shoes I photographed sitting on a worn doorstep in Cucuron a poignancy that echoes across the centuries. My curiosity about the plague somewhat assuaged, I continued to search for references to Ste. Tulle. All I can find are variations on this: Ste. Tulle is the patron saint of Cucuron celebrated for protecting the village from the plague in 1720. Nothing about the woman, her Order if she was a nun, or how she supposedly did this protecting (not very well, I think, since over 700 people died inspite of her efforts!). I'll keep searching and get back to you.
This is Sainte Tulle, patron saint of the tiny Luberon village of Cucuron. I took this photo in April 2007 when I visited the village and its 14th century church, Eglise Notre-Dame-de-Beaulieu. When I returned home, I searched in vain on every Catholic saint website I could find, trying to learn more about Ste. Tulle. She simply doesn't exist--officially--anywhere. But to the villagers of Cucuron, she is their patron saint who saved their village from the plague that ravaged the Luberon in 1720. I remembered her this evening at church when Elizabeth spoke of forgotten saints in reference to Matthias, the man chosen as an apostle to replace Judas. In researching her once again on the Internet to write tonight's blog entry at Dona Nobis Pacem, I was startled to see that today, May 23rd, is the day of her festival in Cucuron. Ste. Tulle seems to be speaking to me across the centuries...what is the connection I'm supposed to make of this? It's a mystery...and a fun one!
"The Writer's Almanac" appears in my email inbox early every morning. I love to listen to Garrison Keillor recite poetry and read tidbits of literary, musical and cultural history every day. Today's edition contained this: "It's the birthday of composer Erik Satie...." I'm immediately transported back to March 2006. I'm enjoying the last full day of my solo trip to Paris. A light dusting of snow lingered in Montmarte, but the morning skies were brilliant blue as I wandered the streets beyond the Sacre Coeur. My destination was the Musee de Montmarte where I hoped to find more information about my favorite painter, Modigliani. That hope was not realised, but I did discover Erik Satie at the museum which at one time was his home. The portrait shown here was painted by Suzanne Valadon, his lover, and an artist in her own right. She was the mother of Maurice Urtillo; she and Satie were part of the cadre of bohemian artists that included Picasso, Andre Derain, Georges Braque, Renoir, Toulouse-Lautrec, and Edgar Degas. Satie considered himself a child who ..."came into the world very young in an age that was very old." His music was radically different from that of this 'old age.' As I wandered the museum, it played in the backgound, and I was haunted by its beauty. When I returned home, I bought a collection of 4 CD's to remind me of my serendipitous discovery of this complicated composer on that brisk and beautiful snow-dusted Paris morning. Let me share it with you...click here and enjoy.
As you already know, I've converted from a letter-writer to a blogger. I love both writing my blog and reading others' blogs. I'm surprised that I've been seduced by this technology since I'm really not much of a technology person. But seduced I am! Along with this new-found passion, however, comes questions. Anything new that impacts our culture is bound to change the rules, and I think blogging has done this. I read several blogs almost daily. A lot of them have some sort of connection with France; almost all are illustrated with a photo or two...or more! Here's question #1: is it polite to read someone's blog and NOT make a comment? I comment only occasionally if an entry really 'speaks' to me on some level. There are blogs that I read and enjoy every day where I've never left a comment. Is this rude? Question #2: Is it okay to use photos on my blog that I DIDN'T take myself? I try to credit Google when I swipe one from there, but when it's obvious that it's not my photo, i.e. I'm telling you about a place I'd like to visit someday, do I have to disclaim that the picture isn't mine? Just an fyi...most of the photos are mine. Question #3: Is it okay to read blogs at work? My hospital has blocked blogs so you can't get to any through their server. So I take my mini-laptop to work and log onto the wireless network if I want to check any. I feel a bit guilty; doesn't stop me from doing it, though! Question #4: If you 'meet' someone by trading remarks in the blog's comment section, are they an acquaintance? How about if you establish an email correspondence with the blog author...are they, then, a friend? I'm sure folks who have friends on Facebook or MySpace could answer this question, but it puzzles me a bit. I always feel like I have to explain how I can have a friend who lives in Belgium or France, or Norway. Question #5: And what if you want to actually meet one of these friends in person, have coffee, share a meal...is this just plain weird? Please let me know if you have answers to any of these questions...I'm trying desperately to get this new technology and its rules right!
I'm beginning to gather information about possible places to visit/things to do while I'm in France in September. My brother, Jim, gave me a really cool suggestion...a visit to Montsegur. Don't let the picture scare you. Montsegur is accessible via a footpath that rises to the top of the 3,000 ft pog, or peak. Montsegur was a Cathar stronghold that was held in siege by French troops in 1243-44. The Cathars were a religious sect held to be heretics by the Catholic French rulers. Their castle finally fell in March of 1244. 220 Cathars were burned at the stake when they refused to renounce their religious beliefs. Woven into this story are legends that the Cathars smuggled a valuable treasure through French lines during the siege. It's even been suggested that this treasure was the Holy Grail. The tiny village of Montsegur and its perched stronghold are not too far from the route I'd like to travel to visit the Mediterranean at Collioure. It may be worth the little detour to explore this fascinating place.
I have a dish on my desk that holds a collection of angel cards. Every morning I randomly draw one and let that thought guide my day. Certainly, I have my favorites...Joy, Play, Adventure. And I'm frequenty plagued by messages that aren't all that exciting....Synthesis, Brotherhood/Sisterhood, Communication. The past two days of my mini-break, the Abundance Angel has leapt to my fingers...actually this morning, she flipped out of the dish as I was mixing up the little cards. So, I've been thinking about what Abundance means in my life today. If a stranger visited my home, what kind of Abundance would she find? Books, books, everywhere books. I read fiction and non-fiction with equal enthusiasm. And if she looked closely at the titles, she would find many are about France, all things French...decorating, language, history, travel guides, novels, autobiographies. Guess you'd say I have an Abundance of passion on that subject! My visitor would also see an Abundance of nature surrounding my home. I live immersed in green, growing things. Iowa is lush this time of year and there are more shades of green than I have names for. The countryside is alive with nature. Lilacs bloom, dandelions freckle the lawn, colorful birds visit my feeders. This morning I watched a beautiful red cardinal share a dish of seed with a brilliant indigo bunting and a big, ole orange-headed woodpecker. In the distance I heard a wild turkey gobble while a pair of mourning doves called from the creek bottom. A visitor would hear this Abundance of birdsong harmonizing with an Abundance of music from my collection of CD's. Music of all genres...bluegrass, mountain music, jazz, the Rolling Stones, Beatles, and artists less well known like Vienna Teng, classical, ethnic, souvenir music from the musuems and churches of Paris. An Abundance of music to suit my changing mood. That's today's Abundance at Red Bell Farm. Tomorrow, who knows what kind of Abundance may appear?
I exchanged emails yesterday with a friend who shares some of my frustration with technology. We both feel that while technology can help make connections with people...think blogs, cellphones, skype, Facebook, Twitter....to truly have a connection and a relationship with someone, you have to interact in person. I know that I pick up a lot of information about people by their facial expressions and body language. For me, having a friend is much more than signing into the Facebook account or sending them a Tweet on Twitter every time I do something. Maybe I'm afraid my life is just too dull to be of interest to anyone moment-by-moment? I know this probably makes me an anachronism, a fossil, an old fuddy-duddy, but I can't help it! Yesterday on a conference call with other managers from my profession, someone suggested that we should use Facebook and Twitter to market our air medical programs. I had to mute the phone so I could scream! NO! that's just wrong!! We need to market interpersonal relationships, not fun facts on technology. Another acquaintance has explained it much better than I can and in a much funnier way. Click here to read what Rich Mayfield has to say about technology: The Practicing Progressive.
