It’s Sunday evening – one week after Mothers’ Day and one week before Mothers’ Day (French). I guess it’s kind of like crossing the International Date Line.
Spring in Provence seems to be a nice time of the year. It’s pre-tourists and the weather is very nice. Most days now are between 70 and 80 degrees and about 90% of the days are very sunny.
Today was one of those sunny, low 70s days and we had nothing to do. That also covers about 90% of the days.
I had in mind going out for Marlene’s coffee, taking a run and then spending time at the pool. Marlene said she’d like to go to a winery and walk around. So, I hit the Google button and came up with much information on wineries near Aix-en Provence. I was really thinking close, as it was already noon. I came upon Chateau La Coste near the town of Le Puy-Ste-Reparade. You can look it up, as I had to do. It turns out to be less than 30 minutes from our home and we had been on all sides of the town without having any awareness. We realized on our way there that we often had passed signs for Le Puy-Ste-Reparade on the highways, but simply had not paid attention. It turned out to be much larger than we expected (that means the main street was about 6-8 blocks long by American measurement) and a town that has had a history of enjoying some affluence. It had a brand new school, nicer than any we’ve seen in Europe, and, lots of single family homes (if that can be a measure of affluence and I believe it is). Oh, along the way we stopped in Venelles for Marlene’s coffee, where we had been once before. A nice town and probably ten minutes from Aix-en Provence.
Let’s go to the photos. You’ll see Marlene on a raft in a pool. That wasn’t at the winery, nor was it after too much wine at the winery. But, it was yesterday and it shows we have a pool, the weather was nice, and Marlene does have some spare time now and then. Adjacent to the building in which you sample and purchase wine at La Coste was a nice garden eating area. It didn’t take us long to sit down there. They had a fountain in the center, which as you can see in the photo, served as a wine chiller. By the way, we had typical French food, sharing a plate of sliced tomatoes in a balsamic dressing and a plate of cheese (four kinds) with a thimble full of raspberry jam. The winery shares wine and food with art. A few years ago they added a building with an art center, a peeble-filled reflecting pool and a parking garage under the art center/water feature. You see one photo with the pool and a piece of art and another photo with a piece of art (a spider) and obviously an American male sitting there (you are easily able to determine the male is an American by his waist size). The spider, by the way, is referred to as the Crouching Spider and is one of the last works of Louise Bourgeois, described as “one of the most important artists in modern and contemporary art”. Don’t say we don’t give you a chance to learn here. This is more than just useless photos and unimportant chatter
. There is a walking art tour through the vineyards, of which we took a portion. Marlene was nice enough to pose in front of the Drop by Tom Shannon (not the famed Buffalo and Detroit DJ, but rather the American artist and inventor who attended the University of Wisconsin and works out of NYC). Marlene also pulled the cord at the Meditation Ball by Paul Matisse. You’ll have to do the looking up. I can tell you that it starts with a strong sound and for many minutes continues to produce a low, humming sound, enough by which to meditate, fall asleep or just decide to move on. The cup, which is made of some sort of metal-like composition, is the work of Guggi, who is Irish and is a good frient of U2’s Bono. Hey, you usually have to work harder for this kind of information! And, we added a photo of one of the vineyards and the countryside in the distance. Nice place and a very nice afternoon!
Well, we’ll be back in Portland in just less than ten weeks. And, we’ve added one last trip. It’s kind of like a concert tour, where the artist adds a few extra dates at the end. We did decide to go to the Berlin area to experience small town German life. We’re taking the train (TGV) to Paris and then transferring stations to catch the German overnight train to Berlin. We’ll check out Berlin, but we’re staying in an apartment in a town well outside of Berlin, hoping to go where the tourists are not and see German life. Berlin is very close to Poland, so we’ll at least drive into Poland, just to say we’ve been there. It’s a short trip, June 24 – July 1, so you won’t have too many photos. I’m excited about the overnight train trip (a first) and seeing what I can of what remains from the communist days of East Germany. I guess that means talking with older people, so let’s hope a few people speak English, as my German is limited to hello, thank you and Merry Christmas (in German).
The Wilsons
