Eva – Où vont les fleurs? (Where Have All the Flowers Gone?) 1965.
Eva Killutat was born in Berlin in 1943 and died in Montreal in March 2020. On the stage she was simply Eva, she was a very popular singer in both German and French and had a career in Europe and in the Café of Paris, She then came to Canada and was immensely popular in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Her voice suited the times and the culture of the counter culture, anti-war, peace movement. I remember her and those songs. This song was translated into English.
This being the 15 August, it is the National Day of the Acadian people who established themselves in 1604 all over the Maritime Provinces until their mass deportation by British troops mostly from the 13 colonies in New England in 1755.
It is also Ferragosto the start of the Summer vacation for many Europeans but Italians in particular. A time of year when we drove from Rome to Pesaro on the Adriatic to attend the Rossini Festival and enjoy the seaside.
The weather today turned from hot and humid to cool and breezy announcing the end of Summer. This happens here every year like clockwork, still very pleasant around 22 C but tonight it is going down to 14 C which is definitely fresh.
My second choice of music is the old song, Georgia on my Mind by a famous singer who unfortunately died young of diabetes, Mildred Bailey. A 1941 recording.
It has been a beautiful summer, lots of sunshine and hot days, I remember 2019 was cold and rainy, what a pleasant change. Now we arrive at the Ides of August without the usual Gold Saucer and Cup Week however given the nice weather many are at the beach and we had the opportunity to go to French River in the New London area and what fun that was.
So Ferragosto, the August Feast is upon us and many of my friends in Italy are at the seaside or in the mountains. Everyone is deserting the city and enjoying between 2 to 4 weeks of vacation. Here in PEI we will see friends and have quite a few social engagement within our bubble, Covid19 oblige!
Tonight we went across the street for dinner, today was a scorcher of a day, so hot and so humid. I remember 40C in Jordan and in Egypt but it was dry desert heat and you do not perspire, so the heat is tolerable. The hot humid air is difficult to tolerate. So it was easier to go to the restaurant, we had some halibut and potato salad, sitting outside with a nice breeze talking with the owner. Afterwards we went to see the sail boats on the river returning to the Charlottetown Marina. Lots of nice sails and we recognized some friends as they enter the marina.
The breeze on the river tonight was very refreshing. The view from the Federal Dock of the river as it stretches towards the entrance to the Strait of Northumberland is quite nice, at dusk you see the various lighthouse blinking in the distance.
The sun is shining and the weather is quite warm, so it is time to go out. Friday afternoon we returned for the first time since February to the Club. Much improvements and changes, new paint job, new light fixtures and redecoration. Exterior work has been done and it all looks better. After drinks in the garden we walked by to our home just down the street and decided to have dinner at the Water Prince restaurant, the owner came to chat and told us that the price of lobster is $6.49 per pound, it has not been that low in 10 years, the main factor being that external markets have disappeared. Currently with the economic war China is waging against Canada over that dreadful communist official Ms Meng of G5 /Huawei, who faces extradition to the USA for espionage and fraud and the hostage diplomacy China has engaged in, China is blocking Canadian exports. There are 183 Canadians at the moment being held in Chinese jails, one is a Canadian Diplomat and the other a tour operator, the two Michaels. We know they have been tortured and held in solitary confinement for 18 months now. Our Ambassador in the PRC has been visiting them whenever he is allowed to do so.
We had a very nice dinner, I had a pound of Mussels, the food at the Water Prince is very good and it is always nice atmosphere.
Of course we must still follow the rules on health when in public, though given that we have NO cases in PEI now for the last 2 months, many feel it is over, but it is not, we are all bracing for the second wave in the Fall.
Today was another lovely day and we drove to Victoria by the Sea which is a very small settlement going West towards the Confederation Sea Bridge at Borden. Basically 4 streets and a small harbour for fishing boats. Our doctor lives in Victoria by the Sea, her husband is a fisherman. It is about a 25 minute drive to Charlottetown probably faster if she uses the By-Pass around Cornwall.
Victoria in the last few years has seen the constructions of many new luxury homes, luckily they all blend into the natural scenery. There is one large house going up on a cliff extending out to sea, looking at it from a distance I thought like many, who would want to live there in Winter when a sea storm is coming in with the fierce and howling winds, the owners probably think it is probably romantic. The house is very exposed on 3 sides to the sea with no trees or any natural protection, it is a promontory. How strange.
We had lunch in the Sunshine at Richard’s, a very famous take-out place on PEI. Everyone swears by it and there is always a crowd. The specialty is lobsters served in various forms and oysters. This restaurant is the second one, the original Richard’s is in Covehead harbour on the North shore. Both are Seasonal and only open in Mid-May and will close by Mid-September. The lobster roll is wonderful, they use the old style hotdog buns that you can toast and stuff a lobster in the bread with a mix of celery and coleslaw. It is quite a meal and we walked around the village afterwards, again this year despite the fact that all the eateries are open, some shops are not opening and the Orient Hotel which is a pension is closed. This pandemic has played havoc with tourist traffic this year. Many businesses will go under or will be sold off to competitor. Though the Maritime bubble is opening allowing us to travel to Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Newfoundland without the quarantine period. The Government also allows people who own a cottage to come BUT they must ask permission first and give a time and date of arrival plus prove ownership of a cottage on the Island and give a plan of how they will manage their quarantine if they come from other provinces like Ontario. Those people from Quebec can cross by car from the Quebec border with New Brunswick and are allowed to drive all the way to Souris in PEI for the ferry to les Iles de la Madeleine which is a sandbar part of Quebec, the only problem is that they cannot stop anywhere on the way and this is a 12 hour car trip. There is also a requirement that they cross into New Brunswick after 8pm meaning that it is dangerous to drive in the dark, it is moose country and already an accident happened last week when a driver hit a moose which weighs on average one ton. No death this time only serious injuries and the car is totally destroyed.
Canada Day is coming up on Wednesday 1 July, this year it will be a virtual celebration and there are no public display for health reason. The weather says rain that day.
In PEI after Old Home Week 15 August, the last week of August feels like the end of the tourist Season, families disappear over night replaced by older couples with no kids. Motel and camp grounds empty and you know that as of 1 September tourist spots and restaurants catering to them will start to close. We will still have Cruise ship traffic until November but there will be less to do for the tourists.
The PEI Tourism Board has tried to lenghten the Season into a shoulder Season at least until mid-December but that is very difficult, the merchants are not interested for the most part. They made their money and now they move to Florida for the next six months. In the Spring we would benefit from early opening of tourist restaurants and bars around 15 April because the first Cruise ships do arrive on 1 May. But no, that again is difficult to do, many businesses open around 1 June, this makes for a very short Season.
Despite promising myself I would go to the beach this Summer we never went, until 15 July the weather was cold and miserable and then it became hot and unpleasant. We are both busy with volunteer work and one thing after another and we stayed in town.
We did go to Rustico to the Watermark theatre and discovered a new restaurant with very good food owned by a Portuguese couple. We also attended our friend S.D. Summer party in New Glasgow which is always fun. We went to Victoria by the Sea to see our friend J.D. at his antique shop. The Landmark Café has a new owner and it is great food and service as always. There were some other social engagements but other than that not much really.
On Monday we travel to catch a flight to Amsterdam which will make for a complete change of venue. Our friend B.P. is coming from Ottawa to babysit the puppies.
In the meantime here are some photos of our Old Home Week parade which is such a tradition here in Charlottetown in August.
The Royal Canadian Navy from HMCS Charlottetown
Lots of ACADIAN flags since the World Congress was taking place in August. Looks like the flag of France but it has a Yellow Star on it.
The Lieutenant Governor of PEI with her Aide de Camp in the carriage.
The Belfast PEI, Bag pipes, they practice in the park across the street from our home. Nice group.
The Canadian Army PEI Regiment with their regimental flag (Black and yellow)
The float of the Mayor and City Councillors in a canoe no less.
The Royal Canadian Air Force Band
The Mi’kmaq of Abegweit (AKA PEI)
And the best band of the parade bar none, a group of music teachers and professional musicians including the Green Party Leader, who is also leader of the Official Opposition in the PEI Legislature plays the trumpet, talk of versatile politician. This group is known for its zany costumes, always a big hit with the crowd.
Well Summer arrived on the 4th July, yesterday and last night was still cold around 16C and cloudy, wet. We had a cold, very wet April, May and June.
In 24 hours, so Canadian, we are now into hot and muggy, we have, in Island speak, the muggies, 25C hot and humid with a small breeze. We have a hear warning for the coming days, with the humidity factor temperatures could soar to 31C. I am not complaining, I will take it.
I am not complaining, it is now warm enough to go to the Beach and just enjoy the sunshine, a nice lobster and some fresh oysters.
Here are some shots of today, it is also Lupin time, they are everywhere you look, on the road in rural area and in gardens, they grow wild here.
Lavender in the garden of the Confederation Centre.
Wild Lupins in my neighbours yard.
Price Flag on the marquis of the Holman Grand Hotel, downtown Charlottetown. Despite the 100 year old facade this is a modern hotel with a very good restaurant.
Road kill by Gerald Beaulieu, on the terrace of the Art gallery of the Confederation Centre. Was created 2 years ago make entirely of recycled tires.
Lupins in the wild at French River in PEI with potato field of course in the background.
We returned from Ottawa a few days ago, it was our first visit in 3 years. A 90 minute quiet flight from Charlottetown. The plane a regional jet 50 seats was half empty and it was the same upon our return, strange it should be full at this time of the year but the weather has been so cold and rainy, not pleasant for tourists or us.
We saw a lot of people in Ottawa and I got to visit the National Gallery of Canada and meet with my old colleagues. Very kindly gave me a 90 minute presentation on the wonderful changes in the museum. Very impressive, the NGC is amongst the top 10 art galleries in the world. The new Canadian and Native wing is spectacular, in the set up of the gallery both the Algonquin and Ojibway people were brought in for consultations on how to display the various artifacts. All of it is displayed with sensitivity amongst Canadian art of the same period. I also visited the other galleries on Renaissance and Baroque art, modern and contemporary. A computer now controls all the LED lights and is programmed to sense when a gallery is empty of people or when people walk in, the computer adjust lighting accordingly. Doors open by themselves as you approach given their size its a good thing. The museum now has 2 restaurants and a coffee shop and a new revamped gift shop with beautiful books. I do miss the National Gallery.
On the steps leading to the NGC Director’s Office, words by Joi T. Arcand of the Muskeg Lake Cree Nation in Saskatchewan. Written in Plains Cree (Y dialect) expressing hope and encouragement to all Indigenous people who struggle to keep their language alive.
Note to readers yesterday was the last day of the 42sd Parliament of Canada, the House rose for the Summer and will not reconvene since we will have a general election in October. The House and Senate passed bill C-91 a new law to protect 60 Native languages in Canada. This will give official recognition to indigenous languages and create a position of Native language commissioner similar to the one we have for French and English, Canada’s 2 Official non-indigenous languages. Also today in Montreal, Amherst street in the downtown core named after a British General who committed crimes against humanity in the 1750’s against Native groups in Canada by distributing contagious smallpox infected blankets to natives in an act of genocide. The street will now bare a Iroquois name ATATEKEN, meaning peace and brotherhood.
Entrance to the renovated and re-organized gallery. Well worth a visit and take an audio-guide, so you understand what is on display. This multi-million dollar project was part of the Canada 150 Celebration.
I also visited the other galleries of renaissance, baroque and modern art. Many things have changed and it was a pleasure to see many of the art works I knew well and had presented in the past.
This work is entitled: Olive Garden of Eden by Chloe Wise of Montreal. Using a marble podium it becomes the overwrought support for a toppled Cesar salad – an ”Italian” food stuff invented by émigré Cesar Cardini in Mexico in 1920. Wise who is known for her realistic sculptures, here plays on notion of artifice and authenticity in our Western consumer society, obsessed with branding and marketing.
Charles Meynier, 1810, Wisdom (Minerva) defending youth from the arrows of Love. This French painting done at the height of Napoleon’s Empire presents the young hero poised between a life of empty sensual pleasure at the sight of the sleeping Venus and one of struggle and glory. Minerva shield defends him from the arrows of love. The idea of his sacrifice to duty resonates here with the Empire’s cult of military virtue and service to the Nation. Hopefully he makes the right choice.
The Court of the reflecting pool whose bottom is the ceiling to the other hall entrance to the museum below.
The garden Courtyard re-imagined in a Japanese style design.
My colleagues also invited me to visit the Paul Gauguin (1848-1903) exhibit of self-portraits. It gave a good background on his life and family, he was married and had 5 kids, though his wife left him and returned with said children to Denmark when he decided to quit his job as an investment banker and become a full time painter travelling around the world and dying at 54 in French Polynesia.
It is the eye of ignorance that assigns a fixed and unchangeable color to every object; beware of this stumbling block.
I was not aware that he worked with many French artists like Monet, Césanne, Matisse but also with Van Gogh. He was a friend of French poet Mallarmé.
Jerry and I get around. In 2011, we moved from the USA to Spain. We now live near Málaga. Jerry y yo nos movemos. En 2011, nos mudamos de EEUU a España. Ahora vivimos cerca de Málaga.
Tutto iniziò con Memorie di Adriano, sulle strade dell'Impero Romano tra foto, storia e mito - It all began with Memoirs of Hadrian, on the roads of the Roman Empire among photos, history and myth!
Telling the stories of the history of the port of Charlottetown and the marine heritage of Northumberland Strait on Canada's East Coast. Winner of the Heritage Award from the PEI Museum and Heritage Foundation and a Heritage Preservation Award from the City of Charlottetown
Lots of ACADIAN flags since the World Congress was taking place in August. Looks like the flag of France but it has a Yellow Star on it.
