Saints, men being waxed and chicken torches

Today has been full to the brim with people, and a fascinating bunch of people they were too. I began by waiting in the car park at the end of the street for Santu (saint) a man whom I had had a brief and broken conversation with on the telephone and who was recommended to me by Marcel. He was playing pink floyd in the car and he looked like an old hippy. We went to Lupino in the south and had coffee in a cafe that was full of other people just waking up. After two espressos my conversation tends to improve and after an hour we were talking about rent prices in London - for boats and otherwise - and the drug problem in Bastia. He explained to me that there is a big celebration in Corisca on March 19th for St Joseph's day, and there will be a procession through the city, where the religious brotherhood will all walk together wearing robes. On Easter Monday, or St Pascal's day there is a possibility that I can go with him to his village, where there is a man with chains on his feet carrying a wooden cross through the streets - this will be wonderful for photos so fingers crossed. Then we had lunch together, I had pasta with 4 cheeses and he a gigantic veal steak with breadcrumbs..it was bigger than my face I reckon. Then a tiramisu - which you seem to get everywhere here - so I felt pretty stuffed afterwards. Memories came back of being taken for dinner in China or Mongolia where politeness must take priority over personal preference. In this instance it wasn't the food, it was the amount, but still the same feeling of obligation. After this Santu dropped me home and offered to take me to some shops in the old town that have been there for ages and are complete with an old lady. 

Next my first photograph of the project, a portrait of Anna in her colourful apartment. A wee struggle with the lighting, but we'll see how they turn out. Her lounge is so bright and there are so many things to look at that I think it will be a nice picture. After this we went around the town visiting different ladies that Anna knows. First we went to a beauty salon with two - apparently typically corsican - women. Anna's friend was working at the time but she heard us from upstairs and came down to get me. I followed her up the wooden staircase and into a room where a man was being waxed and given a facial! I thought I had walked in by mistake! but actually as she was busy she wanted me to take the photo of her working!! The man didn't seem to mind and he just lay there while I took the pictures! Again the light was not fantastic, but god I hope this picture comes out. It would be a classic!

Then we went to a lovely tea room in a little side street where a friendly sophisticated woman in ethnic clothing greeted us warmly. The cafe had a lovely interior with a very uniquely corsican feel. The lady is called Patricia and she is also a very popular polyphonic singer..an art which was not open to women until recently. After explaining my project and showing her my book, she agreed to be photographed and said she would prefer a photograph of her at her piano as that is where she spends most of her time. She said she would also sing me a song!

I will go there next Tuesday afternoon and the sun will be low in the sky but shining into her apartment which is high up. While Patricia was serving a customer, Anna showed me some books of a photographer who's name I wish I could remember as he walked into the cafe 5 minutes later. Anna explained that all of the interesting people in Bastia know each other and it is very good that I met him....I will find out his name tomorrow. After a nice pot of sencha tea we left and pottered around town before ending up in a cute little restaurant serving kebabs and falafel. We sat down and drank a pot of mint tea and Jackie the owner brought us home made baklava. Her 5 and a half year old daughter is now my French teacher. Her name is Noa and she is extremely mature. After explaining my project Anna left me to hang out with them...Jackie's english is great and Noa speaks childrens language so its much easier for me to understand! She has drawn about 6 pages of princesses and fairies in my notebook. I was then invited to their house where I was quickly shown how to do fairy jigsaw puzzles and given some presents. The first gift was some petit petit hair accessories. The second was a photo of Noa ice skating and third - which I didn't get until after dinner - was a yellow rooster plastic torch. When you press a button on the bum of chicken, the mouth opens and a light comes out! It also makes a cock a doodle doo. Quite convenient this gift, as I had forgotten my torch this morning and the stairwell in my building is very dark - goodness knows what the neighbours thought I was bringing home with all the cock a doodle doo's it emitted! After eating with Jackie, Noa, her son, and the Tunisian au pair I left. I will see them again soon I hope! 

Its been a lovely day, busy, colourful and diverse. Exactly the way that I hope my portrait series will become!

I have another early start so je vais me couche.

bon nuit,

Grace

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