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Saturday May 2. Graz.

 I have come to Graz to visit Claire, Ariane and Ariane’s family. Claire and Ariane lived in Sault Ste. Marie for over three years, partly with me. Then I also lived with them while on sabbatical in Montreal. Some of you will remember them from my wedding where Claire played the oboe and Ariane the cello. Originally from Trois Rivières, Quebec, Claire now lives in San Francisco and Ariane, with her partner and two children, in Graz. Claire very generously is sharing the last weekend of a month’s stay here with me.


Together with a lot of talking - we haven’t seen each other for years and years - Claire had an errand to run and showed me a fabulous department store, K&O, full of customers buying all sorts of things. What makes this store special is great customer service - lots of very knowledgeable and warm salespeople making a visit relaxing and enjoyable. Look at this - a comfortable café in the middle of the store. And a rooftop restaurant with a superb view!



Then we took a tram (excellent public transportation - frequent, convenient, quietly electric, affordable) to Schloss Eggenberg.  If you remember the bit of history from Besançon, a prosperous 16th century followed by a horrible early 17th century, well the horrible bit happened here too. Years of extra cold weather caused crop failures, the Thirty Years War ravaged the countryside, the plague added to the misery. In an attempt to bring peace and cosmic harmony to his life, Prince Hans Ulrich of Eggenberg built this castle oriented perfectly to the four compass directions. It has 365 windows (the days of the year), 52 windows in the state rooms (weeks of the year), 31 rooms on each floor (days of the longest months), etc.  In the centre is a chapel with geometric lines radiating out to all the geometric axes of the castle, placing God and faith in the perfect centre.  All opposites are connected. For instance, in the central courtyard a moist grotto  is surmounted by a tall tower; male and female together. Photos are a partial view of the front, the chapel ceiling, the female grotto and the male tower astride it.  





I hope this quite extraordinary home did bring peaceful harmony to its occupants! It now houses an art museum that has been superbly curated.  Rooms are by period and by themes. Colours echo each other not only through walls and ceilings, but subtly through the paintings as well. Well-written in-depth explanations link the themes and the paintings to context.  A somewhat exhausting viewing experience I think in part because of the ever-so-effective aesthetics and messages that plunged us into the past with all its horrors and its aspirations.

Instead of even trying to show you this, here is a bit of final beauty we met with at the exit to the castle gardens.



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