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Protecting the Rural Heritage of France

by Meredith Mullins on March 1, 2021

Sheep in the French countryside showing the right to rural heritage. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

The freedom to baa whenever you feel like it.
© Meredith Mullins

No BS: New Law To Preserve the Sounds and Smells of the French Countryside

It would not be unusual when thinking about the rural heritage of France to find a sign at the outskirts of a typical French village that says:

Enter at your own risk. We have bells that ring regularly. We have roosters who sing early in the morning. We have livestock herds that graze here (and might be wearing bells). We have farmers who work to give you food.

Art Discoveries: The Mystery in the Ceiling

by Meredith Mullins on January 25, 2021

A Humbert painting unveiled via curtain, showing art discovers that can inspire travels to the past. (Image © Meredith Mullins and Charlie Meagher.)

What treasure is hidden in this Paris ceiling?
© Meredith Mullins/Charlie Meagher

Follow the Clues & Travel Through History

The world loves stories about surprising art discoveries—treasures that are unearthed via bizarre circumstances and that send the finder on a compelling journey, perhaps including travels through history.

  • In 1940, four teenagers followed their dog down a narrow cavern and found cave walls filled with hundreds of prehistoric paintings—the now famous Lascaux caves in France.
Cave painting of a horse from the Lascaux caves, showing that art discoveries can lead to new adventures and travels to the past. (Image courtesy of the French Ministry of Culture.)

A dog discovered the famous Lascaux cave paintings.
(Photo courtesy of the French Ministry of Culture)

Great Gardens of the World: Les Jardins d’Étretat

by Meredith Mullins on August 3, 2020

A UNESCO World Heritage view (and Monet’s favorite spot in Étretat)
© Meredith Mullins

A Nature Discovery with a View

Where am I?

Am I in Alice’s wonderland or a labyrinthian meditation garden? Am I dreaming that hedges are crashing like waves on the hillside, or am I lost in a fantasy tunnel of green?

Perhaps all of the above. Great gardens open doors to creative experiences.

Enchanted gardens inspire the imagination.
© Meredith Mullins

Gardens hide behind tiny doors or down Alice-discovered rabbit holes. They surprise us beyond dilapidated fences that seem to say “go farther only if you dare.” And they present magical mazes that offer the alluring puzzle of being lost in time and place.

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