I am not the same, having seen the sunset on the other side of the world - to paraphrase Mary Radmacher

We decided to “wander where the Wi-Fi was weak”. Given that Basel is the third most populated city in Switzerland, after Zurich and Geneva, we chose to cross the border from Germany back to France.

My mom, whom we call Akka, loves to travel, but, as a nonagenarian, she no longer can. So, we are doing the next best thing and that is to travel virtually around the world and while we do so, we are also telling her life story.

She is the captain of the ship; she picks the ports; I chart the course. This is our fourth port of call.

French Colmar is 25 kilometers northwest of German Breisach, our last stop, 500 kilometers southeast of Paris and 250 kilometers northeast of Dijon.

Colmar is in Alsace, a region on the west bank of the upper Rhine, adjacent to Switzerland and Germany. The boundary between France and Germany has changed hands so often that Colmar has become a fusion of the two cultures.

For our drive from Breisach to Colmar, we rented a 1970 Mirage Brown Citroen DS with a red Cartier interior, Bang & Olufsen sound system and a stick shift or manual transmission.

My mother’s first experience with this classic car started in the sixties when my father’s car broke down and a friend loaned them his Citroen.

Since then, Akka has admired this car. She liked its sleek shape but most of all, she loved its feel -- “It wafts along like a magic carpet” (daily star uk).

Manufactured from 1955 to 1975, the Citroen DS was the embodiment of French motoring excellence. The DS won the third most influential car design award and swept the most beautiful car of all-time prize. In French, DS is enunciated as deesse, which means goddess (wikipedia).

Then, there was a day in 1962 when French President Charles de Gaulle headed to a military air base near Elysee Palace, his official residence. He rode in a black Citroen DS with one escort car at the back and two outriders up front.

Just as they reached a southern suburb, they were ambushed. In one minute, 200 bullets battered the Citroen. But, the Citroen roared back to life, fled from the scene and saved the president’s life.

But getting back to our journey from Breisach, we got onto the D 415 autoroute, crossed the Franco-German border and entered France. It was like “crossing from Ohio into Pennsylvania”. 

Germany and France, like most western European nations, are signatories to the 1985 Schengen Agreement that abolished border controls (trip advisor). 

During her lifetime of travels, Akka has encountered many border controls. From tight border control at Woodlands (Malaysia to Singapore) to limited border control at Buffalo (American Niagara to Canadian Niagara) and no border control at La Lena (Gibraltar to Spain).

Like Germany and France, Spain is also a signatory to the 1985 Schengen Agreement. And so, was the UK till Brexit. 

Although Colmar was just thirty minutes or 25 kilometers away, we were ready with our French playlist. Ravel and Debussy were great French composers, but they did not capture my mother’s imagination like Beethoven did. So, for this drive, we chose the non-classical music genre.

But we could not agree on our top jazz pick. While I preferred Ne Me Quitte Pas by Nina Simone, Akka favoured C'est si Bon by Yves Montand and Dean Martin for the English rendition. On Spotify, while Montand’s top song got 20 million plays, Dean Martin’s hit 300 million. 

In English, Ne Me Quitte Pas means ”Don’t Leave Me”. Composed by Belgian singer-songwriter, Jacques Brel, this 1959 song was written after he broke up with actress, Zizou. Most people recognise the English adaptation – “If You Go Away”.

Jacques Brel said his song was “a hymn to the cowardice of men” and the “degree to which men were willing to humiliate themselves”. Although this song was tuneful, its desperation did not appeal to my mother.

On the other hand, C'est si Bon, which means “It Is So Good”, was more in line with her philosophy. Apparently, composer Hendri Betti got his inspiration when he walked past a lingerie boutique in Nice. Unlike the melancholy of Ne Me Quitte Pas, this song embodied post-World War II euphoria.

When Yves Montand was first asked to sing C'est si Bon, he declined because he thought it was not his style. But one year later, he changed his mind. And, with his voice, Henri Betti’s composition and Andre Hornez’s lyrics, C'est si Bon was catapulted into fame and fortune (wikipedia).

C'est si Bon became so popular that it was adapted into many languages and singers such as Louis Armstrong and Nat King Cole recorded it. Evidently, in 1948, when Louis Armstrong was in Nice, he heard Cest si Bon and he was lovestruck.

But, Akka did not choose Louis Armstrong for the English rendition, she chose Dean Martin.

My mother's love affair with Dean Martin began in the sixties when she would unwind in front of the television.

And, her favourite program to watch was the Dean Martin Show. She loved his signature opening act, which was to "slide down a fireman's pole, sing a song and tell a joke or two".

Since Dean Martin was the Man of the Hour, we downloaded his French albums from Spotify to our cell phones. Among the songs were C'est si Bon, La Vie en Rose, and Cést Magnifique.

So, as we crossed the border in our classic French car, we swayed to our vintage French music. And, the synergy between the two was Magnifique.

Cars, houses, people, music and celebrations have been a staple of my mother’s life. In the early sixties, Akka and family lived in the government quarters in the Golden Triangle of Kuala Lumpur.

The house was a 5,000 square foot duplex with four large bedrooms and three bathrooms with a kitchen, terrace and garage. This home, 51 Weld Road, was my mother’s chateau, villa and manor, all rolled into one.

Her husband, P.S. Maniam, drove a 1963 Ford Zephyr IV that was hot off the press and admired for its aerodynamic style.

Every morning he drove to his place of work at the Public Works Department in Kuala Lumpur. And, in the evening, he took the family out for a drive to Lake Gardens or the National Monument.

P.S. Maniam was a man was ahead of his time. When the world was still reeling from the impact of the war, he had bounced back. He was also a man of many gifts; genius of engineering, lover of people and influencer of beauty and fashion.

He had no exposure to France or fine living, but he intuitively did things with flair and style. The French call this --A la mode or cool, trendy, classy.  

Located in the heart of Colmar is a German Renaissance building called the “House of Heads” or La Maison de Tetes.

Built in 1600’s by Albert Schmidt for Anton Burger, a wealthy merchant, this 3-storey structure is adorned by 100 grotesque masks or gothic features. Run by Marilyn and Anderic Girardin, the “House of Heads” is a landmark 5-star hotel.

For our three-day stay in the “House of Heads”, Akka chose a boutique room with a street view. More than scenic views, she has always preferred scenes of everyday life.

While she enjoyed the view of the Straits of Gibraltar from the Rock Hotel and Niagara Falls from the CN Tower Hilton, it was the view of a sea of young people on Bourbon Street from the Balcony Hotel that stole her heart.

When travelling with an octogenarian, we have learnt to screen attractions for wheelchair accessibility. For our stay in Colmar, we researched and googled street maps for sidewalks and cross-checked our choices with the concierge.

Based on our research, we gave Old Town Colmar a pass; it had too many cobblestone streets and narrow alleyways. Though, it did have some sidewalks, they were not smooth, wide and continuous. Besides, my mother said she had already visited an old town in the new world.

Historic Ellicott City is an old town that lies between the Tiber and Patapsco rivers in the state of Maryland, USA.

Built on seven hills, this city’s happening hub is the Main Street. Two decades ago, on many a evening, we would take a lazy drive from Columbia to Historic Ellicott City to the Manor Tavern to eat Maryland-Style Crab Cakes with Old Bay Fries.

In Colmar, our first port of call was La Petite Venice that was a two-minute walk from the “House of Heads”. Rather than push the wheelchair through Little Venice, we opted for a canal cruise. This cruise took 30 minutes and cost 7 Euros.

On the cruise, we saw colourful half-timbered houses and passed through the butcher, tanner and fishmonger precincts of Little Venice. Though, many people say that Little Venice is nothing like the real thing; Little Venice is a must-see pretty place.

The next port of call was Mache Couvert or the Covered Market in Colmar. My mother has visited many unique markets around the world; like Borough Market in London, Hermosa Beach Market in Los Angeles and Damnoen Sadur Floating Market in Bangkok.

But the one that fascinated her the most was the Maeklong Railway Road Market, outside Bangkok. This market is unique because it operates on a working railway track.

One may think this is life-threatening, but the vendors coolly move their produce off the track and let the train slowly go by.  And, after the train has passed, they go back to business on the track (the smarter way).

The Mache Couvert in Colmar is similar to Borough Market in London; it covers butchers, fromageries, flowers, fruit, vegetables, sandwiches, cafes and restaurants. But the major difference between the two is that the waterways in Mache Couvert makes this marketplace dreamy, misty and romantic.

At Esprit des Vin, we picked up a bottle of W. Gisselbrecht Cremant d’Alsac Rose for 45 Euros. This sparkling wine, from Alsace has a light pink hue and is made from hand harvested pinot noir grapes.

It has floral notes with undertones of raspberries and black currents. This Cremant is “straight forward and pleasant” and pairs well with fried and spicy foods.

Although the production process for Cremant and Champagne are the same, Cremant cannot be called Champagne because it is not produced in the region of Champagne (wikipedia).

Further down the corridor in the marketplace was the St. Nicholas Fromagerie, a family run business from Buhl. The range of cheeses were overwhelming, but we zoomed in on Munster.

Munster is a semi-soft cow cheese from the Alsace region; it is pale in colour with a buttery taste and texture. Two hundred grams of this cheese cost 10 Euros.

And, all this while, a scent of freshly baked bread was wafting from the L’ enfarine Artisanal Boulangerie. This independent bakery shapes its dough by hand and bakes its breads in traditional ovens.

My mother bought Rosemary-Parmesan pallets and Eugene Stollen (traditional fruit and nut bread). Together, the pallets and bread cost 15 Euros.

But, before we got back, we stopped by a café called La Terrasse du Marche and ordered a savory tarte flambee to go.

The tarte flambee is the French-German equivalent of a thin crust pizza; it is also called a pie. This pie, topped with sour cream, onion, bacon and sugared apples, cost 10 Euros.

Back at the “House of Heads”, we adjourned to the terrace to watch the fading embers of the setting sun. Under the pale pink and orange sky, we nibbled on munster cheese with bread pallets, savoured the zesty tarte flambee and sipped smooth sparkling wine.

And, when the sun disappeared behind the hills, the magic of the night together with the dolce sounds of C'est si Bon, swept us away.

Life is Good. Like is Magnifique.

Next: We Wander we know not where.