Holly is published in a major magazine!!

In the midst of getting ready to make a major move from the SF Bay Area to the south of France, I (Holly) submitted some photos of my latest jewelry designs to Bead Style Magazine, thinking that maybe -- a long shot, really -- they would be interested enough to include a small photo in their Reader's Gallery section. Well, about a month before departure an email came saying that the design was going to be a feature article. Heart pounding, hands shaking.....Could this be real?

Several variations of the design were shipped to the magazine's headquarters where they were to be professionally photographed & where the editorial staff would write the article & instructions so readers could make the project.

It seemed like the time would never come, but the March 2012 issue hit the US newsstands on Jan. 31. It is amazing to see my creations in a major magazine!

UPDATE: Just found out on Friday that my project has been chosen to be included in a new series of books (52 Necklaces, 52 Bracelets, 52 Earrings), being published in July this year, and in a 2nd book, Easy Beading, also by Kalmbach Books. On top of that, because some of the supplies for the project were purchased from Blue Buddha Boutique, their website shows the project & my name. Here's a link: http://www.bluebuddhaboutique.com/supplies/instruction/supplylists/index.php#squares-flair  It just keeps getting better!

Here are a few photos of the design that was featured. Note: the silver/black & blue/turquoise pieces were shown in the magazine. Let me know what you think.

I made several other color combos, but don't want to bombard readers with too many photos. Here's a scan of the table of contents for the issue -- with a large photo of one of the necklaces:

....and now for the shameless self promotion -- if you want to purchase any of my jewelry, here are links to my 2 online shops:

Hillcrest Studio's Bonanza booth

Hillcrest Studio's Etsy shop

.....and a link to my Facebook page where you can see additional photos of my jewelry:

Hillcrest Studio on Facebook

Where all the good food went

We had been wondering where all the good food in France had gone, but tonight we found it. It was the birthday of one of our new British friends, so 4 of us went to dinner at Le Pré St. Jean here in Pézenas. The reviews we read online spoke glowingly of the food, service & décor so we really looked forward to our meal.

We walked to the restaurant in the freezing cold & were happy to find that it was warm & welcoming inside. Our young waitress was beautiful & sweet & was patient with us when we asked her to repeat some of the daily specials.

The food did not disappoint. All 4 of us thoroughly enjoyed our food which not only tasted yummy but was beautifully presented. If we don't factor in the dollar/euro conversion rate, the price was reasonable at 25€ for a 3-course menu. The next time we want a special meal we will definitely go back to Le Pré St. Jean.

The other delicious meal we've had here in Pézenas was at Le Vieux Coq. It was our mid-day meal on Christmas Eve & the food could not have been better. The staff treated us to a post-meal glass of champagne (here in France you cannot legally call it champagne unless it comes from the Champagne region), a perfect ending to a yummy meal. As with the meal mentioned above, it didn't come cheap.

Gone are the days when one could count on getting good food at reasonable prices pretty much anywhere in France. Prices have increased substantially while the quality has not stayed as high. It has also gotten more difficult to find traditional simple French food, but we keep searching.

Vive la difference -- Cultural difference, that is

As you might imagine, life in a village in Languedoc is not the same as life in the San Francisco Bay Area. Here are just a few of the differences we've noticed so far, with more to come in future posts.

When we make errors in our French (an all-too-frequent occurrence), we are gently corrected in a way that does not embarrass us. For instance, when in a boulangerie to buy a loaf of bread, I asked for un baguette & the boulanger repeated our request correctly -- une baguette, as though she were confirming our order, rather than correcting us. The same thing happens when we mangle our pronunciation of a French word. We have yet to run into a situation when they snickered or pretended not to know what we were saying.

Speaking of stores, when entering a store one is always greeted -- "Bonjour monsieur" or "Bon soir madame", not only by the staff, but usually by the other patrons as well. When leaving, it's the same thing: "Bon soirée" or "Bon journée."

The polite greetings, however, do not always translate to what Americans would call customer service. For example, we went to the local Carrefour (large grocery on the edge of Pézenas) recently & wanted to purchase an item we saw in the sale flyer. We looked where we thought it would be & didn't find it so we went to the customer service counter to ask where we could find it. The young woman there looked at the ad, shrugged & then asked a colleague. The 2 of them pointed vaguely in the direction I had already looked, but I went there again, in case I missed it the first time. When I didn't see it there, I returned to the counter & was given yet another shrug but no further assistance. Keep in mind that the Carrefour is a rather large store & there are many items. The good news is that I eventually found it myself.

Driving here is different. One-way streets & signs indicating "no left turn" seem to be mere suggestions. Drivers will often tailgate, sometimes honking the horn, & will pass at the earliest opportunity, only to drive even more slowly than you were in the first place. If you are going to need to change lanes to exit it's a good idea to do so long before you have the need, as drivers here are not always generous in allowing you to move in front of them. They, of course, will cut in front of you without giving it a second thought. One evening, on our way back from a couple of days in Provence a driver tailgated dangerously & swerved around our car at the last second, nearly pushing us off the narrow country road. Defensive driving is the rule. On the positive side, when someone parks in the middle of the street, people don't seem to get upset -- they merely back up & find an alternate route.

The concept of forming an orderly line (queue if you are British) is hit or miss here. When boarding a bus it becomes a free-for-all, with everyone bunched up at the door, trying to be the first to board, and absolutely no consideration for the elderly or infirm waiting to board. Nobody pushes or shoves or argues & everyone gets on the bus. If boarding a bus or train that is already fairly full, people "of a certain age" or frequently offered seats, more often than in the US. At the grocery yesterday the line for one of the cashiers came from 2 separate directions simultaneously. We guess it all worked out, but we never saw the entire thing because when another cashier opened we made a mad dash & were out of the store shortly after that. We have to say, though, that everyone seems calm & takes it all in stride.

We're not sure whether prostitution is illegal here. There is one road we travel frequently that has many prostitutes standing or sitting along the side of the road, waiting for business. It is out in the open so we wonder what the law is here. In the States, one generally only sees prostitutes in really bad neighborhoods -- & only when the police feel like allowing it. Here, it seems like a part of everyday life & it's taken in stride. Attitudes toward sex & bodies are definitely different in France than in the US.

Speaking of bodies, it's not unusual to see a man urinating in a parking lot or against the side of a building. It's viewed as a natural act, & not something to hide. I'm a bit ambivalent about this.

Shopping malls: Just as in the US, at malls here you'll find "mall rats" -- teens hanging out. Of course, the malls have the usual mix of stores, cafés, cinemas, etc. One thing we've seen at malls here that we've not seen in the US is farm animals. A couple of months ago we were in a mall & heard strange sounds, so we walked down the hallway & around the corner to see what caused the noises. We were surprised to see 100 or so cages of large birds -- every sort of chicken/rooster imaginable, some of which were quite bizarre-looking, as well as some pheasant, geese, peacocks, etc. They were apparently for sale, but it had also become an attraction for local school groups. Too bad we didn't have our camera with us that day. 

Then, yesterday, we were in a different mall & saw a crowd gathered around a small fenced-in area containing farm animals....sheep, goats, chickens, rabbits, a squealing pig, etc. It was a sort of a petting zoo, & the timing of the display was probably to coincide with the school holiday & the children were really enjoying it. To be honest, having always lived in major metropolitan areas in the US, we're not entirely sure these displays are uniquely French, or whether similar things can be found in small towns & rural areas in the US.

Holidays & fêtes: There seems to be an endless calendar of holidays & fêtes here, some religious, some national, some specific to a town or village, & the majority of them seem to have a specific food or pastry associated with them. There is a cake for Christmas (bûche de Nöel), a different one for Epiphany (galette du roi -- similar to New Orleans Mardi Gras king cake) with a favor/charm baked inside.  The person who gets the piece of cake with the charm inside is declared king & wears a paper crown. One interesting trivia fact is that the galette served to the President of France does not contain a favor because since the revolution of 1870 the French constitution states that nobody living in the Elysée Palace will wear a crown. There is a different pastry for St. Blaise (the local patron saint), & crêpes are served for Candlemas.  Beignets -- similar to donuts, but without the hole -- are the pastry eaten at Mardi Gras. Foie gras seems to be the favorite food for all celebratory occasions, & oysters (along with lots of other shellfish) are de rigeur for New Year's.

Brrrrrrrrrrrrr...It's freezing!!

We know that when we think of the south of France we think of palm trees, warm weather & outdoor cafés. Well, not at the moment. There are still palm trees here, but the cold weather that is hitting the rest of Europe has hit us here as well. Temperatures have dropped very low for the past week, sometimes nearly hitting the teens -- not counting wind chill. It's 9:30 pm, & according to weather.com the temperature in Pézenas is 24°F, but feels like 10°, & no doubt it will continue to drop as the night progresses...& this isn't even the coldest day this week.  The mistral winds are blowing fiercely, adding to the discomfort. This wouldn't be quite so bad if we were living in a house that was well insulated & had central heat. The reality is that the house is stone & was built in the 1640s (think of the 3 Musketeers), has tile floors & windows that don't completely seal. Life these days means wearing multiple layers all the time, & we're beginning to resemble the Michelin Man. We can't wait for this weather to end!!

Speaking of cafés, now that smoking is banned in all indoor public areas, people who smoke continue to sit outdoors at cafés so they can smoke. They must either be made of strong stuff or they are truly addicted. We watch them to make sure they still move & haven't turned into human popsicles.

Having lived in the SF Bay Area for 30 years, we've become a climate wimp, even having grown up in NYC. Even the shores of Lake Ontario, where Holly went to college & which gets upward of 300 inches of snow each year, is without snow this year. Go figure. Weather is strange all over the world.

For the first time in living memory, Lake Geneva is frozen solid, & the Black Sea (it's salt water) is 2/3 frozen for the first time anyone can document. Rome had the worst snowstorm in more than 20 years & the Pope has opened part of the Vatican for the homeless. The Vistula River in Warsaw is nearly completely frozen, & the homeless & poor all over Europe are dying like flies.

Of course, living in the largest wine-producing region in France -- if not all of Europe -- we worry about the effect this weather will have on the grapes. We haven't heard anything mentioned around here about adverse effects of frost, but time will tell.

Gallo-Roman Villa, Loupian

A couple of weeks ago we took a short drive to the small village of Loupian, the site of a Gallo-Roman villa from the 5th century AD. The drive there was lovely, passing through small villages, vineyards & pastures. The countryside & the layout of roads hasn't changed much since Roman times. The villa system in place during the late Roman Empire was essentially the precursor of medieval castles. Large, strongly defended villas were surrounded by vineyards, fields & peasants, & each villa was practically self-sufficient. In times of trouble everyone would go to the villa & defend its walls. In many cases the owners of these villas became hugely wealthy. This villa, discovered in the mid-20th century by a farmer who, when plowing his fields, repeatedly came across colored rocks. These turned out to be tessera -- mosaic tiles from elaborate floor designs.

We were given a small discount off the entry fee because we had visited the nearby Abbey of Valmagne & had our ticket stubs with us. You enter the site via a small museum, & your guide walks you across a small field to the actual villa, which is now indoors to protect the site. After entering the building the tour takes you along walkways, both on the same level as the floors, & above it so you can look down on the villa. It's a great vantage point, but made photography a bit challenging. There are some photos below, but it's difficult to give any sense of perspective or show where the mosaics are in relation to one another.

Being off-season, the guided tours (the only way to view the villa) were only offered in French, but we were able to follow most of what our guide said. If you are in the area, we would highly recommend a visit to the villa at Loupian.

 

Foray Into French Bureaucracy.....My Paperwork Has Been Submitted

Today was a big day for me (Holly) because I submitted my paperwork for my titre de séjour (residence permit). The dossier (file) was dropped of at the mairie (city hall) who reviewed the contents to ensure everything necessary was included & will send it on the the sous-préfecture in Béziers for processing. Now the waiting begins....Waiting to either receive my titre or find out what else I need to submit. I'm sure there will be something. We've read a lot about the process & have found that many things are inconsistent. For instance, so far nobody has asked to have documents (birth certificate, etc.) translated into French by an officially certified translator, but the paperwork has not yet reached the sous-préfecture. At some point they will no doubt let me know how much I need to pay for the titre; time will tell. Our fingers are crossed. By the way, if all follows what we've read, the process will have to be repeated yearly, at least until I am granted a 10-year titre.  Update: Just got a call from the mairie & they said that they think my titre won't be granted yet because we only have a 7-month rental contract while we are looking for our permanent residence, but it's up to the sous-préfecture to decide. She made a note on my paperwork stating that we are searching for our new/permanent home.

ANOTHER UPDATE: It's 2 weeks since I submitted my paperwork & today I received a letter from the mairie, asking me to appear in person. There is no mention of a specific date or reason, nor did they request additional paperwork (the section asking for additional documentation was crossed out), so my guess is that they either have a question, or will ask me to provide official translations of several of the English-language documents (birth certificate, marriage certificate, etc.) submitted with my application. This isn't a huge problem, but it will cost a fair amount of money. I heard about one person who was called back to the mairie because his signature on the application wasn't exactly within the black lines, & he had to sign a new form. Fingers & toes are crossed that it's nothing more drastic than that, because my mind is swimming with scenarios...They won't process the paperwork until we have proof of our permanent address, & this will delay things for several additional months.....They want some sort of paperwork/documentation that I am unable to provide....They reject my application outright........They want me to pass a French language proficiency test.....I could go on, but I'm starting to scare myself.

YET ANOTHER UPDATE:

Just got back from the mairie regarding my carte de sejour, & here's where I stand:
1) I need to get translations for my US financial/bank/income information -- but not for my birth certificate, etc. Am busy researching official translators.
2) It appears that either the French Consulate in San Francisco was wrong, or the sous-prefecture in Beziers has a different opinion, but it turns out I DO need a long-stay visa after all, at a cost of 110€. In hindsight, I wish I had asked the guy at the consulate to give me something in writing saying that I did not need a visa because my husband has EU citizenship.

Once I get those things taken care of, they will review my application. The woman at the mairie was patient, helpful, & sympathetic.

Next on the bureaucratic agenda are: completing the car registration process (still driving with California license plates) & health insurance.

We're having a cold spell here. It's noon & according to weather.com the temperature is only 31°F, but with wind chill it feels like 19°F. This is not normal for the south of France & we wish it would get warmer. Brrrrr.....

Some good news:

We've written in an earlier post about the abundance of dog poo here, which seems to appear out of nowhere & multiply with alarming rapidity & which seems to escape the daily street cleaning machine. This morning we saw a guy with a broom sweeping up the poop. Of course, it had little effect on what's been driven over or stepped on, but at least the newer "packages" were removed. Also, the major construction project on the street around the corner from our house seems to be nearing completion. Much of the heavy equipment is gone & it looks nearly ready to pave. Once it's done, walking on Rue Anatole France won't resemble an obstacle course that is dangerous, difficult to navigate, noisy & makes your shoes dirty.