Row of Shops

A row of shops in Sr. Saturnin has a driving school tucked in between a home furnishing shop and a shop that sells awnings and pergola covers.

Ocher

Ocher deposits abound around Rousillon in Provence.

Chock-a-block Full

Take a look at what is crammed into this village square. You have a hostel, a cafe, a restaurant, a hotel, an ice cream shop and a war memorial.

A Perfect Example

A perfect example about what I like about Provence. Here we have a terrace melding into a street with parked cars. Below is the lower tier of the village built on a mountainside. But in spite of the fact there is a stone retaining wall, it is lined with planters and pots of flowers. Flowers are EVERYWHERE in Provence.

Rose Arbor

A rose arbor decorates the doorway of a village house.

Villagers On A Sunday Morning

Villagers walk their dog along the hilltop village streets on a Sunday morning.

Street Meets Gate in Village Wall

As you drive through the village on the narrow streets, you come to the ancient wall of the old village. This was a gate in the wall. It is obvious that the car will not fit through a gate made for donkeys and horses. And you have to back up all the way, because there is no place to turn around. These are some of the quaint surprises in the hilltop villages of Provence. In another place, the road changes abruptly into stairs.

Incredibly Old Grape Vine

The older that a grape vine is, the thicker it is. This old specimen has been pruned many many seasons and still is producing in a Provencale vineyard.

In a Provence Church Yard

I snapped the above picture in the church yard in the village of Roussillon.

Medieval Walls and Vine

This old rock wall abuts the wall of a hilltop village. A solitary grape vine grows against the ancient rock and doorway lintel. The mortar is made with ocher.

The Hameau

A hameau is French for hamlet. The way that many hameaus came into existence, is that a wealthy farmer would build a dwelling for his grown son and his wife. Also there would be a dwelling for the hired help. Over the generations, a mini village would arise with many dwellings. Hameaus are sought after dwellings these days, because they are usually surrounded by pastoral farm land and vines, even though the houses are close together.

A wonderful field of poppies is in front of this hameau.

Beautiful Wooden Door

A village house has an elegant wrought iron gate and a marvelous old wood door that adds charm to this residence.

Castle Turret

This turret wall is on the castle in the village of Gorde. What caught my eye, was the shooting port in the castle wall, where a defender could fire from.

Village House with Artistic Flair

An ocher village house displays an artistic flair with a bird motif.

Bucket of Rocks

This bucket of rocks was in the vineyard. Limestone rocks are spread on the ground at the base of grape vines to both reflect the light and hold the heat for the vines. This is an ancient technique that is still practiced.

The Portable Fish Market

On market day, the portable fish market shows up in small towns in Provence selling fresh fish probably hauled up from Marseille.

Mas With Attached Chapel

A provencale manor house or mas oftentimes had an attached chapel as this one has. The little outcropping from the building is the chapel.

Yellow Flowered Bush

I was in the country taking a late afternoon walk among the vineyards along a quiet road. I came upon these bushes growing wild, just ablaze with yellow flowers.

Doorway of Provence with Stone Mailbox

This beautiful doorway is typically French, narrow and tall with dark wood. The interesting item in the shot is the stone mailbox.

Hidden Living Spaces

Little patios, hidden nooks, flowers, doorways, bright shutters, and a barbecue are the hallmarks of these village house entrance ways.

Vine on a Rock Wall

A wild grape vine grows against an old rock wall.

Hilltop Village Tiers

Here is a schematic of the the village of Bonnieux showing how the tiers work on a hilltop village.

Almonds and Irises

Almonds ripen in the Provencale sun while irises grow along the line of almond trees.

Neat Narrow Shop

An incredibly narrow shop straddles the loop back street that goes down the mountain from the village.

The Butchery

A butchery displays it wares of pates in shop window along a narrow village street.

The Ubiquitous Iris

Irises everywhere, even in Van Gogh paintings.

Large Vineyard

A large vineyard spreads out in the sun beside neatly manicured topiary trees, while the majestic mas (manor house) reposes in the trees behind the fields of vines.

Garden Greenery

This bit of garden greenery caught my eye. This isn't one flower petal, but lots of colour in this planter.

Green Cherries

Cherries have a special place with me. We had a cherry tree in the backyard all of my growing up years. And part of the charm of Provence, is that there are cherry trees everywhere. It is one of my favourite fruits.

Cafe Row

A row of cafes and restaurants dots a village street near a garage. The menu includes plates of the day, costing 9 Euros. One of the menu choices is rabbit.

Iron Gate

An iron gate closes off the lower level egress to a village house. Village house built on hills have weird inner geometries such that a doorway like this could be a main entrance. It is part of the enchantment of the buildings in Provence.

Vineyards in the Valley

Vineyards checker the valley, laid out in neat squares in the Provencal sun.

Farm Implement

A farm implement sits in the cherry orchard while wild iris grow beside it.

Lavender Art

Besides ocher and vineyards, Provence is also known for it lavender fields. Pictured outside this souvenir shop, is lavender art.

Empty Pool

It was early spring and the pool was being prepared for use, but for the time being it was empty, as was the Euro-chic furniture beside the pool.

The fancy while filigree on the shuttered blue windows caught my eye. The robin egg blue contrasts with the yellow ocher and you see a small evergreen tree peeking out near the window to the right.

From The Village to the Valley

A couple walk with their dog from the village down into the valley on a sleepy Provencale road.

Village Doorways Reprise

Pictured above is the door of a winery in a Provencal village. The portals and doorways are as colourful and beautiful as the landscape.

The Banana Leaf

I was on the balcony of a cafe in a hilltop village, overlooking this lordly mas (Provence manor house) framed by greenery and a vineyard in its back yard. Then it struck me how far south we were. The big green leaf showing in the right of the picture, is the leaf from a huge banana plant.

Living in the tropics as I do, I see banana plants all over. They are planted as huge ornamentals. However, it was startling to see it overlooking the vines in Provence.

Bistro Food

A white pepper sauce on a perfect steak with roast potatoes, peas, a side salad and vegetables, washed down with a wonderful Cote de Luberon rose wine. This was just lunch.

Andreas Bocelli in Provence

We saw this poster of Andreas Bocelli. We had these visions of him coming to a Provence village and singing under the stars. We would buy tickets at any cost. As it turns out, the townsfolk were just showing a DVD of his performance.

Slippery When Wet

When I had to work, I had to be connected to the internet, so I would sit all day in a cafe in Bonnieux, connected to Nassau by the internet.

At the end of the day, I would walk home, past this sign.

It is surprising to think that the roads are slippery because of the mental picture of eternal sunshine, grapes and vines, and the Mediterranean. However the valley has its days of rain, cold and even snow.

Escargot on the Run

A snail makes a run for the wild instead of the cooking pot. Mmmmm escargot with garlic butter.

At The Cafe

A pleasant interlude during the day is drinks at the cafe.

Past Glory

This balcony over an archway into a courtyard has seen better days.

The Town Awakens

The town slowly awakens in the morning. A merchant puts out his wares while a villager lights a cigarette and strolls to a cafe for his morning coffee.

Beware of Dog

At the entrance to a guest house, a sign on the post says "Beware of Dog".

Narrow Village Streets

The streets are quite narrow in the hilltop villages. Luckily there is not much traffic. However the tour buses play chicken with you and drive forward forcing you to back up. Once when I held my ground, the bus driver kept coming at me with no intention of stopping. I suppose that if I got out of the car, he would have surrendered.

Fabrics of Provence

The fabrics of Provence are as distinctive as the landscape, the flowers, and the ochre.

A Pair of Windows

One thing that I love about Provence, is how even something as simple as a window is much more than a window.

Here we have a pair of them. The smaller one has a plant in the sill, and a planter attached to the building below it. The big window has lovely lace curtains, and the utilitarian clothes line under it, holding a pair of socks and a dish towel.