BLEAK OUTLOOK

Things are looking a little bleak here in Donegal. The recession has finally caught up with Oideas Gael. The boom years, when the prestige of having the president study here, are definitely over. This week there are only 70 people taking classes, at least half of whom are not here primarily for the language (harpers and hill walkers),

Things are not much better in the village. Biddy's pub is closed and the other two pubs are not as full each night. Here at Roarty's there are only two rooms rented for the week. There was a Danish group here when I arrived but they stayed only one night. Things are very quiet here!

WHEN JOHNNY COMES MARCHING HOME

There was a big parade in Montsoreau today.  The mayor received a contingent of soldiers at the chateau then inspected the troops as they marched up and down the street.

But what was it all about?  Was it related in some way to the 70th anniversary of D-Day?  Or was it something to do with the liberation of our départment from the Nazies?

The French love to celebrate their fallen comrades.  They have no problem acknowledging their interventions around the world (mostly in Africa) and their soldiers "mort pour la patrie".

By contrast, I could not find any monument in England that memorialized the fallen in the wars in Ireland.  Whether there was a war or whether it was just "the Troubles", it seems to me that England should remember their children who fell to keep Ireland under the thumb of their kings and queens.

OUT OF EDEN

I went to Brittany for a few days.  When I came back at least one business had closed while I was away.  THE WEDDING OF THE CENTURY was to be flowered by this florist.  Now, Les Willis will have to scramble to find an alternative.

In general, the economy has improved a little since last year.  In our village, there have been several houses that have recently sold after being on the market for a long time.  There is lots of work going on in these buildings.  

Right now M. Hollande is grappling with a train strike, the first industrial unrest he has had to deal with since he became president.  The minister of Public Education has had to give a dispensation to any kid who arrives late to their BAC exam because of the strike.  I am not sure what the issues are in the strike but there hasn't been much coverage or analysis in the press.

Yesterday, I went to Saumur to get a phone line installed.  I already have my BBOX from Bouygues but they couldn't install it because there is no phone line.  Phone lines can only be leased from FranceTelecom (Orange) so that's where I had to go yesterday.  I stood in line for about 45 minutes before I saw a "counsellor".  They couldn't care less if I bought something or not, or spent any money in their business.  It's not hard to see why France is still in recession.

VILLAGE FLEURI

GUÉRANDE

BRITTANY ROADTRIP

We are on a road trip to Brittany.  I rented a car to pick up Rich and Mercedes from Nantes airport.  We drove to Saint Nazaire because everything was booked in Nantes - this week the Giants were running in the street like the bulls in Pamplona.  We are going to stop in Nantes on the way home tomorrow to maybe catch a glimpse (I wonder will there be any Americans gored like in Pamplona every year).

We kinda like Saint Nazaire even though it's a gritty kid brother to Nantes.  We walked out on the waterfront last night with the full moon illuminating the American monument.  Today we got on the road to Guerande.  We stopped in a very pretty village called LePouligon for galettes and coffee.  Things were closed for lunch in Guerande so we continued on to Vannes and spent a good long time exploring the old city.  We ended up in Carnac where we tramped through the UFO landing strips and had dinner at a cute little restaurant in the downtown.

We are back "home" in Saint Nazaire waiting for the inevitable cheers from the World Cup game in the bar below us.

Old airport, no riots. But plenty of police activity.

Le Sabayon

Full moon over Saint Nazaire waterfront.

BÉAL AN CHALAIDH - PORTSMOUTH

 

I spent the day exploring Portsmouth with Liana and Philip.  We started off in the discount mall section but with a little prodding from me they admitted that Portsmouth had an old town that I might be interested in seeing.  Portsmouth suffered heavy bombardments during WWII because of its status as headquarters of the Royal Navy.  Much of the city was rebuilt in Nondescript Style.  Interestingly, while there was much information about what buildings and sections of the city were destroyed by the German bombardments there was no information about what German cities suffered English bombardment.
We had lunch in a traditional pub close to the Catholic cathedral.  Afterwards, we explored the cathedral, a very strange building that looked a little like a mosque with minerets.  We saw a facsimile of the marriage register recording the marriage between Charles II and Catherine of Braganza which took place in Portsmouth.  One of his many mistresses, Louise Renée de Penancoet de Kérouaille was made Duchess of Portsmouth in 1673.

IDSWORTH

My hosts in Petersfield, Liana and Philip, took me to see an 11th century hunters' church in the fields close to Petersfield.  Saint Hubert's Church in Idsworth was built by the Saxons and added to by the Normans.  It has a fine lampe de mort and frescos that were covered up during the Wars of Religion and rediscovered in the 19th century.  One fresco in particular, depicts scenes from the life of Saint Hubert who converted to Christianity when he saw a stag with antlers in the form of the crucifiction.  Another scene is of the banquet where Saint John the Baptist's head was served after the consommé and before the fish course.  A lot of material for a Freudian analyst.