Tuesday, May 28th, 1991
5:30 AM .. . I slowly roll off the bed to the floor and attempt to stand up. The birds are already up and singing, but for some reason my mind is not as receptive to song birds this morning. Michel and I have bowls of coffee and then head for the Airport at 6:00. I give Michel a “Bon Voyage” and then try to find my way back to the house.
The problem I have is that the airport in Nice is being renovated and is under construction. Just about every sign says “Toute directions” and all seem to lead back to each other. Of course the last thing Michel told me was to be certain that I didn’t accidentally get on to the freeway. It is an expensive toll road and would take me many kilometers before I could get off. He kept offering directions, but would stop and say, “ah, but you know the way from yesterday…” Yes, but yesterday was from downtown Nice and I was not driving.
Just to make it more interesting the warning light for the gas being low was starting to flicker with increasing regularity. At 6:30 in the morning all the gas stations are closed. I finally make it out of the airport, which is a small victory. I still have to find the beach road which will lead me to the intersection for the town of Biot. After much wandering though business areas I spot a sign for the beach road and from there make my way back home. All the way I’m looking at the red warning light and a gas gauge with it’s needle barely flickering whenever I hit a bump in the road.
I did make it back to the house. Yollanda is up, Corrine is off to school, and Vianeytte is getting ready for work. When everyone is gone, I’ll get cleaned up and take the car to Valbonne for gas and then head inland. I will probably go to St. Paul for photography. It is fun to watch Yollanda in the morning. So far the only communication from her has consisted of small, painful sounding grunts. She is slowly picking up speed, and after having some coffee she begins to become functional. I suggested that she should take her run this morning. She looked outside and groaned which I took to be a negative response to my suggestion.
It is 9:31 and Vianeytte called from the bank. Yollanda has made it to the bathroom and is getting ready to go to work. It is difficult to believe that she is the same woman who was unbridled energy last night. The saying “as slow as molasses flowing uphill in winter” comes to mind watching her this morning. I am sitting in the kitchen looking at a map, planning my day.
I finally hit the road at 10:00 AM. My first task is to find a gas station. Vianeytte said there was one in Valbonne but I couldn’t find it. I finally found one in a small village about ten kilometers further down the road. With the confidence of a full tank of gas I strike out to find St. Paul du Vence. I wish I had my M.G.A. on these French country roads, it would be great. I’m driving Vianeytte’s Peugeot, which feels like it will roll over on each corner. The roads here remind me a little of the old Columbia River Highway.
I stopped a couple of places to take photos, but the day is overcast making the scenic photos flat. I arrived in St. Paul about 12:30, parked the car in a pay lot and started wandering around. The main reason I came back to this village was to take photos of Frenchman playing a lawn bowling game. But today there is no one playing. I stopped walking around and sat in a cafe with a cup of espresso.
I just finished my espresso when I looked up and saw the American photographer that I had talked with in Nice yesterday. He had just gotten to St. Paul and wanted to eat lunch before taking photos. I suggested that we have lunch together. I had seen a promising restaurant as I had been walking on the rampart side of the village.
Lunch was tremendous as usual. The man’s name is Erin Shultz from Iowa, but he has been living in Holland for about six years. His wife is Dutch, a chemical engineer with ESSO, and he is a graphic designer who just started his own business. We had a very enjoyable lunch lasting from about 1:00 till 3:00. We talked about art and photography and traveling. After the meal I pulled my cards out (of course) and entertained a pair of French couples at the next table. Their reaction was great. I have discovered that not all people react favorably to seeing magic performed, but in general it is a great way to meet people. One of the couples lived in Nice, the other on the Atlantic coast. The couple from the coast dealt in antiques and were here on a business trip.
After lunch Erin and I walked around the village taking photos. In this light most of the photos were close ups and abstracts of walls and windows. I joked with Erin that I wasn’t going to tell him where I was going tomorrow, and we would see if we run into each other again. I head back to Biot around 4:15 and get home around 5:00. Corrine is home from school and is doing some homework. I have been practicing Tai Chi and Vianeytte has just arrived. We have a small aperitif and fix dinner. During dinner we watch “Tequila Sunrise,” a Mel Gibson movie with the French dubbed in. I’m very tired from both the party last night and all the walking I have done today, so I turn in around 9:30.