Au Revoir Grazac

It was an amazing year and I am so grateful to Fulbright for allowing me this tremendous opportunity to learn, to grow and to share.  As the months and years pass I may forget the details of the famous Auvergne Romanesque churches or the names of the numerous villages and towns I visited but I will always remember the wonderful people I met during my year in France.

Luncheon at Maître Kanter and School Reception

At a farewell lunch with Paola at Maître Kanter

Although I am a high school French teacher I was in the Auvergne to teach middle school
English.  After over twenty years of teaching I had a lot to learn about the French educational system including teaching techniques, evaluating students and classroom management.  Without a specific foreign language department at the school my two colleagues Nicole and Paola (both English teachers) and I worked very well together in discussing our classes, the texts and workbooks, exchanging ides and in the process becoming wonderful friends.  I will always be grateful to them for their warm graciousness and support.

Michèle and Nicloe

The school year finished with a reception for retiring teachers and those leaving for other teaching assignments.

Valérie and Joelle

Julien, Monsieur Arsac and Alain

Final Days in Grazac

I have now completed a year-long Fulbright Teacher Exchange.   With some initial concern for the remoteness of France's geographic center I knew from the first moment I arrived that I could be at home in the Massif Central with the dramatic, awe-inspiring views of extinct volcanoes, spectacular mountains, gorges, forests and wide open spaces. 
My little hamlet, Le Villard, composed of about seven stone houses, has been a wonderful place to live.  From the very first days my French neighbors were so warm, friendly, gracious and helpful.  I was invited, soon after my arrival, to a neighborhood "pique-nique" where I was introduced to many people from surrounding villages.  My neighbors, the Deyrail and Nuel families were so friendly and included me for dinner or an occasional "apéro".  Also, Monsieur and Madame Gilbert were always ready to care for the cat during week-end trips and their grandson Christophe was so helpful with tech/internet problems and appeared at the door with gifts of fresh caught trout.  And there was dear Jeannot who invited me and my visiting friends and family to his home on so many, many occasions.  He even included Roger on wild boar hunts and chanterelle mushroom gathering hikes along with continually stopping by with vegetables from his bounteous garden.

Roger and I hosted our last dinners and "apéros" for our French friends where we enjoyed talking about the year and saying our farewells.

Photos taken around Grazac during the year!

Included in this blog are some favorite photos taken around Grazac.  Our favorite Friday night restaurant, La Chapelette, was great for the Frog's Legs!   We also had a very nice dinner at the Creux des Pierres in front of a roaring fire one winter night. 

A few photos will convey the beauty of the region; volcanic, lush green mountains all around.  We were able to catch some stunning sunsets as we looked right out of the living room window.

One of my favorite stone houses in Grazac

 

Visit with Michel and Martine in Renaison!

Didi

Diane and Roger with Mimi

Martine and Michèl

              We had a delicious lunch in Renaison with Martine, Michèl,  Berengère and the children.  Afterwards we toured the nearby churches and villages.  It was a great day!

Bérengère, Mimi, Martine, Diane, Michèl

The Great Churches of the Auvergne!

Eglise St-Nectaire, constructed in 1160

The Auvergne Romanesque School of Architecture is considered one of the most unusual in the Western world with an apparent similarity and simplicity seen in every church.  The churches in Clermont-Ferrand (Notre-Dame-du-Port), Issoire, Orcival, St-Nectaire and St-Saturnin are some of the finest examples of the Romanesque style in which the beauty is both austere and logical.  The churches were built with an economic use of resources (volcanic lava stone) and give an impression of strength and unity in the design.  The layout of the churches slowly changed to meet the needs of the pilgrimages.  The first church to have an ambulatory and radiating chapels typical of the Auvergne School of Architecture was the one in Clermont-Ferrand, which was consecrated in AD 946.  Only the crypt remains today but the style continued to develop until it finally achieved perfection in the 12th century.

Abbatiale Saint-Autremoine,  12th Century

The exterior of the west front of the churches is remarkable for its bold flat facade and is topped with a central bell tower and two side towers.   This contrasts sharply with the east end which presents a magnificent view of radiating chapels of various levels.  The interior is stark with decorative features on the capitals and small windows built inside enormous load-bearing arches. The chancel inside the church, where the priest celebrates Mass, faces east towards Jerusalem in most of the churches. 

Mushrooms Picking in the Auvergne!

Gyromitres drying

My neighbor Jeannot knows all the secret spots to find mushrooms.  He brought me a big box of girolles, or sometimes called chanterelles, that he picked.  He taught me how to cook them in butter, garlic, parsley and cream.  They accompanied very well the veal chops I cooked to go with them.

Pictured here with Jeannot are two pans of  mushrooms called gyromitres.  They are poisonous until dried properly and then cooked.  They loose their toxicity when processed in this manner.  I hear they are delicious but I have to admit I did not try them!

Chanterelle mushrooms from the woods

Lyon-An important city for 2,000 years!

Lyon is France's most historic and culturally important city after Paris and has been our city of choice for the year as it is only 75 minutes from Grazac.  The Romans made Lyon the capital of Gaul in 43 BC.  The name Lyon derives from Roman Lugdunum, or "Hill of the Crow".  There are two ruined Roman Theaters (one being the oldest Roman theater in France built in 15 BC) and a Musée de la Civilization Gallo-Romaine.  Lyon grew rich from its trade fairs and banking during the during the Renaissance and was the Europe's most important silk manufacturing center from the 16th to the 19th centuries.  The old center displays many beautiful Renaissance mansions and covered passageways called traboules.  The secret pathways provided shelter when the silk was being moved from one place to the next and now reveal beautiful courtyards, loggias, and spiral staircases as one proceeds through the tunnels.

Lyon is known for its "cuisine scene"!   Paul Bocuse is a famous chef who has four brasseries in Lyon featuring an international cuisine from four corners of the world.  Roger and I enjoyed lunch at the Mediterranean restaurant Brasserie Le  Sud.

Traboule in Vieux Lyon

A Fulfilled Promise to Return to Provence to See the Lavender!

Abbey Notre- Dame de Sénanque

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

St. Simiane la Rotonde

My French friend and colleague, Nicole, and I went to Provence for the week-end specifically to see the lavender!  What a fantastic time we had!  It is impossible to express in writing the heavenly fragrance and  beauty of the lavender fields in the Luberon Valley.  We first visited the Musée de la Lavande where we learned about the process of lavender production including wonderful exhibits of the history of the distillation process.  We followed that with a trip to the Abbey Notre Dame de Sénanque for incredible views of lavender.  We decided that we needed to see more and learned at the museum that the fields are found above 800 meters in elevation.  Off we went in search of lavender.  We drove up to a hillside village called St. Simiane la Rotonde to see the large magnificent fields all around!

We stayed at a fabulous chambre d'hôte (French B&B) located just outside of Gordes called La Bastide des Gros.  What a beautiful and tranquil setting!  On Sunday morning we had our breakfast on the terrace with a striking view of Le Petit Luberon.

La Bastide des Gros

 

 

 

 

Breakfast on the terrace

 

 

 

 

Nicole in front of the entry of La Bastide des Gros

On Sunday afternoon we had a great picnic near Roussillon and included some delicious regional products such  as a goat cheese wrapped in chestnut leaves called le Banon and, of course, lavender honey for our bread.  We rounded out our lunch with some fruit, saussison, and a wonderful southern Côte du Rhône.  Great week-end!

Week-end visit to the Dordogne River Valley!

When planning this trip we decided not to take the auto-route but instead drive straight west on small country roads over the Monts du Cantal.  The largest of the extinct volcanos are found in this area and are the most magnificent in the Auvergne.  We came upon a charming town called Vic-sur-Cère; a former spa town with picturesque houses organized around the Eglise St.Pierre.  We stopped to buy some famous Cantal cheese and noticed a week-end gathering of participants from various communities celebrating local traditions.  We continued on to the Dordogne and Périgord; a region of small medieval villages, rolling hills and prehistoric sites.  This is a gourmet's paradise...famous products include goose and duck liver paté (fois gras), confit de canard, Cabécou goat cheese, truffles, walnuts, dried sausage, and a sweet liquor called Bergerac.  Sarlat, our home base for the week-end, is a beautiful medieval town renowned for its golden-stone buildings. All around the area are caves and caverns and, above all, pre-historic art from 17,000 years ago.    Our first and most important stop was to see Lascaux II.  The caves (Lascaux) were discovered in 1940 when a boy's dog fell down a hole.  When the children entered to get the dog out they discovered cave engravings and paintings.  After the caves were opened to the public it took only 15 years for the paintings to become damaged by white and green mold.  The caves were closed to the public and a facsilimi was built 300 yards away using techniques that were used 17,000 years ago.  It was fantastic to see Lascaux II and to imagine real art produced when mammoths and saber-toothed cats still roamed the earth. 

Lascaux II  (poster)

Roger and I were interested in finding a goose/duck farm to watch what is called "la gavage". This is the force feeding of ducks and geese resulting in quickly fattening their livers in order to make the regional specialty, fois gras.  It was very interesting to visit Elevage du Bouyssou, a short drive from Sarlat, where we had a tour of the farm and watched the "gavage".  We learned that every part of the duck is used (except heads and feet) and even the feathers are sold for pillows.  Also, the animals are in no pain as they are able to take in large amounts of food and have no gag reflex.  They have massive gullets and expandable livers used to store fat for long migrations.   The birds live in a  free-range environment until the last 3-4 weeks of their lives.

Elevage du Bouyssou

Tour with Natalie at her farm

Natalie's husband, Denis..."la gavage"

Tasting afterwards of Fois Gras and Bergerac

Martine and Michèl come to visit Grazac!

We had a nice visit from our French family friends Martine and Michèl.  As they only live 1 1/2 hours from Grazac they came on Wednesday to join us for lunch and an excursion to Le Puy-en-Velay.  We visited the old city center and the Cathédrale Notre Dame.  The rock behind the church is surmounted by a statue of Notre-Dame-de-France erected in 1860.  213 canons, among the trophies from the capture of Sebastopol, were given to contractors by Napoleon III and were melted down to cast the  base and figure of the Virgin.

La Côte d'Azur: Antibes, Villefranche-sur-Mer and Cap Ferrat!

La Côte d'Azur

Port d'Antibes

Café in Antibes

The 4 day "Ascension" school holiday was spent on the French Rivera with the town of Antibes being our headquarters for the duration.  Founded as a Greek trading port in the 4th century BC,  Antibes is now a resort town and fishing port.  There is a colorful market most mornings on the Avenue de l'Admiral-Grasse whick runs along the seafront.  The nearby Château Grimaldi was built in the 12th century by the ruling family of Monaco and extensively rebuilt in the 16th century. We visited the Picasso Museum located in the chateau: a collection of Picasso's work representative of the short period of time spent in Antibes during his long painting career.

Cap d'Antibes

Château Grimaldi et Musée Picasso

 The second day we drove to the perfectly preserved medieval hilltown of Saint-Paul-de-Vence.  After walking the cobbled, winding streets we found a great place for lunch with a view over the countryside.

Restaurant in St. Paul-de-Vence

                                                                      

View of countryside from St. Paul-de-Vence

Boule court in St. Paul-de-Vence

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild

The third day we drove from Antibes along the Mediterrranean to the towns of Villefranche-sur-Mer and Cap Ferrat.  I was so happy to visit the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild.   It is a magnificent site that I have wanted to see for many years.  Baroness Béatrice Ephrussi inherited a fabulous fortune from her father, Alphonse de Rothschild.  In 1912 her beautiful villa was completed where she assembled a huge collection of furniture, paintings and porcelain from 18th century France, her passion.  The 9 thematic gardens are also particularly beautiful and overlook the sea.

View from the Jardin Ephrussi

   

Porcelain Collection