Touring Knights

So we decided to wind down a fair bit and spend our last few days in Apt just chilling ing  Yesterday we did our Laundry, yep boring but it has to be done ....... Lol A little shopping in the local shops, and had lunch in the loveliest little restaurant we found in the back streets. We were a little late for lunch but there was only us and one other group.  We had a gorgeous lunch of soft cheese with herbs, braised veal with vegetables ( kind of ratatouille style and Strawberry and peppermint soup for dessert. It was amazing and our waitress tried so hard to talk to us in English . Today was market day in Apt. We had read that the market day in Apt was pretty good but we never expecting that each time we looked down a street there would be more stalls , this market was huge..... As we sipped our coffee we were serenaded Saucisson , like salamis but ohhh wow so many different flavours and types and sizes just amazing. Flowers fresh and...

We are continuing to have a wonderful time exploring the Luberon, travelling the narrow roads that wind past field of grapes, lavender and other wonderful crops. Several times we have passed fields filled with wild red poppies, unfortunately there has never been the opportunity to stop for a photo.  But I live in hope. This is the view of Apt, where we are staying as the sun goes down. It's a reasonable size town with plenty of restaurants and supermarkets. Yesterday we visited Super U which was a bit like the old super Kmart, it had the variety and supermarket all in one. I scored a new silicone Madeliene tray . . .  Lourmarin  On Tuesday we drove over the mountain range again to the lovely little town of Lourmarin. We arrived a little early so decided we would wander a little through the narrow little streets,some of  these streets are purely pedestrian, or at most they would have a scooter or motor bike,  and on each turn are a joy, I could s...

The plan for the south of France was to slow down and just enjoy the experience.  So despite having an extensive list of things to see, some of which involved driving one or two hours to see,  we have decided we just want to amble slowly and take it in . . . .  this post actually covers two days. We discovered that Monday is a quiet day in Provence with many shops not opening, well everyday shops anyway, souvenir shops always seem to be open . . . . Lol We used Monday to explore Apt ( where we are staying) and take a drive to one of the lovely little villages. The Luberon ( an area in Provence) is known for its lovely villages. Each similar but unique in its own way.  Fontaine de Vaucluse  This lovely village is centred around a river.  As you walk along t he banks of the river you reach a point where there are rocks but no longer any water and eventually an immense cliff face, for a very long time people were perplexed as to the so...

On Sunday we headed off to Monarco, Eze and Nice as a tour, with a guide. This was one of the last minute tours we organised and at 6:30 am on Sunday it was freezing as the "mistral" blew I was wondering what on earth we were thinking Our apartment was warm and snug Anyway we jumped in our hire car and headed over the Luberon mountains to Aix en Provence where we were meeting our tour. We arrived with time to spare, Gadget is always early, as we waited outside the Apple shop for our bus the wind was howling and it was could enough to freeze . . . . Well it was pretty darn cold. Anyway we found a very cute little brasserie, and after a hot chocolate and a croissant we were both feeling a lot warmer. We got the tour bus to our selves and we headed off for the two hour drive to Monaco, with the aim to arrive in time for the changing of the guard.  Our driver / guide told us all about the area as we drove along, but we worked out pretty quickly whilst he coul...

On Saturday we had to travel to Apt to our apartment for the next week.  We couldn't check in unto late so decided to visit a local market before we left Carcassonne. This one was held in the town square, in the middle of the newer section of Carcassonne. Mainly fruit and vegetables, but also fish, bakery items and flowers. This guy was a very happy cheese seller, he sang the whole time he was serving people. Strawberries are definitely in season here, and they are really really good, very sweet with no bitterness.  We have shared a punnet or two.  Lots of beautiful flowers After the market we headed off again, with the plan of seeing  the Pont du Gard  This structure is really cool, it was built almost 2000 years ago. The Pont du Gard was part of a 50km long aqueduct, built to carry water from the city of Uzes to Nimes.  The majority of it stands held together by friction without any mortar to hold it togeth...

Today started off with a very brisk walk, we decided to start the day with a cruise along the canal midi. When we left our B & B we had to go back as I had left the city map behind. So by the time we really got underway it was a bit of a power walk to get to the first boat departure of the day.  Happily we made it, with time to spare. Canal Midi  The cruise up the canal was very quiet and relaxing, with only the local ducks to break the peace. The canal midi is actually a part of the Canal de Dex Mers ( the canal of two seas) commenced in 1666 the canals were created to assist with wheat trade, the canals end at the Atlantic and Mediterranean oceans. There are 65 locks and the canal de midi is 241 kms long and was all dug out by hand.  Today it is used predominantly for tourism and you can hire a boat and travel along the canals for a holiday. The beautiful plane trees were planted to help keep the walls of the canal stable, you can see in the ima...

Today started off pretty spectacularly with 90 % of our breakfast being made in the kitchen right here in our B &B. Jams made from blue berries grown locally wild in the mountains. Plums from the tree in their garden and home made bread and banana cake, it was just wonderful very delicious. When we planned this holiday, as I said yesterday neither of us thought that we would be staying at the foot of the Pyrénées, we definetly didn't think we would go hiking up to the snow line. A gorgeous little village nestled in the foot of the Pyrénées  At our lovely hosts suggestions we headed to the mountains for the day, to a lovely little village called Gavarnie. Gavarnie is a winter sports village and in summer and in spring is a great spot to start any number of hikes into these beautiful mountains. Our host suggested this short hike (1 1/2 hours up and an 1 hour back) we didn't have any other plans for the day, so thought why not and off we set . . .  ...