A Few of our Favorite Things...

Tuesday September 27th and it's flying by.  I am finally feeling better  but must stay on some strong antibiotics longterm.   Now they don't make you feel too peppy,but the beat goes on!!{had a cellulitis in my hand).
The mornings are lazy ..this is a charming 2 story home,about 250 years old,..we had to switch over to one of their other gites as we could not book the full three weeks in Les Pegots.  Although it is not in the middle of the vineyard as was the other,the views are still gorgeous and it is actually more comfortable.  We have our breakfast on the old stone table in the  back garden, and then make some loose plans. I'm just going to ramble a bit about some of the  nearby  villages we have visited.
A word on  local architecture..Traditional features are reminders of how influential the weather is on living conditions in rural Provence. Great efforts have been made to ease the biting gusts of the Mistral, and the relentless heat of the summer sun. Thick stone walls,small windows and reinforced doors are all recognizable characteristics. Windows are built on 3 sides,but none on the  north to avoid the Mistral's full blast.

Our village is Menerbes,which we have explored more this visit than on any other.  It is a hilltown and designated as one of the most beautiful in France. It was the stronghold of 16thC Calvinists,later to become even more famous in the writings of Peter Mayles, A Year in Provence. That has all worn off now and it is back to being a sleepy village,albeit with  a bank machine!
We have decided Goult is our favorite this trip..also a hill village but not perched on a rocky outcropping like many others...has the look and feel of a real one street village with the proverbial 2 butchers and 2 bakers. And the best "
cafe around...Cafe de la Poste.  All the tables face outwards..it is pretty big, and you watch the world go by over a cafe creme or two and maybe a croissant if you get there early enough.
Ah,where to next...We took a trip to Reillanne today..officially in the  Haute Alpes region..just  out of the Vaucluse. Came upon it it by chance once and found it very moving due to its resistance history in WW11. It is also a hill town,but not far enough away to avoid  being raided by the German police.  They were hiding 54 Jews in an  old infirmary..mainly women and children and they were taken out and shot in the square where you can still see the bullet holes in the church  wall.. It is something of a small pilgrimage for me to visit there each time we come..it just draws me back.
Fontaine de Vaucluse..The source of the Sorgue river is one of the natural wonders of Provence.In the closed valley above the town,water erupts from an unfathomable depth,to develop into a fully fledged river.  It just pours out of the side of a cliff face.  Charming town with ancient  Plane trees and many restaurants along the riverside...it is extremely touristy in the summer and I never wanted to go there again after the first visit..but lovely at this time of year.
Leading up to one of their little museums is what I call the "shopping walk of shame" yuck, a row of tawdry gift shops...the one downside..sigh.....

Markets are in endless supply every day of the week,big and small,touristy or just a few produce vendors set up in a small village. They are all wonderful,or so  my female friends agree..right? The men..well,they can take it or leave it. I can usually get Mike to Apt Saturday market at least once as it involves the purchase of his favorite mountain cheese and a supply of olives  which are of every variety and marinated in ways you'd never dream of.
Apt is a large provincial town with an air of the shabby chic about it and its market draws people from   near and far.  When the Cannes Film Festival is on, you can spot the stars in  Apt on a Sat a.m.(175 km!). The  town is a warren of winding  streets opening into squares where the vendors set up alongside the storekeepers who pile their goods out on the sidewalk..Provencal sidewalk sale!! The far end  is very  exotic as it becomes more North African..so fascinating, the sights and smells of spices we are not familiar with.

Sunday is not Sunday without going to Ile sur la Sorgue.  This attractive town is a major source for  antique hunters at weekends.  They set up along the river bank on one side, and over the footbridge is the regular market, not unlike Apt, but with  a greater selection..scents,pottery,flavours,fabric,honey,nougat,oils,the terracotta Santons,dried lavender,olive wood items,crystallised fruit and chestnuts,..it just goes on, and again the stores open up as well.  You have to have a coffee at both the pre war Cafe de France and at the Cafe sur la Sorgue which is on the river.(70 water wheels once powered industry in the town..now gone but for 9,which lie idle  and covered with moss) Notre Dame des Anges is a  beautifully decorated 17C church in the heart of the town across from Cafe de France. You are just as likely  as not to see a mime doing his thing in the middle of it all.

The grand finale of my day(Mike was having a quiet one at home with that cheese and some local wine..and a soccer match) was an outing with Roselyn,the property owner,and her 85 year old mother in law Janette.
 It was the last day of a local fete, and the culmination was Kine..yes..Bingo it was.  I have played Bingo in Provence. Make a note of that. Yup.
The big difference is, that,unlike our church basement bingo, here you can get blind drunk as the afternoon wears on.   They have waiters! The popular drink was a Tango..beer and grenadine syrup.  It flowed freely and by the time 40 games(oyy,my sorry butt) were over, it was pretty boisterous under the big top.
There were great prizes including computer stuff and a trip to Spain and everything in between. People were trading off their hams for a power washer,or their wine basket for restaurant vouchers.. The Kine afficionnados carry a magnetised paddle that  sucks up their magnetised chips..Quite practical but funny too as once the caller verifies that the winning card is good  you hear all the little chips being picked up with a wave of the magic paddle and then........ it starts again.
There is food galore and the most delicious was a deep fried sweet dough puffy thing not unlike our funnel cakes,or the Mexican  churro.  It was called a Chi Chi and there seems to be  some hidden meaning in that name which I have not fathomed yet.  I think it is a "nudge nudge,wink wink"  thing.
So time to close this off for now,but I'll be back soon.