A Window of Opportunity

 

Heading to France for several weeks.  Three weeks in Paris with two of my friends and then Mr. B will join me and we will take the TGV to Avignon where we will rent a car and travel through the South of France for several weeks before returning to Paris. 

Hope you will join me for the journey!

Orange You Glad You Asked

Song - Orange Blossom Special by Johnny Cash

Orange (and yellow) Ranunculus

in the flower market in Paris.....

.....The New Novel by Winslow Homer - 1877

in an orange dress.....

...an orange tabby kitty sleeping on an

ancient stone wall in Rocamadour, France....

...an orange car in Sonoma....

...and orange zest French toast that I made for Mr. B

several weeks ago - Yum!

Bet you weren't expecting that last one ;-)

It's Three a.m.

Song - Mr. Sandman by Richard Smith & Joscho Stephan

A full moon peeking out behind the clouds overlooking the rooftops in Paris at 3 am.


"Oh, London is a man's town, there is power in the air; 
 And Paris is a woman's town, with flowers in her hair;
And it's sweet to dream in Venice, and it's great to study Rome;
But when it comes to living, there is no place like home."

--Henry Van Dyke

It's Open

Song - Open the Door Richard by Louis Jordan

What looks like a woman's face and a serpent tail door knocker was found in Pisa, Italy

This little guy is holding a window shutter open in Honfleur, France

A door pull with wolves

found in Paris




"The front door continues to appeal to our sense of arrival. 
Call it the ceremony of coming home."

--Akiko Busch

Tanguy

Song -  Stary, Stary Night by Don McLean

Vincent Van Gogh painted three portraits of Père Tanguy a valued friend who ran a small paint shop in Paris. Tanguy would occasionally accept artwork for payment of art supplies. This one was painted in 1887 and is hanging at the Musee Rodin in Paris.

"Painting is a faith, 

and it imposes the duty to disregard public opinion."

--Vincent Van Gogh

Who's There?

Song - Step Inside This House by Lyle Lovett



 Still knocking......

This is a pair of beautiful gate grill ornaments from Paris, France

And a fire breathing door latch on Josephine Bakers home in the Dordogne.

 An elegant door knocker from Umbria, Italy on a beautiful wooden door.



"Personality can open doors,
 but only character can keep them open."

--Elmer G. Letterman

I Hear You Knocking

Song - Knock on Wood by Eddie Floyd

I'm still knocking.....knock, knock, knock......come in

A striking knocker from a door in Umbria, Italy

A worn bedroom window lock inside the Saint Paul Asylum

in Saint-Remy-de-Provence, France

where Vincent Van Gogh spent some time 1889-1890

And modern door pulls from Paris, France

Watch for a delightful surprise in tomorrow's post!

Sunday Flowers

Song - One Fine Day - The Chiffons

An abundant field of white daffodil's in dappled sunlight in the Jardin du Luxembourg in Paris.

Wishing you a calm and happy Sunday.

Knock Knock

Song - I Hear You Knockin' by Fats Domino

Come in.....

I have a love for windows and doors wondering what might be behind these portals.

And the hardware that goes with them is very interesting as well!

The hinge on the red door above is from the Cluny Museum in Paris and it looks like a dragon spewing out three fires....maybe.

And this pirate looking door knocker was found in Pisa, Italy.

I guess he got knocked one too many times and the owners nailed him shut!

 And the final knocker is a woman's hand on a dark green door in the 

Bouches-du-Rhône, Tarascon, France (home of the Tarasque monster)

Paris Painting Returns to Paris (Kind of)

Song - Little French Song by Carla Bruni

I had a happy surprise several months ago when a woman named Isabelle contacted me through my painting website.  She was wondering about purchasing a painting that I did a number of years ago.  Unfortunately that specific painting had sold several years ago so besides making sure she was legit and not some hacker, I did my research and put on my thinking cap.  Isabelle has a French language business in Paris and she is a tutor.  She wanted my painting for her website. 

Here was my solution.....anything sent to Paris would be incredibly expensive to send and since she only needed an image of this painting (which I still own the copyright on) I offered to send her a high resolution copy for a nominal fee while the money transaction would go through PayPal.  She was very happy with that idea and the most charming thing is that we still email each other every few weeks wondering how each of us is dealing in this time of craziness!

If you would like to take a French language class in Paris or on Skype her contact is here:

https://french-in-paris.com/

Boats in Paris

Song - I Love Paris by Cole Porter cover by Avalon Jazz Band

A beautiful little girl sailing her boat in the Luxembourg Gardens.

oh là là

Song - Brise napolitaine

Photo taken at Ladurée during one of our Paris trips.  Does anyone know the name of the pastry with the big lips?  Hope you are baking your hearts off at home if you are so inclined!

Notre Dame Cathedral

Song - Je T'aime by Lara Fabian

I have no words......

'Tis A Gift

Song - Take Me Home by Phil Collins

Happy to be at home and painting again!  Above is a painting that I started yesterday of a bouquet of peonies.  The photo reference was taken this spring in Paris. (see below)

Can you believe this beautiful and massive bouquet taken through a shop window?

"Just living is not enough....

one must have sunshine, freedom, 

and a little flower."

--Hans Christian Anderson

Au Revoir - Day 24 & 25

Song - Time to Say Goodbye by Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman

May 1, 2018

This post is taken from my French travel journal and my trip through Southern France in April 2018.  For some reason my iPad and Blog were not communicating at the time so I was unable to write any posts. At home I am able to blog "post" travel! Thanks for joining me on the journey!

 

Happy Labor Day - May Day

Le Fete de Muguet

The day to present a bouquet of Lily of the Valley to loved ones

Mr. B had never been to Parc de Bagatelle before so I thought today would be a good day to introduce them to each other!

 The peacocks were happy to greet us!

 But from 3 weeks ago when I last visited, a lot had changed.  The Yellow Lady Banks climber was in full bloom.

As were the white and lavender Wisteria!

Pink Peonies - hello darlin

 An arbor full of scented Clematis - breath deep

 We were still too early to see the rose garden in bloom but it was looking good.

 Fragrant Lilac's were everywhere....

 And upon returning to our hotel we were greeted with Muguets.......

After a quick rest we took a walk over to the Louvre and Tuileries. 

 Everyone was enjoying the rays of sun on this cloudy day.......

 The Roue de Paris is a giant Ferris Wheel at the Place de la Concorde.....

 Enjoying the gray sky and views from the Pont de la Concorde bridge over the Seine......

We didn't plan too well as it was a bank holiday and everywhere we wanted to dine on our last night was closed! Back to dinner at Cafe Louise as it was good and the waitress was so kind & fun. 




 May 2, 2018

Woke at 6 to finish packing, check out of the hotel and order an Uber to Charles de Gaulle Airport. We made it but without much time to spare as we forgot about the hour drive to the airport!  We were sitting near our gate at a small cafe when I spot two people we know from our home town. Our kids were on swim team together and it was so much fun getting caught up!
 

They were on our same Aer Lingus flight to Dublin then onto SFO.  We all just barely made the connecting flight!

Good to be home.  The garden is in full bloom and the roses are spectacular!

"One mustn't ask apple trees for oranges, 

France for sun, women for love, life for happiness." 

-- Gustave Flaubert