Chester, England

Steve had a work meeting in Chester … so I tagged along. Chester … also happens to be the film location of our favorite trash British Soap – Holly Oaks! Its on everyday and moves at quite a fast pace so lots happens each week. It’s also on several times each week and the whole week repeats back to back on Saturday morning, so a bit hard to miss. We also have the excuse that watching it is part of our British cultural experience. A fair likeness of the British (I'm sure they would agree .. ha!) Chester has some Roman ruins, is filled with black and white striped medieval architecture and has a lively car free (actually I see cars in this picture hmmm...) central shopping area with stacked rows of interesting stores to poke through. Good for a weekend trip!

South of France

Steve and I thourougly enjoyed a trip to the region of Provence in the South of France. Beautiful scenery (even sans the lavender, which was not in season), friendly French people (oh my!), fabulous baked goods (mmm custard cake/tart) and the most delicious food! If I were ever to become rich ... most likely through winning a lottery - which I guess is kind of unlikely, but hey if it happens, the South of France would be a great place for a summer home. We rented a car and spent 3 days driving around and discovering the many cities/villages dotted throughout the country side.

Marseille & the coast - We landed in Marseille and picked up a brand new silver Peugot (only 2km’s on it!) Our first stop was to Marseille’s Vieux Port – where we took in the fish market, quaint restaurants and views of the city. We also quite enjoyed strolling around Le Panier (the basket) & La Joilette area which is the heart of the city’s old quarter.

There was a handy red line painted on the sidewalk that you could follow for a red-line guided tour. This used to be a poor area, home to immigrants from all parts of the world, but is now turning into a very trendy/arty type area. We stopped for tea in a small square and treated ourselves to a delicious custard like pie. In Marseille I started a serious addiction to olive oil soap! I bought a few bars, only considering later that I rarely use soap bars anymore. On the first day, we also explored the coastline and the lovely towns along the way.

Aix - Our home base was in Aix-en-Provence. Apparently Aix gets no more than 91 days of rain recording during the year and on average 300 days of sun per year. Unfortunately we received at least 2 of these days on our long weekend stay. We didn’t spend a lot of time in Aix, (it had a beautiful tree lined walkway in the centre), but did have one amazing meal and have grown really fond of duck pate!

Velaux - Ventabren - small and charming towns we walked through

Avignon - with it’s larger than life Palais de Papes (yes, a pope's palace!) … and the ‘bridge’ with 'the song' .. sur la pont, avignon … sing with me la la la la la la la la … sur la pont. (well ¾ of the bridge anyway, part of it is missing),

Rousillion - cool red town ... built in red earth

Isle sur la Sourde - great for markets

Les Baux de Provence

A windy path through the rocks takes you to the small town of Les Baux de Provence – our favourite (despite a lot of rain)! Les Baux is settled in and looks to be carved out of rock.. At the foot of the mountain caves have been carved straight into the rock surface. One of the caves housed a bar. The other cave had on the most amazing exhibit. Large digital pictures from the painter Cézanne’s work were projected on the white cave walls. The cave is quite dark and the images change along with music according to various themes. The effect is fabulous and you feel quite immersed in Cezanne’s work. Cézanne was born in Aix in Jan 1839 and was interested in painting throughout his life. He spent most of his time in Paris and Aix. Later in life he lived in Provence, where he painted the French countryside and the Sainte-Victoire Mountain and it was at that time his reputation began to grow. He died in1906 at the age of 67. Driving tours and many sites are dedicated to Cezanne throughout Provence. In his latter years he returned to Southern France. After this trip I definitely am a Cézanne fan!

The food and wine along the way was delicious, especially tasty meal in Aix. Really got into pate canard! (Duck pate – doesn’t appeal to me when I think about it, but so so good when I don’t … ). I found the people much friendlier than in big Paris and quite happy for you to try out your French. Would love to go back one day when the lavender is in season.