Best Trip Ever

A week in Gascony

Chris — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 08:34:57 +0000

After my long flight, Sacramento to Seattle to Amsterdam to Toulouse, with no sleep this trip, I picked up my tiny little stick shift car and fueled strictly by caffeine and that little hit of adrenaline I always get when I launch myself into traffic in a strange car in a strange place, I went [...]

11 Days ’til France

Chris — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 14:36:56 +0000

So. After a horrendously difficult year, suddenly it’s time for France. This year will be a combination of new and familiar territory, time alone and time with friends. I think it’s going to be good for me and I think it’s going to be fun. The first week will be with my friends Pauline and [...]

The Friday market at Lourmarin (Part 2)

Chris — Sat, 30 Oct 2010 18:36:00 +0000

Provencal markets never fail to amaze me, and if I could only go to one, I’d choose the Friday market at Lourmarin. It’s an astonishing place to buy food, with an amazing variety of fresh vegetables, cheese, meats, fresh seafood, bread and other baked goods, spices, olives, olive oil, vinegars, fantastic rotisserie chickens and other [...]

Home. Sweet.

Chris — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 18:17:36 +0000

I got home Sunday evening, right on time, and it’s wonderful to be here with Frank and my sweet, sweet cats! The trip was uneventful, although nearly six hours of turbulence on the last leg from Philadelphia to Sacramento made me feel like I was traveling up and down and sideways nearly as much as [...]

The fabulous Lourmarin market

Chris — Sat, 23 Oct 2010 04:58:29 +0000

The first time we went to the Lourmarin market, back in 1999, it was a small local affair, running down the side of the soccer field where the plane trees are. It consisted of the necessities–cheese, fish, vegetables, olives, herbs, flowers–plus one or two vendors selling Provencal linens and souvenir items like bags of herbes [...]

Winding down

Chris — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 13:06:04 +0000

My energy level is flagging a bit as my trip comes down to the last few days. Yesterday I went for a short drive over through Buoux and on to Saignon, a pretty little village that I’d somehow missed exploring on earlier trips. I had a nice lunch at Auberge du Presbytère and was back [...]

Our day in the Alpilles

Chris — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 08:24:44 +0000

On Pauline and Steve’s last day before returning home to the Cotswolds, we went west to the Alpilles, an area we’d never seen before. We stopped in Maussane for the local market, had lunch and did a little shopping at Les Baux, then moved on the the Roman ruins at Glanum. I don’t know why [...]

Wandering around the south Luberon

Chris — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 08:13:35 +0000

Tuesday we changed plans a few times, but ended with a very satisfying day of just wandering around looking at stuff. The high point for me was when I turned the corner and surprised Pauline and Steve with the beautiful etang (pond) in Cucuron. The autumn light was perfect and it looked better than I’d [...]

Friends, fabulous lunch, and the Sunburst bridge!

Chris — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 06:13:24 +0000

Monday was a fabulous day! Pauline, Steve, Kevin, and I had a spectacular lunch at La Closerie in Ansouis. Kevin, who owns the amazing Le Mas Perreal B&B in St. Saturnin les Apt, was kind enough to recommend the restaurant, make the reservations, and lead us there. After lunch, we walked around Ansouis a bit, [...]

Familiar places, familiar faces

Chris — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 20:03:30 +0000

I really, really love this area of Provence, and Lourmarin especially. We’ve been here several times, so it feels almost like coming home. Yesterday, I stopped at L’Isle sur la Sorgue in spite of the bitterly cold wind and browsed my way through the Sunday market. (My hands were too cold to take photos, sorry!). [...]