"Maximum three days in the country," I always say.  Having grown up in a small town, I have spent all of my adult life in a city.  There is something about walking out on the street at night, and seeing other people awake.  I always fit in the city, not in just a single role.

We spent last week in Port-en-Bessin, a fishing village of 2,140 inhabitants.  Port-en-Bessin is the premier fishing port of Normandy.  We ate fresh fish every day.

I was thrilled to be staying in a house with a yard. The church bells chimed at least 24 times every morning at 7.  I opened the wide kitchen windows as I made tea, to a sky different from the day before.  Blair and I danced in the giant kitchen.

We walked downtown several times a day with our paints, to a scene of fishing boats and a big sea.  I greeted neighborhood dogs, and a few seagulls would watch with interest as I squeezed my colors onto the palette.  In fact, people we met throughout the trip would say, "didn't I see you painting downtown?"

Cows munched at haystacks until sufficiently diminished to make a good bed.  We took pictures of stone houses, some with thatched roofs.  One day we drove as far as Caen.

The Caen museum of fine arts is a modern concrete building inside the walls of the chateau of William the Conqueror.  The chateau dominates the city.  It was not far from here the Normans set out on the final conquest of England in 1066.

The museum building was one of the best I've ever seen (sadly, the architect's name has been overlooked).  The visitor can look across several galleries to a painting on the other side;  it is an intriguing space, with short stairways to new vistas.  We found an artist we'd not seen before:  Rame.  He painted small, wonderful paintings of the Norman coast, in style between Boudin and me.

The museum was full of school-aged children, copying paintings.  One could watch the big classroom on the lower level, as kids colored their masterpieces.  Inspiring.

Our vernissage was attended by a good ten percent of the town.  The assistant mayor gave a speech and sang the Star Spangled Banner.  We were featured in the area newspaper:  La Renaissance.

I awoke this morning in Paris at 9 AM, no bells.  I swept our courtyard and planted primroses I bought in the country.



Laurie (painting and text) and Blair PESSEMIER
"Blue fishing boat"  acrylic on wood panel 8.5 x 11 inches