OUR FORAY INTO PROVENCE REAL ESTATE CONTINUES WITH A SHEEPFOLD, A PARKING SPACE, A COURTYARD, AND A CAVE

Posted on May 18, 2014December 30, 2015 by Susan Manfull

This is the second in a series of posts about buying, renting, and selling our property in Provence. Please note that, our homes, christened La Bonbonnière and L’Oustaloun, were purchased by a lovely family who continues to rent them both—for more information about these vacation homes as well as others, visit www.RentOurHomeInProvence.com It was beginning to feel like Monopoly—do we buy Park Place so we can build on Boardwalk? I hoped one of us had a “GET OUT OF JAIL FREE CARD” card. ...

FALLING IN LOVE WITH A VILLAGE IN PROVENCE AND TAKING THE LEAP TO BUY A HOME

Posted on May 4, 2014November 27, 2015 by Susan Manfull

This is the first in a series of posts about buying, renting, and selling our property in Provence. It is an abbreviated version—really, Mom, it is—and a few of the names were changed. (If you want to hear the long version, you’ll have to invest in a gastronomic dinner and some very nice wine.) Please note that, our homes, christened La Bonbonnière and L’Oustaloun, were purchased by a lovely family who continues to rent them both—for more information about these vacation homes as well as ot...

10 MARKETS IN PROVENCE: #1 IS LOURMARIN (OKAY, WE’RE BIASED!)

Posted on April 18, 2011January 23, 2016 by Susan Manfull

This post will be the first in a series that will feature each of the ten markets that The Modern Trobadors always visit when in Provence. (If you'd like to guess the other nine markets, you may win a cool Absinthe tote bag and a booklet on wine tasting. See end of article for details.) The markets were selected primarily on the basis of the quality of the offerings of the vendors and the ambiance of the venue although practicality was also considered to some extent (e.g., distance from our hom...

DON’T FORGET PROVENCE IN THE WINTER

Posted on November 8, 2010December 23, 2015 by Susan Manfull

Chapelle St-Sixte As one drives toward Les Alpilles, along the D24 between the tiny villages of Orgon and Eygalières, about 30 minutes from Lourmarin, there’s a very tiny chapel. Framed by lovely cypress trees van Gogh surely would have painted had he ventured a little further from the hospital in St Remy, the 12th century chapel stands atop a stony knoll now dotted with olive and almond trees and an occasional patch of grass. Chapelle St-Sixte was erected on the s...

ALBERT CAMUS– A LOURMARIN ICON OF STILL-EMERGING IDENTITIES

Posted on October 24, 2010December 28, 2015 by Susan Manfull

One of Lourmarin's most celebrated residents was French writer-philosopher Albert Camus. But 50 years after his tragic death in a car crash at only 46, questions linger about his still-emerging multiple identities as doomed Resistance hero, compulsive womanizer and consumptive Algiers slum boy turned advocate for the underdog. Born in French Algeria in 1913, Camus first came to Lourmarin in the wake of his philosophy mentor Jean Grenier, a writer who had taught Camus in Algeria and whose ties...

THE ART OF MAKING ICE CREAM IS ALIVE AND EXCEEDINGLY WELL (DONE) IN ANSOUIS

Posted on September 13, 2010December 28, 2015 by Susan Manfull

Over the hill, past the Château d’Ansouis, and through the vineyards and sunflower fields, you will find not the house of Little Red Riding Hood’s grandmother, but the home of La Famille Perrière, where over sixty flavors of ice cream and sorbet are regularly offered to their very happy patrons. Nestled into the Luberon hillside, about 5 km past Ansouis (and about 20 minutes from La Bonbonnière in Lourmarin), is L’Art Glacier. Customers who make the trek to this most unlikely location for an ...

JE SUIS DANS LE PASTIS!

Posted on August 23, 2010March 4, 2016 by Susan Manfull

Ahhhh, Pastis….The sweet scent of anise wafts from the tall heavy-bottomed glasses on our tiny table in Café Gaby. Memories of a subtle licorice flavor laced with fragrant herbs are called forth. Our thirsts on this very warm late August day will soon be quenched. We arrived in Lourmarin yesterday afternoon and are now sitting in our favorite café, in the heart of this Luberon village, where we will mark the start of our vacation with—what else? —a little pastis. We sit, nestled among loca...

ESCAPE PARIS TO PROVENCE ON THE TGV

Posted on August 8, 2010April 22, 2017 by Susan Manfull

Perhaps you’d like to escape the sticky heat of Paris this August by traveling to Provence. You can do so in just a little over three hours in the quiet comfort aboard the high-speed train-- le Train a Grande Vitesse, or TGV, as the French call it. (Conversely, you can add a quick Paris TGV trip to your Provence agenda….although we don’t recommend doing so in August!) Powered by electric motors, the French TGV was originally conceived in the 1960s right after Japan launched its foray into hig...

LAVENDER– A FLOWER ROOTED IN SUN-DRENCHED PROVENCE

Posted on August 3, 2010January 7, 2016 by Susan Manfull

Lavender is entwined with the very soul of Provence. In the summer, when the lavender fields bloom, a vibrant purple sea envelops the region's medieval monasteries, lapping at ancient hilltop towns and traditional working farms. In July, lavender is everywhere – snaking up hillsides in parallel purple rows, splashing field after field with a touch of day-glo purple. In August, it’s harvest time -- the rows still stand but their purple hues are more subdued after tractors pass through and collect...