Day 17 Nice to Home

It was a long ride home but we made it with no real problems. It was a really nice 17 days and I would not have changed much except to have spent 3 or 4 more days in Nice and taken day trips by train to Monaco and several of the towns on the French Riveria. After driving more than 1500 miles in Provence, I did not see any other town that I would rather have stayed. Lourmarin was the near perfect place and for that we thank Larry and Roxanne for the suggestion. If anyone's planning a trip to Provence I would suggest that they bone up on their French.

Day 16 Lourmarin to Nice

Got up early to get a good start for the drive to Nice. It was kind of sad to leave the apartment. After 12 days in Lourmarin it was easy to become somewhat attached to the area and the people. They were so nice; and we couldn't even speak the same language. We were packed up and ready to go at 9, but it was friday, which is market day and we did quick walk around and picked up a few things before leaving. The drive over to Nice turned out to be a both great and awful. It was supposed to be a two and a half hour drive that turned into a six hour mess. It started when we decided to drive through the French Riveria on the 50 mile stretch of coastal road from St. Tropez through St. Raphel and Cannes to Nice. It was a beautiful ride over very scenic roads, but the traffic is slow and tedious. I could not imagine what it would be like in the summer - I would not even think about doing it. Once in Nice, we returned the rental car at the airport and walked to the Novatel Hotel where we spent the night. They gave us a great room with a fantastic view of the Med. There was an 8am flight to catch so we ate some junky food before crashing early.

Day 15 Lourmarin



The Sheriff

As today was to be the last full day in Lourmarin, it was spent mostly walking around the town and taking in the atmosphere. The whole town, including every street and alley, could be walked in 20 minutes so several walks were taken. We have spent 12 days in Lourmarin and the one local we could count on seeing everyday was "The Sheriff " (picture). He kept watch over one particuliar corner and would be on one side of the street or the other, although we never actually saw him move. He was never bothered by any of the other cats and dogs that inhabit the neighborhood, of which there were plenty. Anyhow, several walks throughout the day were pleasant, including one up to and around the Chateau and through some vineyards and  olive groves. Lunch was on the terrace at L'Insolite where Sylvia had a pizza and I tried les andouillettes. It is a tripe sausage that I managed to eat about three quarters of when it fell apart and I could actually see what was inside. Sylvia, thinking it couldn't be that bad, tried a little piece and almost had to leave the table. I suppose it was worth a try, but I doubt I'll do it again and I can eat anything. In the evening we met up with Barry and Willa who are tending to some properties (including ours) for some friends of theirs who are away for a couple of months. We went up to the house where they're staying and had wine, cheese, pate, and good conversation. This was really nice since they are Canadians and I didn't have to make of fool of myself slaughtering French. There was also another couple there from Norway and I'm pretty sure among the six of us we solved the immigration problems of the world. Later in the evening Barry, Willa, Sylvia, and I went to La Louche de Buerre for dinner. It was just up the street and we hadn't even known it was there. Even though the place was fairly large by Provence standards it was very cozy and intimate. Their speciality was crepes and that's what we all ordered.  For dessert Sylvia and I each got our own chocolate crepe due to a mixup in communication with the server (yes, my fault). It was a very nice ending to our stay in Lourmarin and we hope to get together with Barry and Willa in the future. Tomorrow morning we leave Lourmarin for Nice and will spend the night near the airport.

Day 14 Avignon

Pont St.Benezet (sous le pont),

Today we decided to go to the big city of Avignon. It only took an hour to get to the outskirts of the city, but forever to get inside the wall and get a parking place. We managed to find a spot at Les Halles which is an indoor market that is one of the must-see places in Avignon. Like most markets in France, it's only open until one o'clock. We took a walk on Rocher des Doms, a well-laid out garden on a bluff overlooking the Rhone, Pont St.Benezet (sous le pont), Mount Ventoux, the Luberon hills, and the Alpilles - an exceptional view and well worth the climb to get there. It was a short walk from there to the Palais des Papes (Palace of the Popes) where the Popes resided in the 14th century. Although it was interesting, it was a tedious hour and a half audio tour through the galleries, chambers, chapels, and passages. It also required climbing a million stairs. Exhausted, mostly mentally, we looked for a place to have lunch. Now I'm a big fan of the Rick Steves tour guides, but Sylvia uses it as her bible. So when looking for a place to eat, she started to say "Rick Steves says:" and grumpy ole me says "$#@!, Rick Steves, lets just find someplace ourselves". Great, so I spot this little place called Le Caveau du Theatre (pictured). In we go and have a pleasant meal, and just before dessert, Sylvia pulls out the Rick Steves book and damn if it doesn't have this joint listed - she just smiled - I didn't. After that, we walked over to the Musee Angladon which claimed to have Cezanne, Sisley, Manet, Picasso, and Van Gogh, which it did - one of each and none of which would be considered their better works. Anyhow, it didn't take long to get through the museum before starting back to Lourmarin where we performed the almost daily ritual of wine and Pastis at an outside table at Cafe L'Ormeau. This place must have been a favorite since I later went there for dinner by myself (Sylvia wasn't hungry) and watched the soccer match while chatting with the locals. We of course, couldn't understand a word each of us were saying (Pastis will do that to you).

Avignon Lunch Spot

Day 13 Lacoste, Bonnieux

Today was an easy drive around some of the smaller villages that we had passed through on our way to someplace else and had somewhat ignored. The day was pleasant and the scenery beautiful. One of the more interesting villages was Lacoste, a very small town on a hillside where the Marquis de Sade built a castle in which he lived for 30 years and wrote about many of his escapades  Pierre Cardin has bought the old castle and is in the process of renovating it. He also bought several other buildings that he's upgrading, and seems to be making Lacoste a destination. For lunch we drove up to Bonnieux and ate at La Flambee. They had a great old wood burning pizza oven so I ordered one and it was the thinnest crusted pizza I've ever seen; Sylvia had another omlette.  That was pretty much it for the day as we skipped dinner and just had a little wine and Pastis at Cafe L'Ormeau.

Day 12 Uzes and Pont du Gard



Pont du Gard

The weather today looked a little better, still marginal, but OK. We started early for the two hour drive over to Uzes in the Languedoc region. It was number two on Rick Steves' list of places in Provence to see. After walking around Uzes for an hour or so, it was difficult to see what was so special. Maybe because it was a holiday and most things were closed that made it seem rather drab. There appeared to be no special sights to see either. It was definitely not worth a two hour drive, except maybe to have a Pastis (which I did) and a glass of wine (which that woman with me did). Like I said it was a two hour drive. Trying to salvage the day, we drove over to Pont du Gard, a Roman aqueduct built in 19 B.C. A very impressive 30 mile structure that delivered water (100 gallons per second) to Nimes by a slight decline that drops one inch for every 350 feet. Pretty great stuff for 2000 years ago. Actually pretty great stuff today. It was a long walk to the top of a hill to get a good picture and we ran into the first people we've met from the U.S. They had been traveling for 4 months and were thrilled to talk to someone from back home. The only other English speaking people we've met were a couple from London and one from Canada. I guess we're somewhat immersed in the French culture. On the way back to Lourmarin from  Pont du Gard we drove back to St. Remy to see if any shops were open - they were closed for All Saints Day. Back in Lourmarin we hung out until 7:30 when we went to dinner at Bistrot Lourmarin. It was a cozy little 20 seat bistro that I thoroughly enjoyed. I started with a delicious Roasted Bone Marrow, followed by some very, very good Veal Kidneys - I was a happy guy. Sylvia had Poached Fish with vegetables over a sticky rice. She said she liked it and I didn't pay much attention - I was too busy with the kidneys. We finished with an ice cream, chocolate, apple, and nut dessert that was OK. Stuffed, I went to bed almost as soon as we got back to the apartment.

Day 11 Lourmarin

Got up this morning and did what I've done every morning since we got here - walk up to the Boulangerie and pick up bread and something a little sweet. Granted it's not a lot of exercise, but it is almost 50 yards from the front door. There's not much better than a baguette and a tartelette to get the day started. And the day was a do nothing day as there was a consistent downpour all day. So we just mostly sat around the apartment and read with a rather long lunch excursion down to Cafe L'Ormeau. To get there we didn't even have to go out in the rain. For lunch I had calves liver and french fries, but Sylvia made the big score with a Pot-au-Feu , which is a traditional Provence dish of boiled meat and vegetables. This was chicken, beef, and lamb with a clear broth, and it was sooo good. We sat around the cafe for awhile before going back to apartment to wait out the rain, which never stopped.  Tomorrow's another day and the rain's supposed to let up. We had plenty of time to decide what to do tomorrow, which of course we didn't.




Lourmarin Boulangerie







Breakfast

Day 10 Les Baux, St Remy

It was supposed to rain today, so after the morning coffee and baguette we headed directly to Les Baux. It's a town with an 11th century castle that sits on top of a rock 650 feet above a valley floor of olive groves and vineyards. We wandered around for almost two hours. It really gives one the sense of what medieval times were like. It's like visiting a moonscape and it is a big tourist attraction - well worth doing and I would go back again. I couldn't get any pictures that did it justice. From Les Baux we drove up to St. Remy and had a great lunch at Bistrot des Alpilles. I had a lamb and vegetable stew over couscous with a very spicey tapenade that was delicious. Sylvia had Niciose salad that had no green beans or potatoes, but it did have anchovies (thank goodness I married someone who hates anchovies). Therefore, I had anchovies for dessert and Sylvia had something really tasty. Of course a Rose sort of came with the meal. We then walked the town and admired all the excellent art shops. It was before three o'clock and fortunately they were still closed for lunch. St. Remy's a neat town and I want to go back again, both to shop and have lunch. We got back to Lourmain after stopping at the grocery store for some pork and cabbage which I made later for dinner. It was raining and we didn't feel like going anywhere. Tomorrow looks like rain again.

Day 9 Lourmarin

My Lunch

Buying bread by the pound

Garlic

Today was market day and we decided to stay in town, go to the market, visit the cemetery, and check out the Chateau de Lourmarin. The market is from 9 to 1 on Fridays only. And since Lourmarin is a small village, I thought there might be 10 or 15 little stands from which they sell produce, cheese, and maybe some breads. I could not have been more wrong. There must have been at least 50 stands, some of which were an oyster stand with nine kinds of oysters, sea urchins, and snails; a mushroom stand with 20 different types of mushrooms; several fish stands;a garlic stand; herb stands; olive and tapenade stands; 5 or 6 sausage stands each with 20 or more types of sausages; meats of all kinds; many bread and cheese stands; clothing racks everywhere. Plus wines, knifes, pottery, pastries, hats. I can't remember all of them. As we left to go to the market, I asked Sylvia "Why are you taking a bag? We won't buy anything." Obviously I didn't start off the day batting 100 percent. We bought cheese, wine, tapenade, sausage, pate, etc. What a great market and everything was gone and cleaned up by two o'clock. I don't know where all the people came from, the town was packed. Afterward Sylvia went up the street and did the laundry while I had to stay back at the apartment and sample some of the food we bought (top right) - of course you can't eat any of that stuff without a little wine. When we were done with our afternoon chores we walked up the road to the cemetery where we thought Albert Camus was buried. And we did find him. From there we walked over to the Chateau de Lourmarin, a 15th century castle that has been mostly restored and converted into a music research library and venue. It's worth seeing. We then partook in a little refreshment at Cafe L'Ormeau. I started researching the benefits of Pastis, a traditional Provencal beverage. I think I'm beginning to understand why the locals like it. Maybe Fitz and Jerry could have some available whan I get back (hint). We decided to have dinner at Restaurant l'Antiquaire, a Michelin rated restaurant that's just around the corner. It was interesting, well thought out, and pretty good, but it's not a have-to-do. One dish was particularly unusual was a Boudin Noir (blood sausage) over an Apple Tart, and it wasn't bad. That was the end of the day. Tomorrow looks like rain.  

Day 8 Mount Ventoux, Seguret, Gigondas

 

Got up this morning and it was a perfect day to go to the top of Mount Ventoux. I was determined to see one of the major climbs in the Tour de France bicycle race, and Mount Ventoux is considered one of the best. It's a 13 mile ride from the base of the mountain to the top and it's awesome from a bicyclist's point of view. We probably passed 50 cyclists riding towards the top and they were in various stages af exhaustion. I have riden over 5,000 miles this year and I know I could not possibly get to the top. Fortunately, I was in an automobile today and could enjoy the drive up to an incredibly scenic view of which pictures do not do it justice. You can see both the Pyrenees and Alps. We decided to go over to the Cote du Rhone wine region and possibly have lunch in the town of Seguret. It turned out to be the prettiest little village we saw except that you have to park at the bottom of the hill and walk up through an archway into the walled town that, at least today, had no place open for lunch. It was still worth it though. It's a tradition to wash your hands in the fountain pictured, and we did. Getting a little hungrier - after all we've been starving ourselves - we drove over to Gigondas where there were vineyards and tasting rooms everywhere. The Restaurant L'Oustalet looked to be good, so we tried it out. We were very lucky - it was excellent. The wine list was so extensive with Cote du Rhone wines (a favorite of mine) that I didn't know where to start. So I ordered a Gigondas, who's name I thought I could remember, Chateau Longue Tonque. It was terrific and went well with both the fish and pork that we had. For dessert Sylvia had a poached pear in a wine sauce and I had three small pieces of different chevre cheeses drizzled with olive oil. The food and service was impeccable. Anyone who enjoys wine should stop in Gigondas for an afternoon of enjoyment The ride back to Lourmarin was a long one on a full stomach, but we made it. After arriving back at the apartment we walked around a bit before sitting at the Cafe Gaby (just outside our door) watching people. We went out for a late snack at the Pizzeria Nonni where we shared a small pizza and some wine...Oh I forgot, some ice cream too. One thing of note, if you travel to the smaller towns in Provence it's good to know French because there are virtually no menus in Frwnch (oops I mean English), nor do most of the people speak it. In fact, most of the menus are daily blackboard menus that are difficult to read well enough to figure out what the heck anything is. I do a lot of pointing. Tommorow's market day in Lourmarin and we're looking forward to seeing who shows up.

Day 7 Roussillon, Gordes, Menerbes, Bonnieux

Took a local road trip today through some of the little villages in the Luberon area. The first was Roussillon (left picture) which is a hilltop village that sits on an enormous ochre deposit that gives the earth and buildings beautiful shades of orange. It's small enough that we walked it in less than an hour, and most of that was taking pictures. It's an extremely scenic place that must be crazy with tourists in the summer. The second town we visited was Gordes (right picture). another striking hilltop village. The whole damn town is made up of rocks - walls, steps, houses, everything - really quite beautiful. It's another place that must be nuts during tourist season. I'm really glad we travel when we do; you get to see so much more. It was getting close to two o'clock and lunch time so we drove over to Menerbes which didn't seem quite so touristy. It's also on a hill and overlooks the Luberon mountains. It had a few small cafes and seemed like a working community that would be a good place to stay when visiting. We had lunch at a little cafe with a beautiful view called Le P'Tit Bouchon. The Pasta with truffles was outstanding, as was the bottle of Rose. The Rose's in Provence are so good that it's just about the only wine we've been drinking. On the way back to Lourmarin we drove around another hilltop village called Bonnieux . We did not spend much time there as it has no real village pedistrian center. It too seems like a very pleasant place to live. For dinner we just went to one of the cafes next door (L'Ormeau) and tried to eat light.

Day 6 Aix en Provence

 Today was market day in Aix en Provence so that's the direction we decided to go. Somebody had left directions to Aix in the apartment that used back road instead of main highways. They were not simple directions, but we used them anyhow. It's a 40 minute drive that took us quite a bit longer, but we eventually got there after several dozen wrong turns (all of which were my fault). Once there we found good parking close to the center of town. The first stop was the Cathedral of Saint Sauveur, a 17th century church which had some very impressive murals and paintings. Next we walked the markets and although they were good, they were not as grand as some others. We spent most of the time just wandering around the city marveling how European cities remain so vibrant and alive. For lunch we stopped at Cafe de Verdun, a place recommended by the same people who provided the directions to town. Sylvia had Escallop Milanese and I had Daube De Marine, a beef stew with onions and potatoes cooked in a anchovy based broth...interesting. We continued walking around town checking out Paul Cezanne landmarks. It was four o'clock when we decided to go back to Lourmarin. On the way we circled the Paul Cezannes' studio several times but could not find a place to park, so we left Aix behind somewhat dissapointed. On the way back we stopped at Chateau Beaulieu for a tasting and got another bottle of wine for the apartment. I think we may have to extend our stay just to finish the wines. We had no dinner this evening, but we did go up the street to Cafe L'Insolite and had coffee and dessert. Still trying to figure out what to do tomorrow. There are so many places to go and things to see. The picture is an early morning view from the apartment.

Day 5 Lourmarin and Cucuron

I got up early, made coffee and went up the street to the boulangerie and got a chocolate croissant and a baguette along with some homemade fig preserve. We had that for breakfast and it could not have been better.Later in the morning we drove up to the local Supermarket and picked up some stuff for the apartment. The available meats, cheeses and produce would make a Wegmans or Whole Foods look sick by comparison. Afterwards we decided to visit a vineyard called Chateau Val Joanis. It is suppose to be a medium to good Chateau and is on 1000 acres (not all of them under cultivation). We had to drive a mile and a half from the entrance gate to the winery. We tasted and bought some wines for the apartment and walked around their sculptured gardens. After leaving the vineyard we drove through the villages of Cadenet, Villelaure,  and Ansouis. No matter what you imagine the villages of Provence might be like, they're not. There's so much more to them. They're truly special. We ended up in Cucuron, parked the car and walked up the hill to the tower and admired the views before heading back down and stopping in the village center at a small cafe and having light lunch. Sylvia had an unbelievably tender omelette and that's my light lunch of duck and Pomme Frites in the picture. The rest of the day was spent in Lourmarin walking around the shops. A salad and a plate of Corsica Ham in the evening at the Cafe de la Fontaine pretty much completed the day.

Day 4 Nice to Lourmarin

We left Nice this morning, rented a car and did the three hour drive to Lourmarin which is in the Luberon area of Provence. It was a fairly simple drive so we're still kind of talking, but it's never fun driving the autoroutes. We arrived around two in the afternoon and had lunch in the Cafe L'Omeau on the right of the picture with the red chairs. We met the people there who gave us the keys to the apartment on the second floor above the cafe with the blue chairs. Our apartment is very old and very french - we like it a lot. Plus there are Three cafes and a brasserie within 20 yards of the place. Lourmarin is a very small village centrally located in Provence and calls itself "The most beautiful village in Provence", and it can't be far from the truth. Albert Camus is buried here, but you have to find the cemetery by yourself because nobody will tell you where it is. Peter Mayle, author of a series of books about Provence, lives here and again nobody will tell you where. Last night we had pizza next door at L'Insolite Brasserie-Pizzeria and met some people from London who use to live in DC. It was nice talking to someone in english, since most people here don't. It's somewhat entertaining listening to me attempting to communicate with someone in french. Sylvia doesn't seem to have a problem watching me make a fool of myself. Tomorrow we will be driving around the area, so I suppose the only one's either of us will be talking to are french, since we probably won't be talking to each other.

Day 3 Nice

Slept late again. This is working out well; instead of waking up at 5 every morning and crashing at 9, now I'm sleeping until 8 and still semi alert at midnight. Hooray for the old guy (that's me). After the morning expresso we headed up to the Marc Chagall Museum hoping to get some culture. The walk through some interesting neighborhoods was worth the walk and the museum was impressive. I sort of liked it, but artistic interpretation is not something my simple mind can comprehend. A little farther up was the Matisse Museum but that was way beyond my capabilities. I had seen enough of Matisse at the National Gallery. After the Chagall we walked through a middle eastern neighbood (falafels everywhere) on our way to the Russian Cathedrale (don't do this at night). This Russian Orthodox church  is reputed to be the finest outside Russia. It almost makes me want to go to Russia. It's a "Probably Should See" if you're in town. A walk back to the hotel to get reoriented was followed by a long walk on the Promanade around to the Port. Once there we had a few drinks at an English pub prior to looking for someplace for dinner. We had hoped for something rather light, but instead we landed in a restaurant called La Cambuse in the Old City. We started with a Petites Farcis Nicois - a traditional dish of meat stuffed vegetables of roasted pepper, onion, and eggplant. What was interesting was that the stuffing in each veggie was the same, but what made each one taste significantly different from the other was the vegetable. Sylvia followed that with a fish and a five vegetable dish and I had roasted Lamb rib chops...both were good. Dessert was an excellent Nougat Glace and was unlike anything I ever had. I was glad for the excessive walking today. Again walking back to the hotel, we were amazed at the number of people out and about. Tomorrow it's checkout time and off to a little village town in Provence called Lourmarin. Nice is a fabulous city and I can understand why people like Sean Connery and Elton John have homes here--well maybe not Elton.

Day 2 Nice

Slept late and felt good after seeing pictures in the morning paper showing the mess at the Nice airport--we were very lucky to arrive early yesterday morning. We had Crepes and Croissants for breakfast before heading for a walk up Castle Hill, which was the original Nice in the 12th Century. It must have been a well defended city because there were 352 steps on the stairway portions of the walk; all's well though because there was a beer shack at the top. It's really a beautiful place and from it you can see Nice proper on one side and the Port of Nice on the other. It's was definitely worth going. Then we walked down the hill to Old Nice to the Cours Saleya market. It's a very nice ourdoor market, especially the flower stands. There must have been a dozen olive vendors. We stopped for a mid afternoon break at one of the outdoor cafes and had a nice bottle of Rose. A little more walking and sighseeing ensued before heading back to the hotel around six. We had picked up an international phone card for $7 that allowed for 300 minutes of international calls. Called home and everything was fine. Around 8 we walked over to Old Nice and had dinner at Oliviera, a small 7 table restaurant run by an ex husband and wife team. Their speciality is olive oil and they pair it with every dish, including Tiramissou. The owner, Nadim is a fun guy who is absolutely in love with olive oil and food; he never stopped talking about it. Nadim had jugs of 15 or 20 olive oils. It was a fantastic experience as we met most of the other customers; one of which was the man who grows all Olivieras' vegetables. Among other things, we had Raviolis Nicois and Lapin sur pates (rabbit). Everything was very, very good. It was after eleven when we walked the mile or so back to the hotel and we were amazed at how active the city was with street shows, open shops, and people dining and drinking. Nice has everything: beach, weather, good food, night life, and stuff to see. The lesson for the day was that Nicoise is not just a salad with olives, tomatoes, and tuna fish, but means "in the style of Nice" and it's basic ingredients are olives, tomatoes, garlic, and anchovies.

Day 1 Nice,France

• We left yesterday for a 18 day trip to Southeastern France mostly to visit Provence and the nearby cities. We weren't exactly looking forward to the flight to France seeing as there is a major stike going on and there are many shutdowns. The initial leg of the flight to Paris was fine except we didn't sleep as planned, instead I watched a couple of movies which I knew was a dumb idea since I knew I had to stay awake the whole next day. The second leg of the trip from Paris to Nice went fairly well except that the plane was late to take off since the De-icer workers were in a slowdown strike as were the Baggage Handlers and support staff at Nice. It took almost two hours to get our bags and we were pleased to get them then. It's amazing, nobody was at all upset with the delays, it's as though the French are so used to it that they just accept it as part of everyday life. The french call a work slowdown "escargot mode".  We took the express bus from the airport along the Mediterranean Sea to the Les Cigales Hotel in downtown Nice. It was still early afternoon so after checking in we had a substantial lunch at a pleasant bistro. The rest of the day was spent walking the town and learning the area. It was a beautiful sunny 65 degree day. We could not even think of spending any time in the room for fear of falling asleep and suffering the effects of jet lag. Nice is on the coast and has a beautiful walking promenade along the gulf. The town has more outdoor cafes than any place I've ever been. We had a botttle of wine at a little cafe right on the beach which consists of rocks, no sand, just smooth rocks, and people somehow manage to lay on them. Topless is also the norm and that's ok by me. We had an early dinner down the street from the hotel in a winebar called Caves de L'Origine. It was booked up for the evening but seeing as we were so early they thought they could accommodate us. We were tired and not very hungry so we just had a cheese plate and terrine of Fois Gras, Lentils, and Duck all accompanied by the recommended wines of course. While dining we noticed that the wait staff seemed to know everybody that walked through the door so it must have been a locals' favorite. I think I would love to try the place again. Crashed early (9 ish) and hoped to feel good for the next day.