Posts in Time off in France
Costa Brava and Barcelona

Toussant (All Saints Day) is celebrated by a long weekend for those working and a ten day vacation for the schools. The French love celebrating their saints and so who is to complain. Toussant, Nov 1 is the day after Halloween when everyone buys hugs plants of fall flowers and visits the graveyards of their ancestors, picnicing, praying, and enjoying the sun. The ancient stone cemeteries are full of life and colored with orange, yellow, purple and bordeaux colored flowers.

 

Taking advantage of the vacation we headed down to Costa Brava and Barcelona for a few days. Costa Brava is the bay of beaches between the French Border and Barcelona. Roses the largest bay is a grand bay with miles and miles of white sandy beaches. Stretching down the coast further are small bays, beaches, fishing villages and inlets cut between jagged cliffs and expensive homes built on the edge of the coast. Similar to many beautiful places it especially reminded us of the California Northern coastline.  DSC08812.JPG

Read More
Family Time, Time off in France, TravelSuzanne Saxe-RouxCosta Brava, Spain, Travel
Costa Brava Spa Surprise

Costa Brava Spa Surprise  - a beautiful family day spa

 

Our car pointed south for our Touissant (Fall) vacation towards the Costa Brava beach resort of  St. Felieu de Guixols and Barcelona. Our attempt was to have a bit of repose time at a spa as well as see the sites, but of course the challenge with spas is to find one that allows and invites children. Voila!!! We found it and we highly recommend it; the Magma Thermal Leisure Center in Catalonia, 20km south of Girona. Situated at the base of a major hiking area lies a long two story building, sleek in architecture both inside and out and immaculately clean and pristine. Opened in 2002, the thermal leisure area’s grand space is massive with it’s two story glass windows overlooking a grassy meadow, chestnut, oak and occasional beech trees, and the Guilleries mountains . Visiting the thermal waters provides a relaxing and playful break from hustle and bustle of Barcelona and has something for everyone from infants to seniors. The leisure center, 870 square meters of thermal water surface and 45,000 square meters of garden, includes a central spa with a temperature of 36◦ C with a counter current river, pressurized water cascades, hydromassage benches, bubble basin and hydromassage beds all layed out in a spiral-like pool 1.5 meters deep. Set above the central spa are two hydromassage jacuzzis for 8 people with a temperature of 35◦ C. Set below is a toddler’s playground set in a pool 5 meters wide and 30 cm deep as well as a four lane 25 meter swimming pool at 28◦ C. DSC08771.JPG

Read More
Family Time, Time off in France, TravelSuzanne Saxe-RouxCosta Brava, Spa, Spain
The Answer to Closet Clutter

The Answer to Closet Clutter

 

There are a variety of things Americans have learned from the French, but when it comes to closets, it is not one of them. For the past two years, Jean, Zoe-Pascale, and I have lived in a ancient Maison de Village in a small country village.  Our goal was not specifically to simplify, but to live a different life that would provide balance unknown to most professional dual career couples. Simplification however comes in many forms and learning what the French have to teach us is what we were after.

 

French homes, many of which are hundreds of years old all have one thing in common, no closets. They just aren’t built. Gorgeous wooden armoires, tall as the ceilings, new modern creations, and cupboards are used, but not closets.

 

Moving into our home for year round living we had to figure out some method to handle all of the clothes, books, and work supplies we had mailed from California. We didn’t want to invest in furniture, but instead pulled upon our college day resources and nailed heavy duty antique hooks on the wall and purchased old coat racks with character for hanging clothes. This worked fine until all of our winter clothes arrived by post in large boxes. Figuring out where to put the additional clothes was one problem, but the fact that they were winter clothes, heavier, thicker, and bulkier posed another.

 

With no closets there is just only so much room. Trying to stuff old jeans and winter coats into the back of a closet was not a possibility, there was no closet. Hanging them on the coat racks and hooks just wouldn’t do; the weight was more than they could take – thus the reason closets were built. However, here we were and we had to figure out what to do before the hat racks tipped over and the hooks came out of the wall.

 

Read More
Conscious Choices, Simpler Living, Time off in FranceSuzanne Saxe-RouxCloset Clutter
Day Trips in Languedoc A Day Off

Even in France you sometimes need to truly take a day off. It seems like we have been working hard since the Spring vacation finishing up some writing and Jean working diligently on his dissertation which is a life of its own. Plus end of the school year activities are added into the schedule with what seems like less and less free time. Now I know this is all relative as we do live at a leisurely pace, but a day off was needed. 

 

I decided it was time for a mini vacation so we headed off for Marie St. La Mer and the Camargue where the original cowboy came from. The land of white horses and taureaux. Starting off we took a two hour horseback ride through the Camargue to see the etang and the flamingos close-up. Zoe-Pascale having taken a year's worth of poney lessons was confident on her tall white horse, one of the famous camarguais horses. Jean a bit timid loved his gentile horse and moved through the landscape slow and steady. DSC08013.JPGInterstingly all the baby horses are born brown but turn white as they grow older and only the males are used for horseback riding.

Read More
Family Time, Pace of Life, Time off in FranceSuzanne Saxe-RouxFrance, Languedoc
May in the South of France

May 2007,

 

Mom and Dad have come to visit for two weeks. At 83 and 86 they are a marvel at traveling across time zones and enduring the long plane flight to France. Visiting with us and Zoe-Pascale was their main objective with of course a little bit of shopping for Mom in the Uzes marche. Walking her to school, then trekking back to the Tabac (where you buy newpapers and cigarettes and lotto tickets) for the Herald Tribune and back to the Bar du Marche (the happening cafe in St. Quentin) Mom and Dad went every morning. The cafe booming with tourists this time of year kept Mom busy visiting with English speaking tourists from various countries. By the end of the week they knew exactly what to order and were on first name basis with Natalie and Ramon the new owners. Jean and I would take our morning 5K walk and often join them for a cafe creme before starting our work for the day.

 

Read More
Family Time, Time off in France, TravelSuzanne Saxe-Roux
A Dream Lunch

Last Sunday we were invited to the Till Family's Grand Mas for a wonDSC01105.JPG

derful lunch and house warming. After five years searching for the perfect house they found it. Just on the edge of St. Quentin surrounded by one hectare of garden, fruit trees, grassy knolls and play areas sits a thousand year old farmhouse built with thick stone walls. Once an old farmhouse converted into a gite they are turning it back into a grand old family home adding a swimming pool and large living room with an old stone fireplace. By next year the house should be in Maison de Provence. In driving into their traditional French stone driveway you knew you were in for a treat. Luncheon tables were set up among the fruit trees or under a canopy set out on the lawn. A trampoline, a badminton court and soccer nets were placed around the garden for the kids as well as lots of jumping in the old stone pool.DSC01113.JPG

Read More
Conscious Choices, Joys of Friends, Pace of Life, Small Joys, Time off in FranceSuzanne Saxe-Roux