The Villages of the Luberon

May 31, 2016: Today, we left our comfy hotel in Aix en Provence, and traveled by bus to the Luberon region of Provence. The Luberon portion of Provence is located inland and north of where we had been staying in Aix. The terrain gets more mountainous with the local range of mountains known as les Alpilles. Peter Mayle wrote extensively about this region in his many books on Provence, and we are looking forward to seeing many of those villages (and sampling all the local foods).

It’s easy to see why this area would have such a rich gastronomic tradition; from our bus window, we see cherry trees filled with ripening fruit, apricot trees, oak trees with acorns, wheat fields, olives, and vineyards.  As if that weren’t charming enough, the fields are filled with poppies, the yellow Scotch broom is riotous, and almost every hilltop is crowned with a medieval chateau or fort.

Our first stop of the day is for photos in a field outside the town of Lourmarin (which is reputed to be the  secret new home of Peter Mayles). I love it when the first activity of the day is taking pictures! We waded into the wheat, and mugged for the camera, with the town’s backdrop arrayed behind us.

We then traveled to the hill town of Gordes for market day, where we picked up supplies for a picnic in a field back near Lourmarin.

Each couple had a shopping assignment in the market (complete with a mini French lesson about how to buy it. Jim and I were tasked with buying pickled garlic cloves, which the locals eat like olives. I quickly transacted our business, and then Jim dragged me off to view the wares of the sausage and cheese vendors. Saucisson, anyone?!  Since another couple was tasked with actually buying the sausages for our picnic, arguably we had no need of more saucisson, particularly since we were still carrying two sausages from our picnic in in Giverny!  However, Jim couldn’t resist, and we also bought some killer truffle cheese and a great Comte.  Rumor had it that our abode for the evening boasted really spectacular patios, and as there were likely not to be many choices for dinner, in the unlikely situation that anyone was hungry for dinner after the planned epic picnic feast, we could have a picnic dinner on the patio.  The town of Gordes itself was beautiful, and on market day, with all the vendors selling their colorful and flavorful Provençal products, it’s amazing we made it back to the bus.  But we had a picnic to consume!

After gorging ourselves on all the treats from the market, we piled back on the bus for a relatively short drive to the town of Bonnieux, where we hiked up to the top of town and took many (probably too many) photos.

The stop and the walk were both welcome after our lunch, but it was getting late in the afternoon and rain clouds were closing in. As we were driving, we just happened to pass a Roman bridge, Pont de Julien.

So it was off to our hotel- Le Phebus and Spa in Joucas. Wow!  Jim and I had a lovely room looking across the Luberon valley at the town of Roussillon with its fabled red cliffs. The best part of the room was the large private patio, though.

We walked into the tiny town of Joucas to see dinner options, and check out the art installations of a couple of local artists. Right outside the grounds of our hotel was a windmill (moulin), and there were flowers in bloom everywhere!

However, we had picked up enough provisions for dinner on our patio with our friends, Liz & Scott.  We still had some of the wine we had bought in Limoux and Cassis, so we drank the wines of Provence and ate saucisson, cheese, bread, figs and cherries, while we watched a rain storm and a rainbow march across the Luberon valley. Another perfect day in Provence!

 

Walking in Cezanne’s Steps

We met the rest of our Tauck Culturious tour members yesterday afternoon for a brief walking tour of Aix en Provence, which ended in the rain. Then we had our welcome dinner at the hotel last night.  It looks like some fun tour members to get to know this trip.

The gardens at le Piggonet

This morning, May 30, 2016, dawned clear and bright after the rains. We started today off with a tour of Cezanne’s last studio just outside the town of Aix, and close to the hill where Cezanne used to climb to paint some of his views of Mt.  Ste. Victoire outdoors. The studio was lovingly maintained exactly as it had been when Cezanne was alive, and featured great memorabilia, such as his hat and overcoat (used for painting outdoors), his easels and paint boxes, and several vases and other items he used in many of the still-lifes he painted.

Cezanne’s Studio

Then it was off to to a local vineyard called Chateau la Coste, which not only produces wine, but has a great collection of outdoor sculpture installations. Our visit started with a  hike through the vineyards to view these art pieces, and then we had a superb lunch in the restaurant at the vineyard.

The reflecting pond at the entrance to Chateau la Coste, complete with spider sculpture

Frank Gehry-designed amphitheater 

Of course, no visit to a vineyard would be complete without a visit to the winery operations, which in the case here, take place in these amazingly futuristic looking steel hangars.

With the remainder of our afternoon and evening on our own, we joined Liz and Scott in the gardens at le Piggonet, and then walked into town to dine at Chez Mitch, which was a great bistro featuring mostly seafood-oriented dishes in some creative and delicious preparations.  Tomorrow, we leave Aix, and venture into the Luberon area in Provence, higher up and more inland than our current location. I am very interested to see this area, as it was there that Peter Mayle lived, and described so fondly in his book, A Year in Provence.

View from our room at le Piggonet

Farewell, gardens!

Aix Marks the Spot!

Today, May 28, 2016, Jim and I awoke in our lovely hotel in Aix en Provence, the Hotel le Piggonet, and enjoyed a quiet breakfast outside in the garden. I don’t what we’re going to do when we go home and can’t have chocolate croissants every morning for breakfast any more!

Our tour doesn’t formally start until tomorrow, but we expect our friends from a tour last year, Scott and Liz, to join us this afternoon. However, in the meantime, Jim and I are off to explore the town of Aix. It’s Saturday here, and there are at least four outdoor markets to investigate. I can’t wait!!!!

The first market we explore is the fruits and vegetables market. What a riot of color!  Summer produce is is full ripeness now and the the displays are really stunning. Being as that we’re in Provence, there We think briefly about buying some more saucisson (cured salami) but since we’re still toting around two salamis from our market day in Giverny, we quickly nix that idea. Sorry, Jay!

Then its off to the flower market. The peonies are blooming now and they are luscious. I thought about buying some for our hotel room, but decided we only had three day left to enjoy them here. Finally, Jim endured a visit to the hand crafts and clothing market., where I bought some more herbs du Provence and tea towels to bring home in yummy colors.  After that, I had to reward him for his good patience, so we had lunch at a cafe on one of the squares, and then returned to the hotel.

Liz and Scott arrived late in the afternoon, and we had a bottle of chilled rose waiting for them.

We returned to the same square where we had lunch to try another restaurant, Les Philosophes, which was excellent.  We’re all looking forward to the beginning of our tour tomorrow, which kicks off with a walking tour of the town of Aix.  Sweet Dreams!

Farewell to Cassis; Hello to Aix

Jim and I have spent the last two days lazing around in the sunshine by the sea in Cassis. Yesterday, after having a very lazy morning, with a couple of café au lasts, and updating the blog, we walked down to the harbor, and walked around watching everyone having fun on the water. Then we had a great lunch of fresh seafood right on the harbor, and then caught the little sight-seeing train which went to a nearby bay and back.  This town is very cool, in that  in addition to the charms of the seaside, there are tons of wine grapes growing on the slopes rising out of the town, which grow some of the best rosé wines we’ve tasted yet.  We finished our day with dinner at another great harbor side restaurant, Nino’s where we watched the sun set on the calques and the medieval fort right above the town.

Friday, May 27, we had another lovely lazy day to while away in Cassis!  Our first order of business was to take the sightseeing boat which visits the seaside coves formed by most of the calques.  Our friend, Rob, was right, though. Seeing three of the calques was definitely enough!  So we packed up the car and on the way out of town, stopped at the vineyard of Domaine du Paternal to pick up some rosé to drink with our friends Liz and Scott when they join us on the next tour starting Sunday.

With great memories of Cassis, we left our seaside abode, and traveled via Marseilles to the town of Aix en Provence; home to Paul Cezanne and Émile Zola. But first, we had to actually get to the airport in Marseilles to turn in our rental car and catch our transfer to Aix. Suffice it to say, we saw more of downtown Marseilles than we had intended, and we were very happy to turn the rental car in, and leave the driving to someone else!

More tomorrow, but our hotel in Aix is a lovely oasis of calm and old world beauty situated about three blocks out of the main old part of town. We enjoyed an aperitif in the garden, and dined outdoors. Tomorrow, we’ll do more exploration of Aix.

Epic Experiences-the Camargue, Baux en Provence and Cassis

Today, May 25, 2016, we loaded up our car and left Carcassonne for the coast of Provence. One of the things I had always wanted to see was the great pink flamingo migration to the wetlands area of the Camargue in the delta formed by the two arms of the Rhône river as it enters the Mediterranean Sea.  The flamingoes (as many 10,000 nesting pairs, and upwards of 5,000 offspring) use this marshland area as their nesting zone each spring from about March to May.  When we visited the Camargue before on our river cruise, we did not venture deep into the marshland areas of the Camargue, so we did not see the famed flamingoes. Today, however, we were on a mission.

But first, we had to find gas! Last night, we learned from our taxi driver that France was experiencing a gasoline strike, and that it might be next to impossible to get gas, except on the motorway, where the gas stations were much more expensive. This explained the long lines we had been seeing as people tried to fill up before gas ran out.  Jim and I just decided to bite the bullet and fill up at a motorway pump, since we had a long day of driving ahead of us.

We travelled east back towards the Rhône and turned off into the Camargue region. Since it was pretty undeveloped (small roads and smaller explanatory road signs) Jim had programmed both his GPS and the car’s GPS, as well as following Rick Steve’s driving instructions to get to the visitors’ center in the wildlife refuse. After picking up a better map of the area (and a bid spotter’s book), it was off to find some flamingoes. Luckily, the first ones we spotted were feeding right outside the nature center!

Then we continued driving deeper into the marshland to the end of the paved road at the beginning of what is a giant sand dike called La Digue.  This is where most of the flamingoes nest and feed and raise their young before continuing their annual migrations. After quite some time (and a few hundred pictures), we continued on our journey, much the happier for having gotten to see these beautiful birds.

Our next destination, kind of “on the way” to Cassis, was the ancient abandoned town of Les Baux de Provence. This area is known for its lavender and olive oil, but we just wanted to see the impossibly perched houses and fortifications on the top of a limestone cliff. NO, we didn’t get enough of this yesterday in Cathar country! Van Gogh used to come here to paint, but today, it is mostly a very cute tourist town lined with shops.

Finally, with “daylight burning” (as John Wayne would say), we climbed back in the car to complete our journey to Cassis.  Our good friend, Rob Renner, has raved about this cute seaside town in Provence for years, so we had to see it for ourselves. The town is located right on the Mediterranean, about 30 miles to the southwest of Marseilles, and boasts some really good seafood restaurant, along with some very impressive limestone cliffs that send fingers into the sea where several creeks feed into the sea. These limestone formations are called calanques.  Our hotel, the Royal Cottage is only about three blocks from the port of Cassis. As the sun set, we headed into town for some local seafood and rosé, and saluted another epic day!

We Almost Ended Up in Spain

Today (May 24th), dear Readers, it is time to refresh your recollections of that now-distant European history class that dealt with the “Albigensian Revolution”.  Quickly now, for the bonus round; who can remember who the Cathars were, and why they were relevant to the  development of Europe?  Our adventure du jour  was to visit the many Cathar Castle sites in  the southern Languedoc region, and re-learn the answers to these questions.

The drive we planned would take us about an hour and a half’s drive south and slightly east from Carcassonne.  The former Cathar area of Languedoc is south and west of the coastal town of Perpignan, which is about a half hour from the Spanish border.  It’s also very close to the tiny nation of Andorra. We debated a detour there just to check it off our nation list, but I was already taxing Jim with today’s drive, so we scrapped that idea. However, Perpignan is also the beginning of the east-west road that runs through the Pyrenees, and was a distinct changing point in the terrain.  Huge limestone hills/mountains rose up from the valley floor and were topped with jagged limestone outcroppings, and we could see the snow-capped Pyrenees in the distance.  However,  on the valley floor, there were miles of vineyards planted, and every road boasted numerous invitations to taste wine in the local caves.  We stuck stalwartly to our historical mission, however.

The Cathars were a religious sect that identified themselves as Christians, but the Catholic church called them both heretics and non-Christians. Whatever they were, their belief system was somewhat kinder and gentler than that of the Catholics at that time, with generally more liberal inclusive views, which were in line with those of their ruling aristocracy.  However, by the 13th Century, the Catholic church was under many challenges, including having to move the papacy to Avignon, and threatened attacks from Moorish ruled Spain, and then the Great Schism, where the French reused to return the papacy to Rome.  All of this culminated in the papacy joining forces with the French king to launch a genocidal war (they called it a “Crusade”) against the Cathars (or Albigensians) to try to consolidate their respective powers in the south of France beginning in 1208.  The end result was that the Counts of Toulouse, Trencavel and Foix (famous Cathar castles) and their supporters at the castles of Quéribus and Peyrepertuse, as well as others, were vanquished even high atop their limestone fortifications.  The estimates of those indiscriminately killed in this Crusade was about 500,000 men, women and children from the Languedoc region. Interestingly, the Cathars of the time had been much more highly educated than their Catholic counterparts, and the Cathar rulers were replaced by much less sophisticated rulers, such as Dominic Guzman (later, St. Dominic), who founded the Dominican order and later, the Inquisition. There is much more information about the Cathars and this historical period in the excellent treatise online by James McDonald, Cathars and Cathar Beliefs in the Languedoc, <a href=”http://www.cathar.info&#8221; title=”All about the Cathars: history, castles, sieges, theology, photographs. ” target=”_blank”><img alt=”All about the Cathars: history, castles, sieges, theology, photographs.” src=” http://www.cathar.info/adverts/logo_03_150.jpg&#8221; border=”0″ width=”150″ height=”143″></a>

We ended up visiting the castles at Quéribus and Peyrepertuse, and had a tremendous (read; arduous) climb up to both sites. Actually, after the climb up to Quéribus, we only climbed part of the way up to Peyrepertuse, but the views of each were absolutely outstanding!

Quéribus Castle

Cucugnan Village

Pyrenees

Peyrepertuse Castle

Auriac Castle

 

As we headed back to Carcassonne, we decided to drive back over the hills which took us through some lovely forest, verdant farmland and some beautiful vineyard acreage.  Jim had read a review of the lovely Chardonnays grown in the town of Limoux, which was on our way back to Carcassonne, so we made a detour there for a brief tasting, and found Jim’s reviews had been true. Besides the Chardonnay, Limoux is well known for its long tradition of producing sparkling wines (Cremate and Blanc de Blanc), and the monk who originally started the champagne making at Dom Perigean was originally trained in Limoux.  The Languedoc region also produces some great rosé wines, although those of Provence, and especially the seaside town of Cassis are better known.

As we drove around, we noticed long lines at each gas station we passed. We resolved to find out what this was all about.

We arrived back in Carcassonne with just enough time to do a daylight tour of the town and grab some great photos of the town from the river flowing beside it.  Then it was off to dinner at O’Vineyards.

And what a dinner it was. The link to our Trip Advisor review is here, but suffice it to say that this vineyard and restaurant run by an American couple, Joe & Liz McDonnell, is a must do experience if you are ever in the village of Carcassonne!

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g1443262-d3707501-r376478771-O_Vineyards_Table_d_Hote-Villemoustaussou_Carcassonne_Aude_Languedoc_Roussillon.html

On the Road Alone Together-From Lyon to Carcassonne

Star Date: May 23, 2016: Today, we go where no American has ever gone (OK, maybe only a few) … this morning, with our Tauck tour officially over, we got a transfer to the Lyon airport, where we picked up our rental car, and headed back to the south of France. This time, our destination was the Languedoc region.

The trip from Lyon to Carcassonne, in the southwest part of France was projected to take about 5 hours.  Therefore, it seemed somewhat prudent to schedule a midpoint stop. Being “Our Lady of the Aggressive Schedule”, I deemed it a good idea to stop  in the town of Orange–about halfway between Lyon and Carcassonne — to partake of more Roman ruins we would not have otherwise seen. Ergo, we decided to see the town of Orange, and visit the Roman theater there.

We pulled into Orange in between rain storms, and immediately found the giant theater.  It is amazingly well preserved, and HUGE!  The locals still use the theater for musical and stage productions 2000 years after it was built, which is pretty cool. We’re really glad we made this detour, and after lunch, we continue on to Carcassonne.

During the drive, I formed some observations on French drivers:

• The highways are very well marked with road signs, and the toll road system is very easy to use.
• The French like to go camping, so there are always campers and RVs on the roads, and there are lots of really nice camp grounds!
• Virtually all French drivers drive too close to one another, and pass with really dangerous margins between cars!
• French truck drivers are, shall we say, overly aggressive. It also appears that the amount of aggression shown by the driver is inversely proportionate to the size of the truck, with the little tiny delivery trucks determined to drive in both their lane and your lane at the same time just to show you who is boss.

As we drove south, the skies cleared, and we entered some incredible agricultural territory, replete with fruit trees. vineyards, and wheat fields. The Languedoc region grows about 1/3 of all the wine grapes produced in France, and we are looking forward to learning more about this grape-growing region.

We checked into our lovely boutique hotel, Hotel du Chateau, right outside the old city walls of Carcassonne, we enjoyed a glass of local rosé while we sat on the hotel patio and gazed at the old city. This beautiful town was settled as early as the 6th Century B.C., then was a Roman town, before becoming fortified in the 4th Century A.D. and then expanded and doubly fortified in the Middle Ages.  The town and its ramparts have been recognized as a UNESCO world heritage site.  Probably more tourists visit Avignon every year, but Jim and I thought this town was even lovelier, with its turrets and complete walls, and extensive medieval architecture.

We walked around the town a bit before we arrived at our restaurant, le Table de Alois, for our exploration of another local cultural heritage: the cassoulet. Because Languedoc is home to such agricultural bounty, and also has abundant forest and wetlands, the cassoulets made here, replete with local sausage and plump duck confit and white beans, is recognized as the best in France. But first, Jim tried to commit suicide by foie gras!

The entire meal was epic, but after such a bountiful repast, we felt the need for another walk through the old town to settle our stomachs.  It’s a good thing we have some major hiking planned for tomorrow!

Twice The Fun in the Twin Towns of Tournons and Tain l’Hermitage

Dear Readers:

More fun with food today, but first a walk through the “Garden of Eden”.  Our day started as we docked in Tain l’Hermitage, another medieval town with a strong wine producing tradition. A pair of swans floated by our window as we left on our exploration of Tournons. We walked across a foot bridge which was the first suspension bridge in Europe and into the medieval town of Tournons sur Rhône. At the end of town, some enterprising person created a lavishly landscaped garden path up to an amazing overlook of both towns and named it the “Garden of Eden”. As we waited for the attendant to arrive for the day (it was a Sunday morning, and he was moving slowly), Jim was adopted by one of the garden cats. Then we hiked up to see the amazing flowers and the views up and down the Rhône.

We had to scurry to return to the ship for our first activity of the day: a cooking class and wine and cheese tasting at the cooking school, “Scook”, run by the famous French chef, Anne Sophie Pic. Chef Pic’s restaurant was the first woman-run restaurant to receive three Michelin stars. The cooking school, one of the Pic restaurants, and a luxury B and B are located inn the small town of Valence, about 30 minutes from Tain l’Hermitage.  We tried our hand at making a tomato and poached egg dish with a tomato foam (quite the molecular gastronomy experiment), but mine was a failure as I blew tomato foam all over the place! Oh, well … I can’t say this is a recipe I am likely to repeat, but the wine and cheese lesson was the best part of the class.

For such tiny towns, there’s a lot going on here!  For our afternoon activity, we caught the little train that runs around Tain l’Hermitage and up through the vineyards on the hills atop the town. Needless to say, we had fabulous views of the vineyards and the Rhône below!  I continue to be captivated by the random red poppies that are blooming everywhere, and especially among the rows of grape vines!

Upon returning to the main part of town, we had the option of jumping off the train at Valrhona’s Cité du Chocolat; a huge museum and emporium devoted to the art of chocolate-making by one of the best choclatiers in the world!  As I prepared to experience “death by chocolate”, Jim wandered off to find the tasting rooms of some of the local vintners.  I think it is fair to say we both emerged from our explorations happy and contented!

Sadly, then it was time to sail away on our return to Lyons, where our river cruise will end. However, we managed to have a truly lovely farewell dinner with our new-found friends, Jay & Susan, Ken and Jean, with the hope that we can all travel together again soon!

Boats Do Roam Through the Côtes du Rhône

Today, May 21, we awoke in Avignon, sailed to Chateauneuf du Pape, and ended the day sailing to the twin towns of Tain l’Hermitage and Tourneys. Wow!

The planned activity for the morning was a four hour bus trip to the villages of the Luberon region, and required a fairly early roll out time. Since we were going to visit the same villages on a later tour, and since I was behind in finding fast enough Internet to update the blog, Jim and I opted to go into Avignon for a coffee instead, at some place which might have passably fast WiFi (pronounced “wee fee” in French).  I hope our loyal readers appreciate our sacrifice! I appreciated the extra sleep.

Watch Poodle

We also explored the food halls of Avignon, which were not as fancy as those of Lyon, were packed with locals doing their weekly shopping.  The produce and flowers were astonishing, and we had fun checking out the local specialties.

After a lunchtime sail up the Rhône to Chateauneuf du Pape, we jumped aboard our busses to visit the vineyards and tasting room (le Cave) of Les Vergers des Papes.  The ship had docked fairly close to the vineyards, and the drive to Les Vergers was beautiful. Le Mistral had died down almost completely and it was a warm beautiful day!   Our tasting was conducted on the patio of Les Vergers, which had a beautiful view overlooking the valley, and then we got to visit the caves. The earliest part of the caves date back to Roman times, and there is also a medieval ruin on the property.

A Story in Which Jim Finds Another Aqueduct to Love

This morning, May 20, we awoke to sunny skies and the fierce wind of Provence known as le Mistral here in Avignon. Our first order of business was a visit to the famed Palais du Papes (the Papal Palace), which for almost 70 years was the seat of the Vatican from 1309-1377.  Then began what I remember as a truly confusing period of European history when Pope Gregory XI moved the Vatican back to Italy. The French did not approve and elected their own pope, so the world had two popes until 1417.  History books refer to this period as the Great Schism. Interestingly, the papacy has never been held by a French-born pope from that day forward. You can draw your own conclusions about that!

The Palais and its papal apartments are the largest Gothic structure in the world, measuring over 15,000 square meters.  This place is simply massive, soaring 165 feet above the town.  To make matters worse, after Pope Benedict XII built the first palace (from 1335-1355), Pope Clement VI decided it wasn’t grand enough, so he built the New Palace, which included some truly luxurious apartments for himself. Luckily, we had a really good guide to explain this incredible collection of buildings to us.  Then Jim and went off to enjoy lunch in town.

From Jim’s perspective, the highlight of the day was our afternoon bus trip to the Pont du Gard — the Roman remains of the elevated aqueduct system which took water from Uzés to Nimes for over 500 years. The aqueduct span over the river Gardon is an engineering marvel,  stretching 160 feet tall in three tiers and 900 feet long. It is constructed entirely of un-mortared limestone blocks quarried locally.  There is a very good museum at the site, and of course, the views of this marvel are spectacular!

 

Upon our return to the ship, we were pleased to find that the wind had died down some, and we immediately headed up to the top of the ship to enjoy cocktail hour and the sunset over Avignon.