Yes, that’s basically our address. About a week ago, we rented another car and left Paris. Les Volets Bleus is our house, an old French farm house with blue shutters. Montjouan is the little hamlet of a half dozen houses and outlying farms in the region of the village of Larochemillay, a hill top town with a church, government building, and the charming home & school of some new acquaintances, Janna & Sjaak, teacher/artists. The Morvan is a national park area in Burgundy that features many hikes through natural deciduous and planted evergreen forests, as well as rolling farm pastures enclosing white cows in well-groomed hedges. But an address like that does not go easily into GPS, and thus we got a bit lost getting here.

ML thought “Step” was short for Stephan, so in asking a little old couple on the outskirts of Larochemillay where Les Volets Bleus was we mentioned Stephan. They smiled, nodded, and directed us to another little farm up the road, which was not our destination, but did feature a Stephan who not only helped us with a map, but let us use his phone to call Janna and tell her we were lost. They had a great set up, but soon we found our way to our own great set up at Les Volets Bleus.

The property is owned by Step (short for Stephanie!) Vaessen, a Dutch journalist who works for Aljazeera in Indonesia. The house has many Asian artifacts, along with the quiet charm of the French countryside. Over the last several days we have visited the hilltop village and old abbey of Vezelay, gone bike riding along the Loire and Nivernais canal, hiked near Chiddes, had a nice lunch in the town of Autun, and visited the ancient Gaul site of Bibracte. Details forthcoming…?

In addition to some of the classic venues, the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Notre Dame, Luxembourg Gardens, etc., we did a couple things I have not experienced in Paris before.

One evening we went to an organ recital at Notre Dame. While I enjoyed some of the older pieces, including Bach, most of the program was modern which was not to my taste. What was to my taste was this seemingly impromptu community art work of locks (each with two names written, presumably representing committed relationships) along the bank of the Seine. 

And in an effort to keep the kids happy, I researched playgrounds in Paris which led us to La Villette, a huge cultural venue built some years ago on the site of an old industrial area. It featured a huge science museum, music hall, and lots of playgrounds with cool features. We spent the whole day there – much fun.

On our last day in Paris, Mary Lynn took Veronica to a Marc Chagall exhibit that we’d come across in La Villette the day before, and I took Charlie to the Musee d’Orsay.  I’ve already discussed aspects of the art experience and art museum attendance (Paris, Pt. 3: The Louvre), so here I’ll only give you a link to the Musee d’Orsay (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mus%C3%A9e_d%27Orsay) and ask for your “impressions.”

If one contemplates all the art and architecture in Paris, it is too overwhelming. The Louvre itself is overwhelming and simply cannot be visited meaningly in one day. Yet, that is what many people do, and in the process where to they go? The Mona Lisa bien sur, and they take their photos to document the pilgrimage, often missing the majesty on the opposite wall, the side walls, or in the current configuration of Salle 6, behind the wall.

It reminds me of thinking about the poor sap who did the floor of the Sistine Chapel. One of my kids asked, “why is that one painting so famous.” And while I tried to give a meaningful answer about enigmatic smiles and chiaroscuro, I’ve asked the question myself many times. And when one experiences the myriad other works of art that exhibit similar feats of technique, majesty, allure, et je ne sais quoi, one wonders at memes, icons, clichés, canons, and the eclipsing power of fame.

The power of art is in the epiphany, for a person or a people. It can be transcendent or trendy, elegant or elusive, distinguished or disturbing, and I’ve learned that the more I like, the greater my net wealth. I like the title of a book by actor Vincent Price (who, when not acting in scary movies, was a great art connoisseur) “I Like What I Know,” an obvious twist on the ignorati phrase “I know what I like.” But I’ll admit, I often don’t know why I like something. Is it the composition, the color, the content? Is it the era, the artist, the effort, the idea? Whether the medium or the message or both, it is a joy to learn, to look, and to have those “aaahhh” moments…

Nonetheless, museum tramping is not for the weak. The walking, the standing, the reading, the occasional jostling for perspective, and of course the mental exercise of seeing can be exhausting. Add to that the explaining of lighting, brushstrokes, Biblical tales, context, or especially nakedness to pre-teens who forgot to use the potty or just want to sit down, well it makes for another kind of “aaahhh” moment.

In any case, here’s a little slideshow of art in the Louvre that I experienced, however fleetingly, during several hours one day in October 2015. It is of course random and a fraction of the collection in no particular order. What do you like?

My slogan, motto, subtitle for this lil’ blog, “chance favors the prepared mind,” is attributed to Louis Pasteur who acknowledged being the beneficiary of serendipity, but having the perspicacity to recognize a chance for which he was prepared.

I’d like to believe that I’m prepared for whatever delightful happenstances may come my way, but I’m using the phrase to advocate for preparation itself – constant and continuous. Further, I am acknowledging that all those chances, all those subtle observations, miscellaneous awarenesses, serendipitous chance events are keys to preparing the mind.

I like to say that educating a child is a long season, perhaps meaning that all the strike outs, wild pitches, double plays, errors, and straight up losses may get one into the play-offs after all – and then the season only gets longer. And while a little alliterative, the phrase “life long learner” is often tossed about without much meaning, when it is so essential to a meaningful life. Preparing the mind should never stop, unless there are no more chances left, but chances are, there will be.

Further, its not about me, it’s about my kids, and its about all the students I’ve ever had or will have – and especially the ones I won’t. I want all of them to have the chances to prepare their minds. I want them to embrace serendipity as opportunity, to live for the haps whatever the hazards, love their mistakes, find the happy in the accidents, and look at every random event as a chance to learn.

Not long ago I distinguished between being dumb and being stupid. Now that we’ve spent some time in Europe, that bastion of culture and birthplace of Enlightenment, I’m afraid to say there are a lot of stupid people here. Here’s another controversial pronouncement: I’m kind of proud of the US (and esp. NZ). At least from my limited window on the world, it seems like more people smoke cigarettes in Europe than in the US. Perhaps its California, because statistically I might be wrong (France v. US): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_cigarette_consumption_per_capita but: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2012/10/19/who-smokes-most-a-surprising-map-of-smoking-rates-by-country/ or not: http://www.realclearscience.com/journal_club/2012/11/10/who_smokes_more_americans_or_europeans_106403.html and then: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-03-13/europeans-are-world-s-biggest-smokers-and-drinkers-who

In any case, wherever we go it seems like more people than not are smoking. In the US, packs of cigarettes have a warning label that says something about the Surgeon General dissuading folks from using tobacco, in smallish print on the side of the box. In the EU, packs of cigarettes have a warning label that say “Smoking Kills,” in big letters on the front of the box (in France, “Fumer Tue”). Yet it seems, in spite of the warnings and the science behind them, a helluvalot of people here in Europe smoke cigarettes.

Of course, it is notoriously hard to quit smoking. I’ve had some friends and colleagues who are wonderful people, but are hooked. Years ago, we had Dr. Jeffrey Wigand (the tobacco industry “Insider” who exposed the lies about nicotine addiction on 60 minutes) speak to students in the Naturalist Academy at North Hollywood High. I’m pretty sure those kids got the message, and I know schools have been good at advertising the virtues of not smoking.

I suspect the main culprit is culture, the main cause is doing what other people do. When you are surrounded by smokers, you smoke – maybe. It is baffling however that intelligent people who know better and have scientific proof of the error of their ways keep doing something so stupid.

And it doesn’t just kill you, it’s expensive. I’m pretty sure a pack is over $5, so only one a day is $35 a week, $150 a month, or over $1800 a year. Invested, that’s money one could retire on. Smoked, I guess you won’t have to afford retirement, you’ll be dead.

Some pix: La Tour Eiffel (from Montparnasse, below & on top), Louvre contents (a smidge) and environs, Notre Dame (inside & out), Sacre Coeur & Montmartre Wine Festival, the Pompidou, and some lovely new friends: Quentin & Alejandra (and not in that order).   

Many lament many others fiddling with phones. The immersion of the masses into their ever smaller screens is ridiculed with reason, but it depends. When teen textsters repeat, “Sup, nuttin, TTYLXOX,” when commuters game, when workers shop, and when all of us zombie-out on trivia, yeahOK, its a crutch/distraction/problem/festeringclusterf…

But if you’re truly and constantly figuring out where you are, what happened when, who-how-why, well then the internet not only rocks, its necessary. I want 24/7, broadest of band, all you can eat wifi. Why? Because maps, translations, background information, hot tips, inside scoops, current events, and basic guidebook stuff is so essential for successful traveling. And at the end of the day, when you might be reminded of what you didn’t do, didn’t see, didn’t read, you can google it, then go to bed fulfilled. 

I could go on, but you’re already gettin’ it with this internet connection. Unfortunately, a lot of Europe doesn’t. There’s more free cafe wifi in France than Germany, but that might be city vs. countryside. In any case, the greatest advancement in education worldwide will come in two phases: when the internet is ubiquitous, and when people want to use it to expand their minds, increase their awareness, and connect with others (rather than fiddle, diddle, and dither).

Trechtingshausen has turned out to be a great place for experiencing the Rhine River Valley which is now a UNESCO heritage site because of the many castles found along its banks. One of them (Rheinenstein, currently being restored and filled with 1600 hunting trophies) is a three minute walk down the street from our house here. One of the best (Rheinstein, fully restored and filled with artefacts from the generations of Wiltbergs who lived in the castle from its construction before 1190 until the mid 1800s) is a five minute drive toward Bingen (of Hildegard von…).  In fact we’ve been up and down the Rhine in our car, on bikes, and on one of the many cruise ships that share the river with even more barges. And if the barges weren’t enough, there are train tracks as well as highways on both sides of the river. 

Not only have we been on the go, good wifi has been scarce, and WordPress doesn’t work very well – horribly slow photo uploads and I can’t make it look the way I’d like. Thus, have I not posted for several days…

Nonetheless, its been a busy several days. After exploring the Rhine, we spent a day in Mainz, explored the pedestrian zone & a cathedral, and learned a little about Martin Luther and Johannes Gutenberg. The next day we drove to Paris via Luxembourg and arrived at our little flat in La Chapelle. It is very small and funky (euphemism for rather dilapidated), but in a vibrant multi-cultural neighborhood, near many shops & cafes, and around the corner from a Metro station. Besides, we’ve only spent some hours here today after last nights festivities.

After going to the Eiffel Tower and merely looking at the long lines to go up, we made our way to Montmartre for the Fete des Vendages (an annual wine festival). This charming yet touristy locale was particularly packed for the event. But we stayed, enjoyed the festival vendors and the street performers, and watch the fireworks show that night. We met some new friends who will take us up the Montparnasse Tower this evening, and had an adventure coming home through the throngs of revelers on a Saturday night in Paris.