Sunday, January 24, 2010

My journey with Proust

So, in light of all the Proust discussions, I have decided to read Remembrance of Things Past. And to read it slowly and let it tumble around in my head - not like the mad dash of college when it had to be read by such and such date and , My God, how am I going to read all of this???!!!

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Perhaps I'll take you on a journey with me. Perhaps you can come along with me.

Oh, and here is the grave upon which the Madeleine was placed. It's in Pere Lachaise cemetery and you should visit it sometime. It is amazingly beautiful, full of feral cats (including a ginger tabby who bit me on the nose that I named Mr. Puddintaine) and lush trees, and higgeldy piggely cobblestones. You'd also be able to see the final resting places of Heloise and Abelard, Chopin, Poulenc, and Modigliani, oh, and that rock star from The Doors. AND, you'll be in PARIS!

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I love cemeteries. I suppose I should save this for a Wednesday post, but I do love them. I don't find them creepy, I find them peaceful and quiet and beautiful. I wasn't prepared for how beautiful Pere Lachaise would be. I snatched a few photos off of photobucket to prove it to you.

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10 comments:

Kitty said...

I've often thought about rereading it. I loved it when I was in school, and didn't read it in a very scholarly way- just sort of let the stream of consciousness take over.

I can't wait to hear all about it!

Magnolia Handspun said...

These images are hauntingly beautiful...such soul and spirit.
Beautiful.
We used to live right next door to cemetary in Hudson Valley...never really got the "creepy" part. I actually thought it was very peaceful and lovely looking out on this 200 yr old resting place.
Never read Proust.

Jenny said...

Hi Erin!

I'm Jenny from Sweden, and I thought I would introduce myself as I'm also doing the Adventures in Lace KAL with Kate. I'm an avid fan of hers, and I've been following her blog ever since she started. I knit, a lot, and I fins I have less and less time to read the more I knit... I'm more of a fantasy/horror type of gal when it comes to books, and I've practically never read any of the classics. Only some of them, when I was still in school, but as I've been in the field of biology ever since I started University 10 years ago, I don't get to read those types of books for education either.

The cemetery looks really beautiful though, I really want to see Paris some day, and as both me and my husband actually love the Doors, I guess we would have to see this cemetery anyway!

/ Jenny

Stacy said...

I've never been to Paris but would like to. I find cemetaries peaceful, too. Quite a few celebrities at Pere Lachaise. I've heard stories about Jim Morrison's head stone being stolen multiple times.

Karen said...

Beautiful, Erin. Many thanks.

Kaylovesvintage said...

me to...the one in Praag and the
one in Vienna is one of my fav

ImplausibleYarn said...

I thin I'd put up with an awful lot to go to Paris, maybe even learn a little french... I agree with you those cemeteries are not creepy at all unless (and I'm announcing my geekiness for sure) you've seen that episode of Dr. Who with the "weeping angels"?

Ladrón de Basura (a.k.a. Junk Thief) said...

Lovely! I made a pilgrimage to Pere Lachaise many years ago when I though it "would be cool" to visit Morrison's grave but didn't appreciate the providence of the place. Today it would be more important for me to visit the resting place of Proust and Poulenc. Ah, Msr. Poulenc!

If you ever make it the Bay Area, I'd love to give you a tour of Oakland's Mountain View Cemetery and the neighboring Chapel of the Chimes, the latter designed (in part) by Julia Morgan.

Erin Wallace said...

How I would LOVE to take you up on your offer of a tour of Mountain View Cemetery; I am so in love with San Francisco (I've been trying to figure out how I can move either there or to London with my family of five to an 1800 sq foot detached house at Ohio prices for years - alas, I've come to no grand ideas). But I will remember your offer, as I am aching to go back to San Francisco. Thank you So Much for the offer!

Relyn Lawson said...

Oh, this is a wonderful post. Thank you for sharing it with us.

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