Follow Me to France!

This is France. I will be spending the winter in the red piece of the puzzle. While I'm in France, Musings from Red Bell Farm will be on holiday as well. Follow me to France at Melanged Magic!

Fall

Usually fall signals a new beginning for me. I always loved the start of the new school year with its clean, blank notebooks, freshly sharpened pencils, new textbooks and of course, the obligatory pleated plaid skirt with matching sweater! This year, though, fall signals an ending here at Red Bell Farm. I'm closing things up and putting the finishing touches on winterizing as I move towards departure on September 22nd. I feel as if a chapter in my life is ending. While I'll return to Red Bell Farm next spring, I don't expect that my life will ever be quite the same. I anticipate being changed forever by my experience of living in France for the winter. Musings From Red Bell Farm will shortly go on hiatus; Melanged Magic has already started taking its place. I've begun mentally detaching from television, tortillas, diet Pepsi, and the luxury of jumping in  my car and going wherever, whenever I want. There are still things to cross of my 'to do' list, but I'm steadily making progress toward leaving the known behind and embracing the unknown ahead. Life is just one big adventure!

My Side of the Story

I gotta tell you guys...all this practice stuff is really getting on my nerves! First, she has me practice walking on a leash. A leash! Doesn't she know I'm a country dog? I don't do 'leash!' I have a very keen nose, and I have to roam around so I can sniff every blade of grass, every bush, and every post I see. It's my job! Okay...then she puts me in that crate to practice. She mumbles something I can't quite understand about an airplane, a trip, being a French doggie. What the heck is an airplane? If it's anything like that crate, I already don't like it. Oh sure...I'm a good girl. She keeps telling me that. Who's she trying to convince anyway? I already know I'm a good girl. I take great pride in that.  Anyway, into the crate I go...sigh! Doesn't she know if I'm in there I can't jump with joy and twirl in circles when I see her like I usually do? And tell me this...just how am I supposed to roll over and show people my cute belly to entice them to scratch it? People can't even see my adorable little self in that thing! Today was the worst. We actually went into town so she could 'practice' with the crate and all her other junk. Can you say 'mortified?' That's how I felt when people drove by. I know they were laughing at us. This being a little French doggie is going to be harder than I thought!

Practicing

Lucie and I made a trip to town today to practice for our trip. I wanted to make sure I could secure her travel crate on my suitcase, pull on the backpack and still keep Lucie under control on her leash. It was harder than I thought it would be. There weren't any really good places to hook the bungie cords for starters. Lucie kept wanting to go sniff the grass. Once I got her crate attached, its weight kept pulling the suitcase over. I think that happened mostly because the suitcase was empty and there wasn't any weight to counter-balance the crate. Lucie did okay walking while I pulled the 'circus wagon' behind us. We were by the Imes covered bridge and its little park which gave us a variety of terrain to practice on...cement sidewalk, boards on the bridge, gravel and grass. We made turns, stops and starts; not once did she tangle up between my legs. I'm not holding my breath that won't happen in the airport, tho, as we dodge other travelers. I even practiced putting her in the crate and carrying her...just in case I have to do that. It's do-able, but it's a workout! I can only imagine what the people driving by thought of our spectacle!

Getting From Here to There

Getting from Iowa to Cadrieu is a journey of three distinct parts. The first part takes me from Red Bell Farm to Chicago by rental car. The second piece is the flight itself from O'Hare to Charles de Gaulle. The third part is the piece that worries me the most....Charles de Gaulle to Cadrieu. I arrive at 8am after a long day of driving and a long night of flying. I'll be tired and jet-lagged. I'll have to figure out how to find Lucie, get her out of her crate and haul her, her crate and my suitcase to the rental car place (which I have absolutely no idea how to find!) Then I have to drive a strange car from the northeast outskirts of Paris to the southwest suburbs to connect to the A20 autoroute that will take me to points south. Throw in confusing French signage, a foreign language, and who knows what else and you have all the ingredients for disaster. Laury to the rescue! She's making plans right now to take the midnight train to Paris, connect with the RER to the airport and meet me on arrival! She'll be my navigator, read the maps, read the roadsigns and generally point us in the right direction. Plus she'll be there to help lift, tote and reassure. Could I do this without her help? You bet! but having her there will make it SO much easier and SO much more fun!

Shifting Gears

Lots of things remain on my 'to do' list as I get ready to fly to France on Sept. 22nd. I'm already beginning to shift gears mentally, though, as I let go of my American lifestyle and get ready to embrace a totally French one. I'd invite you to jump over to Melanged Magic to read about some of these shifts. While there is a supermarket in Cajarc, I will also be able to buy groceries in the weekly outdoor market. Almost every village of any size has a weekly market; this one is in Limogne. The one in Cajarc is on Saturday afternoon. The only limitation is how much you can put in a backpack and carry while you walk or bicycle home. Too heavy? you can always wait for the bus! Some things I won't be buying....tortillas! I don't remember ever seeing them anywhere. I also don't drink pop in France. Too pricey, especially when wine is SO cheap! Here's something else I'll give up...TV. Even if Laury had one (which she doesn't), everything is in French. I've already checked, though. I can watch whole episodes of "Project Runway" on my computer. Yes, I'll admit it...I'm addicted. "Project Runway" has it all...action, creativity, drama, and divas. Can you say Casanova?!? Everything else on TV including the news, I'm happy to do without. What do I gain in return for my American 'sacrifices?' Only the best cheese, best bread, best wine in the world! Only a lifestyle geared around great food and good company around the table! Only an opportunity to live steeped in history, art, and architecture! A good trade-off in my book.

Money, Money, Money!

I made a trip to Des Moines today to do the money thing. I gulped a bit as I transferred money out of my IRA into my savings account. It's a little scary to dip into those funds! I had to keep reminding myself that it's retirement money and THIS IS RETIREMENT! At least for now anyway. I put some money into another account, so I can buy some Euros to take with me and then shopped a little...there are a few things I need for the trip like new luggage tags and a new jump drive to load photos onto. I chuckled to myself as I picked out a backpack to buy. I've teased Laury so much about her bottomless purple backpack that she takes everywhere, but truly, she's got it right. A backpack is perfect for shopping when your transportation is your feet, a bike, or the bus. You'd be shocked at how much stuff you can stuff into a backpack!

Money and backpack....check!

Details, Details

As you can well imagine, closing up a house and organizing your life for 6 months in another country involves lots and lots of details. A mountain of details, acutally. I've been thinking about this all summer, so I had some things already in mind. This weekend I put together my master "to do" list and started a time line for completion working backwards from lift off for France.  I'm a woman on a mission! One of the first details on the list was: what to do with my houseplants? No problem finding lots of potential adoptive parents. My friend, Lacey was the first to offer, so she wins the prize. Here is the first batch stuffed into Miz Red Belle. They were delivered yesterday. Luckily the biggest plant that reaches almost to the ceiling is very flexible. I just bent over his top and closed the door. Lacey will receive the remainder of the pots next Saturday.

Houseplants...check!

Safe and Sound

I mailed off my 'babies' for Laury's end-of-August vernissage last week. Today she sent me this photo...they arrived, safe and sound! No broken glass, no bent frames. It looks like Dean, the Postmaster, used lots of cool stamps to send my package winging its way to France. Wonder if he knew somehow that Laury is a big stamp fan? I'm relieved to know they made it. Now Laury gets the fun of figuring out just how to hang them in her cave. My guess is she'll send me a photo of their final destination if I can't get there to take one myself. I'm still hopeful...

Addendum: Laury wrote a blogpost about my photos. Check it out at Soar-Dream-France.

Toilets

Early during my first trip to France in 2005, my friend, Mickey, brought a very curious thing to my attention: French toilets. Not the toilets exactly...those are pretty much same the world over...but rather the flushing apparatus. As she said, 'You never see two that are exactly the same. Who knew there were so many versions of toilets?' Once she said it, I couldn't help but pay attention to every toilet I saw. She's right! Very rarely did I flush exactly the same way. During my month in the Lot last September, I decided it was time to record this phenomena digitally; I took photos in every bathroom I could. Yes, I know that's kind of weird. There were times it even felt weird to me, so I'd bypass an opportunity because it just felt awkward carrying my camera into the 'loo. The past two days I've shared a few of the ways the French flush their toilets. Here are a couple more images I captured during trips to the WC....

Bidets and things...

My least favorite toilet of all...the infamous Turkish toilet still found many places in France...I even used one in Paris!

And let me leave you with this last photo taken in Roussillon on that first trip to France. It's in honor of Mickey who set me on this journey of toilet discovery! You can see her leaving the Turkish toilet stall and walking past two urinals open to all the world. I was desperate for a bathroom, but hesitated when she found this one. "What if some guy is taking a leak when I come out?"  I gasped. "Just look the other way," was her wise reply!

A Few More Clues

More clues....guess again!

Guess!

Guess?

"All the Better to See You With"

Did you figure out the clue?

The  label on the mailing envelope reads "one pair of glasses and one glasses case." Postmarked Aix-en-Provence, my package is a gift from a fellow blogger, Corey, who posted about these nifty stylish reading glasses that are the brainchild of her friend, Phillipe. Corey sponsored a contest on her blog to give Phillipe the best ideas for advertising photos of his new glasses...using Corey's yummy FH (French Husband) as a model. The prize for the best ideas...these reading glasses! And I won! Okay...some other people did too, but I thought my idea to photograph FH on his sexy motorcycle was the best...it appeals to women who would love to be on the back seat clutching FH tightly around his waist and to guys who would love to be FH hitting the road on this sexy bike to adventures unknown. The glasses are very chic trifocals... the bottom part of the lens is perfect for reading, the middle part makes reading the computer screen a breeze, and the top lets you see a bit in the distance. They are perfect for me when I have my contacts in and have great distance vision, but up close...it's all a blur. No more with this snazzy little number! And I'm thinking the red will look 'hot' when my hair grows out and is silvery gray. It'll be my new old lady look!

The Choice is Made

A couple of weeks ago I blogged about the photos that I was looking at trying to decide which ones to send Laury for the August 28th vernissage at the Chatette. I emailed some of the choices and arrangements to Laury, and she called me later with her comments and suggestions. She thought framing the photos without mats would make them much more dramatic. As luck would have it, my photography store was able to make me some 8x8 inch prints that would fit nicely into the frames I had already purchased. This morning I slipped my study of peonies into the frames as Laury suggested and voila! Here is my submission to the vernissage. It's hard to get the same look as they will have in Laury's cave where they will be hung against a gorgeous stone wall and lit from above. I also haven't quite decided if this is the order they should be in; I think I'll let Laury and Patrick make the final decision on that when they hang them the evening of August 27th. With any luck I'll be there in person to voice my opinion!

Montsegur

Blogging about "Labyrinth" and the Crusade against the Cathars in southwest France has brought back memories of Montsegur. This monument honors the Cathar men, women and children who were burned here for refusing to renounce their faith. I blogged about it last September at Dona Nobis Pacem. Click here to read my thoughts on this sad moment in religious history.

City of "Labyrinth"

I recently finished a novel set in southwest France that was my kind of book.

"Labyrinth" by Kate Mosse is a 'timeslip' which the author explains is a story that slips between two different time periods. In this case, it moves between the 13th and 21st centuries. The modern part of the story begins at an archaeological dig deep in the Sabarthes Mountains just south of Montsegur; the medieval story takes place in this city, Carcassone. This photo shows the ancient walled city set high on a hill overlooking its modern off-spring below and to the left (not shown in this photo) I stopped along the Autoroute on my way 'home' from the Mediterranean shore last September when I caught a glimpse of this sight that looked to be straight out of a fairy tale. The informational plaque in the pullout told the story of Carcassone's siege during the Crusade against 'heretics' in the early 1200's. I debated....should I alter my plans and drive into Carcassone for a close-up look at this magnificent walled city or should I continue on to Cadrieu? Cadrieu won out as I had promised Laury I'd be back in time to help her set up for the vernissage. So I tucked Carcassone away for a 'next time' visit. After reading 'Labyrinth' next time can't come soon enough!

I've reviewed 'Labyrinth' over at Red Bell Reads...check it out!

Seeing Ghosts

I'm hooked! Yes, Ancestory.com finally got me. That and Lisa Kudrow's new series, "Who Do You Think You Are?" I've sleuthed around on Ancestory's website and found a few things. I've blogged about a distant cousin who sent me information about my mom's family, but not until yesterday have I really gotten into looking into the past. Using the little information I have about my great-grandmother, Jennie, and the connection to her great-grandfather who was killed in the Civil War, I was able to hook into family trees on Ancestory.com that led me back from those folks. Several of the threads stopped the generation before people immigrated to the US, leaving me 'stranded' in Ireland, Holland, and France. But a couple of threads back into England and Scotland continued. The English kept great records. Occasionally I'd see an ancestor "Sir So & So" or someone who was born in "Castle Whatever." Then I found the Plantagenet name...interesting. From there the branches exploded into lines from Henry II of England, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Louis VII of France and the 4 daughers of Raimond Berenger of Provence who at one time were all queens in Europe. Could I be distantly related to royalty? Was one of my favorite women in history, Eleanor of Aquitaine, a family ancestor? More sleuthing to come, I think. In the meantime, I'm seeing ghosts!

Searching for the Sun

I always check Jilly Bennett's blogs first thing in the morning. She blogs about Menton and Monte Carlo, both located on the sunny Mediterranean coast better known as the Cote d'Azur. I do this because I need a daily shot of sunshine; I'm a California-born girl, after all. I was raised on sunshine and outdoor living. It's difficult to find both during an Iowa winter. This morning, tho, I was disappointed. Once again France is suffering with unusual cold, snowy weather. Snow on the Mediterranean? Not very often, but there's snow there today. So, I had to take matters into my own hands and search my photo archives for a bit of summery color and warmth. Makes me feel better just to look at these beautiful flowers! How about you?

I took all these flower photos last June in the Betty Ford Gardens at Vail, Colorado.

How Did They Do That?

I have several blogs saved in 'My Favorites,' and it probably won't surprise you that many of those are about France. There are a couple that I read daily; others I check on once a week or so. Every one of them written by a person living in France at some time in their blog history relates the story of how they got to France and why they stayed. As I sit here in a state of possibility, their stories intrigue me. Would it be possible for me to live in France, full or part time? A handful of those bloggers married Frenchmen; that is probably NOT going to happen for me! Others moved businesses to France; some came for school and stayed. They all share a love for all things French, but I think it takes more than that to have a French life. I've read the information about visas and Carte de Sejour's; I know how difficult it is to move to France. Whether it's Paris or Provence or the Lot, it takes a lot of determination and a fair amount of financial resources to make life in France a reality. I'm totally open to ideas, though. Let me know what you think...how do you think I could make this possibility into a reality? If you live in France, I'm open to any insider tips you might have as well!

Roussillon in the Luberon, Provence

Along the Lot River from the Belgian Cross upstream from Cajarc.

Greetings from Cadrieu!

I was very pleasantly surprised to find this letter in my mailbox one day last week. First, because it's a treat to find something besides bills and offers to fit me for cheap hearing aids  in there. But most importantly because this was a note from a newly-made friend in Cadrieu! If you've read this blog regularly, you've already seen two pictures of the note's author, Christiane. She and her husband, Jean-Paul, live up the hill from Laury, and they are all very good friends. Christiane's note was newsy and fun...how they spent Christmas (yes, Pere Noel came and the grandchildren were captivated, at least until they opened their gifts. Then they ignored him!) and a description of New Year's Eve...'we laughed a lot and ate a lot.' It closed with news that they are going to the Pyrenees the end of Jan. and need to start getting in shape for that! A real letter, a beautiful stamp, a new friend...life is good!