First half of summer in paradise 2023

First half of summer in paradise 2023

The Festival d’Aix-en-Provence was abbreviated – I had waited too long to book and the schedule did not work out in any event – but was nonetheless marvellous as well as scorchingly hot. All the hotels in town were fully booked, but we got a room just to the north in the Hotel Prieuré which overlooked a large private garden and worked perfectly. We could easily alternate between enjoying Aix and getting naps back at the hotel. We were also able to maintain our nefastus diet for the first nine days of the month. At the Hotel Caumont we

thoroughly enjoyed the Max Ernst exhibition as well as a delicious Rigoletto salad, juice and cappuccini. We were also able to get Richard a new pair of pants. In the evening, it was astunning performance of Alban Berg’s Wozzeck with Simon Rattle conducting the London Symphony Orchestra and Christian Gerhaher as Wozzeck and Malin Byström as Marie.

The following night was the Ballet Russe Stravinsky concert at the Stadium de Vitriole. It was magnificent and included the full Firebird, Petrushka and Sacre du Printemps. The visuals much less interesting and I only watched the first and then concentrated on the conductor of the Orchestre de Paris who was an excellent Klaus Mäkelä. And sitting next to us, we met Tee & Michael from Manhattan. And then the next day we were back in Aups. Barbara who has been staying with us since mid-June departed the day after for an engagement in London. We fetched her in Les Arcs at the end of the week, and she treated us to a fine dinner on the way back at Antre’Nous in Lorgues. For the whole month, Susie overlooked the construction of our pool/basin, and though all is not completed, we have been swimming in it every day from the 27th. Also, Virginie’s partner Philippe came with his daughter and set up the 3x4 square meter tent that I had purchased for Richard for him to store his things so that he could begin to organise his room. Phillipe also constructed shelves in Richard’s room.

While in India, Penny fell down the stairs in her Ladakh hotel with result of a hairline fracture of the hip. She was on crutches and somehow got back to Nice where Stephen met her and had to bring her back to Aups when the Polyclinique de Notre Dame in Draguignan was closed for the evening. He took her back the following morning. She has since had surgery and while there came down with a debilitating infection so that when we visited her we had to wear gowns and masks to prevent getting infected from her. Eventually the hospital determined what the infection was and were able to treat it successfully. On the day that Guy & Caroline arrived, Penny was brought home by ambulance – already walking and has been making great progress all along. Caroline prepared a magnificent dinner several days later which the three of us along with Jacqui and Tony all enjoyed. Two nights before I had put together a meal chez nous for Yvonne and her friend Catrin. Even earlier for the fireworks

evening on the 13th, we did our usual champagne and mont blanc party even with the fireworks themselves having been cancelled. Those who came were Susie & Patrick, Philippe & Monic with a friend, Joanne with her brother, Alexandra & husband and two daughters, Stephen with David & Valeria/Napoli and daughter Uma, Dieter and Cindy, Jessica, Caroline & Damien, and several others as well. The previous day, Petit Claude got Muriel finally repaired, but later on the 3rd of August, Barbara who uses the Golfe phoned to say that the car had broken down in Fox-Amphoux. We towed her to Petit Claude’s and missed cinema night at Penny’s.

On the penultimate Sunday of July, Barbara, Richard and I went to Cindy & Dieter’s for tea. After this, Richard & I had our ceremonial Neptunalia swim in the Lac de Sainte-Croix at Bauduen. That night there was a thunder storm, and I had to get up from bed to bring the cushions in from outside just as it began to rain. The following evening at the place there was a saxophone and tuba concert. Phillipe has done the varnishing of the living room volets and window frames. And for a cinema night, with Caroline & Guy and Barbara, we all watched Pal Joey. The women (Rita & Kim) were stunning, and Sinatra’s singing was more than impressive. And EssEff was lovely too, but the film itself seemed almost next to ridiculous. Richard had remembered it much differently and always wanted me to see it. But that day I learned that my application to become a Dutch citizen has been accepted. The ceremony is to occur on 18 September in Amsterdam.

The following night Natacha & Jonathan came for dinner: we had champagne, Richard’s carrot soup, Barbara’s salad, my tomato tarte and concluded with mont blanc. Angie and Drake were to arrive the next day but opted instead to stay in Cotignac. We enjoyed a dinner with them at Saint Marc’s on Friday and, after the lake circuit on Saturday (lakeside picnic, Apollo’s temple in Riez and coffees in Moustier-Ste. Marie, a sumptuous truffle dinner at La Table. Pavel and Teresa then arrived from Prague for a week. Pavel helped with the towing of Muriel. On August second, Penny, Guy & Caroline, as well Susie & Patrick joined the five of us (Barbara, Pavel & Teresa, Richard & me) for dinner at Tellus et les Étoiles. And Penny brought with her the missing keys!!! Neither of us had remembered that I had given them to her last year when we left – the keys to both Mercedes and the safe deposit box at the bank. She had by chance just come across them.

Two days later I made a chicken pot pie and a blueberry crisp for Joanne, Natacha & Jonathan, Barbara, Pavel & Teresa. We had had negroni and proceeded into one of our best dinners and discussions until 0:30. Reading-wise, I have finished Patrick’s Art and Enchantment and am now enjoying David Niven’s 1975 Bring On the Empty Horses about the Golden Age of Hollywood. I found his chapter on Clark Gable quite moving, but was surprised to learn later that Gable was a conservative Republican and an early member of the Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals. No surprise among the organisation’s prominent members including John Wayne, Ronald Reagan, Robert Taylor, Walt Disney and Ayn Rand but more surprise if not disappointment with Gary Cooper, John Huston and Barbara Stanwyck. Politically of course I remain flabbergasted with the current events and cannot understand why someone of prominence has not totally dismissed and ridiculed Trump’s blatant blathering for his indictments concerning the 6th of January invasion of the Capitol and attempt to undermine the Constitution. But otherwise, and apart from the gruelling process of listening and reviewing Greg’s audio narration of Matter Matters, life in the paradise of the Midi is and remains sublime. And last night it was another concert on the place in front of the Mairie. This time it was the Vakantie Orkest Ad Hoc from Pays Bas with different music but all delightful. I talked to some of the orchestral group after,

and then when I tried to speak to our mayor Antoine I was completely unable to switch back from Dutch to French no matter how hard I tried. What next?