When the boys woke up this morning and saw the rain, their faces dropped and Sayer just looked at me and said, "But, I won't be able to play with my sword!"  You see the rule is that they can only play swords outside.  We had a special treat up our sleeves though.  Steven had "The Sword in the Stone" cued up on the laptop ready for them watch after breakfast.  Gawain and Lancelot were all smiles again. 

It must be all the ancient castles that we're visiting but the boys have gotten very interested in knights.  Susan (Steven's Mom and their Memah) captivated them with the story of King Arthur pulling the sword from the stone and the knights of the round table.  Steven and I have had a rule that we wouldn't buy them toys that were weapons.  It just seemed weird to us to have them playing with things like guns.  They begged for the swords though.  After refusing them for days and listening to all the tears, we finally relented.  They were so happy.  Sayer just kept looking at me and saying "I can't believe we have swords!".  Without further ado, I would like to introduce you to Sir Lancelot du Lac and his sword, named Courage...by the way, according to Sayer, this is what he is supposed to do whenever the King walks by. 

and Now, Sir Gawain and his sword, named Victory...

Sir Gawain, run through

 
Tweety Bird, killed in action July 2008.

After a particularly difficult battle...

 
and just for laughs...(by the way, Sayer told me that this video wasn't funny)

This place is magical.  We are out in the countryside and the nearest town of any size is called Sarlat.  It was once a walled city back in medieval times.  Sarlat became a city in the 8th century!  You know, I am all proud that my house in Houston was built in 1929.  Being here kind of makes 1929 feel like last week.  Anyway, Sarlat is one of France's best preserved and restored cities of its kind.  I was told they filmed the movie 'Chocolat' here.  Now I need to go back and watch it and see if spot specific places.  If you have seen that movie and appreciated the scenery then you have appreciated Sarlat.  It has tiny cobblestone lanes and stone buildings built right up against each other.  There are few cars- most of the streets are car free and open for strolling.

We wandered into the center of the medieval city and found a cafe, sipped wine and ate.  All the cafes here have outdoor seating and no one ever sits inside if they can help it.  Why would you?  Here are some of the views right by where we sat to eat.

This little girl was out dancing by herself in the square.

This night was one of those rare times when the boys just sat and ate.  They didn't fight, whine, get up or need to be coerced to eat their dinner.  It was just peaceful.  We're still trying to figure out what happened so we can attempt to re-create it.  Sayer entertained himself with a sticker book and by blowing bubbles in his apple juice.

As a reward for such lovely behavior, they got to enjoy some ice cream.

Walking around a place like this with them is so much fun because the streets are mostly closed to cars and you can let them roam a little.  They loved the "tunnels".  This would be when buildings were so close together that it made a tunnel like alley, like this.  Sometimes it completely closes where they have built over a little road making a real tunnel.

When I think "medieval", I think of stones and dark buildings.  There are plenty of stone buildings and dark passageways but then you turn a corner and see something amazing like this.  There are very few AC's here so windows are open everywhere.  I think this is why the window boxes here are so beautiful.

Don't have a place for a window box?  No worries...What I love about the stones here is that in all the nooks and crannies you find tiny little plants.  There is nothing really dark or medieval about these stones.  They are full of life.

As the sun was setting (which is very late here, about 10:30 pm) we stumbled upon this street performer playing a pan flute.  It was so beautiful and it echoed back and forth between the buildings filling the street with sound.

So, grab a pen and write Sarlat down on your "must-see-places-before-I-die-list".  It is definitely a must-see!

Objective: to try and capture a sense of place in a series of photographs.

In a way, this is more of a challenge than a lesson.  As you may know by now, I am in the south of France on vacation.  In an earlier post, I promised that I would post pictures of the house that we are staying in.  While I am sure i could have photographed each bedroom or taken a sweeping shot of the outside of the house, I tried something else.  I chose my favorite things- all within the main yard of the house and focused on those.  I wanted to convey to you a sense of place.  What I mean by that is really MY sense of THIS place.  I trained my lens on what it is about this amazing place that makes me feel connected to it.  This is my challenge to you.  Take a place (a small place like your own home) and find the little moments, the vignettes, the details and the mood.  Show it to us!

Yes, I know, I am in the south of France...this yard is way cooler than my TX back yard too.  This experiment isn't about how nice the back yard is though.  The idea is to tell the story of a space- no matter what the space is.  I would really love to see what you come up with so post links in the comments section! 

I love old fixtures like this.  This one is in the living room. 

The little chicken is sitting in the window of our bedroom (no glass or screen by the way).  The house is something like 500 years old so these slits were used back in the days when you would crouch behind them with the nose of the gun pointing out guarding yourself against an attack.  They are wide on the inside and small on the outside.

The rock walls around the yard are covered in little lichens and plants. 

This bush is a magnet for butterflies.  The boys stand at the base of it and just watch them flutter around. 

My favorite shot...When I think of Southern France, I think of 3 things first- lavender, stone and wooden shutters. 

Now it's your turn! 

Finn's afternoon dance.  He woke up from his nap and entertained us all with this little performance.

stopping briefly to paint himself (adds to the impact you know)

and the grand finale, he dropped his pants!