A posy is enough -

Peonies are beautiful. Hanging their heavily petalled heads in the garden

their deep green leaves often become a resting place, and a piece of twirled

 garden twine is sometimes necessary to stop them from toppling over.  

To catch their astounding, heady fragrance, at least one must be cut,

brought indoors, and set in a tiny vase of fresh water to perfume 

a room. Mine is in the dining room - cut as my gift to myself, along

 with a few roses and honeysuckle.

The sun forsook us on Sunday leaving heavy cloud cover but no rain,

 just very chilly and rather grey. Somewhat unusual for Mother's Day which

often is hot and from what I recall always sunny.

It was still a special day though and at last I was able to go to

the Van Gogh Immersive Experience. It was truly amazing!  Attending

with granddaughter Jasmin made it extra special as we had visited Arles, 

Provence together several years ago so this brought back many happy

 memories of that time in France.

Another busy week here as we will be taking a trip out of town.

Enjoy your week - I'll see you later.

Pretty in Pink + Wildlife!

This has been another crazy, far too busy week. 

The garden took up a lot of time.

Household things went wrong and kept us on our toes.

Appointments had to be kept.

Hair cut - shorter as weather heating up.

Purchased an iPhone 13 Pro Max, love it.

Food shopping and cooking for company.

Cat sitting again for my neighbor.

I'm hoping for a weekend where I can just sit a while, gather my senses

 and make plans for what looks like an even more hectic week ahead as we

will be taking a little trip.

I'm going to Van Gogh The Immersive Experience on

 Mother's Day with granddaughter Jasmin.

We love Van Gogh's work and I visited his last home in Auvers-sur-Oise

 at the Auberge Ravoux (click to read and view photos from that visit.)

 Also took Jasmin to Arles, Provence several years ago where we visited

 his yellow house, climbed the stairs to his bedroom, and other locations

 where he painted his remarkable canvasses.

"Glance up at the glimmering heavens of The Starry 

Night, admire the Almond Blossoms bursting into flower. 

Take a step into the world of Van Gogh's most iconic

 works of art and experience what it is to be inside a painting!"

Beside the pink roses, the pink peonies have also bloomed this week and

 many other plants and shrubs are filling out with lush leaves and buds.

Our weather has been fine with hot days reaching almost 90F but low humidity, 

and no mosquitoes yet which was great for working outside.  This will change

 soon of course and later today bad weather is expected with possible severe storms . . . . . .

. . . . . . .hopefully not upsetting my little baby bunny.

I prepared him for rain yesterday by accidentally watering him with

the garden hose!

Speaking of arriving wildlife. . . . . I also have Charlie gecko

 back on the front porch which makes me think he hibernated 

nearby all winter.

He was bright green before jumping on my new chair cushion where

he immediately changed to brown to blend in, wonderful camouflage!

Yes, all is very green here. This week I also cleaned out the potting shed

 with a little help.  As mentioned before, April and May are beautiful months

 in this part of America and gardening keeps us so busy.

Enjoy your Mother's Day weekend.

. . . . in the footsteps of Van Gogh

You may recall how excited I was knowing I would visit the village of

 Auvers-sur-Oise and the Auberge Ravoux, Vincent van Gogh's last 'home' for

 three months prior to his death. I did a brief post earlier whilst still in France,

 and am following up today with a few more photos and more

 of the sad story of an amazing artist who died far too early.

Bob, outside the inn on a beautiful early October morning. 

I so wish we could have eaten lunch there that day - however the 

guided tour was structured so that we could take in other

 important sites pertinent to Van Gogh's stay in this charming village.

Later in the afternoon we were heading to Versailles, then our ship

 was returning to Paris in the evening. . . . .an extremely busy day.

Note how the facade of the Auberge Ravoux still appears exactly as it did

 in the year Van Gogh lived there - only the trees on the sidewalk seem

 to be missing.

I climbed the small wooden staircase to where, in the attic of the auberge,

 a single skylight lets a few rays of sunshine into room No. 5 where Vincent

 lived and died a couple of days later from his injury.

 Out of sheer superstition, this garret, referred to as the "suicide room",

 has never been rented out again since 1890.

In this well-preserved site, this tiny empty room, one can relate

 to the painter's lifestyle during those last months.

I would truly love to return here, perhaps on a Spring afternoon for luncheon, or

 in the cool of an Autumn evening for a French dinner with delicious vegetables

 from the market next door, and a full-bodied French red wine.

 Dining at the Auberge Ravoux, at a wooden table tucked behind the embroidered

 curtains, where Vincent often had his supper, paying not with money which

 he never had, but with yet another painting he had done perhaps that same day.

 Yes, a return visit is now near the top of my wish list.

I was able to purchase the red and white kitchen towel during this recent visit - shown

 here with my much-loved old copy of the cookbook/story/history of the Auberge Ravoux.

Following the visit to the inn, we strolled through the many alleyways of the village, 

viewing flower-filled gardens behind old stone walls and iron gates, and the

 Auvers village church made famous in Van Gogh's painting.

The local Mairie (town hall) is depicted in a lovely Van Gogh painting,

 La Mairie d'Auvers - the building, as in most French villages, not changing at all

 over the years.

Later we walked up gentle sloping lanes to the fields above the village.

It was here that Vincent was able to continue painting plein air - his brother Theo

assisting financially so he could purchase the necessary artist's supplies he required. 

A copy of the painting displayed above is at the entrance to the wheat field where

 Vincent was shot in the abdomen. There are now conflicting reports as to whether it was

 an accidental shooting by local boys rather than suicide, though most people believe

 it was the latter due to his depressive state of mind over many years, and his final

 words on his deathbed. As we walked through the field, the crows were there

 as in the painting, flying off as we passed. 

Vincent painted many views of the fields around Auvers that July prior to his death,

 telling Theo. . . . . . 

"Auvers is really gravely beautiful. it's the heart of the countryside, distinctive and picturesque" - May 21, 1890.

Further along we came to the cemetery. . . . . . . .  

. . . . . . .where the painting La Pluie - actually titled Landscape at Auvers in the Rain -

was displayed near the entrance gate.

 A typical old French grave decorated with ceramic flowers.

Vincent's brother Theo is buried next to him in the Auvers cemetery - he died

 the following year, aged 33, just six months after Vincent who was 37.  

The headstones are very plain compared to many in this cemetery - covered

 in ivy and wildflowers, requiring some pruning, but really quite beautiful 

in their simplicity.

Postcards of Van Gogh paintings, including one of several self portraits,

 purchased in Auvers-sur-Oise market.

My visit here will always be recalled as time well spent in a very special part

 of the French countryside, not far from Paris, colorful, historic and, as always,

 full of beauty.

Thanks so much for all the kind birthday wishes - I really appreciate them.

this morning I decided to work on this post - doing something 

I enjoy and sharing another story from the recent trip.

After all it's my BIRTHDAY and I can do what I want, right?

Vincent in Auvers-sur-Oise. . . . . . . . .

Well I made it. Yesterday - another place I've dreamed of visiting for a long time -

Auvers-sur-Oise, a beautiful little French village, not far from Paris,

where Vincent painted so many beautiful canvasses in the last 70 days 

of his life.

I'll be sharing more of the story later - and lots of photos taken in the village

on yet another glorious sunny day.

Today we are back in Paris - this morning we did an escorted walking tour

 titled 'Heart of Paris'. The sun was shining yet again - we have been so 

fortunate with the weather - an entire week without a drop of rain, no dreary

skies, and very comfortable temperatures in the mid to high 60's.

Tomorrow we're off to Dijon by train and will join our second ship in the evening.

Must just say how absolutely amazing this cruise company has been - everything 

has been perfect so far and we hope it will continue as we reach Provence.

All I'm really concerned about is the weather at home - thank goodness my 

wonderful neighbors have secured my outdoor furniture etc. just in case 

the encroaching hurricane decides to pay North Carolina a visit.

 Fingers are crossed. Stay safe if you are on the east coast.

The Table. . . . . . . .

It was 1890. Just 20 miles from Paris, in the peaceful village of Auvers-sur-Oise, 

a slight man, aged 37, worked at his easel. 

Vincent Van Gogh had moved from Provence to the Auberge Ravoux, now named 

Maison de Van Gogh, and In 70 days he created 70 paintings. 

He painted plein air each day, eating his meals at the 'artists' table' in the rear

of the dining room each evening.

During the night of July 29, 1890, Vincent died in his room of a gunshot wound,

 self-inflicted two days earlier in the wheat field where he was painting.

 An amazing artist but sadly disturbed soul was gone.

His body was moved behind the inn's dining room on the ground floor to the 

'artists' room' - the room where he painted and stacked his canvases during those 70 days.

Masses of yellow flowers were brought in, dahlias and sunflowers, and many of his 

canvases were nailed to the walls surrounding his coffin.

The auberge is typical of small French village restaurants where simple, 

earthy meals are served. People arrive to dine in what remains similar to the 

turn-of-the-20th-century café scene.

Recently I made a few changes to my dining room table. This included rolling 
out the black paper purchased in Spring. It came with chalk so I'm planning 

how I should decorate it for Autumn. Not being an artist, I haven't drawn much 
so far - however I'm hoping to add vegetables, pumpkins, flowers, birds - perhaps 
some quotations for the season.

I purchased this beautiful book, 

Van Gogh's Table at the Auberge Ravoux 

several years ago and come back to read it often. It shares beautiful art,

 some classic French country recipes from the inn, and the story of Vincent Van Gogh's

 sad life and the isolation he experienced due to mental illness.

I will be in France again soon and this time I plan to visit Auvers-sur-Oise

and see Vincent's room in the auberge. Visitors are permitted to climb the narrow 

stairs to room No. 5 - where 125 years ago the world lost an amazing artist.

I'm practicing simple little illustrations on oddments of paper first. . . . . . . . . . . If you stop 

by over the weekend you'll be welcome to add your personal art to my 'table cloth'.