Author: koalie

à la volette

[This post originally appeared in Dullicious, where I blogged as Barbie-dull for several years.]

I’m a big fan of the French TV show Kaamelott (lighter English entry), a comedy television series which parodies the Arthurian Legends. The series takes place in the 5th century, in England (then called Brittany) and all the characters use modern language and the formal “vous”. It’s hysterical and exquisite.

Each episode lasts less than 4 minutes. The episode below (La Quinte Juste) is one of my favourites.

King Arthur sings to himself under his tree. (w3t-ers, the song he’s singing is “Pavane (Belle qui tient ma vie)”, the same song DD made us sing in Montreal last year ;). His father in law approaches and Arthus asks him “did you hear me sing?” and Léodagan says “no…”.

The episode is about singing. Father Blaise is very conservative, the knight Bohort wants to modernise singing and King Arthur doubts at first that they’re making a good use of their time singing, then doesn’t really give a damn but participates anyway.

Father Blaise: “I’ll report to the Pope the next person I hear whistling a pagan interval!” and also “stop! or I’m going to throw up on the round table!”

Anyway, at the end of the episode, Bohort, King Arthur and the king’s mother in law stand in front of Father Blaise and sing an interpretation of the song À la volette. I think they can sing.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pb-9pRUo3Sw&w=425&h=350]

Eugénie went for a walk

Impératrice Eugénie et ses dames
Impératrice Eugénie et ses dames

I dreamt of “L’Impératrice Eugénie parmi ses dames d’honneur” by Winterhalter (1855), that I know because there’s a small reproduction in my parents’ dining room.

The Empress Eugénie was having a nice and quiet afternoon with her friends from the palace, sitting in the beautiful and shady garden in Compiègne.

I could hear their educated, sophisticated and subdued conversations. Two were laughing lightly, another was humming a song, one was lost in the contemplation of flowers, two were whispering secrets, two were undecided as to which conversation to follow, and the empress was rather bored. I was on my way to the kitchen and wasn’t paying attention to them.

On my way back to my room, something was missing.
The Empress Eugénie had left.
I guessed she had gone for a solitary walk.