I must share with you our experience at our hotel for the night. We arrived in the middle of the afternoon. The GPS could not locate the address so we had no idea how to find it. We drove around the area but no luck. There were no stores, restaurants, gas stations anywhere we could stop and ask. Soooo, Bob spotted a fellow coming out of his apartment and getting into his car. We stopped him and asked him if he knew this address. He thought about it for awhile and then said "yes". He was really struggling with how to tell us how to get there so finally he told us "follow me, I will lead you"!! Amazing!! He was so kind and lead us through a maze of streets until we arrived at the hotel, which was in the middle of nowhere. There was a large open gate next to a construction zone and an industrial area. Hesitantly, we drove into the parking lot. There was not one other car in the huge lot - very strange, we thought. Well, it was mid afternoon, so maybe we're the first guests to arrive. We walked up to the door of the lobby and it was locked. There was no one at the front desk. In fact, there was no one anywhere!!! Weird. We noted an ATM looking machine on the wall near the door. It was an automated system for checking in. The machine could not find our reservation so Bob had to use his credit card again (we had already done this online yesterday). When he was finished the machine spit out a paper with a code to enter the building, and one for our room. We punched in the code and we were able to open the door. Still, I'm sure we were the only ones in the entire hotel. We found the elevator and went to our floor. While we were walking to our room I kept hoping that Jack Nicholson wouldn't show up with an axe (remember "The Shining")!! Finally, later in the evening a desk clerk showed up for a couple of hours and said he would be leaving soon. So, if we needed any supplies later or had any questions there would be no one to help. Again, very odd. We made sure the door was locked tightly and tried to sleep. I was up quite early so we packed up and went downstairs for breakfast. Again, there were no other guests in the dining room. The desk clerk was there for a short time until we checked out. However, we never did see other guests. It was the most bizarre, unpleasant hotel experience we have ever had and we were thrilled to move on (I must admit I checked the back seat before I got in the car to make sure that Jack Nicholson wasn't hiding there)!!
We shook off the bad experience and headed for the south of France. As we approached our destination the scenery became more and more beautiful. We started seeing fruit trees and vineyards. Once again, wildflowers were in full bloom with spectacular green fields and bursts of red, neon yellow and lilac colored wildflowers. I could feel my entire body relax as we drove through the gorgeous country roads. The scenery looks a lot like Tuscany yet the architecture and some of the crops are different.
We arrived in Avignon, our destination for the night. When we entered the hotel lobby I felt like Will Smith when he drove up to his new home on the TV show, Fresh Prince of Bel-Aire. "I'm home", he shouts. Marble floors leading to a beautifully elegant curved staircase. Fresh flowers everywhere in the lobby and outside a beautiful French country terrace, complete with flowering plants in large planters. Gorgeous iron patio furniture with brightly colored cushions, just waiting for us to sit outside and sip our cappuccinos in the warm sunshine of the late afternoon. There were actually people working behind the front desk who greeted us with a bright smile and a friendly "bonjour". When we opened the door to our room I wanted to dance around and do a jig (this would not have been a pretty sight). I maintained my outward composure, well sorts, and threw out a lot of oooo's and ahhhh's and oooo-la-la's!!!
The following paragraph is especially for Summer, who is very interested in French design and architecture. So, if this is not your cup of tea just scroll down).
The walls of our B&B were painted a bright white-white and there was deep pastel red carpeting. The chairs and sofa were white-painted wood with lots of carving and curves. The furniture was covered in gorgeous brightly colored striped fabric, with red, dark and light green, and mustard yellow. There were a couple of beautiful iron desk chairs and a lovely white writing desk. Then we spotted the separate bedroom with the double door opening. The bed had a large iron headboard with spindles and reached about half the way up the wall. There were sconces and tapestries on the wall depicting French culture. Just magnificent, or is it magnifique!!!! We opened the curtains and found that we had a corner room that was directly across the street from the wall of the old city, which was built in the early 1300's. Just beautiful.
So excited to explore the old city of Avignon. We settled in and went for dinner in old town. Just gorgeous. We walked down a tree lined street with a park on one side and many cafes on the other side. We had dinner in a restaurant which overlooked a gorgeous, very quiet square. In the center of the square was a huge shade tree, with the ground covered in paving stones and gravel between the stones. Of course, there were benches to relax and enjoy the beauty. The French seem to take the time to enjoy the beauty of their surroundings. We had an elegant French dinner and then walked back to our fabulous hotel. We quickly decided that this charming town and hotel would be our base for the next few days. Actually, both of us could stay here much longer!!! It really is spectacular. We raced downstairs to add a few days to our stay here.
The next morning we got up early, went downstairs to have a delicious buffet breakfast (including sausage and bacon for the first time in weeks). Then, we got in the car and set out to visit the towns that the local tourist office told us were the "heart" of Provence. I must admit that after our beautiful day of touring the area I now have co-favorite places in Europe - Tuscany AND Provence. I absolutely LOVE it here!!!!
In case any of you have visited the area, or are interested in the regions we visited today, we went to Fontaine-de-Vaucluse, Gordes, Roussillon, Menerbes, St. Remy-de-Provence and Les Beau-de-Provence. Most of these ancient villages were built high on a hill with high, thick and imposing walls around them. It's incredible to be driving along a narrow country road and look up and see a huge medieval church and village setting high on a hill ahead of us. It was fun to walk around the town squares, a couple of them with beautiful old carousels in the center. There are always people gathered, having drinks or food, and enjoying each others company. Whenever possible, I encouraged Bob to sit and enjoy a cup of cappuccino and enjoy watching the relaxed lifestyle of the people in the square. Much like many countries in Europe, stores close between 1:00-4:00p.m. every day to take a break, so you have to plan your shopping around those hours. Actually Bob was quite happy when we were walking through some of these charming villages and the souvenir shops were closed - much easier on the budget. Also, he didn't have to listen to me nag him about stopping at many of the stores!!!
The countryside in Provence is extraordinary. The colors and patterns definitely have a Mediterranean feel. It's much like the scenery in Tuscany, however, the crops have some slight differences. We noted quite a bit of wheat being grown here. That's probably why their bread products are so delicious!! Although there are olive trees, they are not nearly as plentiful as in Italy. Of course, there are the vineyards, although we won't be in the heart of wine country until tomorrow.
After a long day of touring it was time for us to return to our fabulous town of Avignon. We walked through the charming pedestrian streets looking for a restaurant with a menu posted that we could read. We found a lovely sidewalk cafe and had another great and fun meal in one of our favorite towns.
After a great night's rest we got up and set our GPS on wine country!!!! Finally, wine tasting day is here!!! Ooo-la-la!! We did some research (along with some help from hotel staff) and gathered a list of some of the better vineyards offering tastings. Most of the time they were located near charming old villages so we had a full day of touring. Our favorite stop of the day was at Chateau Mont Redon in Chaeauneuf du Pape. What a gorgeous setting and delicious wines. The wonderful young lady who explained the wines to us was absolutely darling. I was resistant to tasting the reds but she assured me that some of them were "easy to drink"! After tasting a few of them I would have to agree with her. The more I drank, the easier it was!!! Not to worry, we limited our amounts :) When she wasn't looking we poured the extra into the container they have on each table :) We bought a couple of bottles to drink while we are here in France. Very tasty!! The Chateau was quite beautiful. Although we couldn't go into the cellars where the barrels are stored there was a section with a glass wall so we could see a small portion of the barrels. The amount of wine stored in this chateau is incredible!!!
The vineyards created a most beautiful landscape. As far as we could see, vines covered the land. It seemed that they extended all the way to the hills. So beautiful and green. In addition to the vineyards we drove along many roads planted with cherry trees. I had seen cherry trees before but NEVER ones that were this gorgeous. The trunks were so beautiful and dark and the fruit was bright red - really bright red. The trees were absolutely loaded with the fruit, which made for a breathtaking sight. Of course, wildflowers spring up everywhere in unplanted fields flooding the area with color.
After another full day of sightseeing we headed back to Avignon for the night. This will be our last night in Provence as we leave for Giverny early tomorrow morning. Giverny is home to the gardens and home of the French impressionist painter, Claude Monet. Should be another beautiful adventure. After a couple of days in Giverny it's off to Paris - here come the Elliotts!!!
We have had a very long day of driving from Avignon to Giverny, near Paris. As we drove we could see a clear difference between the architecture of the two areas. The roofs are much more sloped in the north ad most of the roofs we pass on the road have red tiles. There are more farms in this area growing crops other than grapes, although there are still a number of vineyards. There are lots of grain and vegetables being grown. The colors in the fields are beautiful. There are squares of very dark green, medium green, very pale green, and yellow, all in huge squares creating a patchwork quilt effect. Just gorgeous.
We arrived in Giverny in the early evening. We drove up to our bed and breakfast and were shocked at how beautiful it was. We drove up a long gravel driveway to a huge home with enormous gardens surrounding us. The entire front wall of the house was windows that overlooked the spectacular gardens. The owner came running out to welcome us. The owners, Michele and Francine, are some of the nicest people we have ever met. One side of the home is their private quarters. The other half of the home they have turned into a bed and breakfast. It is a magnificent two-story unit with antiques and artwork everywhere. The owner is an artist and displays some of her beautiful artwork on the walls. There are also treasures they have collected from their world travels. There are antiques everywhere. She admits that she has turned her home into a bit of a museum. We are just very fortunate that she and her husband have decided to share their beautiful home with visitors.
We got up the next morning and set out for the artist Claude Monet's home and gardens. They were absolutely breathtaking. The large gardens are divided by narrow gravel paths. There were flowers of so many types, varieties, size and colors yet they all worked together to create a magnificent kaleidoscope of color and form. We walked over to the water gardens where the pond is located that Monet used in so many of his paintings. I remember thinking many years ago, when I was first introduced to Monet's work that I wished I could be in the place the artist had painted. I just wanted to be in the center of it and absorb the beauty around me. I didn't realize at that time that Monet was actually painting an actual place. As we walked around the pond and gardens today I was just in awe that I was actually walking through many of those paintings. Just beautiful.
After visiting the gardens we drove around some of the nearby countryside communities. We had intended on visiting a Chateau in the area but it was closed :( so we just enjoyed the lovely local homes and gardens in the surrounding area. We arrived back in Giverny in time to rest for awhile, start packing our belongings and go to dinner.
We have thoroughly enjoyed our time in this beautiful area and spending time with our amazing hosts, Michele and Francine. Giverny is definitely a gorgeous area and worth a visit. Early tomorrow morning we will get up and leave for Paris. Can't wait. Lots of fun adventures ahead.
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