From Barcelona, we took the train to Montpelier, France where we picked up our 2 month car rental from Citroen. The French car manufacturers have a program where you can lease a brand new car for an extended period of time, picking it up in one European country and then returning it in another. After familiarizing ourselves with our Citroen (it turned out to be an automatic – a rare find in Europe!), we were off to our next stop: Provence, France.
Before checking into our B&B we stopped in Avignon, a medieval French city most famous for being the home of the Papacy during the Catholic schism in the 1300's.
Before checking into our B&B we stopped in Avignon, a medieval French city most famous for being the home of the Papacy during the Catholic schism in the 1300's.
Carousel in Avignon
Lunch in front of the Avignon church where the popes lived in the middle ages.
We walked around this beautiful city and then stopped in the main square for lunch wherewe saw two fantastic musicians. The first was a solo guitarist playing everything from traditional French songs to Queen. The second was a lively threesome led by an older gentleman on the violin. He was fantastic. Check out the video:
Le Mas de Prévôts: A Country Haven
We found this little gem of a B&B on TripAdvisor. It’s located on the outskirts of Chateaurenard, just south of Avignon. It's owned by a nice couple named Julie & Jean-Pierre. They live in the main house and rent out two charming rooms above their garage. As you’ll see from the pictures below, the house is gorgeous and the view from our room was just perfect. Julie & Jean-Pierre purchased the property over 30 years ago and fixed it up little by little. They raised their children there and now that they are grandparents, their grandchildren come over to visit after school. We had the pleasure of meeting two of the little ones! Breakfast was served on the patio right off the kitchen. Julie always had an assortment of traditional French pastries, yogurt, fresh juice, fruit from the local farms and coffee. She even wrapped up the leftovers for us to take on picnics. They offered great advice on places to visit and we enjoyed the first day so much we decided to tack on a third night to our stay (luckily our room was available!). We are so happy we found this place!
We found this little gem of a B&B on TripAdvisor. It’s located on the outskirts of Chateaurenard, just south of Avignon. It's owned by a nice couple named Julie & Jean-Pierre. They live in the main house and rent out two charming rooms above their garage. As you’ll see from the pictures below, the house is gorgeous and the view from our room was just perfect. Julie & Jean-Pierre purchased the property over 30 years ago and fixed it up little by little. They raised their children there and now that they are grandparents, their grandchildren come over to visit after school. We had the pleasure of meeting two of the little ones! Breakfast was served on the patio right off the kitchen. Julie always had an assortment of traditional French pastries, yogurt, fresh juice, fruit from the local farms and coffee. She even wrapped up the leftovers for us to take on picnics. They offered great advice on places to visit and we enjoyed the first day so much we decided to tack on a third night to our stay (luckily our room was available!). We are so happy we found this place!
A cypress tree lined driveway welcomes you
The beautiful home. Our room was the open window on the top floor.
Provençal details
We ate breakfast here every morning!
View of the garden, pool and mountains from our room.
Luberon Region Driving Tour:
After a nice evening out in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence on our first night, we decided to take a driving tour of the small villages per Julie & Jean-Pierre’s recommendation. Here were the places we visited:
First Stop: Isle-sur-la-Sorgue
The river Sorgue runs through this quant little town filled with over 300 different antique shops.
After a nice evening out in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence on our first night, we decided to take a driving tour of the small villages per Julie & Jean-Pierre’s recommendation. Here were the places we visited:
First Stop: Isle-sur-la-Sorgue
The river Sorgue runs through this quant little town filled with over 300 different antique shops.
Crystal clear water of the river Sorgue
van Gogh's ear in the Sorgue!
A rare brightly colored house.
Entering Isle-sur-la-Sorgue
Boat along the Sorgue
We stopped here for some treats!
Yum! We purchased a great olive tapendade here.
Stop 2: Fontaine-de-Vaucluse
The Sorgue river begins at “La Source” which is located in this village. No one knows where this spring originates. In the late 1940's, Jacques Cousteau dove into the caves from which the water originates, and could not find the source. He almost died while searching for the source, as an air compressor in one of his tanks had taken in its own exhaust. We walked from the town center about 15-20 minutes to see “La Source” pictured below. It's a nice walk but it was packed with tourists and French schoolchildren who were there on a field trip.
The Sorgue river begins at “La Source” which is located in this village. No one knows where this spring originates. In the late 1940's, Jacques Cousteau dove into the caves from which the water originates, and could not find the source. He almost died while searching for the source, as an air compressor in one of his tanks had taken in its own exhaust. We walked from the town center about 15-20 minutes to see “La Source” pictured below. It's a nice walk but it was packed with tourists and French schoolchildren who were there on a field trip.
We made it to "La Source" - surprisingly just a very calm pool of water next to a cave. No one has discovered from where it originates!
The water is gushing down from the mysterious "La Source" into the small village.
Clear water of the river Sorgue in Fontaine-de-Vaucluse
Gordes
This is one of the prettiest villages in France, especially when you look at it from across the gorge!
This is one of the prettiest villages in France, especially when you look at it from across the gorge!
Gordes
Walking into town
Produce stand in Gordes
View from other side of the valley
Gordes in all its glory!
Laughing over Provence:)
Roussillon
This area boasts the most important source of ochres in the world. Ochres are used as pigments in the textile industry. We enjoyed seeing the bright orange-red colors of this village which are so different than what you see in the rest of Provence.
This area boasts the most important source of ochres in the world. Ochres are used as pigments in the textile industry. We enjoyed seeing the bright orange-red colors of this village which are so different than what you see in the rest of Provence.
Lavander
No visit to Provence would be complete without lavender fields. While we didn't actually search for them, we were lucky to stumble upon a few!
No visit to Provence would be complete without lavender fields. While we didn't actually search for them, we were lucky to stumble upon a few!
The second day in Provence, we visited Arles in the morning and then kayaked down the Gardon River under the Pont du Gard aqueduct.
Arles
Arles was an an ancient Roman city, complete with a large amphitheater at its center which still stands today. Roman emperors frequently used this city as a military headquarters and it's said to have been a favorite city of Emperor Constantine 1 - his son, Constantine II, was born there.
The impressionist artist, Vincent van Gogh, lived in Arles for about a year during which he produced over 300 paintings. One of the most famous is Cafe Terrace at Night. The cafe that was the subject of that painting still exists. A lot of artist drama went down in Arles. Paul Gauguin visited van Gogh in Arles, at van Gogh's request. Vincent's mental health was deteriorating, so Gauguin left Arles due to the eccentric behavior of his old friend. Shortly thereafter, Vincent cut off his ear and was sent to the local hospital. The Arlesians petitioned to have van Gogh committed and he eventually left the city and checked into an asylum in the nearby Saint-Rémy-de-Provence. As you may know, van Gogh never really recovered and eventually took his own life. While it's sad to know that Arles was the beginning of the end for van Gogh, I loved seeing the city that inspired him and appeared in so many of his paintings.
Arles
Arles was an an ancient Roman city, complete with a large amphitheater at its center which still stands today. Roman emperors frequently used this city as a military headquarters and it's said to have been a favorite city of Emperor Constantine 1 - his son, Constantine II, was born there.
The impressionist artist, Vincent van Gogh, lived in Arles for about a year during which he produced over 300 paintings. One of the most famous is Cafe Terrace at Night. The cafe that was the subject of that painting still exists. A lot of artist drama went down in Arles. Paul Gauguin visited van Gogh in Arles, at van Gogh's request. Vincent's mental health was deteriorating, so Gauguin left Arles due to the eccentric behavior of his old friend. Shortly thereafter, Vincent cut off his ear and was sent to the local hospital. The Arlesians petitioned to have van Gogh committed and he eventually left the city and checked into an asylum in the nearby Saint-Rémy-de-Provence. As you may know, van Gogh never really recovered and eventually took his own life. While it's sad to know that Arles was the beginning of the end for van Gogh, I loved seeing the city that inspired him and appeared in so many of his paintings.
Arles
Arles
Amphitheater in Arles. From medieval times through the 1800's it contained a little city, which is why some of the archways are filled with stone.
Cafe that van Gogh used for his painting, Cafe Terrace at Night.
Kayaking under the Pont du Gard
This was a big highlight for us! The Pont du Gard is an aqueduct built by the ancient Romans about 2,000 years ago and is still in excellent condition. One can visit the aqueduct by car and walk across it. However, we decided to take advantage of the beautiful day and see it from the river.
We rented a two person kayak from Canoe Collias. We launched our kayak upriver, kayaked downriver with the current, stopping along the way to swim/rest/eat, and then the company picked us up right after we passed under the aqueduct and brought us back to our car. They provided air-tight barrels on the kayak, so we packed a picnic in our backpack and enjoyed it mid river. There were some mild rapids which were a lot of fun. Definitely the best way to enjoy the Pont du Gard on a hot summer day!
This was a big highlight for us! The Pont du Gard is an aqueduct built by the ancient Romans about 2,000 years ago and is still in excellent condition. One can visit the aqueduct by car and walk across it. However, we decided to take advantage of the beautiful day and see it from the river.
We rented a two person kayak from Canoe Collias. We launched our kayak upriver, kayaked downriver with the current, stopping along the way to swim/rest/eat, and then the company picked us up right after we passed under the aqueduct and brought us back to our car. They provided air-tight barrels on the kayak, so we packed a picnic in our backpack and enjoyed it mid river. There were some mild rapids which were a lot of fun. Definitely the best way to enjoy the Pont du Gard on a hot summer day!
Chilling the rose in the river for our picnic:)
Approaching the aqueduct - Pont du Gard!
There were a bunch of teenage boys hanging out on the cliffs by the aqueduct as we approached. They yelled at us in French and when they realized we spoked English, they asked where we were from. I said (in terrible French) USA. They started cheering We LOVE America!! Can we come with you to America!? We love it! A great end to a fun kayak trip.
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