I'm writing this here in Geneva in Fabrizio's apartment, while Fabrizio is out at the conservatory coaching a string quartet, and Michel is right next to me on the grand Kawai in the middle of the flat, playing the solo part to Beethoven's third piano concerto with a recorded orchestra blasting from the stereo. That is to say, we are really living a fantastic life here, and have encountered probably the best workspace ever: fabrizio's apartment, where there are CD's lining all of the windowsills of the high, sloped ceilings, two floor-to-ceiling bookshelves filled with scores, abundant win [View Full Entry]

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By now, it's plain to see that we're not the best bloggers this travel blog has seen. But to be fair, we've been taking a great deal of wonderful photos that should be able to tell you more about the trip than any of my shoddy writing could. Of course, we have about 2000 of those to sort out as well. But just wanted to say a quick "cheerio!" to everyone at home and to let you know what we've been up to since our last REAL entry in Grenoble, France! After our delightful stay with Vincent, we headed off for [View Full Entry]

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Hi everyone! We're still around, now lounging in Bad Bertrich, a beautiful little spa town where we're studying with John Perry. Unfortunately, our internet access is VERY limited here, so our updates about our little sejours in Geneva, Gipf-Oberfrick, and our time so far in Bad Bertrich will have to wait until we have some spare time to update. For now, we're too busy practicing and bathing in the thermal spas...! CC MR [View Full Entry]

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Alooorrrssss. We're back to tell you about Grenoble, because it is vying for first place on our list of favorite cities, without a doubt. Wait, that's not fair. Michel and I, we say, everytime that we get to a new city: "Oui, on est très bien ici, à ...." And we mean it! Simply, I think travelling is the thrill of variety and constancy of change. Everytime we get off a train, we breathe a breath of fresh air and our minds are refreshed. This time, to Grenoble, it is no different. Unfortunately, our three weeks spent in Verneuil were not [View Full Entry]

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It's been too long, my friends. But with good reason! The past week here in Europe has been a major transition. Last I wrote, we were nearing the end of our course in Verneuil-sur-Avre with Jean-Paul Sevilla, and now, one week later, we're spending our last hours in France! I sit here writing with the sound of Vincent Galland - a close friend with whom we're staying in Grenoble - tuning his harpsichord in the living room downstairs, and the view of the Alps just outside the window. I tell you: it doesn't get much better than this. So how did [View Full Entry]

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A couple of hours before we leave for Honfleur and Deauville in the morning - all aspects are go, since M.Sevilla made sure that both the sea and the tide are still there... While we are enjoying the sun and Satie, satiate thou on some of our new photos. Just click here for the third Verneuil-sur-Avre album! bisous! CC & MR [View Full Entry]

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If one thing is in real shortage in France, it must be asians. I cannot say how many times we've received strange and astonished looks while traversing the streets of Verneuil (which should be the most diverse city, yes? According to its huge population ...)! Just the other day, we were "bronzing" in a little park on the outskirts of the city, and a man comes along, first observing us from a distance, then finally approaching us with little more to say than, "Eh... les jeunes! Je crois que le parc est fermé... euh, mais c'est pas mon rôle de te [View Full Entry]

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Perhaps it's time to put a story to the pictures. Finally. Which, by the way, have been added to! Just check our Photo Gallery . So our life in Verneuil - a town small enough that everyone might know each other even if they might choose not to, just to keep things interesting - consists of three things: piano, food, and sleep. No, it's not as mundane as that. It's actually quite the opposite: we receive almost daily stimulation and inspiration from our maitre, Jean-Paul Sevilla at our lessons, for example. Each of the five students i [View Full Entry]

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And comments! Go check it out: http://picasaweb.google.fr/michelross We should get to bed soon. Our fourth and last lesson of the week is tomorrow morning at 10! Oh la la! What's more, everyday M.Sevilla gives us a new piece to learn for the following day's lesson ... and we've barely had time to practice after our lessons this afternoon! The pictures will give you a good idea of the vibe here in Verneuil until we have time to tell you about it in detail. Keep sending the messages and comments! Oh, and we've decided to make a tr [View Full Entry]

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The evening of our second day in charming Verneuil-Sur-Avre, a tiny town about an hour by train west of Paris , and we're fully convinced of the benefits of life in la campagne . We arrived yesterday, greeted at the train station by our maitre Jean-Paul Sevilla, and some of the other students we're studying alongside for the next three weeks - two lovely ladies from Australia. Immediately hustled to our hosts' home for a lovely tea in the jardin with M.Sevilla and we were thrown into real French Culture in an instant. Another couple of Australians arrived later on, after [View Full Entry]

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