Contrary to popular saying, there isn’t really an official
place named Provence, it refers to an area in the south of France and corresponds
with the modern administrative region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, and
includes the departments of Var, Bouches-du-Rhône, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence and
parts of Alpes-Maritimes and Vaucluse.
There are plentiful beautiful scenic villages in Provence. We based ourselves in Graveson the next 4 days and explored the surrounding towns in the Bouches-du-Rhône department. A lot of credit also goes to our hosts at Le Cadran Solaire (see where to stay) for all the good advice.
There are plentiful beautiful scenic villages in Provence. We based ourselves in Graveson the next 4 days and explored the surrounding towns in the Bouches-du-Rhône department. A lot of credit also goes to our hosts at Le Cadran Solaire (see where to stay) for all the good advice.
Starting from Marseille, it is a short drive to the
university town of Aix-en-Provence.
Once the seat of the parliament of Provence, it is now a quaint college town and you can find many references to the painter Paul Cezanne who once lived here. This historic old town can be covered in an hour on foot, and the tourist information centre offers a great walking map to follow.
Once the seat of the parliament of Provence, it is now a quaint college town and you can find many references to the painter Paul Cezanne who once lived here. This historic old town can be covered in an hour on foot, and the tourist information centre offers a great walking map to follow.
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| The Cours Mirabeau is the wide main street, bordered by fine houses and decorated by fountains |
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| The classical style Hôtel de Ville, or city hall, with its clock tower adjoined |
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| Clock tower of city hall |
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| Chapel in Aix |
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| A happy political science major |
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| Shops selling lavender products are common in Provence |
Leaving Aix, along the way you will drive through the wine
regions of Eygalieres, Mouries etc. It is convenient (and strongly recommended)
to stop by a few houses and stock up a few bottles.
We stopped by Mas de Gourgonnier for a quick wine tasting session and couldn’t resist walking away with 2 bottles of their reds. It is a family-run organic vineyard that produce their own wine. Despite arriving without prior notice they were very nice to accommodate our wine tasting request and gave an English introduction of the house. It was tempting to get a few crates to ship back to Singapore.
We stopped by Mas de Gourgonnier for a quick wine tasting session and couldn’t resist walking away with 2 bottles of their reds. It is a family-run organic vineyard that produce their own wine. Despite arriving without prior notice they were very nice to accommodate our wine tasting request and gave an English introduction of the house. It was tempting to get a few crates to ship back to Singapore.
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| Mas de Gourgonnier |
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| their vineyards |
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| the collection available for tasting |
Where to stay: **STRONGLY RECOMMENDED**
On some websites le Cadran Solaire is listed as a hotel but it is more of a grand B&B run by extremely friendly Jean Claude and his wife Elisa.
The B&B house was left behind by Jean Claude’s grandmother and till date the 2nd floor still showcase a wooden chest used by his granny.
We stayed 3 nights there and received much advice and help from both the hosts. Jean Claude is very familiar with the region and gave great recommendations for restaurants and activities.
We were also pleasantly surprise to find a small gift with personalized note in our room on the first day as I’ve indicated on our booking we are on our honeymoon.
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| 2nd floor |
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| the first floor common area |
Where to eat:
As it is a very small town, restaurant options within graveson is very limited. Jean Claude often recommends driving out a little but as the husband wanted to catch the world cup match, we decided to dine at a sports bar in graveson which I unfortunately forgot its name.
As it is a very small town, restaurant options within graveson is very limited. Jean Claude often recommends driving out a little but as the husband wanted to catch the world cup match, we decided to dine at a sports bar in graveson which I unfortunately forgot its name.
Drive map of the day:
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