This morning I went on a half-day tour of the local Provence region (cost 50 euros). There were only 3 people on the tour (myself & two women from HK), so the mini bus we rode in wasn’t at all full. The tour guide, James, had come out from London about 33 years ago & settled in a town outside Avignon. We had some great chats about the culture, wine, food, & everything else about France. On the tour we were meant to see the lavender fields, but unfortunately, the pretty fields were not yet in bloom. A type of lavender used for other purposes (antiseptic, arthritis, etc) was in bloom, so at least we saw one field of those. But the trips around the villages were cute.
Our first village, Gordes, is known for building no-window houses with dry stone (no cement between). Still to this day, some of the old houses still stand with locals not being allowed to tear them down, only allowed to build beside them in the same type of style. We didn’t stop in the village, but drove through & had a look at examples of the old houses (Bories) & walls.
We stopped at the second village, Lacoste, for about 25 mins - enough time to browse through the local market & have a croissant. The village was sprawling with wealthy locals out to buy their cheese, salamis & olives for the week.
The other notable village, in which we strolled for an hour was Roussillon. The Romans were first to mine the ochre in the hills used as dyes & colourings. The hills are a red earth colour, similar to the Australia outback earth, & stand out boldly against the green surrounds. The town itself was gorgeous, little laneways weaving up toward the peak of the town, with small shops tucked away for tourists. The coffee I had - not so good.
Our first village, Gordes, is known for building no-window houses with dry stone (no cement between). Still to this day, some of the old houses still stand with locals not being allowed to tear them down, only allowed to build beside them in the same type of style. We didn’t stop in the village, but drove through & had a look at examples of the old houses (Bories) & walls.
We stopped at the second village, Lacoste, for about 25 mins - enough time to browse through the local market & have a croissant. The village was sprawling with wealthy locals out to buy their cheese, salamis & olives for the week.
The other notable village, in which we strolled for an hour was Roussillon. The Romans were first to mine the ochre in the hills used as dyes & colourings. The hills are a red earth colour, similar to the Australia outback earth, & stand out boldly against the green surrounds. The town itself was gorgeous, little laneways weaving up toward the peak of the town, with small shops tucked away for tourists. The coffee I had - not so good.
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