Provencal Writers....Them and Me.

Don't these ancient stones and narrow passageways just cry out "write my story?" Can you feel the ghosts and spirits of times past lurking in the shadows, whispering their secrets in your ear? Another of my favorite things about Provence is the writings of those people who have heard 'the stories,' and put them into poetry and prose. Paris and its sidewalk cafes are usually the places that are said to inspire great literary and philosophical thought. Think Hemingway, Jean-Paul Sartre, F. Scott Fitzgerald. I found Paris too distracting, however, to be conducive to writing. Provence, on the other hand, inspired me...and many others. Obviously, anyone interested in Provence needs to read Peter Mayle, but there are others that I've found fascinating as well. Try "Provencal Cooking" by Mary Ann Caws or "Strangers in Paradise" by Paul Christensen for a very literary look at Provence. I've become intrigued with Provencal writers as well. Marcel Pagnol is on my 'to read' list after seeing the films based on his novels. And I'm currently reading the poet, Rene Char. Don't ask me to explain his poems; I'm still working hard at understanding them myself! But they evoke Provence in every line.

For me, sitting outside at Cafe de la Poste became an inspiration. My travel journal is filled with snippets of character sketches based on the villagers I watched go about their daily lives in Goult. I watch the village wake up while I sip my cafe creme. Madame X was just in. She's 'of a certain age' dressed in a chic cream sweater and long black skirt that sways as she walks with her cane. Mostly for looks? she seems to walk just fine. A quick petit cafe, some conversation with the locals at the bar and off she goes speaking softly to her little fluffy white dog, I'll call her "Lulu," and a bigger black mongrel, "Pierre." Across the square, disappearing down the tiny street into a 3-story stone house with soft blue shutters drawn on the east against the bright Provencal sun. Madame may be back this evening--a pastis, perhaps? or a petit balloon of rouge?

Writing about Provence...#21 on my list of favorite things.