Nice and Monaco
First stop was Eze - a tiny hill top village perched on the cliff - which attracts the rich and famous (U2 included) and plenty of tourists, but somehow seems to retain a quaint feel. There are no cars - the narrow cobbled streets would not take them. The highlight of Eze are its gardens - at the top of the hill. They are filled of exotic cacti and sculptures of Greek goddesses, each named and with an accompanying poem. It was an incredible spot - and perched on top of the world - the view out over the Mediterranean was breathtaking. We also visited St Paul de Vence a very famous hilltop village - and which must have more artists/art galleries than any other town I have been in. It was a nice spot - but unlike Eze - had the feel of a large tourist attraction.
Breakfast on the beach in Nice
We also spent some time exploring Nice - which was a very nice spot (no play on words intended...). The markets there, in hindsight, were some of the better ones we saw - lots of great fresh fruit and vege as well as cheeses, meats etc.
The road to St Tropez
The next day saw us taking the slow road to St Tropez - avoiding the direct motorway, opting for the winding road that follows the coast and takes you through the many small and not so small towns which line the coast. The trip was very picturesque - 2 places stand out (well, actually 3, but one was some pretty place we drove through between Cannes and St Tropez.... unfortunately I have not idea of its name - so probably not worth going into....): Antibes which we didn't stop in (but we did manage to accidentally drive through its old town district, before looping through Cap D'Antibes, a peninsula which is home to huge (and very expensive) mansions and villas.
Second was Cannes - the place we are all so familiar with from its famous film festival. We were too early for the festival crowds and the celebs that flock here - so didn't get to see Lily Allen slip off any superyachts in the buff. Nevertheless we enjoyed wandering along the bustling foreshore which was kind of what I would imagine South Beach Florida would be like - but with fashion as its theme and without the overbronzed muscle bound rollerbladers.
St Tropez
St Tropez had proven to be the trickiest place for us to find accommodation over the Easter period - and as a result our 'hotel' was out in the countryside surrounding the town. It was pretty basic and I think was was actually once a commune.
St Tropez was a highlight of the Cote d'Azur stage of the trip. I was expecting glitz and glamour (and even a hint of tackiness), but although the shopping and superyachts gave it these qualities - there wasn't an ounce of tackiness - instead it retained the feel of a classy, small seaside town.
We had the best part of a day to wander around here - so took in some more superyachts, explored the fortress on the hill overlooking the town, enjoyed a huge slice of the cream filled sponge (Tarte Tropezienne) which is famous here... for breakfast, watching the old men play boules in the large town square and of course, some of us did a spot of shopping. Before we left St Tropez, we also did a nice walk along a coastal path - which takes you through a large seafarers' cemetery on the water's edge, before winding its way around the coast past exclusive seaside properties. The only other thing to mention here is was a great meal at Le Cafe which sits on the edge of the boules square - super fast - but incredibly tasty steak.
Avignon and around
Avignon was one of the larger places we stayed - but still had a small historic town centre in which we stayed. It is rich with history and was once home to a series of Popes, when Rome was in political upheaval.
From here we did a day trip out to Fountaine de Vaucluse - the world's 5th most powerful spring - 315m deep. It is renowned for its clear water which has an intensely blue colour when it is at its best. On the way we passed through L'Isle-sur-la-Sorge which was a very pretty town with a small river running through it. It also happened to be host to an international antique fair - so it was difficult to extract ourselves from it as it would be have been easy to pass the time looking through the many roadside stalls full of treasures and nick-knacks. We did manage to get to Fountaine de Vaucluse, which although was not particularly full - was still a beautiful spectacle and it was easy to see why it has attracted tourists for many many years (1.5m p.a. these days!?).
While in Avignon we also visited the Pont d'Avignon - the partial remains of an ancient bridge that once crossed the Rhone River which runs by the city. The bridge was interesting - but for me it was more interesting to be standing over the middle of the Rhone river, which runs through the Rhone valley - home to much of the red wine we enjoy over here.
After here we explored the nearby Palais des Papes - home to a number of Popes over the years. The history here was very interesting, and there was much more focus on the history of the building and the different personalities of the various Popes who lived here, what they did the building and the way in which they lead the Catholic church. We also stumbled on a choir comprised of travelling students who were doing an impromptu performance in its large Chapel - which made it even more impressive. What better way to top off a long day? An informative wine tasting to introduce us to the wines of the region - including, arguably its most famous - Chateauneuf du Pape.
Chateaneuf du Pape
The south of France has a great reputation for wine, and Chateaneuf du Pape is a small town which is both a highly regarded appellation itself, but that also provides a great base to explore some of the other nearby regions. We did a rambling (fairly ad hoc) self driven tour of the region - starting off in Chateaneuf with a visit to two of the local Chateau. The wines here are permitted to use 13 different varieties of grape in their blends (some have all 13?). They are full bodied and pack a punch - and are required under the appellation rules to be at least 12.5% alcohol. They sell at a bit of a premium, but we thought the additional price was generally justified.
From there we went on to Gigondas (famous for GSM blends) - and where we struggled to find something to our liking, before finishing at Beaumes de Venise - famous for its sweet white wines and where we could also try both its reds and the reds of nearby Vacqueyras. With sweet wine on offer, the girls had no trouble finding several wines they liked - with Mum putting a couple away on her own (to take home that is......). During the course of the day we got to drive through the countryside and visit the odd small town - and it was a nice way to spend the day. The icing on the cake was a beautiful meal at our hotel (http://www.hotel-la-sommellerie.com/) - a nice place with very friendly staff, situated just outside Chateaneuf overlooking the stony dry vineyards.
Road to St Remy
From the wine heaven we travelled to St Remy - our next stop, but did so by taking a long detour to take in Orange, the Pont du Gard and Arles - in what was a day dominated by Roman ruins. Orange is home to Theatre Antique a 100m wide, 40m high stage wall thought to have been built during Caesar's rule (sometime after 27BC). It is apparently the only one in the world which still stands in it entirety. It has an interesting history - was once home to lewd theatre, was at one time used as a wall against which housing was built and has been excavated and is still in use for performances today.
Pont du Gard was next on the itinerary - a huge, 3 tiered, 275m aqueduct capable of carrying 35,000 cubic metres of water a day which towers 50m above the River Gard below it. Built around 19BC, its size and the engineering and skill that must have gone into it are quite mind blowing. Humbling to think that all that time ago - they were clever enough to build a series of aqueducts to bring water from springs to the north. You can do walks along the top tier - but unfortunately not in off season - so we had to settle for the lower tier - but still pretty impressive.
From aqueducts to Arles... home of more Roman relics (including another theatre....), but most well known for its most famous resident, Van Gogh who painted around 200 of his works here. We did a self guided walking tour of the city, which was really well set up, with information boards and pictures of his paintings in certain spots around the city where he painted them. It was great to see today the same sites and scenes that he saw and painted all those years ago.
St-Remy De Provence
St-Remy was probably the best of a good bunch of towns we stayed in. It is famous for its food (olive oil, chocolate, sweets are all made in the town) as well as being a fashionable and pretty town to stay in, without being overrun with tourists (in the off season at least!). Our accommodation here was incredible - Hotel Gounod (http://www.hotel-gounod.com/) a small boutique hotel with an interior which was cluttered and crowded with crucifixes, statues, flowers and other bits and pieces - which anywhere else would have seemed tacky - but here managed to pull off designer classy.
Near St-Remy is Les Baux de Provence a small hill top village at the peak of which sits Chateau des Baux - the ruins of a castle which once sat here. This was a highlight for many of us - both because of the panoramic views from the hill top site and also due to the interesting sites and history of the ruins and the features that remain - old sinks, ovens, pigeon holes and water tanks.
Our other day in St Remy was taken up with (another) Van Gogh walk (the asylum he admitted himself to remains here) and relaxing. We explored the olive oil factory (which also sold beautiful truffle oil) and the famous chocolate maker Joel Durand's store - which was similar to Schoc back home - with rosemary, thyme, Earl Grey and other interestingly flavoured chocs. Yum.
The road to Aix en Provence
We turned our drive from St Remy to Aix into a sightseeing extravaganza. First stop was Abbaye de Senanque.... the famous abbey which features in so many Provencial postcards surrounded by fields of purple flowering lavender. We weren't in lavender season - so couldn't replicate the photo.... but was a pretty spot all the same. Next was Gordes - one of the trendiest hilltop villages, where the rich and famous from Paris might holiday....
From here we went to Roussillon - famous for its red ochre earth. The whole village is made from the stone - and thus the streets are lined with reddish stone buildings. We did a short walk here through the ochre valley and spent some time exploring the small town.
Final stop was a countryside winegrower's trail.... this 1.5 hour walk lead us through vines, across fields and through olive groves. It was a really nice walk and along the way we saw real people pruning vines and olive trees - a labour intensive industry.
Aix - The EndAix was our final destination before flying out of Marseille. It was the most cosmopolitan town we visited - it sort of felt like a mini Paris. It a great spot to spend a day or so just relaxing, soaking up the sun, listening to students busking, admiring its many fountains, shopping in its markets, exploring and of course eating and drinking!?
It was the end of a great trip - which had been a series of different chapters - sun and sea, hilltop villages, Roman ruins and food and wine. We had been looking forward to exploring the South of France and it was nice to share the experience with Mum and Dad.
1 comment:
Interesting to know.
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