Poetry Exercise No. 14: Villanelle

Ok, I personally think this is a terrible attempt. But I have stopped writing for some time, so am pushing this out just to get started again. The assignment is a villanelle. I've actually explained the villanelle form in an earlier post so all that's left now is the exercise. Since the villanelle is a French form, I sought inspiration from my recent trip to France (for more, read here). Here goes:

The Chateau of Chenonceau

Through my galleries people come and go
They live, dream, laugh and cry, whilst all the while
Beneath my bridges does the river flow

Thomas Bohier first built the chateau
Katherine his wife furnished it with style
Through my galleries people come and go

Henry Second the castle did bestow
On lovely Diane just to see her smile
Beneath my bridges does the river flow

Henry died and Catherine his widow
Seized Chenonceau for her very own pile
Through my galleries people come and go

Catherine built a hall for the chateau
Festivals were held, dances in the aisle
Beneath this hall does the river flow

Now, tourists walk the halls of Chenonceau
For the camera their faces do smile
Through my galleries people come and go
Beneath my bridges watch the river flow

Photo shows the great hall at Chenonceau, built over the river. Note that there is a certain poetic licence taken in one verse.

P.S. For villanelles, the middle line must rhyme throughout, just as the first line of each verse must rhyme with the last. A rhyming dictionary is pretty useful here.

P.P.S I had to amend the poem. Forgot that villanelles are supposed to have only 6 stanzas of 3 lines each. Anyway, don't think the junked verses were much loss.

A Case of Gender Confusion

My father has been feeding two cats from the nearby road for some time now. They are pretty animals - white, with just a few black markings on their foreheads. Every evening, he picks them up, brings them into a house and puts them in the cage so that they can be fed without interference from the other cats. Then, after they have eaten, he releases them.

Anyway, preliminary assessment was that they were both males. We had (as usual) been making preparations for sterilising the two cats and the plan was to familiarise them to human contact, and then hopefully find them an adopter. In the interim, I called them whiteboy1 and whiteboy2 (no more intimate names as these would lead to greater feeling of involvement and ownership). We had taken the larger of the two for sterilisation but my father felt that the smaller one could wait a little.

Such was the state of affairs when my father and I were walking home Sunday evening and saw Paddy, our big male cat lying on top of some white fur. Now we had neutered Paddy so that, in itself was surprising. It was even more surprising, when we approached a little nearer to Paddy, and found that he was lying on top of whiteboy2!!!

Well, Paddy's behaviour was not inexplicable. After all, we did neuter him a little late in the day (we were prioritising females, younger males first). As for whiteboy2 - the simplest explanations are often likely to be the most accurate. Looks as though whiteboy2 is really whitegirl, on heat.

Back to cats

Now that I have finished all these French posts, I can go back to blogging about my daily life and more importantly, my cats!

I did not mention it earlier but whilst I was in France I got a sad SMS from my mother: "Patches died". This was the day after I messaged her to check on the cats and she had replied "all ok". So this message was a little unexpected.

Patches is one of our "street cats" i.e. he lives somewhere on the street and we feed him at night. He's been around awhile, and I suspect could have fathered one of the pirate kittens, Smee (they both have slightly shorter "munchkin"-like legs), prior to his being neutered. He tried coming to our house but Paddy chased him off and so he is fed on the pavement opposite our house.

One day my father (the chief feeder) said that he hadn't seen Patches around for a week. Now the thing about the street cats is that they come and go frequently - if they disappear, it is very difficult for us to find them. So we could only wait for Patches to reappear which he did, a day or two later, on our doorstep. His appearance was shocking - completely bedraggled, very thin, and could hardly walk. We put him in one of the cages, fed him (he was really hungry) and monitored him. The next day, we took him out of the cage so he could eat and walk around a bit. Then, despite his weak state, he staggered outside and refused to come back. As the days passed this pattern continued. He came regularly for food but left after he had eaten. He seemed to improve. The other cats did not like his appearance on our doorstep and avoided the house when he was around.

Whilst I was in France, these little journeys of his proved his undoing. It rained torrents one day and poor Patches was caught in it. He came back soaked to the skin. My parents dried him off, put him in a towel and tried to warm him up. But by the morning, he had passed away. Poor Patches. He was a spunky and independent cat, and when we got to know him better, an affectionate one. We will miss him.


It has generally not been a good time for our cats. Sootie has been urinating blood. It is a result of feeding him cheap cat food - what can we do when we feed 15 cats in total - but false economy now as the vet bills are racking up. At our first visit, we got some antibiotics for him. 3 weeks after our initial visit, the problem is still there. Brought him for a second vet visit and found he's now dehydrated. He needs to be infused with about 220ml of saline, for 3 days in a row. He refuses the healthy prescription diet supplied by the vet and so we need to decide whether to give him the food which he is used to, even tho' its not so good for him. As the picture shows, he is very well behaved at the vet - terrified, poor boy.

Mickey's got problems eating, and of course his worm problem hasn't gone away either. Another vet visit, but at least the inflamation in his mouth is going away and his appetite is back (in a big way). Mollie, on the other hand has been limping for a few days now. Whiteboy1 (another stray) had an abcess on his cheek, likely caused by a wound infected from a fight. Fortunately it has burst and we cleaned it and threw antiseptic powder on it.

And of course, Dinky has gotten fleas from somewhere! Sigh. It never rains but paws.

By Train and by Plane

Our last day in Provence and in France!

Our train was at 12noon so we just wandered around a bit around the area. We went to the cathedral, Notre Dame-des-Doms, which is next to the Pope's Palace. Architecturally, the main features of the church are the crucifix right in front, and the statue of Mary right on the top of the church, covered in gold. Set on top of a hill, the cathedral provides a good view of the square below, the rooftops of Avignon and of Villeneuf le Avignon across the river. Behind the church, the gardens. We did not explore there, however, but went inside the church itself.

In a little side chapel on the left of the church entrance, there was a mini-exhibition on the shroud of Turin - what must have been a life-size picture of the original, stretched across the altar. The "face" could be seen quite distinctly, as can be seen in this photo.

The church itself was a little sombre, but what I found interesting was the little "in memorium" plaques which were put up around the statues in the various side chapels of the church, of different dates, in different eras.

We left the church, did a spot of shopping and then went back to our B&B to pay the bill. Indeed, I was a little sad to leave this charming and restful little hotel, with the beams across its ceilings, its narrow staircases with the worn steps and the internal courtyards. I will miss the breakfasts too - the morning coffee and chocolate, the fluffy croissants and the cup of fruit.

It was going to be a long journey back to Singapore from Avignon. Because of the crowded trains, we left Avignon on an early train to connect to another train in Lyon. This resulted in us getting to the airport 7 hours before our flight (which was delayed another half an hour). But the train journey was fairly well used - we sorted out most of the accounts. At the airport itself, I did a little surfing, reading, and a fair amount of shopping. What we did not have very much of, was FOOD. The French pride in and passion for food stops at the airport. The main food court closes by 8pm (8PM!!!!) and there are only two small kiosks left, both pretty crowded. However they were at both ends of the terminal and I did not find them when I did my initial round. So, after a light baguette lunch, we had a light dinner. Sigh.

The flight home was not too bad. Because we checked in 7 hours early, we got our seats changed to the front row just next to the exit. That makes such a difference! Wonderful to stretch your legs! The other thing about Air France as opposed to SQ (and believe me, SQ is ahead in most other areas) is that there are more French movies. I'd watched "The Choir" on the way out, so this time round I watched "Two Days in Paris". This was written, directed, and starred Julie Delpy. It charted the deterioration of the relationship, between Delpy's character and her American boyfriend, on their way back to New York from Venice, via Paris. The plot is limited, and the emphasis clearly on the dialogue and the interaction between the characters. This is rather like "Before Sunset" and "Before Sunrise" which starred Delpy and Ethan Hawke, but whilst Sunset/Sunrise encapsulate the perfect brief encounter, "Two Days" in some way is its dark reflection. Some reviews here and here.

At last, our plane touched down. It was 6pm Singapore time, exactly 24 hours after we had left Avignon.

And so ends my visit to France, my first for many years. In particular, I enjoyed my visit to Provence, even though its legendary sunshine had temporarily deserted it. The charming little villages, the old towns and Roman ruins, the beautiful countryside make it a place I would definitely want to visit again.

Au Revoir!

Provence Pooch of the Day (3)

Dog walking his owner
Originally uploaded by Taking5

Dog walking his owner in the Place de Palais des Papes, Avignon.

He's got the slim head of a hunting dog. Somehow, Avignon has fewer dogs than Paris.

Sur la Pont, d'Avignon

Today, we set off at last to view the sights of Avignon. Although we had been here since Monday (three days ago now) we had been occupied elsewhere, visiting Orange, Chateauneuf-de-Pape and the pretty little Provencal villages on Tuesday, then Arles yesterday.

So it was only today that we had the opportunity to take in the sights of Avignon. We went first to the biggie, the Palais des Papes in Avignon. The Palace of the Popes has indeed a special place in Catholic history. The uncertainties of the times in the 1300's drove the papacy out of Rome. The popes Clement V and John XXII then decided to settle in Avignon, creating the Avignon Papacy. Altogether, 7 Popes and 2 Antipopes resided in Avignon. The building is stark and severe, a fortress rather than a palace. Again, I suppose this reflects the uncertain times.


Whilst the Papacy returned to Rome in 1378, the Vatican retained Avignon in its possession as a Papal State, until the French Revolution. The Palace was then turned into a barracks for many years. As such, today, the Palace retains very little of the former grandeur it must have had in the days of the Popes. No furniture or hangings, or paintings. What does remain are some frescoes in some chapels and also in the Pope's bedroom. Well, the Pope may have stayed there over 600 years ago but that is still the nearest I will ever get to his bedroom. We were not allowed to take any photos, though.



We went then to the nice little church near our B&B, Eglise St Pierre. It is apparently one of the older churches in Avignon, after the cathdral Notre Dame-des-Doms. It has beautiful wooden doors, and is really ornately decorated inside.


We had lunch thereafter, at one of those little restaurants on the Place d'Horloge - definitely a tourist trap. It was a set meal with soup, a main course and dessert and I really would not recommend it to anyone. It was quite pleasant, however, watching the people in the square - particularly a little boy who was running around the place, shadowed by his anxious mother.

After lunch, we headed back to St Benezet's bridge. The bridge is only a half-bridge, with half of it destroyed by floods many years ago. Yet its fame has spread far and wide thanks to a simple little song:

"Sur le Pont d'Avignon,
on y danse,on y danse,
sur le pont d'Avignon,
on y danse tous en rond..."

St Benezet was a shepherd boy who heard voices telling him to build a bridge - he managed to convince people that he was divinely inspired when he was able to lift a huge stone that no one else could move. However, no one ever danced on the bridge because it was deemed too narrow. Rather, the people danced on the river islands on which the bridge had been built. Such is the power of song....




We wandered around the shops to buy some souvenirs after our visit to the bridge. Unfortunately, it had started to rain - an unpleasant, incessant drizzle which made it very irritating to shop. Avignon has a high street with many shops, no shopping centres per se. So in the end we made our way back to our B&B where I had some time to clear emails before going out for dinner. Dinner was at the Hotel de Palais - we ate at the restaurant hotel. It was a pleasant enough meal, but what I really liked was the fireplace in the middle of the room. It was one of those which looks like a log fire, until you notice that the logs aren't being consumed by the flames...

Looking back, it is indeed a pity that we did not have more time in Avignon. I'd have liked to have the opportunity to cross the river to visit Villeneuf le Avignon. Well, we had wanted to get to Avignon much earlier on the Monday but the trains did not allow. Likewise, we would be taking an extremely early train back to Paris the next day. So, our time in Avignon was curtailed a little more than we had initially hoped.


Here's photo link.

A Michelin Meal

Some people come to France just to collect Michelin stars, i.e. eat at Michelin-starred restaurants. I had only one such meal - at Christian Etienne in Avignon, a one-star Michelin restaurant. Probably that makes the meal all the more memorable for me.

By now, of course, we had eaten a number of good dinners in nice restaurants. But dining in a Michelin-starred restaurant is different. It is not just about the food - it is definitely about the service, too. The receptionist took my coat at the door, and we were given little stands to put our handbags on (we took some time to figure out why they had put these little iron things next to our chairs) and so on. And yes, they do take the time to explain the menu in English, and when dishes are brought to you they 'introduce' them to you. There were quite a number of service staff too - the maitre'd, his frenzied waiters and waitresses, all rushing around. The chef himself makes the rounds of the tables, greeting his guests. He definitely is not in the kitchen preparing your meal. But guess that is what being an executive chef is all about.

We started off with our aperitifs, bite-sized, tasty morsels. I had ordered tuna ceviche as a starter (essentially sashimi), lamb and asparagus as my main course and an orange and carrot macaron for dessert. I enjoyed the tuna sashimi - quite a substantial portion - but was less keen on the dried avocado which accompanied the dish as the rich, creamy texture of the avocado was completely lost. The lamb, on the other hand, was perfectly cooked, as were the asparagus accompanying the dish.


We had a little pineapple sorbet next, to cleanse the palate before dessert. I had a really interesting orange and carrot macaron with some almond sorbet. The carrot was raw, grated carrot sticking out of the middle of the macaron. Interesting, but somehow it worked. Our meal ended with coffee and a row of petit fours - we could not finish ours. It was definitely a very memorable meal. If you want to see all the food photos (not just the dishes) click here.


I've basically come to the conclusion that French food in general can be divided into a few categories:

a) traditional basic: your baguettes and pastries and the like, which are typically very good and tasty, likewise the patiesseries
b) fine dining: obviously very fine indeed (anything from 70Euros per person and up)
c) tourist food: generally not very good though quite cheap.
d) mid-price, good value meals: hard for tourists to find. (20-30Euros per person)

My sense is that unlike Italy, which does pretty good deals with their mid-range menus even in tourist joints (at least the tourist joints I haunted), the French tourist menu is just not that great. I recall having this lovely salad with beautiful fresh ingredients in Florence. But here in France, somehow if you go to a cafe by the Seine, for example, you know the quiche will be a little eggy and wet, the crepes will be covered with nutella and the salad will consist of a few soggy leaves and maybe a slice of tomato or two. But buy a baguette with some ham, or chicken, and you eat a good meal for about 4 Euros or so.

Sadly, I only discovered the website "Chocolate and Zucchini" nearer the end of my stay in Paris. The blogger, Clotilde Dusoulier, is a young Frenchwoman who went to the US to work and started cooking there. She came back to France, continued to cook and started a blog about her cooking, eating etc. She wrote in English, so as to keep on using the language and it became a big hit. One book deal followed, and then another. Clotilde is now a full time writer. Her latest book is "Clotilde's Edible Adventures in Paris" and it gives little tips on her favourite eateries in Paris. I managed to spot this on the shelves of "Shakespeare & Company", our last full day in Paris.

So for those intending to go to France in the near future, check out her site. And also, print out her French-English food glossary. I found that my little phrase book was most put to use in restaurants. Whilst I soon memorised "agneau" for lamb and "canard" for duck, there're a lot of of little phrases which I just can't remember.

Bon Appetit!