Oh the places we went!

For the past couple of months we have been scampering around visiting places on our must-see list because a deadline looms: our Paris adventure is coming to an end! Very soon we will be on our way down-under, homeward bound. There are so many experiences to remember and stories to tell about living in Paris for the last four years, but for now let me show you the highlights of our last minute visits…..

As soon as the first hint of spring could be felt we got started on our list with a day trip out to Chateau Chantilly.

I was especially keen to see the room famous for its monkey drawings. These are the drawings that inspired Annie Bouquet (the tapestry artist I met when I was working on the Stitching up Paris book) to create her special collection of monkey tapestries. The artist Christophe Huet did the paintings in the mid 1730s for the Duc de Bourbon in the spirit of poking fun at the duc and his pastimes. The walls are completely covered with enchanting images of monkeys dressed like humans and engaged in human activities.

The chateau has a very interesting art collection – well worth the visit. This is the staircase in the Hall of Honour, apparently used as the filming location in a James Bond movie, I snapped the pic because of the fabulous ram’s head….association with sheep…knitting…you get the picture.

Cool but definitely spring-like for the weekend in Nancy (and Metz) to see the art nouveau glass collections at the Musée des Beaux Arts de Nancy and the Musée de l’Ecole de Nancy. Fancy in Nancy sums it up: exquisitely beautiful colour and form,  these exhibits wowed me. (I felt a connection with knitting yarn colours, especially the fashion for multi-coloured speckled effects and varigations – a really inspiring visit to Nancy.)

Next up a bit further afield – a long weekend in Stockholm staying on board the Malardrottningen Hotel, once a luxury yacht and now permanently moored in the Gamla-Stan district, the old town  of central Stockholm.

With fabulously warm sunny weather (after a less than warm spring in Paris), we were out and about exploring all over the city and long into the evening. We loved every minute.

Top marks for presentation to the Vasa Museum

Back to France and away to the countryside for the day – Burgundy vines near Beaune in the heart of the wine region were greening up. A Wisteria draped nonchalantly over an ordinary stone wall pretties up the picture no end.

The Hótel-Dieu hospice de Beaune

The day we were in Beaune just happened by chance to coincide with a rally of vintage Citroen cars. Very interesting.

Of course spring means flowers and for us this year that meant the famous Chelsea flower show in London. We had wanted to do this visit for a long time and we made it – in great weather and with loads of other people.

Plenty of pretty pinks and purples but interesting to note that beige, brown and peachy coloured flowers seemed to be in fashion – fine by me!

The garden art was fantastic – hares seemed to be popular – some made of wire, others of bronze and fabulous sculptures made of driftwood.

Probably just as well they were too big for a suitcase…..

Back home and the spring showers that Paris is famous for were a bit too much

The boarding platform for the Batobus is somewhere down there!

Along with the pleasure of making friends comes the wrench of saying goodbye. We’ve had weekend excursions and picnics and lunch dates in the most wonderful locations to say goodbye to our dear friends. The rain and mizzle kept us company most of the time!

Courcelles village, Burgundy

Wild orchids

 

L’Abbaye Royaumont, Asnieres sur Oise

Now it’s time to finish the packing.

 

An Irish connection

My beloved is one among an estimated 80 million people worldwide who have Irish ancestry. Such huge numbers result from the mass exodus of Irish folk in the mid 19^th century. They left behind a country wracked with famine, starvation, poverty and distress and set out for places near and far, as far away as New Zealand even, to try and make new lives.

My DB hasn’t been immersed in tracking the Belton family geneology, but the urge to see the place from where his great-grandfather set sail for NZ in about 1865 was our reason for heading to the town of Wicklow in County Wicklow, on the east coast of Ireland as our first priority. The day of our visit the sea was as blue as the sky, swells burst into pristine white foam onto the rocks below the stone ruins of an ancient castle near the mouth of the harbour and the hills behind are as emerald as legends tell. It’s a beautiful place and must have tugged at the heart strings of every Irishman and woman who left.

Like working our way through a song sheet of Irish ballads we visited Kilkenny, Killarney (it wasn’t Christmas), Bantry Bay, Galway and Dublin of course, stopping off along the way to see special sights recommended to us by locals. At Glendalough in County Wicklow we found the Belton name on a tombstone, possibly no relation, but proof that the name existed in those parts.

Everywhere we went the beauty of the landscape made an impression; from ancient ruins and tombstones decorated with celtic motifs now encrusted with lichen, to vast green slopes that fall steeply down to the sea. Some aspects of the natural landscape are strikingly similar to NZ’s and made me feel right at home. As we tootled through the countryside I saw so much in the colours and patterns that will inspire my knitting and remind me of this trip.

County Kerry’s Dingle peninsula could not have been more beautiful, we stopped and looked and took photos again and again until we reached the car ferry at Tarbert to hop over to County Clare (Darling Girl) and head for the mighty Cliffs of Moher. Gazing out on a perfect afternoon the Aran Islands were easily visible in the distance. And yes these islands give their name to Aran knitting motifs but the story that there are family patterns by which fishermen drowned at sea could be recognised is plain fiction! Aran sweaters, socks, hats, mittens, ponchos and throws fill the tourist shops, some are handknit and others clearly not – some not even made with wool. Sacrilege!

Near Cork we stopped to kiss the famous Blarney Stone and, because no trip is devoid of some knitting or yarn related exploration, we made a special visit to Hedgehog Fibres. Here the rapidly growing team of yarn artists create their modern magic with dye pots and woolly fibre. On the invitation to fossick through the bins of available yarn, I didn’t hesitate. There are a few hanks of speckled yarn in my stash to remind me of our wonderful trip to the Emerald Isles and already a pair of socks on the needles – guess what colour?

 

A walk on the beach

Good morning Leucate – time to get up and start holidaying

In my younger days I dreamed of visiting places half a world away from my home way down in the southern part of the Pacific Ocean. I pored over travel brochures for Continental Europe and wished myself onto the pages where the blue Mediterranean Sea lapped the shores of elegant beach resorts in the South of France and tiny fishing villages on the Greek Islands. It all looked so exotic, interesting and dare I say it, better than my beach.

I wished hard enough and now 35 years on I’ve been fortunate to visit several of those beauty spots in the Mediterranean holidaying on Italy’s sublime Amalfi coast, at Dubrovnik and Korcula in Croatia, Istanbul in Turkey and before my blogging days on the Greek island of Mykonos. I’ve had tour stop-overs in Barcelona and Nice, a sunny weekend in Marseille and I’ve just spent 2 weeks on the south coast of France near the small village of Leucate, about halfway between Narbonne and Perpignan, basking in the sunshine and swimming in the Med.

The gorgeous blue Med seen from the outdoor cafe at MuCEM.

The Mediterranean is undeniably special. It is beautiful, it is steeped in history -the Museum of Civilisations of Europe and the Mediterranean in Marseille does an excellent job of explaining the fascinating history of the region and the importance of the sea – it is shared by millions of people from twenty nations bordering its shores, and enjoyed by millions more who come to visit.

It is also polluted and over fished. It is in danger from the humans who use it and abuse it. Not all pollution is visible, but plenty is in the form of everyday rubbish plastic bags and bottles, polystyrene boxes, cans, wrappers and junk of all sorts.

Last year on our Croatian holiday I was aghast to see the amount of rubbish slopping about in the water and littering the beach. It wasn’t the first time I had noticed the mess in the Med. I started taking a bag to the beach each day, filling it in no time with picked up rubbish. Rubbish bins were few and far between at the bathing areas in Dubrovnik and Korcula. Even more appalling was the deliberate disregard some beach users had for the care of the beach.

Whoever left their wine bottle and glasses chose this beautiful spot to enjoy their evening and then CHOSE to leave their rubbish behind – how inconsiderate!

This summer I was happy to see that Leucate beach was noticeably rubbish free. Top marks for responsible beach users and the local city council’s rubbish bins every 100 yards all the way down the long beach that were changed every morning. From our apartment right on the beach front we caught the glorious sunrises and then with the sun – and us – fully awake took our daily stroll barefoot along the length of the beach, the sea as blue as those travel brochures promised years ago. The only time I found rubbish to pick up was one morning after overnight gales whipped up the sea and washed plastics and junk ashore. In between swimming, reading and lots of knitting we wandered through the local village, shopped at the market stalls and climbed up the hill above Leucate village to the ruins of the old chateau from which the locals fended off invaders through four centuries from1258 to 1659.

View from the pier at Port Leucate along the beach towards Leucate in the distance

We have seen the Med at its most picturesque and shuddered at its trashy spots. Despite the rubbish it remains as beautiful and alluring as the pictures that inspired my travel dreams. I’ve satisfied my yearnings to see it, swim in it and travel on it; now I appreciate that big blue Pacific more than ever.

For a collection of Mediterranean photos visit my Flickr photostream here.

It’s hotting up in Paris

Happy half-marathoners

It’s hot, so hot the weather is the news.  In the last five days in Paris we’ve been sweltering in temperatures ferociously close to 40 degrees C (104F) as a result of hot air blowing in from the Sahara baking Europe.  The first week of July is early for our first official heat wave of the summer – that means high temperatures are recorded for 3 consecutive days – and the public health authorities were very prompt in launching “heat wave safety” alerts.  The temporary beaches alongside the Seine are not set up yet and Paris hasn’t yet emptied out for the summer holidays; that won’t happen until August when many small businesses close up for a few weeks.  The summer sales are in full swing so the shops are busy, but thankfully air-conditioned.  Shopping is definitely a cool thing to do.

Right now we are fondly reminiscing on our recent weekend in Hamburg to cheer on the runners in the Hamburg half marathon.  Not only were our dear Kiwi Hamburger and her boyfriend competing, but the weather was a comfortable 20-ish degrees with sunshine and puffy white clouds.  The parental cheer leading squad stationed themselves on the looped section of the run so we cheered them through 4km and then 9km before jumping on the U-bahn to head out to the finish and wave and cheer them through the last kilometre.  A happy posse of proud parents and tired but happy competitors were reunited after the finish line.

Ready at the 9km mark

The NGB going strong at 9km

Still smiling, one km to go!

As for knitting in this weather, I’ve had to temporarily abandon one knitting project, Penguono a colourful kimono-styled jacket, for a lighter project that won’t cause me to self combust.  My new Rattan shawl project is a treat for me in several ways; I’m knitting with Zealana Air yarn from New Zealand, the pattern designer is from NZ and I’m knitting as part of a virtual KAL, a knit-a-long, led by Libby the designer, so I’m feeling the kiwi vibes with this one.  However even with this gorgeous light-as-a-feather yarn I couldn’t knit on the hottest days, my sweaty hands just could not manipulate the sticks and thread at all.

Thankfully the hottest days have passed and we have some respite before the next blast from the Sahara.  A little knitting is on the agenda again and hopefully the stores will replenish their stock of fans.

Stay cool.

Destination Champagne

When we arrived to live in France a visit to Champagne was near the top of our must-do list.  I wanted to see the home of French Champagne; the land, the towns and villages, the famous Champagne houses and walk along the Avenue de Champagne, dubbed “the world’s most drinkable address” by Winston Churchill.  As it turned out, we stayed two nights at Magna Quies, a family run Bed and Breakfast at number 49 Avenue de Champagne, Epernay.  We were not disappointed; every aspect of our stay was as good as its perfect location.

Magna Quies, Epernay

Pol Roger, Avenue de Champagne, Epernay

Avenue de Champagne, Epernay

Castellane tower, Epernay

Along with the other guests on Saturday evening we enjoyed a convivial apero time sampling champagnes made by the family of our most charming host Francois.  They undertake every step in the process themselves from growing the grapes on their land just to the south of Epernay to harvesting the grapes and making the wine to offer their guests for tasting and sale.

A short stroll along Avenue de Champagne towards the town centre took us past names from the list of who’s who in the world of Champagne; Perrier  Jouet, Pol Roger, Moet et Chandon just a few of them.  There are tours to be had, samples to be sipped and souvenirs to be purchased if you wish.  We rationed our time to two tours, one at de Castellane in Epernay and the other at Pommery in Reims; both were thoroughly enjoyable, informative and of course involved tasting some of the effervescent stuff.

Having escaped Paris the easiest way on the fast train to Reims, we hired a car from there to make our way to Epernay and allow us the pleasure of exploring the countryside at our leisure over the long Easter weekend.  Epernay proved to be a good choice; we ate delicious food with extremely pleasant service at both La Grillade Gourmande and La Banque.

View of the river Marne below Hautvillers

View from Mont Bernon near Epernay

Vines on the edge of Hautvillers village

New beginnings

In the countryside it was too early in the season for there to be any green on the vines; their bare branches stretched out like tentative beachgoers exposing undressed limbs to the first rays of really warm sunshine.  Even if the vines were bare the countryside was still beautiful with perceptible green buds emerging here and there, and golden forsythia heralding the end of winter hibernation.  We followed the well signposted Champagne tourist route tootling through tranquil villages stacked with small champagne producers that are the only interruption to hectare upon hectare of grape vines covering the rolling hillsides between Reims and Epernay and along the Marne Valley.  At Hautvillers the cluster of village buildings that includes the Abbey where the cellar master Brother Pierre Perignon – Dom Perignon – perfected his technique for making sparkling wine was picture-postcard perfect.  From a lookout point just beyond the village the river Marne sparkled below in the sunshine and the lateral flow of the Marne Canal followed its straight and narrow path.

Abbey at Hautvillers

It seemed an incongruous mix that this area, famed for its alcoholic beverage that is the ultimate symbol of celebration, fun and fizz, was so close to the setting for one of the most important battles of the first World War; the Battle of the Marne between 5 and 12 September 1914.  We learned on our tasting tours that the production of Champagne continued, albeit with difficulty, during the war years.  Any celebration deserved Champagne, and there was nothing better to boost morale than bubbles.

The Battle of the Marne memorial at Dormans was well worth the stop on our Champagne route itinerary.

Cleaning, restoration and repair…….

Getting a close up view of the stonework

Centre portion of Chagal window

Inside the Reims Cathedral

Reims is the main city in the region, even though it’s not the administrative capital of Champagne.  The trickiest thing about Reims is to pronounce the name! Say “Rance” with your best nasal twang and you’ve got it.  Reims Cathedral is where the kings of France were crowned.  It was damaged by fire in 1210 and rebuilt, severely damaged again during WW1 and repaired once more.  The restoration of the spectacular cathedral is an ongoing project, as is the evolution of the equally spelndid interior.  For its 800^th anniversary modern stained glass windows by German artist, Monsieur Knoebel, were installed in the apse.

Here’s to Champagne, it’s something special: cheers.

Tasting at la Maison Pommery

Fresh air – it blows out the cobwebs and is good for the soul

I get to wear my own hand knits in the snow

I’ve been away.  Two weeks out of the city and into the fresh air of the Alpes for a week of energetic skiing at Chamonix, a couple of days exploring Geneva before venturing further north for brisk walks beside the Alster lake in Hamburg.

I love the buzz of city living, but escaping to the outdoors is such a refreshing and invigorating change!  Even though it was later in the season than our previous visits, there was still plenty of snow on the vast ski fields surrounding Chamonix.  First day up on the mountain the early clouds prised themselves off the mountain tops and there in all its snow covered glory Mont Blanc sparkled in the early spring sunshine, and stayed that way for the next few days.  On our last day light cloud returned but through it (and our goggles) we enjoyed a great view of the partial solar eclipse as we rode the chairlift – a fantastic sight.

I’ve confessed before that I’m not a proficient skier, nor have I been an avid fan; it has always seemed to be a lot of clobber and discomfort to slither down a slope with little, if any, control and a bit more than a healthy dose of fear.  But this time was different.  For a start the boots seemed to fit better, the ski bindings weren’t such dang-fangled things to get in and out of, I felt more familiar, even a little bit confident. Starting out where I left off last year everything fell into place so that I conquered the slopes designated red for difficult on the Balme field.  (Maybe conquered is a slight exaggeration – there were a few spills.)  It was exhilarating and remarkably picturesque skiing in the sunshine along ski lanes winding down a forested valley.  Oh the serenity!, and I was tickled pink to have added a few new skills to my (old dog’s) repertoire of tricks.

Parapenters soar and swirl above Chamonix town

We farewelled Chamonix and made the short train, train, and bus trips to Geneva.  After a week of energetic skiing in the mountains any remaining cobwebs were swept away with lashings of freshly chilled lakeside air as we walked along the promenade for a glimpse at some of the international organisations located there: World Trade (WTO), European HQ for the UN, International Red Cross, and the World Meterological Org (WMO) amongst them.

WTO building, Geneva

The famous fountain spouts a tall plume in the lake right beside the city centre

Leaving my DB in Geneva for his meetings at WTO, I headed off to Hamburg for some quality mother-daughter time with my Kiwi-hamburger.

There was no let up in Project Invigoration!  She had me up at 6am and out walking around the Alster lake en route to Boot Camp.  To be clear, she ran as her warm up and did the group boot camp with trainer Ollie from Original Bootcamp – which did seem to be quite fun despite the occasional groans and grunts coming from the participants – while I followed at a brisk walk.  Inspired by the early but definite signs of spring we weren’t the only ones out and about.  On the weekend the track around the Alster is a highway for runners, the grassy verges are alive with dogs chasing balls and sticks, while the lake ripples with yachts racing along, every now and then their sails ruffling noisily and then snapping taut again as they tack back and forth into the bracing wind.

After two weeks of fresh air and lashings of outdoor exercise I’ve been well and truly invigorated and inspired by the beauty of nature.

Lille and Roubaix: science and innovation, art and industry.

rue de La Monnaie, Lille

I’ve been through Lille many times.  From my seat on the trains whooshing in and out of the station en route between London and Bruxelles or Paris I had gazed disdainfully at the grimy, graffiti covered buildings near the station and decided I was glad to be passing through.

I’ve had a change of heart.

Lille, and Roubaix a little further out to the north east, were once wealthy cities thanks to the textile manufacturing that boomed in the wake of the industrial revolution, but with so many other beautiful towns and villages neither are likely to hold the top spots on a list of France’s must visit places.  But when Lille was my destination she turned out to be beautiful and interesting – rather more so than I had imagined, and Roubaix has a genuine treasure in La Piscine; the Museum of Art and Industry.

The Old City of Lille centred around the Grande Place, now called Place du General de Gaulle, tells the story of its history through the beautiful old buildings surrounding the square; the ups and downs of its fortune, who was in charge and who was fighting whom are reflected in architectural styles and monuments. From the outside facing onto the square the elaborate Flemish renaissance styled Old Bourse (the Stock Exchange) attracted me; a glimpse into the interior courtyard had me curious enough to venture through the arched doorway to check out the antique book sellers setting up their stalls under the vaulted balconies. 

The Old Bourse, 1652-3

My inner science geek sparked up when I spotted the wall plaques honouring French scientists, mathematicians, engineers and inventors whose work contributed to the health and economic well being of the region; in fact to people everywhere.  Amongst the notable names I found Louis Pasteur’s, for his work on fermentation, Ampere mathematician and physicist for his work on electromagnetism, Claude Louis Berthollet for his work on the bleaching property of chlorine and its application in whitening cloth and Philippe de Girard, engineer and inventor of many things including a machine to spin linen; all important in the textile manufacturing industries around Lille.  No women’s names that I could see but times have changed since the plaques were put up in 1854 – at the same time the University of Science and Technology at Lille was established.

Gallery honouring the Agents of Change

Following the Old Lille route in the City Walks guide book led us to more gems like rue de la Monnaie, location of the mint built in 1685, and 18^th century weaver’s cottages in rue Peterinck.  The picture of old Lille as a thriving city with knowledge and a practical inventive spirit to fuel the textile industry is apparent as you walk the streets.

The main purpose of our trip north was to visit La Piscine, the Museum of Art and Industry at Roubaix to see the Wool War One exhibition.  A 10-minute ride on the Greater Lille metro system Line 2 from Lille’s main train station then a short walk from the Roubaix Grand Place metro stop, its easy peasy to find.  As we meandered through the entrance hall the wall-sized grainy black and white photographs of chaps in their 1930’s styled bathers elicited a smile and a thankful thought that fashions have changed.  Then, the wow factor: the pool room.  The huge sun like stained glass window at the far end beams a golden glow over the sculptures that line the poolside.  It’s no longer an actual swimming pool, but back in 1932 this art-deco styled public bathing facility was described as “the finest swimming pool in France”.  The conversion into an art museum was completed in 2001 to house the collection of the Roubaix National Museum, and it is a sight to behold.  The former changing cubicles are beautifully restored, the light coloured tiles polished clean and the spaces used as novel display cases for different collections including superb Sevres vases and ceramic works.

Interior, La Piscine – Museum of Science and Industry, Roubaix

I oohed and ahhed at the textile samples on display; these were just a small offering of the rows and rows of hefty sample books from bygone eras in fashion that are held in the fabric library.  (The library is open for research by appointment and there is an on-line catalogue too.)

Winter 1920 Ribbon Samples  from the Textile Library

Painting (~1910) by Theodore Gueldry: Wool sorting scene

Lille and Roubaix might not be tourist hot spots, but they’ve certainly gone up in my estimation; science and history, wool and textiles, art and industry, a feast of interesting topics, and the beer was good too, (application of the science of fermentation of course!).  As the saying goes you can’t judge a book by its cover and seems you can’t judge a city by its railway station. More photographs of our visit here.

Wool War One on parade – L’ Adieu aux Armes

On parade at  La Piscine, Museum of Art and Industry, Roubaix

As military parades go this one is rather small in stature and quiet; so quiet you can almost hear a stitch drop.  No guns, no drums, no machines of war, this is a peaceful parade of 700 hand-knitted soldiers from every corner of the earth.

These soldiers, resplendent in authentic uniform detail, are the work of 500 knitters from 5 continents who responded to the call for help from Madame Delit Maille (Anna), knitting artist in chief of the Wool War One installation at La Piscine, Museum of Art and Industry at Roubaix in northern France.

Back in May 2014, my NZ friend Barbara and I were two of those 500 knitters; we knitted miniature uniforms to help dress the British and Commonwealth soldier dolls.  Through the summer and autumn knitters mobilised to join Delit Maille’s working bees around France and the knitted army came together ready for exhibition in December 2014.

The result is spectacular in its simple symbolism.  Seven hundred soldiers in distinctive uniform; French cornflower-blue jackets, red pompomed Belgians, caped Spahis and helmeted Germans all stand out.  Each figure seems to have his own personality.  Some peep from behind the man in front, others are stooped – weary looking – row upon row of fragile little figures representing all nations despatched to the Great War stand together in this parade.

The British & Commonwealth soldiers

Red pompomed Belgians

The French (les Poilus)

Caped Spahis

The Ottomans

The Russians

The Scots

Inspecting the parade

I feel privileged to have had the opportunity to contribute my knitting to this project.  The exhibition, L’Adieu aux Armes, is a fitting memorial – well done Delit Maille, a clever and meaningful interpretation, thoroughly enjoyable to visit and to have participated in.

The Wool War One exhibition runs until 12^th April 2015.  Eleven different artists whose exhibitions have been commissioned to commemorate the centenary of World War I run one after the other from September 2014 through to May 2018 at the museum in Roubaix.  The museum has a wonderful permanent collection of art and industrial archives – particularly relating to the textile industry from the region.  More about the wonderful art and industry museum at Roubaix coming up soon.

Luxury at the Louvre

Portrait of Louis XIV

Time is my luxury; time to visit the Louvre Museum again and again.  I can make the most of the free entry on the first Sunday of the winter months between October and March to peruse in detail particular collections that take my interest.  Luxury is my interest this time.

The newly re-commissioned space in the Sully wing dedicated to the decorative arts of the 18^th century opened in June last year (2014) and is, in a word, sumptuous.  The collection represents an era when the skills for design, creation and craftsmanship of beautiful decorative pieces flourished in Paris with encouragement from royalty and the privileged wealthy.  The exhibition is divided into three time periods:

1660 to 1725 during the reign of Louis XIV

1725 to 1755 the Rococo style, and

1755 to 1790 the reign of Louis XVI, husband of Marie-Antoinette

I especially liked the exhibition style; a mix of expertly selected examples of arts and crafts objects interspersed with faithfully recreated period rooms where newly made soft furnishings together with restored décor pieces provide a sympathetic setting for display of the museum’s collected treasures.

Making my way through the gallery according to the “sense of the visit”, gave me a better appreciation of the evolution of design and style, which is exactly the purpose of this type of presentation; it works.  I savoured the overall impression of the ornate period rooms with their gilded and painted wall panels and cornices, stylish passementerie, elegant porcelain ware and splendid inlaid wood furniture; there are dozens of adjectives that could apply – minimal is not one of them.

Gilded cornices and wall panels

 

But with over 2,000 pieces in the entire collection some had to be passed with only a cursory glance, others had me captivated; reading notes, studying the display.  Queen Marie-Antoinette’s necessaire, a travelling kit, fascinated me.  Ninety-four pieces of equipment adorned with her monogram – an intertwined M and A – in a cleverly designed mahogany case to make her journeys comfortable.  Amongst the 94 items there is office equipment, a tray bell and seal, a sewing case, ink well and pounce pot, and compass, items for a light meal including a chocolate pot and beater, 2 drinking glasses, a dish warmer, teapot and tea ball, 2 tea cups with saucers, a broth bowl and small chaffing dish, items for her toilette; a powder pot, cream pot and eyebath, 3 small bottles and a funnel, a mortar and pestle, round mirror, spittoon, and warming pan.

 

Mahogany travelling case

round mirror, cream pot and eye bath, mortar and pestle, glass bottles

Office equipment; tray bell and seal, sewing case (2) Inkwell an dpounce pot (3), compass and royal foot (4)

Teapot and cups

Chocolate pot and beater (5) , Spirit-of-wine dish warmer (6)

In it’s entirety this is a wonderful collection that provides a real insight into the life of the royals and social elite during the golden age of French decorative arts.  I saw exquisite craftsmanship, elegant and sumptuous decoration, but sensed lives of maddening formality and proper taste at the same time.  It makes you think.

A bright day in Chartres

Rose window in the North transept

Keen to escape the city for a Sunday excursion we swotted up for a visit to Chartres to see the famous stained glass windows at la Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Chartres.  With a sunny forecast – the windows are apparently seen at their best on a bright day – the planning was finalised; departure time, metro route, train station, walking route from train to cathedral all checked and memorised.  Only the weather required confirmation.

Our apartment is so close to other buildings that we can’t actually see the sky just by glancing out the windows, a weather check is accomplished by leaning out the window and looking up – sky: blue or grey? Clouds: white, fluffy, grey, threatening?

Instead of blue sky we had a thick dose of the grey fog that is one of the less desirable characteristics of Paris, but as both on-line weathermen promised sunshine by 11am we felt confident with Plan A and set off according to the run sheet timetable.

The planning was perfect; the weather forecast was not.  The fog did not clear all day, in fact it was one of the coldest days so far this winter, but we needn’t have worried, the cathedral and its stained glass windows were beautiful anyway.

After only a few minutes walk from the station at Chartres the cathedral appeared above the town centre, its huge shape emerging rather eerily out of the mist.  On the outside the colour scheme is grey; age-old, weathered, blotched with moss and lichen grey.  Handsome grey? Or forbidding grey?

Chartres Cathedral emerging from the mist

 

Inside, the dominant impression is anything but grey.  We arrived just as the Sunday morning service was finishing.  We snuck in quietly with a stream of other visitors, immediately impressed by the congregation in full song their voices filling the vast interior of the cathedral.  A vivid array of colour burst from the majestic stained glass windows high above the polished stone floor.  The three large 13^th century rose windows, dull on the outside, blazed with reds and blues.  The most famous of the windows here is the Belle Verriere depicting the Virgin Mary wearing a blue robe, her child sitting on her lap.  This window is one of three that remain after a major fire in 1195 which destroyed the earlier cathedral on the site.

La Belle Verrierre

The Mary Chapel

Aside from catastrophes like fire and world wars, industrial pollution is the most significant enemy of historic buildings, (and their stained glass windows).  The present day restoration programme is obvious; scaffolding, boarded up areas, the difference in colouration of the stonework between the before and after cleaning sections.  The works-in-progress didn’t diminish our enjoyment of the visit; if anything it affirmed the preciousness of the treasures we’d had the privilege to see and we’re glad to see the effort going into their preservation.