JUNE 2012

Hello everyone,

Another polychrome month ...

After returning at the end of April to Banana Split in its Blue Lagoon in the Tuamotu, I was able to spend two weeks among my favourite deserted islands, picking each morning Tafano flowers, swimming through turquoise water... while devoting much time to our current projects, such as the preparation of two shows for Sereno Variabile on the Italian channel Rai due, the writing of our next film about the Parks of the American West, and a new book I will certainly tell you about soon.

And then I had, once again, to leave the boat for a few days, because the recording label Polydor, which is supposed to publish in October my new album of songs recorded under the artistic direction of French singer and composer Stanislas, wanted me for a photo shoot in California. As I had planned to shoot some additional footage of California to complement our forthcoming movie, I securely moored Banana Split in his small hoa, I flew on board Air Tahiti then on Air Tahiti Nui, and joined Francette in Los Angeles for a journey to beautiful places I've known for a long time but that I wanted to include in the movie :

San Francisco, its blue houses clinging to the hill, its Golden Gate and its giant redwoods; the majestic shores of Big Sur, dear to Henry Miller and the bright orange of California poppies ; Monterey, following Steinbeck footsteps along Cannery Row, Carmel, Santa Barbara, cities that all reflect the rich history of Hispanic California.

Not to mention the extraordinary monument to "good taste" called Madonna Inn, the craziest hotel I've ever seen, in San Luis Obispo. We had chosen the "Austrian Room" which was about 50 meters long !

Back in Los Angeles, Cedric Bihl, a friendly French photographer who leaves there, has photographed yours truly between the hills of Malibu and the shores of Manhattan Beach, and I think the result is quite nice: the photos will be used for the CD's sleeve. And then after a short visit to the temple California's Computer Temple (for Francette and me at least!), Fry's store on Sepulveda Blvd, we flew back to Papeete, and I have a hard time believing that after all the comings and goings in recent months, we both are back on board Banana Split, preparing to make a big refuelling in Makemo before heading to our favourite deserts and atolls, where our friend Bernard has already identified the places with lobsters ...

Thank you to everyone who sent us a nice message after the rather sympathetic portrait published on French Tv's Mireille Dumas' show

Spring should begin to bring good weather in your area, so I wish you a Jolly month of June!

Antoine