I'm sitting in the living room of our beautiful farmhouse "gite," a rental in Périgord, south-central France. It's raining or I'd be outside because it's lovely here, with fields of wildflowers and two friendly donkeys who enjoy being petted and brushed.
My daughter and granddaughter have gone off with friends to see a cave full of stalactites. I've seen lots of stalactites so I opted to stay home and enjoy the quiet, though I will join them later on a visit to a cave with prehistoric paintings, which is the primary reason we are here (there are 48 caves in this valley, most with art or other signs of habitation).
We spent nine days in Paris enjoying all the city has to offer, including an amazing piano concert in an old church and a 4D movie in a modern theater. 4D means your seat tosses you around, wind blows, insects flitter around your feet, smoke billows from the screen, etc. It was the latest Jurassic World movie and without giving anything away I can say that the finale included fighting dinosaurs which almost threw me out of my seat. It was fun, and it got us out of the Paris heat (100º F) for a few hours. Then we went to Versailles and wandered the gardens and watched a fireworks display. From the ridiculous to the sublime I suppose.
This is my granddaughter's first visit to France so we were determined to show her as much of Paris as we could, which meant the top of the Eiffel Tower, a boat ride on the Seine, a visit to the catacombs (I went to the d'Orsay instead), a fashion show at Gallerie Lafayette, a stroll through Pere Lachaise cemetery, and on and on. We were surprised by the number of cyclists, scooters, etc. on the streets until we remember that gas is about $8+ a gallon here. We spent a lot of time on the metro and searching for bubble tea to keep the teenager happy. Fortunately bubble tea is available in nearly every arrondissement.
So now we're here in central France, decompressing from the bustle of the city. I broke my rule about reading news and indulged in the madness of the court's recent terrible decisions. We are all happy to be away from the anger that is surely erupting across the U.S., but absence doesn't lessen the shock, despite the expected Roe decision.
I've always loved France for its long and varied history, including its prehistory, and I'm finding solace surrounded by 40,000+ years of human habitation knowing that—despite current events—all things pass, life continues, and nature abides.
Wishing you peace.
1 comment:
♥️
Post a Comment