Day 8: A Sea of Lavender

We left our beautiful B&B in Aix and headed 300 km southwest to the tiny village of St. Surnin-les-Apt in Provence. The drive took an additional 90 minutes due to the normal weekend traffic around Grenoble that was magnified by the fact that it's also Bastille Day, and the French, just like the Americans, like to head either to the country, mountains, or beach on their holiday weekends. We didn't mind the bumper to bumper crawl...it gave us more opportunity to enjoy the scenery.

We had lunch again in Sisteron; we went to a cafe that features lamb, so we both had different lamb dishes that were delicious. I had a cheese plate for dessert; my first in France.

From Sisterson we headed to the hilltop village of Simione la Rotonde. You could tell you were in Provence at this point as you started to see fields of sunflowers and lavender in every direction. We couldn't resist taking a few pix eventhough they probably look like the ones we've taken on previous trips.

Simione is a beautiful and tiny village filled with narrow, windy, streets, and alleys. It's very quiet and not in any of the guide books. We have been buying pottery in this village during our previous trips, so we purchased a view items to replace what we've broken and then added a set of cups and saucers to our collection. Throw in a few gifts and we quickly ran up a 100 euro bill. Then we realized we have to carry this back home...no way it would survive in our luggage on the plane!

From Simione we had a short drive to the B&B, Le Mas Perreal, in St. Saturnin-les-Apt, where we are staying for the next three nights. This place is gorgeous, right out of International House Hunters! It's an old farmhouse that has been converted into a B&B by an American, Kevin, who married a French woman, Elisabeth. If you ever saw the movie The Swimming Pool, you would be know exactly what this spot is like. The house is surrounded by vineyards, and lavender fields...you can't be find a more Provencal locale.

I've already had a swim and I'm sitting on the terrace outside our room, as I write today's blog. Wow!

For dinner we're going to a small local restaurant that Kevin & Elizabeth have recommended; they even called and made a reservation for us.