Patricia Sands

Author

Antibes

Strolling the backstreets …

by 14 Comments

If it’s Friday, it must be France …

Take a stroll with me through some of the back streets of charming Biot … we’ll come back another time for more …

DSC00127

DSC01892

DSC01890

DSC01496

DSC01446

DSC01907 2DSC01906

DSC01902

DSC01473

DSC01438

 

DSC01467

DSC01447

DSC01478

If you are in the south of France, put Biot on your “must visit” list. This medieval village is just twenty minutes up into the hills behind Antibes and celebrated for, among other things, exceptional glass crafts created with their distinctive artisanal bubble glass. It’s possible to watch glassblowing artists in individual studios or the famous Verrerie de Biot. The colours of the glassware are mesmerizing. I bought a set of 8 glasses, each a different colour because I simply couldn’t choose!

DSC00242_2

DSC00250_2

See what I mean? Yummy colours!

To read a far more amusing post than I could write, click here and spend a hilarious day in Biot with my friend Carol Perehudoff aka Wandering Carol. Bon weekend!

WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE: DOORS

by 8 Comments

Did someone say “doors”? Ahhhhh … j’adore taking photos of doors!

The Daily Post weekly photo challenge this week says, “A door is an everyday thing, yet is often a symbol — of a beginning, a journey forward or inward, a mark of one’s home, or even a step into the unknown.”

IMG_6311

Just looking at some of these doors makes my writing juices flow. I would love to know their stories! Wouldn’t you?

I do happen to know the story about these doors above. They are an entrance to the historic Chapelle Saint-Bernardin in Antibes.  If you click on that link, you’ll find a post I wrote about these doors and the gem of a church. They were carved almost five centuries ago (see the 1581 date on the door) and presented to the church by the villagers and farmers in thanks for having survived a terrible plague. On my early morning walks around Antibes, I love to stop and place my hands on those doors and feel the history. I swear you can!

Click on any image to enlarge it and then double-click again to make it even larger. Do you take photos of doors and windows too?  To have even more of a door ‘fix’, drop by The Daily Post and visit some of the other participating blogs or join in and post some of your shots.

One aspect that I love about the online photo challenges, especially The Daily Post challenge, is the opportunity to discover some pretty amazing websites. I always try to find the time to visit as many as possible as it’s a good break from writing! In particular this time I would encourage you to take a look at this outstanding page. This young woman’s photos are spectacular and her philosophy speaks volumes to me. I think it will to you too!

Back into the cave …

by 8 Comments

If it’s Friday, it must be France …

There is such joy in having children and grandchildren visit for their March break holiday. I wouldn’t trade it for the world! After the final wave goodbye, accompanied by a sniffle or two,  there is the absolute necessity to clamber back into my writing cave and attempt to get caught up. Ha! As if that ever really happens …

However, this cave is not a bad place to be when I’m writing about the Côte d’Azur and Provence. Photos, memories, and words carry me into my fantasies. The characters begin to take charge. Writing fiction is always an adventure.

8.IMG_6969

This is a view of Antibes taken from the top of the 500-year-old Fort Carré that sits overlooking the harbour. Beyond the old town, sits the forested Cap d’Antibes. If you follow my Love In Provence series, this is where Kat and Philippe have been investing time and energy restoring a long-neglected property with the hope of of a bright future.

I wonder what’s happened to them in the week I’ve left them to their own devices? I know there will be a surprise or two in store for me … and, eventually, you!

I was reminded of this quote from William Styron: 

“A great book should leave you with many experiences, and slightly exhausted at the end. You live several lives while reading.”

He might have added “as does the author while writing!”

Bon weekend, tout le monde!

 

 

~~~~~

Thanks for joining me today. If you like today’s post, please use the share buttons below. It all helps!

PatriciaSignature200

Nikos’ niche

by 5 Comments

If it’s Friday, it must be France …

Greek writer and philosopher Nikos Kazatzakis (18 February 1883 – 26 October 1957) and his wife settled in Antibes in 1948. The beauty here reminded him of Greece and inspired him to write his most famous novels including Zorba The Greek and The Last Temptation of Christ.

1.IMG_7046

I do share a lot of photos of Antibes on my blog (you know how that breathtaking town inspires me too …), but this is one of my favourites. I climbed up on the ramparts to include the palm in the foreground. Nikos’ house is just a few minutes walk from this point.

2.IMG_6546

Coming upon this simple memorial to him, just outside their former home, is both touching and inspirational. I think he would be pleased. Don’t you?

I’m spending a lot of time in my own “writing cave” at the moment. The deadline for my current manuscript is June 1. I think I can …  I think I can …

It’s easy to be motivated in Antibes as the ghosts of artists come to you in the narrow streets lined with shuttered houses, many hundreds of years old. As early back as 1500 BC, writers left their work in caves in the area. In the last few centuries a long list of influential authors, beside Kazatzakis, found inspiration here, including Dickens, Louisa May Alcott, DeMaupassant, Edith Wharton, Somerset Maugham, Graham Green, James Joyce, Nabakov, Gertrude Stein, Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Pound, Sylvia Plath.  No doubt, I’ve missed some names. Van Gogh, Monet, Matisse, Renoir, Chagall, Picasso, Bracque, Miro are just a few of another equally long list of painters and sculptors who found the special light and air of the south of France irresistibly inspiring.

In June, I’ll be back in Antibes for a refill of the kind of inspiration Nikos and other writers treasured there. I’ll spend some moments sitting on that bench. When it’s not possible for me to be there, I lose myself in my photos. Is there a significant place where you find inspiration? Can you physically go there or is your special niche something spiritual? What works for you?

~~~~~

Thanks for joining me today. If you like today’s post, please use the share buttons below. It all helps!

PatriciaSignature200