Vincent
Every subject set out here comes from my own experience and my own interests. And each one can open an absorbing conversation in French, of course!
Cooking
I am not a cook; I am learning to cook.
Cooking is something you live, a discovery that awakens the senses and brings people together. It feeds the body, the heart and good company.
Horse
«La plus noble conquête de l’homme»
No animal is as beautiful, as powerful or as brave as the horse.
Sailing
I have taken part in many regattas, in France and in Spain, on the Atlantic as well as the Mediterranean.
My other pursuits
Passions that stay with me and feed my curiosity.
Thought, strategy and shared moments around simple things. Nature and play open the conversation.
A walk through the Basque Country
Setting off from the castle of Hondarribia and the bay of Txingudi, arriving at the witches’ caves of Zugarramurdi, by way of the Corniche, Saint-Jean-de-Luz, Biarritz, Bayonne, Arcangues, Espelette and Ainhoa.
Creation
Art is nourishment.
Mignonne, allons voir si la rose
Qui ce matin avoit desclose
Sa robe de pourpre au Soleil,
A point perdu ceste vesprée
Les plis de sa robe pourprée,
Et son teint au vostre pareil.
Las! voyez comme en peu d’espace,
Mignonne, elle a dessus la place
Las! las ses beautez laissé cheoir!
Ô vrayment marastre Nature,
Puis qu’une telle fleur ne dure
Que du matin jusques au soir!
Pierre de Ronsard, Les Odes, 1545
Read the whole poemCreated by the spirit, man inscribes himself in his own creative act.
Everything is colour, tone, rhythm, energy and sensuality.
Gravity, nostalgia, solemnity: between sadness and beauty.
Tones, intensities and shapes express our nature.
Sur la vitre des surprises
Sur les lèvres attentives
Bien au-dessus du silence
J’écris ton nom
Et par le pouvoir d’un mot
Je recommence ma vie
Je suis né pour te connaître
Pour te nommer
Liberté.
Paul Éluard, Liberté, 1942
Read the whole poemGeorges Méliès, A Trip to the Moon, 1902
Jules Verne, From the Earth to the Moon, 1865
Get in touch
If you would like to speak French and make progress through conversation, write me a few words about yourself, your needs and what you are hoping for. I will then get in touch to talk it over.
In French, Spanish, English or Italian.