For most Americans the 4th of July is a day for red, white and blue – but this year it was lavender day for us!
The main purpose of the car we rented yesterday was to explore Provence. After our French morning routine of stopping by a local bakery for coffee/tea/hot chocolate and pastries, we set off to see lavender and a couple of small provincial towns.
Our first stop was the Abbey of Senanque. This beautiful old abbey was stunning – a white stone building set in the middle of lush greenery and fields of lavender. There were lots of tourists, many with interesting driving and parking skills. Unfortunately, we could not tour the abbey since our arrival coincided with their two hour lunch break. Even without seeing the inside of the Abbey we thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful scenery and our first glimpse of lavender fields.
We then drove about 15 minutes to the little village of Gordes. This is a beautiful little town on a hill that obviously knows its value to tourists. We enjoyed strolling around, looking in various shops, and having lunch at an Italian restaurant (we noticed Italian food being more prevalent in southern France)
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Back in the car on the way to our next stop we drove past a gorgeous lavender field. We quickly pulled over and parked on a side dirt road. We captured the moment for a family photo shoot with no one around besides the passing traffic. It was exactly what we were looking for. Unbelievable!
Our last stop on our road trip was the little village of Roussillon. This town is known for the ochre-colored cliffs it sits on. The cliffs are beautiful and remind me of red rock found in the western U.S.
We then headed back to Avignon. We thoroughly enjoyed our day exploring Provence. It was amazing to see so much within an hour drive of our home base of Avignon.
Due to our unexpected trip to retrieve our travel documents yesterday, Lindsey and I had not yet visited the old walled city of Avignon. After our lavender road trip we went into town to experience the frenzy of the arts festival and see the old medieval city. Karen and Kelsey showed us around and guided us from their exploring the previous day.
Kelsey wanted to see one more site in Avignon, the Pont Saint Benezet. She and I went to see the historic remains of this 12th century bridge that now only goes over a portion of the Rhone river. We squeezed in an audio tour before it closed while Karen and Lindsey enjoyed wine at a cafe while people watching.
Before heading back to the apartment after dinner we stopped to see a street magician. Lucky me, he included me into his act. It was a fun and pleasant way to end a wonderful day in Provence.
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