I feel beautiful when I am speaking French. I love the taste and feel of the vowels and consonants in my mouth.  The sensation and the tone of my voice as it moves  forward into the mask of my face. For whatever reason the words conjure memories of delicious treats in my beloved Paris munching madelines or macaroons , picnics with my pals in the Tuillerie Gardens, sharing with a lover a hazelnut Nutella crepe  from a street vendor in Montmartre.

I swear to God, speaking French words actually tastes different for me than speaking English. and Italian is a whole different flavor as well.  Even though my French is really a kind of “Franglais” where I speak a few sentences in perfect French and then throw in a word or two of English because my mental computer can’t access the proper French words. It’s really a mishmosh of two thirds French and one third English and sometimes the proportions vary depending if I am on a role or not. A glass of crisp, cold Sancerre wine helps but is not necessary at all. It actually doesn’t matter that what comes out of my mouth does not come out perfectly and that I am not completely fluent. I will  be some day…It doesn’t matter that it’s not  perfect because it is the feeling or experience that feels so good connecting and communicating in this  beautiful, sexy  language. I think what happens for me is that those sounds and the feeling of making them taps directly into my passion. And when I tap into my passion I feel the power of being the woman that I am. I also feel more of the  artist who I am past, present and future. And when I tap into that part of me, I am ageless. I am potent. I feel feminine, strong  and more alive all at the same time.

What makes you FEEL beautiful???????

Well, I am back in Paris and not a moment too soon. The best part about Toulon was being at Amma’s program there. But it was HUGE…Thousands of people. Amma made the front page of the newspaper there as there were more than 20,000 people who came to receive Her Divine hug (darshan).

“Amma, reunited with the love of Toulon…”  & “ In the arms of a woman… a mental and a spiritual experience”

Anyway, my husband and I actually spent most of our time helping our our spiritual community at the ayurvedic table selling essential oils, flower essences and other wonderful products sold by Amma’s bookstore. I was actually considered a big help because I could speak some French. So I had a lot of practice which I really enjoyed!!

After the end of the 3 day program, Dan & I checked out of our hotel and were very happy to so because the manager was …let’s just say not the most hospitable host… wouldn’t let us leave our bags to spend the day touring in Toulon.

So there we were with all our baggage walking to the main square with 5 hours to kill before our train. We found this wonderful restaurant unbelievably called “The Oasis”…and it truly was. The gentleman owner, Michel,  was so warm and delightful. He and his wife sent over two glasses of champagne with our lunch and I had an extensive conversation with him (in French, of course) about Toulon, politics in the US..etc. He offered to hold our bags in the restaurant so we could walk freely around Toulon, which we did. They were fabulously warm and hospitable. So we made some new friends there.

We found a photographic exhibition that was from a photographer named Jean-Loup Sief from the 60’s & 70’s that was quite interesting.

And I met a delightful painter, Monique Le Chapelain,  who was dressed in a beautiful Spanish dancer’s dress in her gallery.  I just had to speak to her and I really loved her colorful style of painting as well as her personal style. I did end up buying one of her drawings…Couldn’t help supporting a fellow artist.

Some photos of Toulon

More photos of Paris

  Montmartre Street scenes

Place de Concorde at night and the Seine

The Champs Elysee at dusk

The work of an artist who goes by JR who puts photos in public places of the eyes of oppressed women from third world.

My dear friend, Jean-Francois (standing outside of the Louvre)who is working with the Paris Opera Ballet on a production that opens tonight. He used to dance with POB, then became the ballet master at the Geneva Ballet where he lives in Switzerland. This was a special project he was hired to come and stage a piece by Paul McGregor, an American choreographer called “Millepied”- . SO I am getting to go to the opening tonight  at the Paris Opera and to the post party afterwards.  Ooo la la!!!