As the departure date of my flight to Provence France grows near, I am brushing up on my French. I get excited when I am pulling off the bookcase the reference language books that have helped me over the years to maneuver the sometimes daunting task of improving my communication skills while traveling in my happy place.
The task is getting easier each time, and I will say that I do read and comprehend better than speaking ( am a very shy french student ). However, that does always seems to dissipate once I’m conversing with the wonderfully helpful and very friendly people of FRANCE.
Learning the Language
I have begun also to think about what my focus will be this trip and where I will go to explore the regions I most enjoy. One of the places I will return to is the village of Gaujac to visit my friend Ken Jourdan and stay in what I like to think of as ‘MY Little French Cottage’ at the RHONE RETREAT. A beautiful property built in the early 1800’s, which offers a glimpse of life in a quaint South France village surrounded by numerous vineyards, historical sites and activities.
ReeseCluse Cottage at Rhone Retreat AKA “My Little French Cottage”
Cottage Interior, Classy and Cozy…
While there, I will discuss (in French) the tour plan and begin to prepare with my friend my inaugural Printing and Bookmaking Art Retreat in Fall 2019.
This is a project I have been working on for quite a few years now, researching my ideas when visiting Provence, finding and collecting my favorite haunts to add to the itinerary to share with those to attend the launching of my
“FRANCE THRU THE EYES OF AN ARTIST TOUR”
So many of these places are documented right here in my L’Artiste Carte Postale Blog and because so many of you have asked to be included my adventures over the years I felt that 2019 would be the year to advance this idea to the forefront of my art career.
SO if you are interested in participating in the ART RETREAT AND TOUR and would like to be kept “IN THE LOOP” THEN please signup for this BLOG… Space is very limited and you will be one of the first to know the progress. Here’s the link https://www.martischmidt.com/blog/
There is much developing on this subject so please stay in touch. You can find me on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook (links at page bottom)!
ONWARD AND UPWARD