Return from Staycation

Tags

Beach, Fox, French River, Peace, PEI, quiet, sand, sex, surf, Travel

Well we returned yesterday from our week at the Beach House Inn at French River near New London PEI where we rented a cottage. It was delightful and sooooo peaceful compared to the noisy Capital. Surrounded by woods, fields, red sandstone cliffs and the beach. Only the birds and a family of Foxes for company, we were the only guests on the property. The birds are interesting, from eagles to hawks, cormorants to blue jays, swallows, robins, warblers, quite the variety.

The Fox family was a mother and her 4 kits, very tame and unafraid of people though they always keep a respectful distance.  The property was beautiful and very well maintained, the main house had 7 mature Linden trees on the West side, a big marsh full of water reeds on the East side of the property and on the hill the famous Cousin Family pioneer cemetery known as Yankee Hill. The Cousin family were French Huguenots who fled France ended up in the American colonies and at the revolution came to PEI fleeing again the chaos. The were probably wealthy if one looks at their elaborate white marble tombstones. In September 2019 the hurricane Dorian came to PEI and devastated the area around Cavendish where 70% of the trees were damaged. This old burial ground is in a forest and many of the poplars toppled. Luckily none of the 200 year old tombstones were damaged, a miracle of sorts. Across the road to the beach stands another old cemetery called Simms, this one is dedicated to the 200 sailors who died in the historic storm known as the Yankee Gale in October 1851. Our view was the sand dunes and the beach and it’s small lighthouse, the New London Rear Lighthouse nowadays surrounded by a large marsh. It is automated like all light houses. The waterway is treacherous, large ever moving sandbanks at the entrance to the South West and French River, both leading to small fishing harbours. The surrounding countryside is picturesque, lots of farms cultivating wheat, potatoes, mustard and corn. The area was settled after the Acadians where deported and their land confiscated by the British around 1755. The new settlers were stern Protestants, Presbyterians and Anglicans. Some of the Acadians did come back after 1763 and settled further West on the Island.

This year of the Pandemic there are virtually no tourists, the only people who can actually come to PEI are from the other Maritime provinces and they do not need to isolate. Anyone else would be automatically forced into 14 day isolation upon arrival and people are watchful.

Some good seafood restaurants and art galleries in the area. The beaches are very clean and quiet. We could actually walk from our home to Cape Tryon and its Lighthouse an 8 Km treck along the cliffs, very beautiful scenery. It was a good staycation just to get out of the noise of Charlottetown.

The Linden Trees at the Beach House Inn. We could say we were unter den Linden.

Sunset on the cliffs at Cap Tryon, with the lighthouse. In terms of direction looking out into the Gulf of St-Lawrence, towards Anticosti Island and Newfoundland.

Truly peaceful away from it all. You come to appreciate the silence.

What to take on vacation

Tags

Beach, Friends, PEI, sand, Summer, surf, vacation

Every time Summer rolls around, reading lists appears, all manner of books are proposed. Thing is, many of those books are for general appeal and some make the best seller list. But I am never interested in them and if I am going to buy a book I want to make sure I will read it. So the topic has to appeal to me in some fashion.

We are going to the cottage at the beach and I am looking for books to read. I got one by Cicero written of course some 2070 yrs ago on how to rule a country, I may get tips on how to do it best, if ever I intend to rule Canada, one of the most difficult country to rule give our 6 time zones and enormous geographic space bordering on 3 oceans, we could be called an Empire based on size alone, but we settled for Dominion (Kingdom).  I also found two other books on Kindle but I just realized they will be available after 28 July, so I will have to wait. One is by Lady C. the Duchess of Argyll, her newly released best seller on Meghan and Harry. The other is a book recommended by Nicholas Hoare who use to own a famous bookstore in Ottawa on Sussex Drive. It was such a beautiful bookstore and guaranteed you would find something to your liking. Hoare recommended a book based on letters written by Sir Alan Frederick ”Tommy” Lascelles who was the private secretary of King George VI and later his daughter Queen Elizabeth II. This book was made possible by special permission from H.M. the Queen, usually such letters never see the light of day. The letters cover the War years and shine a light on historical passages that might otherwise remain obscure. Lascelles being an Oxford graduate writes beautifully, the man had vocabulary, something that is lost nowadays. He was also part of the Courtier network around the Royal Family.

So I am now looking at my home library and what can I find on the shelves, there is a wide choice. But then I wonder how much reading I will do all together.

So off we go on Hwy 2 towards the West and French River, the area has many little settlements, then turning unto Hwy 20 and on the road we will pass, near our destination, the birthplace of Lucy Maud Montgomery, a simple little house in a field. She is of course the famous author, who in PEI is revered.  The last few kilometres is a red dirt road amongst fields and marshes which ends at the Sand dunes, the New London Range Lighthouse and the sea. This is where we will be. I am looking forward to seeing the night sky which in such a remote location reveals itself to be ablaze with unimaginable number of stars and galaxies including our own Milky Way. Also the silence of the place, disturbed only by the surf and songs of birds and maybe one or two coyotes howling.

En passant…

Tags

Borghese, museum, Vatican

Today a friend who lives in Rome sent a little comment about his visit to the Villa Borghese. This famous museum only admits 80 persons per hour instead of the usual 300 person per hour due to Covid 19 concerns.

Given the size of the building it must be a delight to be in such a magnificent building with so few people and so much spectacular art work.

I remember walking in the gardens of the Villa Borghese, something I did many times given that we lived near by, I would go there just to relax and enjoy the greenery. The garden is the third largest in Rome, you can walk for hours all around it. The land was first acquired by the Borghese family in 1605, located on the ancient site of the Gardens of Lucullus, 60 BC, just outside the city walls built by Marcus Aurelius you can enter from the top of the Spanish Steps turning to the left or from Via Flaminia or at Porta Pinciana which was closest to my home. In Cardinal Scipione Borghese, nephew of Pope Paul V, bought the land in 1605 it was mostly a vineyard and covered a large area slopping down the Pincian Hill towards the Porta del Popolo and Via Flaminia. Today the vineyard is gone but was replaced with formal gardens in the French Style by Cardinal Borghese and later in the 19th century an English romantic gardens with ancient ruins, lakes and fountains was created giving the place an atmosphere both peaceful and serene.

Such huge estates acquired by noble families were used mostly to escape the city in Summer and many had large villas or palaces built within, such homes all have the one architectural features which is a roof top terrace to catch the evening wind coming off the Mediterranean sea towards Rome. This feature we enjoyed while in Rome dining on our terrace watching the ballet of small bats amongst the Maritime Pines.

Villa Borghese in Italian refers to an Estate and not to a building per se. In fact Cardinal Scipione built the Galleria Borghese which looks like a large palace simply to house his art collection so he could sit in various grand rooms and admire the works of art while having lunch or entertaining friends with music or discussions, it was not meant to be lived in. He would spend a few hours at the Galleria and then return to his home in the City. The family left its mark on Rome, his uncle Pope Paul V Borghese’s name is inscribed in bronze letters above the main entrance of St-Peter’s Basilica, he commissioned Bernini to do many works of art and architecture to enhance St-Peter’s and the semi-circular colonnade of the famous Piazza.

One of the magnificent rooms of the Galleria, your eye is drawn to look everywhere at once, it can be overwhelming.

On the grounds of the Villa Borghese you can see other large buildings, built for the 1911 World Expo, one today is known as the British School of Rome, the other is the Galleria Nazionale D’Arte Moderna with works from the 19th to 20th century. Both are formal and grand buildings in the Beaux Arts style. The Silvano Toti Globe Theatre is a copy of the Globe of London and presents Shakespeare’s Plays in Italian.

I always enjoyed this park, it is formal and relates to the history of Rome from antiquity, the vistas are enchanting so much so that Ottorino Respighi was inspired to composed the music entitled The Pines of Rome and I can see why.  Though Rome surrounds the gardens nowadays, it is very peaceful and quiet once you enter it.

View of the lake and the temple to the God of Medicine, Asclepius

Formal entrance from Via Flaminia, the gates speak of the grandeur of the Borghese Family with their coat of Arms and the Griffon and Eagle. The gates are closed at night. The Villa Borghese since 1903 is a public garden maintained by the City of Rome. The Borghese Family continues to this day, with assets in cosmetics, real estate, and other business lines with properties in Italy and in the USA.

Instagram

Tags

Instagram, Lisbon, Music, PANDEMIC

A month or so ago I thought to leave Facebook and since I have not been much on it except to check up on some people. What I really like now is Instagram, I post lots of photos of food and places and read about other people and look at their pictures. The format I find is cleaner and simpler and focuses on what you are doing at the time and there is none of the other nonsense or worse these exchanges that descend into insults and all manners of crazy people. Instagram has the advantage of letting you select what you want to see easily without all those suggestions about other sites. You can turn it into a Blog if you want and do other things, but I am content with simply posting my photos and letting it be.

Now this weekend and for about 7 days we will be incommunicado, our little Island does not have a complete coverage of the internet and many areas have NO signal. This is a significant problem for many people who happen to live outside of the main towns. About 90,000 people are affected by this daily, meaning that e-learning and school via the internet does not work here. School have been closed since 11 March 2020 and many kids expect to return to school in September and our Provincial Government is still working on a plan. We are off only 30 minutes away by the sea on the North Coast Kensington/ French River area. Even if the weather is not the best I am looking forward to this little escapade.

PEI has been lucky in this Pandemic and we had a long period of 2.5 months with no cases. In the last 10 days we now have 7 more cases from 2 individuals who travelled by plane upon their return infected 5 people. There may be more we will know in the next 48 hours when testing of all contact tracing is done. The Premier did say today that all options are now possible and one can be a mandatory wearing of face masks, the others could be returning to a lockdown. So we are all holding our breath.

Needless to say we are all dealing with depression, anxiety, stress, this situation is so abnormal and has put a strain on our lives. I really don’t know how we will manage the coming months. HOWEVER tonight a friend of ours said, we have all travelled so much in our lives, so true! and lived abroad for 25 years in grand style, not being able to travel now is really not a big deal. So true, yes it would be nice to go back to Europe etc. but we lack for nothing and so we can explore the beaches of PEI which we have to ourselves and imagine that beyond the waves we are looking at Europe.

What I do is listen to music which has the effect of transporting you in time or to a place. I also read just to occupy my mind and there are lots of topics to cover. So in terms of music this piece came to mind when thinking of Portugal. Lisbon the capital of Portugal a beautiful city and so pleasant to visit. I could live in Lisbon it is a very elegant and liveable city and listening to this old tune from decades ago captures the moment. I can relive being in the city. Lisbon Antigua was written in 1937, with music by Raul Portela and Portuguese lyrics by José Galhardo and Amadeu do Vale. Have a listen.

 

July 12, 2015

Tags

Death, Family, memories, Montreal, parents

On the afternoon of July 12, 2015 around 4pm as we were about to leave the house to go to a dinner BBQ at friends, the phone rang, a strange call, my sister was on the phone calling from NY City where she lives, she was in a panic and blurted out that our father was either dead or dying in Montreal. A few minutes prior to calling me she had received a call from the Hôtel Dieu Hospital telling her that our father was in a critical condition. He had gone out that afternoon to shop for some summer shoes at Holt Renfrew on Sherbrooke street, this was his favourite store. He was scheduled to go to Vermont to be with my sister and my brother-in-law for their Summer vacation. I was confused by the call and in the rush of her telling me what was happening I kept thinking how can you be dead or dying. Our Dad had not been in the best of health for several years, he had heart problems and COPD, his lungs were no longer functioning properly and every week he had to go to the hospital for treatment. But he refused to talk much about his health and did not elaborate much about it when we asked him. He was ok not to worry, had a team of good doctors he liked.

However that July 12 was a very hot and muggy day and when you have lung problems it is not the time to go out in the city. The muggy air of the streets did not help and arriving at the store inside was super cold with A/C. From what we were able to gather later, he felt un-well and collapsed, an ambulance was called and the first responders tried to revive him for over 30 minutes to no avail.

I remember my sister calling me a second time a few minutes after the initial call, I was rushing to get things organized to go to Montreal which is only 2 hours away by car from Ottawa. In the second call she had the hospital doctors on the line and I was told that despite best efforts, Dad had a very weak heartbeat and his lungs were not functioning. He was not going to recover, the doctors wanted to know what we wanted done. Should they continue to try to revive him despite no oxygen going to his brain, the doctor added that 45 minutes had now elapsed with this condition.  At that moment I simply remembered what both he and Mom years before I told us repeatedly about no extra measures to revive in such a case. So it was decided to let him go. There was no anguish about making that decision, there was no hope, it was simply the cold reality of what had happened and knowing how Dad was a proud man, neither me or my sister could imagine not respecting his wishes and putting him on a respirator and other modern medical machines, that was not what he would have wished. Our parents also believed that when your time has come you simply accept it, it’s that simple.

I did get in the car shortly thereafter and drove like a maniac on the highway down to Montreal. I was hoping in a strange way that he would still be alive, but I knew that it was not going to be that way.

I arrived in Montreal around 7pm and was greeted by a nurse who told me right away that he had died. Yes I know I said to her. She then asked me if I would sign the forms for his release from the hospital to the care of the Medical Faculty of McGill University. It was just a simple formality, Dad had made all the arrangements with his team of doctors, all from McGill and the Royal Vic Hospital. I knew that, he had told me and I thought how organized he was. I was then shown to his room where he lay. My cousin who had always been close to my parents, was there waiting for me. Neither of us knew what to say. He looked as he always did when I observed him sleeping in his chair in the living room in the afternoon but this time it was different.

My sister was on her way to Montreal driving as quickly as possible she arrived around midnight exhausted. My brother arrived 2 days later coming from Florida and having difficulty arranging flights on extremely short notice.

After the hospital I went to his apartment in Westmount, it is only then that it hit me, seeing all his things arranged methodically, everything in order, that he would not be coming back to his home. I sat on the sofa and looked at his chair, I could feel his presence, all was quiet, peaceful.

Our mother had died two years previously in her sleep and he had predicted that he would be gone in two years. When he told me this, I scoffed, come on Dad don’t say things like that.

Today my sister is in Vermont on vacation at the cottage as she would have been back then had he not died. I spoke to her and she told me that she had been thinking of him all week. I too had been thinking of the approaching date. He would have been 90 years old this year.

At lunch with Dad at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal. 

 

 

 

 

 

Worried

Tags

depression, disasters, no future, the end, uncertainty

So far 2020 has been one long disaster and everything is so strange that it is difficult to just go on since nothing is normal and the future is very uncertain.

There is a lot of fear in the air, people do not think in a rational manner, the irrational is the norm, nothing is logical nor reasonable.

While it appears that in Canada and in the Maritimes we have past the worst of this pandemic and it is now behind us, this is not so for the rest of the world. However here in Charlottetown and elsewhere with no tourist season, for us in PEI this means grave consequences come the Fall and Winter, there is going to be real poverty and want.

Coupled with this pandemic, weird events happen, this morning at 06:30 am a man ran through the gate of Rideau Hall with his truck. This is the Official Residence of the Governor General and in another house on the Estate the Prime Minister has his residence.  This guy was armed to the teeth and it turns out he is a member of the Armed Forces. Luckily neither the Governor General nor the Prime Minister where present. This guy was upset and wanted to talk to the PM.

Last week we had the BLM march and the Native Live matter march, everyone wants change and want it now. Many strange statements have been made, opinion pieces appear in the media. Not much is articulated properly, it is just a grab bag of agendas and demands, most come from various groups who present themselves as victims. One demand is to get rid of Canadian history as a whole and come up with a new politically correct history that would force the dead to confess to wrong doing committed 100 plus years ago. There is no point in stating that the past is gone and dead and you cannot change it, no one is listening.

For those people, Canada is the worst place on Earth to live. I wonder where would they be happy. There have been other events since January to disturb the normal course of life and coupled with this Pandemic it all becomes surreal and difficult to cope.

The bridge is re-opening in just about 45 minutes to allow us to cross to the mainland and vice-versa, however the procedure to do so is similar to that of going across an International border and requires prior registration online. I can see long lines of cars and several hour of delays simply to enter or exit the Island.

We were also warned today by the Chief Medical Officer of PEI that in all likelyhood we will see new cases of Covid19 on the Island in the coming weeks and months. At the moment no one is paying attention because it is Summer.

The future if we can call it that, is very uncertain and it is difficult to live with so much uncertainty. Maybe there is no future, maybe the world as we knew it ended in 2019.

 

 

Allons danser

Tags

Canada., Holiday, Summer

Allons danser sous les ormeaux, animez-vous jeunes fillettes, galants prenez vos chalumeaux! an aria of the opera by French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau composed in 1752 in Fontainbleau. Painting of the goddesses by Antoine Watteau.

Perfect music for the Summer, carefree and joyous on the Eve of Canada’s National Day 1 July. Grateful to live in such a peaceful and stable country.

A guy from Montreal

Tags

Bilodeau, French, Montreal, Music

The first time I heard this singer on Radio-Canada from Montreal which is the HQ of the French radio national network. This fellow is quite young 23 yrs old and has been singing since he was 16. He has become in popular culture somewhat of a sensation. The first time I heard him sing while driving, I thought this guy is from Montreal, he has that accent all French speaking Montrealers have, it is very distinct. The song title is an expression, J’en ai plein mon cass, it’s an expression in French of being fed up, literally meaning my hat is full, that’s it enough. Usually used when you are fed up with a situation. The text goes on to talk about pot holes in the streets, which is Montreal is endemic, called in French Nid de poule or chicken’s nest. He goes on to talk about other situations which no one can control but affects you daily. It is a song about becoming an adult and dealing with adult issues in life. His other songs are equally entertaining.

I like it because he speaks to things everyone experiences. It is just a fun song.

Emile Bilodeau, J’en ai plein mon cass.

 

Grooming day

Tags

cuisine, dachshunds, Food, Italy, Vet

Well Monday 15 June is grooming day for our little Dachshunds, it has been many months since the last grooming and we are happy they can get it done. Next week we are going to the Vet Clinic for their annual shots and physical exam. Both are 11 and half years old and in good health. Though we have noticed that Nick is becoming anxious if I leave the house and he does not like to be left on his own.

Nora now barks at the smallest noise, which is annoying but she looks around and seems nervous. She also had another episode of what could be described as some kind of stroke, though it was short and quickly resolved itself. But we took her to the Vet Clinic immediately and within one hour the Vet told us that she was stable and could come home. We don’t know exactly what happened. But we do realize that we have two old dogs who are used to their daily routine and as long as it is not disturbed all is well. It has to be said that they are spoiled and like good Dachshunds always try to control what is going on, just too clever I think.

After Nick’s grooming and a snooze, so stressful, even a cookie does not compensate enough. He has the most beautiful colouring, old gold and dark chocolate. 

Nora, back at home and resting in Nick’s kennel, which annoys him but he puts up with it. Though she is one week older than Nick, same colouring but tuffs of grey hair here and there.

Today Tuesday 16 June, the Art Gallery of the Confederation Centre re-opened after 3 months of closure due to the pandemic. We were the first to arrive and the new sanitary procedures are in place, the exhibits are those of March since the gallery closed a few days after they were unveiled. They will now be on show until September 27. The 2020 Summer show has been postponed until next Summer 2021.

Lemieux, Fathers of Confederation

Many stores in town have closed permanently due to the pandemic and no tourists. Many restaurants will not open while other did open with a new menu and new Chef. One such place is Terra Rossa on Queen Street, new (well known) Chef, and a newish concept returning to the original idea for this Italian regional cuisine restaurant, sorry no pizza, no spaghetti. A grocerant/eatery with lots of specialty products like fresh anchovies in oil or burrata or N’Duya sausage, charcuterie from various regions of Italy and cheeses, most if not all unavailable in PEI up to now, so you see a refinement of gourmet offering. Fresh Anchovy as a fish is very delicate in flavour and can be eaten as is or on toast or in pasta or salad. This was a real find. A wine bar is also part of the establishment.  We were at Terra Rossa this morning and am very impressed with the place. Happy to see they have returned to the concept of four years ago which had been abandoned by a previous owner with little success and now re-instated with this new owner.

Sunday and Saturday we met with friends we had not seen in the last 3 months and it was so nice to actually see people in person, to talk and enjoy sweets. This is one thing that this pandemic has made us realize, the importance of friends.

 

 

 

 

 

Stepping back from…

Tags

FB

I joined Facebook in 2008 and never really liked the concept or the way discussions took place. Someone said; Facebook is where you argue with perfect strangers and trade insults. FB is also a place where people post things with little understanding of what they are posting and in many cases involving social or political issues, it is false and misleading. I am also tired of reading stuff about Trump or the USA. It’s not my country, I do not vote in the US Elections and for me it is a foreign country like any other. So I do not care and I am more interested in what happens in Canada where I live and am a taxpayer and voting citizen. We have serious issues in Canada to deal with and that is quite enough for me.

I have also grown disenchanted to put it mildly with the level of Civic Illiteracy amongst people in general who do not understand how our Canadian Parliamentary system work,  how our various levels of government function, from Municipal, Provincial to Federal, it’s not all the same and each have separate powers and jurisdictions. Same for our judicial system, imagine having to explain repeatedly that our judges are independent of political machinations, giving out judgements based on how the Law is written and being mindful of our Constitution and the Charter, many simply do not understand this basic concept.  If this has to be explained each time an issue surfaces, well in that case, we have a serious problem. FB is simply not a good medium for any adult discussion. There is also far too much bait and switch coming from the media.

I am also tired on FB and on Instagram to a lesser extend with all the hatred and awful comments from people who imagine that they have a right to make a spectacle of their ignorance and be proud of it or who belong to extremist groups and think they have a right to insult freely, a dangerous thing to do on PEI with our little population of 150k or Charlottetown at 36K.

So I am stepping back from FB, enough is enough and I am not in the mood to discuss with people who are only concerned with themselves and ME,ME,ME why the world is not obeying their selfish wishes.

I have had a blog now since 1998, it started with LiveJournal, then it migrated to Blogspot and now WordPress. Readers know that my blog is a personal journal of the many things I like, from food to travel, to music, various topics on archeology, history, art and culture or simply on books I read or reminiscence of things past. I can actually say I remember the 1960’s it is sort of scary but hey its a fact.

Blogs are a way to express yourself and discover what other people think or how they feel. I have made long distance friends on my blog, pretty much like my life a long distance story over decades in many countries. To me this is a much better place than FB any given day.

I chose this painting of a writer because the subject is left handed like me.