That being said, enjoy the rest of the journey in France:
I am quite glad that we did have a car, and so we went in all directions and experienced the beauty and varied charms of Provence.
Now, there is one thing I won't miss, rather my stomach won't miss about the South of France, and that's the windy roads. It makes for beautiful driving but if you have the slightest tendency towards car sickness... ugh!
GOING EAST:
One day we began traveling east and went through the town of Grasse. Wandering aimlessly for a bit, we looked at the map and realized we were quite close to Cannes, so we headed for the coast. The mountains and the coast have such very different characteristics and it doesn't take long to go from one to the other.
We had been in gray Poland and gray London, and Denmark, and when that Southern light hit me and the palm trees of Cannes waved their happy little fronds, I was in heaven.
Even with cookie cutter hotels along the beach, the place was lovely. Reminded me a bit of Santa Monica, California actually.
There is definitely something to the idea that the climate creates the culture. It is interesting to notice the very stark cultural differences between northern and southern European countries. In Denmark for instance, people shake hands. In southern France people say bonjour and smile. If you go a little further south to Spain, people you have just met kiss your cheeks. So we soaked up the relaxed vibe of Southern France.
Picnic on the beach.
Making acquaintance with the water.
GOING SOUTH:
On another day we headed straight South to Sainte Maxime. We collected tiny little stones and shells. You can see Saint Tropez across the inlet.
Rock climbing with Ataata.
On the peninsula close to Saint Tropez.
This area was so beautiful, with numerous vineyards all turned yellow and glowing in the sunlight.
GOING NORTH:
The town of Bargemon is situated at about 1200 feet altitude. One rare gray day we went north which took us further up the mountains, through some low clouds and onto a plateau where we met some meandering locals.
A large part of this plateau is Camp Canjeur, the largest military camp in Europe. Most of the land was empty with no sign of military presence.
(we did eventually drive past a area with an extraordinary number of tanks--definitely the least attractive thing we saw in all of France)
We came upon this abandoned town. Was it abandoned before or after the military moved in?
We had emerged from the military land and encountered many tiny villages. There were a surprising number of ruins all along this drive.
We were looking for a nice spot to have a picnic (in the car as it was drizzly), ended up going down some dirt roads and ending up here. There I am, surreptitiously sipping wine in the wilds.
View from our picnic location. Now THAT'S a spot!! (if you can't see the house, click on the picture to get a better view)
Near our picnic. The tiny village of Le Plan d'Anelle.
An inhabited village with ruins and abandoned buildings.
GOING WEST:
Near the end of our two weeks, we had yet to stop at a winery for a little wine tasting. I searched online for organic wine and read about a little town called Correns about 60 km west of Bargemon. The unique thing about this town is that everything grown by the farmers is organic. It is the first village of its kind in France.
We found out too that Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt (oh boy oh boy!) have an estate just outside of town, and one of the organic wineries is on their land. Ahh, who can blame them? I'd buy an estate there too if I had a few million extra dollars busting the seams of my pockets.
We arrived there during the afternoon hours when everything is closed. Somewhere between 12 and 4 pm almost everything closes down in all the villages. I guess it's part of that quality of life thing, and what lends to the relaxed atmosphere. So we wandered about town.
a persimmon tree in Correns.
Django contemplating a flower that a little 2 1/2 year old boy gave him at a playground. This little boy went out of his way to bring Django two flowers before he and his mom left the park. It was very sweet. Django held on to them preciously until we walked to the river that ran through town and he tossed them in. I love the easy tendency toward non-attachment!
Django and Simon discussing life at the river edge.
Mama and Django posing by a cool old wall.
Finally we found a little winery that was open just outside the village where they sold organic wine. It was quite good and we brought a couple bottles home to help us through our last 3 nights in France ;-)
Here we are, home again at last! We're enjoying seeing family and friends in Port Townsend, then off to LA next week. Not sure when I'll write again, but I'll keep you posted about our continuing journeys.
peace and love,
Janna
