Dubrovnik, « la perle de l’Adriatique »

A Dubrovnik, sur la côte dalmate, pour une semaine, en meetings – la rencontre semi-annuelle d’une centaine d’ « experts » de sociétés de gestion collective de droits d’auteur sous l’égide de la CISAC.

Ville bien plantée sur sa presqu’ile rocheuse, cintrée par ses murailles qui surplombent superbement l’Adriatique. Bel ensemble architectural d’une autre époque – style gothique, Renaissance et baroque – bien préservé en dépit d’un tremblement de terre catastrophique vers la fin du 17e siècle (1667 plus précisément) et de vicieux bombardements au cours d’une guerre tout aussi vicieuse qu’absurde il n’y a pas vingt ans! (L’UNESCO en faisait un site du Patrimoine mondial en 1979 http://whc.unesco.org/fr/list/95 et aura contribué à sa reconstruction après ce siège brutal, mené par la Serbie et le Monténégro voisins, et dont les obus auront touchés plus du deux tiers de ses structures).

Les Balkans, « la poudrière de l’Europe » comme mon vieux prof d’histoire aimait nous les décrire… Période très troublée une fois la Yougoslavie défunte après la chute du mur de Berlin. Ce n’est qu’après presque vingt ans de conflits, dont quelques génocides, que la région a retrouvé un peu de stabilité, sous 6 ou 7 républiques distinctes, dont la Croatie où nous sommes. Le tout m’apparaît resté passablement fragile, avec des tensions raciales et religieuses qui ne sont pas loin de la surface, et qui risqueraient d’éclater sous bien peu de provocation. La chasse au criminels de guerre, des deux, ou plutôt multiples, cotés, bien que nécessaire, ne fait que ressasser des cendres encore très chaudes… La Croatie et sa voisine du Nord, la Slovénie, pourtant du même bord du temps des guerres civiles, ne viennent que de s’entendre il y a quelques semaines sur une dispute de frontières, pierre d’achoppement jusqu’ici aux pourparlers qui verraient la Croatie joindre l’Union Européenne. La Croatie compte quelque 4.5 million d’habitants et se caractérise entre autres par sa longue côte sur l’Adriatique et ses 1200 îles dont une cinquantaine seulement sont habitées.

(Un journaliste anciennement de la BBC faisait valoir récemment que les Balkans sont en passe de connaître une véritable "renaissance" grâce en bonne partie à l'effet "Communauté Européenne" dont la Slovanie est déjà membre et à laquelle aspire de se joindre le reste des Balkans. Apparamment que le nouveau premier ministre grec, George Papandréou, serait le plus ardent des supporteurs au sein de l'UE pour une Communauté qui engloberait tout le sud-est de l'Europe. une date symbolique pour cet accomplissement pourrait être le 28 juin 2014, cetn ans exactement après l'assassinat de l'archiduc Franz Ferdinand à Sarajevo qui devait déclencher les hostilités de la première guerre mondiale...12 octobre)

Sommes descendus au Rixos Libertas http://www.rixos.com/index.aspx , complexe hôtelier qui donne directement sur la mer, près de la vieille ville – tout récemment ouvert (celui-là reconstruit) comme bien des hôtels dans Dubrovnik qui connaît un regain de prospérité grâce à un tourisme presque paralysant tellement le nombre de visiteurs y est grand! Il faut voir les masses qui assiègent la vieille ville, même comme à ce temps-ci de fin de saison… Le plus gros « cruiseship » à ne jamais s’amarrer à Dubrovnik était en ville – 3600 passagers, en plus un équipage de 2000 employés! Et ce n’est pas rare de voir 3 ou 4 de ces cruiseships amarrés près du port. La piscine extérieure de quelques cinquante mètres de long fait bien oublier les quelques carences de l’hôtel…

Découvrons le charme des environs en passant tout le dimanche sur l’eau, sur un de ces bateaux traditionnels de bois qui vous promènent d’une île à l’autre – les îles Elafitti (Kolocep, Lopud et Sipan) le long de la côte tout juste en haut de Dubrovnik. Il faut dire que nous sommes servis, et ce tout au long de la semaine, par une température idéale – 25 degrés, sec et ensoleillé!

Nous avons saisi l’occasion d’une soirée libre pour aller à un concert donné par l’Orchestre symphonique de Dubrovnik http://www.dso.hr/english/ sous le bâton du russe Ildous Galioulline, maintenant établi à Dubrovnik. Au programme, Beethoven (l’ouverture des Ruines d’Athènes). Haydn (la Symphonie No. 101) et Mozart (la symphonie dite de Jupiter). Plutôt remarquable, le concert se donnait dans un endroit charmant, l’atrium du Palais des Recteurs, la splendide résidence gothico-Renaissance datant du XVe siècle qui logeait celui qui gouvernait Dubrovnik, le recteur (i.e. jusqu’au moment où Napoléon est venu « troubler les choses », au début du XIXe…) http://www.linternaute.com/voyage/croatie/dubrovnik/monument/le-palais-des-recteurs/ Chose également bizarre, ces recteurs soi-disant maîtres de Dubrovnik, se suivaient à tous les mois, ce qui laisse croire qu’ils n’exerçaient pas grand pouvoir…

Ces réunions de la CISAC sont de bonnes occasions de tenir des discussions, certaines plus discrètes que les autres, entre sociétés, et le plus souvent autour d’une table, aussi bonne que faire ce peut. Les restos abondent à Dubrovnik, et nous avons eu l’occasion d’un faire quelques-uns. Tous assez bons, quelques-uns meilleurs que les autres, mais tous indubitablement trop cher pour ce qu’ils promettent et livrent rarement! Et cela vaut pour les restaurants réputés de bonne qualité comme le Nautika, Gil’s, Proto, Defne, et d’autres. Souvent trop salé ou trop cuit, ou bien sans cet élément – une épice, une sauce – qui rend un repas mémorable. Il aura fallu attendre le dernier jour pour un déjeuner dont nous nous souviendrons, au Sesame, http://www.sesame.hr/index.html entre l’hôtel et la vieille ville, tout juste à côté de l’Université – un filet de bar (loup ou perche de mer comme on dit en région méditerranéenne), servie avec une sauce blanche légère, couvert de flocons de truffe et arrosé du meilleur vin blanc local qu’il nous ait été donné de goûter durant le séjour, un Poship de la maison GRGIC. L’entre-gens, un peu bourru, du propriétaire du Sesame, Misko Ercegovic, y est peut-être pour quelque chose dans notre appréciation positive des mets et de l’endroit…

En parlant de vins, la Croatie a une longue tradition de producteur de vin remontant au temps des romains. Elle a plus de quelque 300 régions définies comme productrices, en grande partie de vins blancs (2/3 de blancs, le reste, du rouge). Il nous a été donné de savourer plusieurs Posip de diverses maisons de bonne qualité, sans pour autant être de qualité supérieure, sauf peut-être le vin de Grgich cité plus haut, définitivement de plus haute qualité. Le producteur Miljenko "Mike" Grgich est un croate d’origine qui s’est fait une réputation aux États-Unis comme l’un de ceux qui ont “mis” les vins californiens sur la « carte du monde” durant les années ’70 http://www.grgich.com/about/winery.cfm. Il est toujours aux États-Unis mais aussi produit en Croatie. L’île de Hvar, au large de la côte dalmate, est aussi reconnue pour ses vins, entre autres pour la variété dite Plavac Mali, l’ancêtre dit-on du Zinfandel, qui produit le vin rouge de maisons comme celle de Zlatan Plencovic, reconnu comme le vigneron probablement le plus célèbre de la Croatie. http://www.vinsdumonde.com/fr/prod/zlatan-plenkovic-prod-159.php#/ficheProducteur&undefined&159

Dubrovnik, le 25 septembre 2009

TIFF 2009

Had my fill of movies at the Toronto International Film Festival again this year.

Some great films, as one would expect from better-established directors such as Almodovar : “Broken Embraces”, actually better than what I would have expected; Soderberg: “The Informant!” – a great performance by Matt Damon, he and his running internal monologues about the most incongruous topics!; Carlos Saura: “I, Don Giovanni” – so polished.

The China window: with “Nanjing! Nanjing! “ titled in English “City of Life and Death” – a grand war fresco of the terrible, and still very controversial, episode of the Nanjing massacre, shot in black & white by rising Chinese director Lu Chuan, criticized at home for giving a human face to the invading Japanese. “Mao’s Last Dancer”, the moving story of Li Cun Xin, the star ballet dancer who defected to the USA in the 80’s, masterly rendered by veteran Australian director Bruce Beresford (“Breaker Morant”, “Driving Miss Daisy”; “Black Robe”)

Few Italian directors discoveries: Luca Guadagnino with “I am love” – a very sexual Tilda Swinton at the center of this family drama, as the Russian wife of an Italian industrialist, who makes the mistake of falling in love with her son’s best friend, with dire consequences; and Marco Bellochio: “Vincere” with deep-voice Filippo Timi as an early Mussolini, and his dreadful action to erase from history the very persistent first woman in his life – she’s the one that financed his newspaper that launched his political career – and her child.

Deligthful and non-disappointing productions from young directors: Jason Reitman (Thank You for Smoking; Juno) with a very witty, sardonic ”Up in the Air”, the story of a veteran air traveler (played by George Clooney - a professional who travels around to fire people on behalf of executives who can't handle the task!), obsessed with air points and gunning for 10 million miles! Jean-Marc Vallée, who directed a few years back the Canadian sensation “C.R. A.Z.Y.”, with “The Young Victoria”, a rather surprising choice as a subject for this young Québécois, but how well directed, a very romantic story (between the young queen, struggling to establish her just acquired authority at the head of the British empire, and her asserting prince consort, Albert), in the pure tradition of “film d’époque”, gorgeously shot in regal premises, apartments, castles and gardens.

And the usual French crop at such festivals. “Les Herbes Folles” d’un Alain Resnais qui s’amuse et s’approche d’un Luis Bunuel et de son « Charme discret de la bourgeoisie » : « Partir » de Catherine Corsini, avec Christine Scott-Thomas, omniprésente ces temps-ci (et que j’ai bien failli ne pas voir à l’entrée de la salle alors que nous entrions si ce n’eut été de Cynthia!). Et puis « L’Affaire Farewell » - un suspens sorti de la guerre froide – de ce celui-là même, Christian Carion, qui nous donnait l’an passé ce « Joyeux Noël » si peu joyeux mais combien riche. Et finalement « Un Prophète », film choc de Jacques Audiard, qui lui a mérité, tout à fait bien mérité, la palme d’or à Cannes cette année; il nous avait donné le beau « De battre mon cœur s’est arrêté » il y a quelques années.(P.S. 11 décembre: Le prix Louis-Delluc 2009, qui récompense le meilleur film français sorti pendant l'année, a été décerné au film "Un prophète")

En supplément, ce reportage, un délice pour tout cinéphile, sur l’enfer qui entoura l’ouvrage incomplet de Henri-George Clouzot, « Inferno » – trop de moyens (l’argent américain), trop d’ambition, qui dut s’arrêter après 3 semaines de tournage faute de joueurs – Reggiani quitta le plateau après 5 jours de tournage tellement Clouzot lui était devenu insupportable – et une crise cardiaque du même dit réalisateur, probablement par excès de stress. Les gros plans en noir et blanc de Romy Schneider, les prises de vue inusitées, les effets spéciaux, nouveautés pour l’époque, resteront cependant…

Le documentaire politique de la saison, « The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers”, tells us the story behind Ellsberg’s motivation, and Nixon’s efforts to discredit him.

A few large-scale disappointments: “Agora” from young Spanish director Alejandro Amenabar; a spectacular epic in its production (about too bright and too forceful philosopher woman Hypathia who “goes down” along with the library of Alexandria) but does not quite convince – a bit of a let-down after his remarkable “The Sea Inside” of a few years back. I thought as well the much anticipated “The Men Who Stare at Goats” from the young American director Grant Helsov (who co-wrote “Good Night, and Good Luck” with such effect), was also a disappointment; a bit ridiculous and an ending “en queue de poisson”.

And “La Donation”, the last instalment in Bernard Émond’s trilogy, after “La Neuvaine” and “Contre toute espérance”. Sparse and stirring, The Abitibi harsh “paysage” as setting, with its heavy skies. That is where may this woman doctor finally end up finding her peace, after her wish to die and commit suicide in the first instalment. Signature film.

And perhaps another 10 films, including "The Road" for those who like after-apocalypse drama, this one rather dire and bleak but a plausible scenario...

Toronto, September 17, 2009

Muskoka, Muskoka!

The weather forecast for the long Labour Day weekend was too good (sunny and 23 degrees!) to spend it in Toronto, especially after the miserable summer we had. Decided to head for the Ontario-fabled cottage region, Muskoka, an hour and a half roughly (not on the eve of a long weekend though!) north of Toronto.

First time in the region. Traveled (through the back roads to avoid the dreaded 400 Freeway) to Gravenhurst, self-proclaimed “gateway” to the region, where we had managed to find on such short notice a resort nearby on Lake Muskoka. Over the next few days, we were to discover quite a bit about this country, its history, and why it is so special for a lot of people.

Muskoka Lakes are actually 3 lakes, interconnected (artificially by a canal and a lock built in the late 19th century). Lake Muskoka proper, named after a Chippawa tribe chief (or what was he from the Ojibway Nation as I seem to recall from another source? A corruption of his name in any case); Lake Rosseau (yes, this is not a typo!) and Lake Joseph, both named after Joseph Rousseau (there!), owner of a major trading operation locally, mid 19th century, and christened by his friend and former partner, the Honourable W.B. Robinson, then the Ontario’s Commissioner for Indian Affairs, the very one who would have negotiated with the same chief the “surrender” of that area and a good part of Ontario to the crown of Canada, in 1850.

The area is part of the Canadian Shield, pre-Cambrian, rugged and rocky, better known for its mineral deposits and large forests than its agriculture – early attempts to develop the area starting in the mid-1800 by granting land to attract would-be farmers from as far as Europe, eventually failed, with most of those who had come leaving to go further West, to the Prairies. Logging is what fuelled the economy of the region in a big way, initially (that is until lumbermen put themselves out of business at the turn of the 19th century by cutting all the trees!) That is when tourism picked up, helped by railroad access built during the logging era.

Steam navigation has also something to do with what Muskoka is today. One Alexander Cockburn was so taken by the scenic beauty of the Lakes that he created the Muskoka Navigation Company in the 1860’s which, at his death at the turn of the century, if you have to believe the local literature, was remarkably one of the largest of the kind in the country – no doubt helped by the mail delivery contracts it obtained from the Government (Cockburn eventually ended up representing the region in the provincial Legislature and then the Commons). To this day you can tour the lakes on ones of the original big steamboats – the Segwun (heavily refurbished I would think).

Early morning on our last day, we were also given to see anchored at the Muskoka Wharf the “Wanda III”, Mrs. Timothy Eaton private boat at the time, built in 1915, during the war, for her private use to take her, the family and the entourage, to her residence further up the lakes. A beauty of a boat! The now owners and operators of the steamboats, the Muskoka Lakes Navigation Company, just got it out for trial after some 5 years in storage. 3 times faster that the Segwun, it can go up to 22 knots! Mrs Eaton liked to beat the commoners’ boat to the lock at Carling Point, so she would not have to wait and be slowed down on her way up! (That is why she discarded “Wanda I”, too slow. “Wanda II burned down shortly after it had been built or put into service).

Interesting as well to see that wood boat building was quite an industry in the Muskoka; it is worth a visit at the “Grace & Speed” Muskoka Boat and Heritage Centre on the Wharf to see anchored some of the racier wood boats of the past, all restored and fully operational. Actually one, some 30-foot long, was built last year in the region – to prove that there are still a few boat builders around!

The navigation service also encouraged some enterprising businessmen to built large vacationing resorts on the lakes. Tourists would come for the summer, take the train directly up to the wharf at Gravenhurst, and then board a steamboat up to the resort of their final destination. Most resorts, except a very few I read – the miscalled Clevelands (for Cleeve Land after a village in England) Hotel for one – have disappeared (including the grand Royal Muskoka Hotel located on an island). Looking at a map of the time there where dozens of these scattered around the lakes that all prospered during the fat years right up to the roaring 20’s. Many of those went up in flames at one point or another, or were taken down when their economic life ran out. We went for a drink the last afternoon at one of the few remaining ones, the Windermere House on Lake Rosseau. An all white structure, it was built before 1900. It burned down in 1996 – an accident during the shooting of a film on the premises – but was immediately rebuilt in 1997. They just finished renovating the common area and the third floor. http://www.windermerehouse.com/index.php

Funny that the sprouting of rich, comfortable resorts did not go without generating a counter-movement from people that wanted to come here to experience what it was to “rough it in the woods” and get away from city life. It led to the creation of the “Muskoka Club” where intellectuals of the day in Toronto would come and live by the laws of nature, almost commune-style, some time, on purpose, in plain sight of those who had come to enjoy the luxuries of those resorts, so does the urban legend has it!

Tourism really took off after WWII and cottages by the hundreds started flourishing then, to become what is now known as the “playground of the rich and famous”!

There is a very good film documentary, which I bought on DVD, entitled "Life On the Edge" (the southern edge of the Canadian Shield as we learn), that was produced only last year, and which does a very good job of mapping out the history of the region in its various facets, over a couple of hours, with original footage, interviews with local experts and humorous re-enactments. Very hearthening testimonies, including those from the former Ontario Lieutenant-Governor Jim Bartleman - a former colleague of mine at External Affairs - who was born in the region and came from a rather poor family, and whose comments focus on the human and social side: the strong class disparity that existed, from the local day-workers to the rich holidaying American industrialists, and the plight of the natives, to which his family was very close.

Muskoka II

Truly the land of the northerly summer. Typical of Canada, and so many other northern regions of the globe I have seen, most recently the archipelago east of Stockholm in the Baltic Sea. Cottages on water, the warm but fast fading sun of late summer, bright days, light shimmering on wavering blue waters. Vast lake expenses between forest-covered mountains. Perfect sunsets watched from wooden-framed floating quays; the sound of waters lapping the rocky shores. Dipping in the cold but so refreshing lakes, in the (rather) cool morning air or in the late afternoon sun; sipping wine sitting on the edge of a rock overlooking the waters, from which you have enjoyed a few dives. Oh so wonderful!

Explored Lake Muskoka on jetski; 2 hours. It’s a huge lake, full of bays and islands; did not managed to get all the way to top of the lake from Muskoka Bay where we started – even at 35km/h on average. Great way to discover the lake, and to see some of these gorgeous cottages on its shores. We were to see the lake also from the top of nature trails we took, one in particular, the Huckleberry Rock Lookout Trail, on the east side of the Lake. Many trails around; we did a few at the Taboo Resort (where we ended up spending more time than we would have thought, having a glass of wine and early dinners at The Boathouse, overlooking the Lake and the sunset). Trail building is very much of actuality in Muskoka, especially the challenge faced in developing them without undermining the very idea behind them: discovering and enjoying nature without tempering too much with it – a full story on one of these builders, Hap Wilson, and his views on all of that, in the local magazine www.muskokamagazine.com

Gravenhurst is well-anchored in my mind as it is the site of Norman Bethune’s memorial, his birth place. The home of his parents has become a shrine to the Canada-China relations. The place is managed by Parks Canada http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/lhn-nhs/on/bethune/natcul/natcul1.aspx; all sort of Bethune mementos (many given by the Chinese – only a very small fraction on display we are told). We take a tour of the house where he was born and brought up. 90% of visitors are Chinese – just to show, while we are there, a bus-load of Chinese, these from Shandong province I asked, arrived!) Always a thrill to relive moments of this remarkable man’s life (we just saw a few weeks ago an exhibition of photos at the McCord museum in Montreal of his ordeal in Spain during the Civil War, caring for wounded Republican fighters – putting together the first ever mobile blood transfusion service all the way to the front). For the Chinese, a national hero, and a favourite of mine – so iconoclastic, so full of life! I reread while there the eulogy Mao wrote a month after Bethune’s death, one of the three texts signed by the “Chairman” that became compulsory reading for millions Chinese schoolchildren, and that made him a household name in China to this day (perhaps less now, supplanted very likely by Dashan, this young Canadian no doubt the best known contemporary performing westerner in China, which all started with his TV performance as one of two protagonists in a Chinese traditional form of "crosstalk" comedy, known in Chinese as xiangsheng – but I digress!)

(While writing, listening/watching on DVD Karajan directing Beethoven’s Symphonies. The one opportunity I missed to see Karajan live in action was in Beijing in October 1979; was on a mission outside the capital. He came in China with “his” Berlin Philharmonic for a series of 3 concerts. I remember 2 things though: 3 of his musicians were reportedly harmed when the “passerelle” collapsed while the orchestra disembarked the plane; and how Karajan insisted and waited for some 5 minutes to start a concert until the people in the audience quieted down and stopped “clearing their throats”, not a small feast when the better part of the population suffered from the infamous “Peking cold”!...and I digress again...)

The “culinary discovery” of the trip was “one fifty five” in Bracebridge (the “heart” of Muskoka – a much more appealing place than Gravenhurst, 10-15 kilometres further up on Route 11). We went twice. A happier lunch than dinner though. Just opened no more than a month or so ago. The Chef is local boy Michael Rickard (which I first associated to the French name Ricard; but no, he is from good old British stock – his father who helps out on the floor is the living undeniable proof!) Well traveled young man, we find out; New-Zealand, and South-East Asia. Very promising table, and hopefully it will last. Great lunch around a Caesar Salad and the Vegetarian Quiche of the Day, and a glass of Chilean Echeverria Sauvignon Blanc (...and couldn’t resist their decadent “Rich Warm French Chocolate Tart”!) Dinner was less successful with an average chicken supreme and an overcooked halibut; dommage, but I am sure that this was only a small accident de parcours...Wished Michael all the best with his new venture (see a review by local magazine food critic, and a list of the better restaurants in the region at the bottom http://www.muskokamagazine.com/sitepages/?aid=1815&cn=TASTE%20OF%20MUSKOKA&an=French%20cooking%20meets%20New%20World%20flair%20in%20Muskoka

By the way, don’t make the mistake of referring to the region as “The Muskokas”, in the plural form – an insult the true and blue Muskokans won’t take lightly. The local “in-résidence” historian Patrick Boyer (also former MP of the region and 4th generation Muskokan) wrote a hilarious piece on the subject in this month local magazine!

Muskoka, September 7, 2009