Hill Villages of Provence (Carolyn)

While I’ve been to France a number of times, I’ve never really visited the “hill villages” of Provence. On Friday the 4th, we headed (late morning) for Biot, about 3 k from our B&B run by Frank and Isabel. We spotted the parking lot sign, but it was so far from the village itself that we went on up, not noticing the bus that takes tourists from parking to village. BIG MISTAKE….. Kudos to Steve for excellent driving on those steep streets, barely wide enough for one car and really challenging when you come face to face with a truck. He did get a little bit annoyed at the muffled gasps from his passengers, though. Got out of town without a scratch and didn’t turn back. It is noted for its glass artisans, but so is Tacoma, so until a future trip we won’t see them. One great memory from this trip will be the visit to the Leger Museum, located on the outskirts of Biot. The exterior of this stunning building is covered with gigantic Leger murals. Photos are there from earlier blogs.

We got our hill village fix at the next stop, Gourdon, and where, now experienced, we headed for the car park. Lots of galleries and artisans; great outdoor sculptures; a 14th century castle and a fine Nicoise salad for lunch. You’ve already seen some of the photos from Gourdon. And our third hill town, with a multi-story parking garage, was St. Paul de Vence, with 16th century town walls and now sadly described by the Blue Guide as having succumbed to exploitation.

This morning, Sunday, we visited the conveniently open market in the square in front of the Hotel de Ville (city hall). Conveniently because we had no food with us….. I’m able to ask a fair number of questions of the vendors; the problem lies in trying to understand the answer. We bought some excellent and pricey cheese, bread, cereal, tomatoes and fruit. It will get us thru the day. We’ve been invited for appetizers at the apartment of the mother-in-law of the owner of our apartment. I think they’re trying to soothe our concerns about no hot water. The owner, Barney, lives in Brooklyn, but is in Beaucaire for a couple of days. They’ve already given us the key to another apt. where we can go to shower until the repairman arrives tomorrow. Better than moving someplace else, although it is about a half mile walk. More later…..

Carolyn