Color is not the only signal that autumn has arrived in central France. The smell of wood smoke becomes pervasive in the areas just outside town, early-morning frosts form on the windows. At work, the first chilly day means a cold day in the office as the radiators clank and wheeze their way back into action after the long summer. People in the street shiver in winter clothes (even though the temperature is still in the 50s or 60s [12 – 18 C]) , woolly scarves wound around their necks up to the bridge of their noses, heavy layers of sweaters and pea-coats covering the rest. It’s harvest time, too, and as people have been doing in this corner of […]
At Mont Mouchet, the Largest Gathering of the French Resistance
Old battlefields are sometimes hard to decipher. As the years pass, even deep shell craters lose their sharp definition, bullet marks on stone walls are worn down, and the whole landscape takes on a settled, green calm that belies the violence that once marked the place. A great effort of imagination is required to reconstruct troop movements and the profound drama of long-ago conflicts. That’s especially the case today as I finally arrive at the top of the hill at Mont Mouchet. In early June 1944, at the same time all hell was unleashed on the beaches of Normandy far to then north, another battle was unfolding in this unlikely corner of the deep heart of France. We’re in the […]
Castelnaud-la-Chapelle is one of France’s “Most Beautiful Villages”
Beginning this week, our coverage of the ‘deep heart of France’ expands to include parts of the region known (since the consolidation of 2016) as Nouvelle Aquitaine. This recent agglomeration is the largest of the new administrative regions of France, so we’ll confine our attention just to the western parts – those that are still called the Limousin and the Dordogne by old-timers like me! Please let me know what you think of this evolution, and especially if there’s a particular subject you’d like me to cover in this area. By the time I reach the castle perched on top of Castelnaud-la-Chapelle, my heart is pounding at 140 beats a minute and I’m soaked in perspiration. But this is another […]
On Working With the French (Part 3)
Most of the time, this blog is devoted to the pleasures and occasional difficulties of living in France as an expat – the travel opportunities, the incredible experience of food and wine, and the culture and history of the country. In a couple of forums, though, I’ve written about what it was like to work in a French company in the deep heart of France – how to adapt to a Cartesian decision-making process, for example, and the reality behind the elusive “35-hour work week.” This week: a quick tour of some of the things that happen at the office that might at first seem trivial, but which (I think) have a real significance in the way people work in […]
6 Cool Things to Do In The Deep Heart of France This Fall
Autumn is not just a physically beautiful phenomenon in the deep heart of France – although the rich colors of the leaves and tendrils of wood smoke rising from chimneys do give it the quality of a fine Renoir painting. It’s also part of the annual rhythm of life here – work hard all year, leave for vacations in August, then come back charged up and ready to attack again after the rentrée in early September. That’s reflected in the number of events and programmed activities you’ll find at this time of the year in central France. Here’s a round-up of 6 of the most interesting things to do this fall in the Auvergne region. People in this part of […]
Take a Day Trip to Semur-en-Brionnais, officially one of France’s “Most Beautiful Villages”
I love a good story about how great people and great events can rise to world prominence from the smallest places on the map. I’m also crazy about France’s official list of “most beautiful villages”. Throw in a medieval fortress and a little Roman history, and you have an ideal day trip! Today’s destination, Semur-en-Brionnais, satisfies on all three points. After an incredible evening out in Moulins, I’ve driven 50 miles southeast – across the boundary of the Auvergne, just inside the Burgundy region in the deep heart of France. The origins of the town are lost in the clouds of ancient history, although we know a fortified site here was overrun by tribes from the east in the 3rd […]
5 More Videos to Make You Fall in Love with the Deep Heart of France
Since I started this blog, I’ve tried several ways to explain what the “deep heart of France” means to me. You’ve heard why I love Clermont-Ferrand and the Auvergne, and you’ve seen some of the towns officially recognized as being among “the most beautiful villages of France” – places like Blesle, Charroux, Arlempdes, and Salers. If you’ve stuck with this blog for long, you’ve also had a taste of some of central France’s best cultural offerings – from the incredible International Short Film Festival in Clermont-Ferrand to the great MuPop Museum of Popular Music in Montlucon and the classical music festival held every August in La Chaise-Dieu.
A surprising little museum in the Chateau de Panloup
In August – while everyone (including me!) is away on vacation –’m posting a shorter article each week with a look at a specific destination or aspect of life in the deep heart of France. This week: a visit to the Chateau de Panloup. Regular “feature-length” posts will resume in September. You’ll see images of roosters almost everywhere you go in France – the coq is one of the country’s most enduring symbols. So it’s only mildly surprising to find a unique little museum dedicated to the subject in a little chateau in the Allier. And this Gallinotheque (“Rooster Museum”) is not the only interesting thing about the Chateau de Panloup, in the town of Yzeure; this is a working […]
The Auvergne – One of France’s Great “Bread-basket” Regions
In August – while everyone (including me!) is away on vacation – I’m posting a shorter article each week with a look at a specific destination or aspect of life in the deep heart of France. This week: a look at some of the country’s most picturesque farmlands. Regular “feature-length” posts will resume in September. I grew up on a farm in southern Oklahoma, but in no meaningful way am I a “farm boy.” And yet…when I drive through central France, there’s something about the agricultural landscape that really calls out to me. You might think the Auvergne is nothing but extinct volcanoes and sharp hills – but it’s also one of the great “breadbasket” regions of France. So this […]
Echoes of France in Vienna
In August – while everyone (including me!) is away on vacation –I’m posting a shorter article each week with a look at a specific destination or aspect of life in the deep heart of France. This week: how Romanesque architecture (which dominates the medieval buildings of central France) manifests itself in a modern location far away, at the Kaiser Jubilee Church in Vienna. Regular “feature-length” posts will resume after vacation. I’ve written often about my love for the Romanesque architecture in central France. It’s visible in the big “showcase” basilicas in Clermont-Ferrand, Brioude, and Issoire, but you can see it, too, in many smaller towns – St. Menoux, St. Saturnin, Charroux, Lavaudieu, among others. They all have in common the […]
Daytrip: the Ruins of the Chateau de Domeyrat
In August – while everyone (including me!) is away on vacation – I’m posting a shorter article each week with a twist on a specific destination or aspect of life in the deep heart of France. This week: a visit to the ruins of the Chateau de Domeyrat. Regular “feature-length” posts will resume in September. https://youtu.be/J8f0fkE8Nqk Someone asked me recently about the castle you see at the top of my web pages on DeepHeartOfFrance.com. It’s a photo I took if the Chateau de Domeyrat, an hour southeast of Clermont-Ferrand by autoroute and 20 minutes from the historic town of Brioude.
DESTINATION: The Contemporary Abbey at Randol
Religion – a tricky subject anywhere in the world – can be especially difficult to bring up in France. There’s a broad perception (based on dozens of polls – the French seem to like contemplating this question) that France is now a mostly secular society, and that the massive influence of the Catholic church from the Middle Ages to the Revolution is mostly a historical relic. There are thousands of ancient churches and crumbling old abbeys, but it seems rare to see a new one. That’s why, when Karen mentioned the visit she made with her women’s group to a 20th-cenury abbey at Randol, we decided we had to go back there together to learn more about what was going […]
