Life in the Vaucluse

Good piece in The Telegraph on Avignon.. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/france/8619680/Avignon-France-the-perfect-break.html

Just back from 6 rather wet days in the Luberon, lots of rain, storms and some amazing lightening over the hills.. interesting that there's a pic of Roussillon in today's Observer accompanying a piece on France.. http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2011/jun/05/families-french-holidays-arab-spring

Well we've just achieved 23 weeks of bookings for this year which pretty much takes us right through to November. Probably helped by our appearance in The Sunday Time list of Top 50 villas in Europe 2011
(we featured in the 'houses in villages' section).

Also have 2 weeks in July 2012 booked so I guess it's now official - taking bookings for 2012!

A wet weekend

Just back from a rather wet weekend in Roussillon however there was plenty for us to do getting the house ready for the new season. The village was just waking up after a long winter and we noticed one or two new things. Nino, opposite us in 'Le Petit Snack' has done a fab job rearranging the interiors and has created a terrace which will be great in the summer. We had dinner there Monday - a very good bit of taureau and chips!

It was pouring on Sunday however we popped over to Isle sur Sorgues and had a quick potter around. Found a great cafe by the church, 'Cafe de France' - clearly the place to go judging by the crowd..

   

 

 

Had a great drive across the Massif Central from Roussillon to Limoges. The mountains are a range of extinct volcanoes and the scenery is spectacular.. Limoges itself is pretty interesting and has two hearts to it in terms of the old city. Timbered buildings are similar to those in Dijon and Troyes while of course the porcelain is the real reason to visit..

Sad news: The rather nice petrol station in the village has gone. Great news: It has been replaced by a small supermarket that really has everything! No need to go to Apt shopping now..

3 recently visited restaurants

La Flambee

Place du 4 Septembre, 84400 Bonnieux

0490 75 82 20

A simple restaurant in the centre of Bonnieux which has a terrace with a great view (which hasn’t been open when we’ve been there, having been out of season). However it has some tables outside at the front and quite a cosy interior dining room if the weather isn’t too good.

As well as very good pizzas, there is a fairly straightforward bistro menu. Fish soup was pretty good and duck breast with ceps was good. Other standards on the menu include Daube Provencal, Salmon fillet in a cream sauce. A good spot for lunch but nothing special food wise.

La Bartavelle

Rue du Cheval-Blanc, 84220 Goult

0490 72 33 72

La Bartavelle is an exceptional restaurant which requires booking well in advance. But it’s not cheap. Set in a cave with some tables outside in the summer, it is in a quiet alleyway just near the main square in Goult.

The cooking is outstanding and uses seasonal ingredients. My terrine of rabbit and fois gras first course was delicious and lighter than I was expecting. From the short menu I chose pigeon for the main course which was particularly tender and not at all gamey. Other main courses that night included Rump of Veal and Turbot all of which looked sensational. Expect to spend at least €50 per head.

L’Arome

84480 Bonnieux

0490 58 85 53

A cosy restaurant, like many in the area, also set in a cave. From a value for money point of view this restaurant is hard to beat. From a €29 per person set menu price, we all had 3 very good courses. An outstanding veloute of small pumpkin was elevated with a single large ravioli stuffed with wild mushrooms. A confit of lamb with aubergine followed and the dinner was wrapped up with a chocolate dacquise. Booking recommended.

Our great friends in the village are looking to sell their beautiful home so I thought I'd post up the details..

     

FOR SALE VILLAGE HOUSE

ROUSSILLON, Vaucluse
South of France
Provence/Luberon area

Price: 438,000 euros
(agent’s fee included )

Situated in the heart of a village classified as one of the most beautiful villages of France, in a calm corner overlooking the Val des Fees with its magnificent ochre cliffs, sits this village house dating from 17th century. The house constitutes 170 m2 on three levels, restored with taste whilst respecting many of the original architectural features such as a superbly decorated ceiling in the main sitting room, marble chimney piece, terracotta tiled floors, elegant staircase, high ceilings and spacious rooms, and with two caves on the opposite side of the road.

Downstairs there is a fully equipped kitchen/dining room, a sitting room of 27.5 m2 with open fire place, and an independent WC. Upstairs there is a study room plus two double bedrooms one with a shower room/WC attached and the other with a full bathroom/WC attached. A secluded roof terrace with a cub-boarded kitchen corner of 10m2 has a magnificent south-westerly view over the valley, the Luberon as well as over the old village.

For further details and enquiries please contact:

elisabeth.mccrae@wanadoo.fr
00 33 (0)4 90 05 84 61

This is by one of our recent visitors to the house;

My Provencal Windows
They give new meaning to the words “picture windows”. There are two of them. Companions. Two windows in the bedroom of my provencal summer home.
When shut, during the slow hot days of this dry, coloured summer, they are functional. They keep my sanctuary cool; my bleached white cotton sheets that smell of lavender and lie waiting to accept me - tired and golden. Cool; my pale yellow marble tiled floor that soothes my rough brown feet as if softened and polished in anticipation of every step.
Yes, during the sunlit hours my bedroom windows understand what I need of them and are happy to accommodate for when I reach for the milky blue and flaking shutters after I rise from sleep they close willingly, as if perhaps they are nocturnal and so are ready for sleep now too. They sigh quietly as they close, bringing quiet shadows with them. And there they stay, happily guarding my sanctuary - seeming to know how it pleases me.
But it is at night that my provencal windows reveal their secret. As the sun sets on this hilltop village, turning the homes and the cliffs from which they were built different colours of red and yellow, orange and purple; as the swallows swoop and dive, serenading us, a prelude to the pronouncement from the bell tower that day is done - my windows wake slowly and sit patiently, knowing that I will come for them.
And when I do, when the sun has winked its goodbye and the breeze begins its gentle caress - my provencal windows are ready.
First, the shutters. I turn their sturdy and reliable iron latches and in agreement they open wide and joyful with my push. The glass doors next, joining their sisters dutifully, lining up against the solid rock walls of the house, proud to unveil what lies beyond.
And then I see. My windows. Side by side. Great and gracious frames, selfless in their stillness. Content to exhibit the shining brilliance of their night sky. Like a pleased mother.
I can’t take my eyes off of their picture. The cerulean sky, deeper than blue. Richer than black. More purple than azure. The crystal stars that seem closer somehow, as if watching me too. And the moon. The glorious moon. Aloof yet kind it beckons me shyly. Somehow aware that I am in need of a lantern, it obliges.
Why does this portrait call me? And why does it wake me when I would otherwise sleep? It’s as if I opened too, with my windows; opened what I didn’t know was closed. And as I am drawn in I suddenly become aware of dimension. That I too, am part of this landscape. It is my community and I am enveloped.
My provencal windows give me an awakened view of our sky; our everything. They know. And they wait patiently for me to discover. They know I long for it.
They have shared their secret with me until morning. And I will never be the same.

Skiing on Mont Ventoux

February 2010 and after 5 years we finally made it onto the slopes of Mont Ventoux. Mind you, there hasn't been much snow the last few years. For somewhere an hour and a quarter from Roussillon you could do a lot worse. At Chalet Reynard, a mountain restaurant, we were able to hire boots and skis and get a lift pass. The skiing is limited with a couple of drag lifts and about 6 runs - a mixture of blues and reds - however the snow was fantastic, the views are great and we had a jolly good lunch after a couple of  hours on the slopes. We'll definitely go again.