It has been a strangely hectic couple of weeks here in the countryside, and my blogging duties have suffered as a result. Apologies. Urgent business at hand: The main structure on the property is quite old, as you know, and the roof has a number of leaks, as you might have guessed. Buckets, pieces of … More Update from the Countryside…Countdown to the Coronation
Thank you, Melissa!
“Don’t tell anyone you’re buying a chateau.” Such was the refrain from everyone we spoke with in Paris: Parisians will be jealous. Parisians will think you’re a fool. People will try to take advantage of you. These warnings came, almost verbatim, from Americans, Brits, and even Parisians themselves. Of course, the default mental setting for … More Discretion and Duty
Recently I’d mentioned that my wife and I had left our apartment in Paris and relocated to the French countryside. This was indeed the case, but not the full truth. My ingrained tendency toward privacy and even secrecy in my personal life made me hesitate. But my perspective has changed after two short months into … More The Next Adventure…
There are subjects that we think we understand. Then there are books we read that completely demolish the illusion of that understanding. Such is “Former People – The Last Days of the Russian Aristocracy” by Douglas Smith. I thought I had a pretty good understanding of Russia, its history, its culture, its politics. Not so … More What I’m Reading Now