May

A Vagabond Travel Day With Sheep in Provence

by Sheron Long on May 30, 2013

Blocks spelling "Wing It," showing the value of vagabond travel

Wing it and find the surprise of the unknown.
© Sheron Long

Off the Beaten Path, Life Is Full of Surprises

It never fails. The day I decide to wing it and wander away from the travel itinerary is the day that etches the best memories in my mind.

Maybe it’s because I’m here in France where being a flâneur (stroller, wanderer, vagabond in a good sense) is valued, much like an art form. Maybe it’s because the unexpected surprises of life put a bigger smile on my face.

No matter, in many an “Oh, I see” moment, I’ve learned that making space for vagabond travel days is essential to a well-planned itinerary.

Wall-to-Wall Sheep

Yesterday was no exception. I wandered into our village and noticed a crowd gathering on the street. Something told me to forget about the quest for croissants and take up a position.

It was the Transhumance, the day that shepherds take their flocks from the lowlands to the highlands where food is more plentiful this time of year. Can you imagine the sight—3,000 sheep in the street?

Sheep moving through Saint-Rémy-de-Provence and showing bystanders that life is full of surprises

Border collies and shepherds led the flock into town.
© Sheron Long

Before you saw the massive amount of wool, you heard the sheep coming. They baa-ed and bleated their way through town.

Noisy sheep with loud bells!

The troop progressed, some showing off horns and pom-poms. I gawked at the wool that went wall-to-wall, and I loved the surprise of it all!

The flock filled the street in our village with wall-to-wall wool.
© Sheron Long

Aside from the annual procession in Saint-Rémy, other parades of animals—sheep, cattle, and horses—are part of the celebration of Marseille-Provence as the 2013 European Capital of Culture. Transhumance events continue through the region until June 9, 2013, when they culminate in a large parade through Marseille.

Off the Beaten Path

In such public parades, however, I realized that the sheep were coming to me, somewhat out of place on a street. Surely, there was a way I could go to them for an even more authentic experience.

I could feel wanderlust taking over, and the plan for the next couple of days was shot.

Armed with wheels, feet, and a wing-it attitude, I began to explore the back roads of Provence in the rain, looking for wide open spaces that could house the troops of sheep as they made their way through the region.

I ran across shepherds participating in sheepdog trials, helicopters flying overhead to document troop movement from the air, bivouacs of horseback riders, and pens of big and baby bulls.

But it was on unknown land where the road ended past the Étang des Aulnes in Saint-Martin-de-Crau that I found what I was looking for—a troop of sheep munching away at the end of their day and delivering quiet baas to punctuate the rhythm of the rain.

Sheep grazing in Provence, seen on a vagabond travel day and showing that life is full of surprises

Sheep ending their day in the rain, unaware of villages and processions
© Sheron Long

I stood in the rain and took it all in, feeling now like I had the fuller picture. Then the shepherd, dressed in a robe of old, raised his left hand, a sign to his faithful border collies to take the sheep home. They were gone in an instant, it seemed, and it was one I’m glad I didn’t miss.

Provence shepherd, seen on a vagabond travel day and showing that life is full of surprises

A shepherd in Provence with two border collies and other faithful herding dogs
© Sheron Long

For more on how travel makes us happy, see this CNN travel article by Winnie So.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Sheron Long 1 Comment

Art of Travel/France

May

Crossing Cultures: To France with a Sheltie

by Sheron Long on May 16, 2013

A Sheltie in the markets of Provence prompts aha moments while crossing cultures

Chula the Sheltie loves the windy Wednesday market in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence.
© Sheron Long

Aha Moments in the Markets of Provence

Our Sheltie, Chula Wula D’Augue, has never been inside a grocery store in her home state of California. She’s not allowed on the grounds that dogs and food do not mix.

But every year when we take her with us to France, the cultural differences work in her favor. Crossing cultures means she can stay in hotels, from simple to chic, and go with us to restaurants, where the kind waiters bring her water and sometimes an amuse-bouche.

And she can make her favorite foray into the big outdoor food markets where dogs and food DO mix. Here in villages across Provence amid the chatter of buying and selling and the tasting of everything from cheese to paella, is where Chula and I have one aha moment after another.

In fact, I’m pretty sure of this one revelation:

Everything I need to know about life I’ve learned from my dog in the markets of Provence .

After crossing cultures to France, a Sheltie steps out her gate and heads to the markets of Provence.

To market! To market!
© Sheron Long

Such as, you ask? Here are my top 6.

1. Follow Your Passion

In our village of Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, we live only a short block from the market. From the time we step out of our gate, Chula strains at the leash, trotting left then right then left again to the sausage table by the centuries old church. She knows the way because, you see, sausage is her passion.

After crossing cultures to France, a Sheltie finds tasty morsels under the sausage table in the markets of Provence.

The deep dive under the sausage table nets Chula some satisfying morsels.
© Sheron Long

And Oh, I see too: Once you find your passion, go for it. The reward is immense.

2. Respect Everyone

Chula looked down her long Sheltie snout into the flat face of this Boxer and said, “Bonjour!” With his short fur, he must have wondered how Chula stood the heat of a Provençal summer. But they found common ground here by the flower stand and shared their secrets on which vendors give treats to canine friends.

After crossing cultures to France, an American Sheltie bridges cultural differences and makes friends with a French Boxer in the markets of Provence.

Sheltie meets Boxer by the flower stand.
© Sheron Long

Oh, I see. Bridging differences can enrich your life.

3. Sniff Out Opportunities

Not much gets by Chula. Like other dogs with long, wide snouts, she has about 225 million scent receptors. Compare that to the human who has 5 million, and you get a sense of her talented nose, which she uses to interpret her world.

This day, Chula sensed an opportunity and stuck her neck out. She didn’t get the roast chicken inside the sack, but she did get a great scratch and those welcome words joli chien (pretty dog). Befitting words, too, since her name Chula means “pretty” in Spanish.

After crossing cultures, a Sheltie sniffs out food in the markets of Provence and provides an aha moment.

Chula sniffing out opportunities at the big outdoor market in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence
© Sheron Long

Oh, I see when you know your talents and put them to work, unexpected good comes your way.

4. Own Up to Your Mistakes

No matter how talented, every dog comes a-cropper from time to time. Chula’s downfall is tomatoes. She loves to steal them out of kitchen gardens, from market crates, off plates left unattended. When she lifted a tomato from this vendor and got caught, she looked up at him with soulful eyes and pledged a reparation. I handed over a euro, and knew she’d do it all over again.

After crossing cultures to France, a Sheltie steals a tomato in the markets of Provence and has an aha moment.

Chula lifts a tomato from a market crate and tries to say she’s sorry.
© Sheron Long

Oh, I see. It’s one thing to say you’re sorry and another to mean it.

5. Live Life with Friends

Chula knows the value of friendship. Good friends help each other put their best paw forward, they watch each other’s back, and they show each other the way. On this sunny market day, two dog friends savored the moment, trotting through the crowd on their way to the paella skillets.

After crossing cultures to France, a Sheltie strolls through the markets of Provence and has an aha moment.

Nothing beats padding through the big Provençal market with a friend.
© Sheron Long

Oh, I see. Time with friends puts a smile on your face.

6. Keep an Open Heart

Chula paused in front of the lovely linens on sale at every market in Provence, perhaps to show that she thinks about things other than food. I like to think she was making a statement about her love of France, her joie de vivre at living life in a different culture, the pleasure of the time away with us.

After crossing cultures to France, a Sheltie admires the linens in the markets of Provence.

Chula loves her life in two cultures–American and French.
© Sheron Long

Who can ever know for sure what a dog is thinking, whether at home or crossing cultures? But no one can doubt the shared love and adventures that transpire when you keep an open heart. Oh, I see!

Visit AngloINFO Provence for a schedule of market days in the different villages.

Sheron Long and Chula Wula D’Augue are authors of Dog Trots Globe—To Paris and Provence, a visual account of their adventures through France, including a chapter and video on the markets of Provence. Chula shares her dog’s-eye view of Provence in these postcards, which she offers to you as a free gift.

Sheron Long 4 Comments

Crossing Cultures/France/Secrets to Life

May

Life-Changing Experiences of A Royal Molecatcher

by Meredith Mullins on May 9, 2013

Jérôme Dormion, at work in Versailles, with shovel, traps, and molehills in his job as Royal Molecatcher, full of life-changing experiences.

Molecatcher to the King, Jérôme Dormion, at work at Versailles
© Meredith Mullins

The Versailles Version of Whack-A-Mole

Is becoming a molecatcher one of those life-changing experiences?

For Jérôme Dormion, the answer is a resounding and royal yes.

Jérôme has a great job. He goes to work at a palace. He gets free reign over the Versailles grounds, one of the most beautiful landscapes in France. And, as if that weren’t enough, he is honored with the official title: “Molecatcher to the King.”

Palace of Versailles, where Royal Molecatcher, Jérôme Dormion, has his life-changing experiences.

The Palace of Versailles, a 17th century expression of “the good life” by Louis XIV
© Meredith Mullins

The History of the Versailles Molecatchers

The French kings are long dead, but the palace of Versailles (just west of Paris) lives on in royal splendor, visited by more than six million people every year.

Ever since Louis XIV hired the first molecatcher 330 years ago, the job of “Molecatcher to the King” has been a coveted position.

The job went from father to son for more than 200 years, until one son was too much of a party animal for Napoleon’s taste. That son, the last of the lineage, was fired, and the job went on the open market. Fast forward 100 years . . .

Jérôme Dormion stands alone in a field at Versailles, part of the life-changing experiences of being a Royal Molecatcher.

It’s a little lonely being the Molecatcher to the King, especially when you’re
one molecatcher in 2000 acres of land.
© Meredith Mullins

The Lone Molecatcher

Jérôme Dormion is the newest member of this elite club. He’s responsible for keeping the palace grounds free of the unsightly molehills that can pockmark the rolling green lawns and soft forest floors. That means 2000 acres of mole-free territory—no easy feat for a lone molecatcher.

For Jérôme, it’s a noble challenge. He brings to the job a respect for the mole’s ability to evade humans as well as a respect for the environment.

Mole peeking out from molehill, waiting to be caught by the Royal Molecatcher at Versailles, life-changing experiences for both.

Survival of the Smartest

Moles are intelligent. They’re also workaholics. They’re full of energy and don’t even take time to hibernate like their other mammal comrades.

They dig for worms/sleep/dig for worms/sleep in four-hour cycles, with a brief time out for procreation every spring, producing four or five young (technically called “pups” but I like to call them molettes).

With their five-digit digging hands that look a little like Mickey Mouse’s formal white gloves, they can burrow 18 feet an hour, flinging their dirt above ground in unsightly mounds throughout their “territory.”

A molecatcher has to be at the top of his game.

Must We Declare War?

In Jérôme’s book about moles (a bestseller in France), he asks an egalitarian question “Is cohabitation possible? Must we declare war?”

A field of molehills, work for the Royal Molecatcher, a job full of life-changing experiences.

The answer, regretfully, is that moles cause numerous problems—destroying plant roots, creating cave-ins of earth, inviting in other pests and bacteria, and, of course, destroying the beauty of well-manicured lawns and gardens.

And so, war it is.

For those of us who have had mole problems in our own garden, we know how frustrating the mole’s invasion (and evasion) can be.

We no doubt look like fools to them (and perhaps to our curious human neighbors), sledgehammering molehills, lighting firecrackers, flooding tunnels with water, or using chewing gum, garlic, or cayenne pepper. The moles are probably rolling their (little) eyes every time we try something new.

Enter the Expert: The Molecatcher to the King

At Versailles, there are no longer any natural predators (wildcats and weasels), so it’s important to keep the population in check.

Jérôme is unique, not just because he is Molecatcher to the King, but because he uses traps designed in the 1600s—appropriate for the 17th-century palace, but also environmentally sound.

Mole trap for the Versailles Royal Molecatcher, Jérôme Dormion, part of his life-changing experiences.

No poisons. No toxic gases. A quick death for the mole. No killing of the beneficial garden allies. The ecosystem of the garden is preserved.

The traditional traps that Jérôme uses are just three ingenious pieces of metal, “a bit like a guillotine,” he says smiling. They snap together to break the mole’s neck.

To place the traps correctly, Jerome studies the patterns of the earth and the habits of these clever escape artists. It’s a puzzle to be solved. Who can outsmart whom.

Jérôme Dormion pulls a trap from the tunnel, one of the life-changing experiences of the Royal Molecatcher.

Only the Mensa moles manage to escape. One mole eluded Jérôme for three months. But in the end, well, suffice it to say: man over mole.

A Gentleman and a Molecatcher

It is true that Jérôme’s life experiences changed when he became Molecatcher to the King. He’s well known in the molecatching world and continues to provide innovation and environmental care in this unique niche.

His network of environmental molecatchers (Taup’ Green) spreads over France and is expanding to other countries.

Jérôme Dormion sets a mole trap at Versailles Palace, just one of the life-changing experiences of the Royal Molecatcher.

But many of the life-changing experiences in this mole story were mine.

I met a person who is a real master at his job—generous with his knowledge and passionate about protecting the environment.
I got to ride around like a queen in the “molemobile” on the beautiful back roads of Versailles with the one and only “Molecatcher to the King.” A celebrity—charming and humble despite his royal title.

And then there was that “Oh, I See Moment.”

I was reminded that every problem has a solution, even if it seems overwhelming.

So . . . best not to make mountains out of molehills.

(You saw that coming, didn’t you?)

For more on mole-catching, see Jérôme’s book Le Piégeage Traditionnel des Taupes (Traditional Mole Traps).