Saturday, June 30, 2007

Last few days in Picardy

I will be leaving this beautiful place soon, on Monday, filled with memories even greater than last year. Not only was my fieldwork successful, but I also had the opportunity to meet welcoming people who allowed me to experience local activities. I really hope that my budget will be sufficient for me to enrich the data I already collected here in preparation of my dissertation, and to strenghten the personal ties I now have with some of my new Picard friends. I will be heading to Paris on Monday morning, and back to the US on Wednesday. More details to follow soon, hopefully.

Thursday, June 28, 2007

Genealogy on Tuesday

I'm writing this short note from my phone (I may not have Internet access until I'm in Paris), but I wanted to let you guys know that I went to Laon to search for information about my Villeneuve/Amiot ancestry on Tuesday. Spent the day there and although I didn't discover a great family treasure, I had a fruitful day and found interesting leads to explore concerning the towns of Estrees, Berzy-le-Sec and Longueval in the Aisne department.

More information:
Berzy-le-Sec
Estrees
Longueval-Barbonval
Épieds

More details to come on the blog soon.

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

More fun times

Given that I can't tell you guys all about my work (confidentiality), here's an idea of how I spent my free time in the lest few days.

Last Friday, in a town called Valines, I attended a play written in the local Picard variety. I had lots of fun, and could understand almost everything... except some of the funny inside jokes and play on words.



Then, after rainy weather almost every day, we were lucky enough to enjoy a sunny day on Monday! So I spent the evening on the beach in Cayeux with two friends. We had a nice chat, ate dinner at their "cabine", and then watched the sunset.



What I like about this place is that people are convivial and genuine, and that nature always has something to offer to all five senses. Nice landscape, sounds of birds, cows and sheep, great food, and much more. I wish you guys could enjoy this with me...

Sunday, June 17, 2007

Funny look at rural Picardy

Here is a video by Kamini that two teenage girls from Vimeu told me about. It's quite funny, and it will give you an idea of how some people perceive rural Picardy.

http://www.koreus.com/video/kamini-marly-gomont.html

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Fieldwork (part 2)

My work is going well. I'm meeting lots of friendly people in the Vimeu area, and I'm collecting a good amount of data. I don't have much time to work on transcriptions at night, given that I often have full days. I'm a bit tired, but I'm having a great time. I will be at the the Universite de Picardie in in Amiens on Thursday and Friday, attending a conference, and then back to the Baie de Somme for more interviews.

Last night, I went to Eu (in Normandy, just South of Vimeu) with Edwige. Her middle school students were performing at the theatre located by the Château d'Eu. The show was good (although a bit short), but the evening allowed me to see the inside of the theatre, which is only open to the public for performances.



Thanks to those who sent me little notes on my cell phone at 0669484935@imode.fr; it's a much more convenient and cheap (free!) way to stay in touch. I hope you are all having a great summer too!

Thursday, June 07, 2007

Wonderful Thursday

What a great day! I woke up early this morning to get to Onival for shrimp fishing with Philippe. We met on the shore, under the rain, and after putting on the "boot suit"; (very stylish!), we went in the water. We gathered about 200 grams of shrimp in almost two hours. Got back home cold and soaked, but I had a blast!















After cleaning up, I took the afternoon off and walked along the shore in St-Valery. The sun had decided to make an appearance, and I was determined to take advantage of it. I stopped by the bakery, picked up quiche and bread, walked along the shore for a bit, and ended my adventure in the lovely tea bar by my place (Le Samovar) for a late afternoon tea. I asked for something interesting; the owner treated me with his selection, black tea with hints of vanilla, berries, and white chocolate. I can't wait to go back!








What a beautiful day!

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Fun times

I enjoyed the last few days I met a lovely couple from Buigny last Thursday, who invited me to a tea dance on Sunday, given that I had not taken any appointments because of Mother's Day. So on Sunday, I went dancing to Michel Pruvot's accordion music with a bunch of energetic retired people. It was fun to interact in a relaxed setting and to try a few dance steps!

On Monday, I went to Amiens to meet with professor Jean-Michel Eloy. Given that my afternoon appointment canceled that morning, I found myself with a free afternoon, and decided to drive away to where ever the road would lead me. On the way, I encountered this sign, that reminded me that maybe I should have lunch too! (Where's the road to "Baguette"?!?).

I eventually ended up on the road to Péronne, where a War Memorial is dedicated to WW I. I also visited the Australian Memorial in Villers-Bretonneux, where fallen Canadian soldiers were also burried. Because few French-Canadians -- who were vehemently opposed to WW I -- participated in that war, French-Canadian names are rare in these memorials. Still, I took some time to reflect and wonder how so many lives can be lost in political conflicts...





I ended my visit to Amiens in St-Gratien with Laurent and his friend, Cécile. They showed me the totem unveiled sholtly after my visit to Picardy last summer, and once again, Laurent played along for my silly play on words in Contay. ("Contay" is pronounced like the French verb "conter", which means telling tales; Laurent is a story-teller. Okay, maybe it's not that funny after all... I guess you had to be there!)





Yesterday afternoon was "club picard" day at a local middle school in Feuquières. The kids' energy re,inded me of my good old days teaching in Montreal. I was quite impressed by the spontaneity with which they read a text in Picard and translated it into French. Thanks for the great welcome!

Write to me !!

Is anyone is reading this? (I can almost hear my own echo...oh...oh...)

I was finally able to get a cell phone that allows me to receive and send unlimited emails. You can write to me at 0669484935@imode.fr (1000 characters or fewer, no attachments).

I can't wait to hear from you guys!

Friday, June 01, 2007

Where do we come from?

It's always fascinating to discover one’s origins, and for me, this desire has translated into a passion for genealogy. After discovering that Philippe Amiot, my father’s paternal ancestors came with his family from around Soissons in the Aisne department (Picardy), I decided to contact the archives to see if more information could be found about them. Neither the Soissons municipal archives nor the church could provide anything before the French Revolution of 1789. I was referred to the “Cercle généalogique de l’Aisne” in Soissons, the “Société d’histoire et d’archéologie de Soissons” and the departmental archives in Laon for more help. I haven’t been able to reach the first two groups, but I am planning a road trip to Laon in late June, after the re-open from their annual vacation on June 18. I’ll keep you guys posted on what I found, or didn’t find…

Read more at http://mypage.iu.edu/~avillene/genealogy.htm