Village of Fontaine de Vaucluse - AMAZING

Monday 11 April –

I arrive in Avignon (from Paris) about 2:15p with my dear friend Jonathan (JT for short) waiting to pick me up. Love this guy. He has been a friend since the late 80’s, we have seen each other throughout the years so it’s always so great to see him in person when I can. Last time I saw him and his family was in Dublin in the Fall of 2015. Now they live in Madrid but were on holiday in the South of France so, if you know me, I invited myself to the village where they were on holiday in hopes of spending some time with them all. Well lucky me, they accepted my invite, even picked me up (and dropped me back to the train station) AND spent time with me. How lucky for me. AND I got to spend time in this quaint village in the South of France. How much better could it get? Not much.

Hanging with JT

JT dropped me in the village square where I connected with the Airbnb owner for my key (that was a bit tricky just finding the owner, especially when she gives you a phone number to contact and then it doesn't work!). It was perfect. A studio, over a restaurant in the village center with the view of village and the old castle remains. And the river, wow…the clearest water ever!

view from my airbnb

the river - so clear you can see the green at the bottom

river

the village

JT and his wife Anne, invited me to dinner at the house they were renting up the road from the village. They picked me up at 5:30p and drove the mere 2 minutes up the road to this amazing old French house that sat nestled up to the mountain with an olive tree grove in the back yard. WOW! Beautiful weather for a drink out on the patio, playing with the kids (they have three amazing children) and then a wonderful dinner cooked by JT himself. My heart, and tummy, was full. I walked the “long” road home to my little slice of heaven.

mountain side walking along the river

Tuesday 12 April –

Up to the start of a lovely day. Strolled the village looking for perfect place for coffee. Stopping first at the tourism bureau for a map. Ran into JT and the family, also strolling the village for perfect coffee spot. We all ended up with coffee and crepes sitting by the river.

I walked to the “source” of the river (this is the what the village is famous for: https://www.provenceweb.fr/f/vaucluse/fontaine/fontaine.htm?r=1&Largeur=1378&Hauteur=900) , then the other side of the village where I found a large, walled off cemetery (didn’t have access since the gates where locked), then climbed up to the castle remains (what a challenging hike, not a path the US would have for the public), then that night up the hill to the Taylors (JT) for another hike up the mountain behind their house before another wonderful dinner in the old French house. Had a lovely moonlit walk back to my little piece of heaven. Couldn’t have asked for a better day.

the castle remains

view of the village from the castle remains

from the castle

top of the castle

beauty

view from the hike with JT and family

JT and family

Wednesday 13 April –

I can honestly say I was a bit tired from Tuesday and decided I really didn’t need (or want) to do much. Stayed in bed till a little after 10a just enjoying the view. Then headed out to find coffee. Back to my little slice of heaven until mid day when I ventured out again for some lunch. Decided to eat along the river, toward the "Source". Had your typical French sandwich, with olive oil, cheese, jamon and tomatoes and a glass of wine. Wandered a bit, then back to my place to enjoy lounging, reading and playing puzzles on my Ipad. Dinner was a pizza from the pizza truck parked in the village square. Perfect relaxing day.

,my lunch place. The green is the clear river!

Thursday 14 April –

The Airbnb owner picked me up at 8:45a to take me to L'Isle sur la Sorgue, (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%27Isle-sur-la-Sorgue) a larger village (about 10 min away) to rent a bike. I rented an e-bike for the day since I knew I would be gone most of the day and that the countryside would probably get a bit hilly. First time with an e-bike and LOVED it. Asked for a map of a particular route so I could bike the countryside. I love maps and figured I would have a bit of a challenge and some fun following the one the provided. Before I headed out, I walked a portion of the village. Vendors were setting up tents for the weekend antique market. I found out it was the largest antique market in the area, and was set up twice a year. Quite a market and LOTS of interesting stuff.

Took off on the bike about 10:30a, map in hand and ready for the day. Well, let's just say I got a bit "sidetracked" and ended up off the route but in the lovely village of Lagnes (https://www.provenceweb.fr/e/vaucluse/lagnes/lagnes.htm?r=1&Largeur=1298&Hauteur=900) Had an amazing lunch in a picturesque setting. With a quick visit of the village, headed out to reconnect with the map route ending up in the village of Saumane de Vaucluse (https://www.provenceweb.fr/e/vaucluse/saumane/saumane.htm?r=1&Largeur=1298&Hauteur=900) What a cute village up in the hills (can I say thank you to the e-bike) with quite the view. Biked around the whole village, taking in all the views then back to L'Isle sur la Sorgue returning the bike at 3p. Let's just say it was a full day of biking through the lovely countryside. Now time for a beer!

Walked to the center of town to find a cute, busy bar / café in a square right in front of one of the churches. Enjoyed a couple beers taking in the feel of this great town. It definitely is the biggest village in the area and had tons of charm. Had the opportunity to meet up with JT and family for an hour visit in town (yay!), then my "landlord" picked me up at 7p to take me back to Fontaine de Vaucluse. Another great day in the South of France.