April 9, 2010

Danse Dance

Simon's Cat 'Cat Man Do'

Joe.....

Yeah I know you missed me...and I know this look is as close as you can get to telling me. Nice guy. Really cool guy.

Lyon - last night

Lyon - last night, originally uploaded by lesliefedorchuk.

My last night in Lyon was so beautiful and so hard. The city is wonderful. Something to feast your eyes on in every corner of it. A wonderful combination of old, new, color, shape, texture.....

I have a lot of images to put up and talk about in the next few weeks. BUT....this was the last night - the moon was reflecting over the Rhone - with all of the illuminated buildings as well.

And I was sad to be leaving. So sad. Incredibly sad. But today I think - hmmm....I will be going back, I know. The moon, the rivers, the city, the friends....they will all be there when I come back.

Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?


~ Mary Oliver ~

An image of the ceiling of the Basilica of Fourviere in Lyon. Neobyzantine guilding ALL over the inside of it. On top of a hill - it gives you a view of the city and surrounding areas that is like no other. I have a little video of that - and will get it up here as soon as I can.

Radiohead Nude Bercy Paris June 2008

btw....did I mention???

Lyon at Night.

This is what we do..... (well, what the American tourist does...these two do go to work, so I don't have a clue how they do it - but they do it with very little sleep). Meet in the early evening - talk, coffee, wine. Lots of laughing, trying to teach the American how to say things in French (pointless)...then a late dinner. If the weather is nice (not pouring rain - although Virg seems to think that anything that is not HOT and SUNNY is pointless) we go for a walk. Did I mention that by this time it is well after midnight?

Lyon is....magical. In a totally different way from Paris. It is calm. It has a presence - a mystical presence that I need to learn more about. It is the history, the coming together of so many things in its past. But you do feel it....walking on the silent streets at night. Looking in shop windows, moving quietly through the square, talking softly - laughing....lots of that.

I am so thrilled to be here with these two good friends. We already know each other in many ways....and so when I see something moving and burst into tears (I can hear those of you who know me laughing....) - they aren't bothered - they just wait for me to contain myself and we move on. More soon.

It is always better when you have a friend to point out things that you wouldn't see otherwise, take you to places that are more fun with someone else....or just point out when you are about to make a raging cultural blunder.....(who knew that you would never give peonies as a gift to a French person because that is a flower that goes on a gravesite?).

Spent the day being tourists....walking around icons and small streets...drinking and laughing with Virgil and his friends. We are about to head for the train station for our trip to Lyon. I hate to leave Paris....it is truly one of the most intriguing places I have ever been.

Paris seems to hold unlimited beauty. Now that I have found my bearings and have an adventure on the metro everyday, I can see the scope of the history and diversity within the city. Yesterday I bought a bunch of peonies at a "magnifique" shop that was a work of art in and of itself - near the Ecole des Beux Arts.... I was missing my garden, and walking by the school - seeing students inside the gates - carving and drawing - just heightened the feeling.

The candles were burning in St. Germain des Pres. I find myself going into everyone of these cathedrals....they are incredible. They are also cool (it has been hot and muggy) and a quiet place to take out the map and figure out where I am. This particular one is / was connected to a once enormous Benedictine monastery. It has the tomb of Rene Descartes. These candles, always lit, are very very moving to me.

At the end of the day - I am back to my neighborhood...I climb the streets up and up and then the large stone staircase to my apartment building. At the bottom of the hill, the neighborhood is full of African immigrants...the hair shops and textiles and smells of food cooking are wonderful. Everyone out on the streets...everything is a feast for the eyes.

The switch from the west coast...to Paris

It took me a while to realize that part of what I was experiencing were not only the differences between Paris and County Clare. It was the difference between a quiet rural village - with the sound of the sea and the presence of the clouds over the limestone hills - and a HUGE urban area full of people and tourists...where I am on my own for now and don't speak the language.

Most of the things that have happened to me have been comical. Like the ride from the airport - that involved a forty minute traffic jam. No lanes of traffic (that I could see) ....we just forgo those...and everyone laying on the horn and screaming at one another. Did I mention my taxi driver wore a suit (very stunning) but we were unable to speak to each other - even a word. I handed him my map and he delivered me to...well...it was the top of a hill....but the bottom of a very large, very old, pedestrian stone staircase. Me and my 700 pound suitcase. Ahhhh, but that, is another story. Au revoir.

, originally uploaded by lesliefedorchuk.

, originally uploaded by lesliefedorchuk.

, originally uploaded by lesliefedorchuk.

, originally uploaded by lesliefedorchuk.

, originally uploaded by lesliefedorchuk.

So .... we are (sadly) into our final week. Research being completed, projects being pulled together. An edition of 20 books will be due in mid-August - but the completed mock up is due on Thursday, as is a facsimile "journal" of some kind.

It is wonderful to watch the ideas and the experience come onto the page and the book form.

Maybe the only thing as impressive as standing at the top of the Cliffs of Moher, is being in a boat going slowly along the bottom of them. OR maybe going in the ocean in a kayak...or diving....to take a close look at what lives there....(thanks to Lauren for the kayaking pic of Jim...one of our fearless and funny guides.)

dublin

dublin, originally uploaded by lesliefedorchuk.

Been meaning to post this image....and I have a couple minutes now...waiting for a bus in the internet cafe in Doolin. Went on a boat to the bottom of the Cliffs of Moher earlier today. Will post those later.

The doors in on this island....are some of my favorite things....so many painted bright colors. Often containing tongue in cheek humor....such as this one......

Here is a little peek into the book I am making this summer. Recipes from the people who are cooking for me on my travels.....starting with Maurizio.

Sea Bass with Olives and salted Sardinian Capers
(and rosemary and garlic)

Buy fish......

WILD sea bass (line caught...and bought in Galway at the open market the same day)
you can see ours as we bought it...in the video above.....

clean if it isn't clean, dry it with a paper towel

put aluminum foil in a tureen, lay the fish in it

In the meanwhile....

strip leaves from fresh rosemary and toss on top of the sea bass -
along with black olives (also from the market)

Pour on top of this....olive oil with capers and garlic that have been sauteeing. Splash of white wine....

Close aluminum foil

Put it in the oven at 200 c. / 400 f ..."hmmm...I have no idea if this is right...just CRANK the oven up then after five minutes reduce it to 375 f"

"You realize that all of these things cannot be repeated in Milwaukee, right?"

A fish like this (maybe three pounds) maybe an hour, or 45 minutes.

Serve with freshly made bread, also from market. Chilled white wine. Salad.

Newtown Castle on the Burren in County Clare, Ireland

Newtown Castle on the Burren in County Clare, Ireland, originally uploaded by raymond digital.

Traditional music at the castle the other night. Mary called when I was working in the studio - so over I went, climbing the stairs to the top. There was a roaring fire and everything was decorated with flowers - earlier in the day there had been a wedding. An Irish woman and a Japanese man - in full Samuri regalia (him). Long trails of ivy hung from the balcony - red and white roses glowing in the light of the candles. The wedding had a visit from the strawboys - a west coast tradition - dressing up in straw disguises and crashing the party to play tricks.

But tonight - some of the best musicians around - traditional Irish harp, concertina, pipes and fiddle. Background and stories for every song they played...and I am reminded again and again how rich in tradition and history this country is - how proudly it is kept alive.

The lights of Galway flickered across the bay (is it a bay?) as the outside light faded and the fire and the candles flickered. We were a small but passionate group - of mostly locals.

Jim (an uncle of Micheal Green - founder of the college) tells me a wonderful story about celebrating the millenium at the castle. A party was held on that new year's eve....the lower floor reserved for the young people...the middle floor for refreshments - and on the upper floor people were asked to come as someone they had most admired in the past 100 years and present a talent of some kind. By the time they all finished performing for one another...they were well into the new year...the new millenium.

Wonderful images to have....even second hand.