OUR TIME IN – THE SOUTH OF FRANCE
After 3 weeks of being “on the road again…and again,” you could not dream of a better place than Provence. Mas la Monaque, our 17th century farmhouse is more than a place to just rest our heads, its Provincial paradise. Located in the center of Maussane les Alpilles and Mouries, our house allows for easy access to any “major” city in the St. Remy region within an hour (if not a 20 minute) drive. We arrived at our beautiful home ready to set dinner plans in town and immediately decided it was just too good to leave. That night, Boyd and Gina cooked the first of many fabulous family dinners we enjoyed at home.
The next morning, the family grew even larger when Meghan and Andrew (Erinn’s older sister and her husband) arrived from London to celebrate the Queens Diamond Jubilee commerating her 60 years on the throne. Our first stop was L’Isle sur la Sorgue for some must see antiquing. We enjoyed a fabulous lunch along the river, but more importantly walking through the stalls and many open storefronts in the Sunday market we found some amazing pieces of shabby and some totally chic furniture.
Topping a world-famous antique market seems hard to do, except if you are in Provence. Next up on our weekend were the famous wines of Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Our tour guide, Jean Marc, was a local and we were very lucky to have him provide our tour. He walked us through the town to his uncle’s classic vineyard Domaine du Banneret, which produces only 10,000 bottles a year using old world production (blending grapes and stems) and labels every bottle by hand with glue and a brush. Our last and favorite stop was Jean Marc’s beautiful home and vineyard Rouge-Blue, where we sat in his backyard tasting amazing reds and roses with a gorgeous view. Jean Marc’s wife, Kristin, joined us and shared her fabulous life story of a girl from Arizona transported to Provence after falling for Jean Marc in a local hangout (Mistral – one of the name’s of his wine). Her blog was one of the first ever in the region and offers a glimpse at local life through a transported lens from home including a French Word of the Day.
On the way home we paused for a moment about stopping for dinner but not to worry, we had the house chefs working away on a fabulous meal upon our return. Starting with a classic Pimms and cheese plate – (thank you Andrew and Meghan), we nibbled until it was time to get ready for dinner. Yes, we ate until we were ready to have dinner. Sitting down at the outdoor table, surrounded by family, we stopped and could not help but realize what a special moment we had that day. A fabulous meal of fresh asparagus, local lamb and a very American brownie dessert filled our stomachs until we could not stay awake. Saying good night and goodbye to Meghan and Andrew, we hated for the weekend to end.
I promise we planned in advance for the Aix en Provence market. Planned to get up early, planned the drive and even planned the parking. Only thing….we did not plan enough time. Such is life with a car in France. An hour and a half later, we arrived to the central market square with a little shame and a lot of hope that our guide would still want to tour the market and allow us to enjoy the cooking class we had booked months in advance. Whew, our very sweet American tour guide with Wine in Provence was not only still meeting us but so happy that we made the tour!! Buying local produce in the Aix market will spoil you and your taste buds. From the best fruits and lettuce, to the most fresh garlic and shallots, next pop over to the “Fromagerie” for the most amazing selection of cheeses you have ever seen…we could not mess this meal up if we tried. After walking the market and stocking up on everything needed on our list we headed to the apartment to prepare dinner. Learning to properly chop, beautifully arrange, scoop our goat cheese and fold our phyllo pastery…we sat down to enjoy the fruits of our labor and a bit of a wine class as well. Delicious day – below is what we prepared.
- Fresh salad with goat cheese, shallots, tomatoes and olive oil mixed with Herbs de Provence
- Cavillion melons wrapped in prosciutto, with mint topped in balsamic reduction
- Phyllo wrapped asparagus with creme and butter / hazelnut spread
- Desserts were purchased from an award-winning pastry chef in town
Driving into Monaco you can almost hear that song…you know….”da da…na-na….da da….na-na.” You can also hear the sound of money leaving your pocket. Four tolls and $60 (per car) later, we get the picture that you have to pay to play here. Our introduction to the city was our hike up the hill to the famous changing of the guard. Next we made our way along the water, past the yachts (and mega yachts), to the Casino de Monte-Carlo. Streets lined with Bently’s and Ferrari’s, you cannot deny that this feels more like a movie set then real life. We briefly walked into the stunning lobby of the Hotel de Paris and imagined what the baked potato soup must taste like at $80 a bowl!! Goodbye Monaco and hello Eze. Truth be told, this magical city is similar to Les Baux but the real deal. Old cobblestone streets and shops make this quaint village on the cliff worth the walk. Our last night with the family was in Nice, very nice. And we could have spent so many more!!
TAKEAWAYS
His
It was great passing time with the family in an unfamiliar setting while enjoying familiar things. I grew up playing Bocce ball on the beaches of Sullivan’s Island. We flew across the Atlantic, arrived at the house, and low and behold there sits a court devoted to “Petanque“, a French version of the same game. When Andrew arrived from London, he told me they had the same game but called it “bowls”. Whatever you want to call it, it’s a great game, and spending time on the court, by the pool, or at the dinner table was some of the best time spent on the whole trip.
Hers
France has-it-all. Driving from the canals of Annecy, taking in the quaint markets and lavendar fields of Provence and ending with the exotic French Riveira in Monaco and Nice, you can’t help but plan your next trip here on the very first day. We dreamed of two years in Provence and already window shopped for enough furniture for two houses. I loved every second.
Theirs
Wrapping up these fabulous two weeks with family we knew this was a once in a lifetime trip. Not sure when you can celebrate three 30th’s and one 65th birthday, two anniversary’s (3 years and 40 years), a graduation from business school and an engagement all in one trip. Thank you to Lloyd and Margaret Ann for the memories of our lifetime!!!
SEE AND BE SEEN
- Provence*
- Maussane les Alpilles
- St. Remy*
- Mouries
- L’Isle sur la Sourge *
- Chateauneuf-du-Pape *
- French Word a Day
- Aix-en-Provence*
- Wine in Provence (Cooking Class – Tour of Aix)*
- Eze
- Monaco
- Nice*
- Family Vacations*
*must do’s
passportpearson 