Back to Paris

Thursday, 2 October - Saturday 4 October

After a few days of somewhat unsettled weather, we set out on our final road trip on a sunny morning - well that is after the early mist cleared.  The feeling of autumn is definitely in the air in the middle of France now. Our route took us on the A75 past Clermont- Ferrand (very slow progress and traffic jams as we circled this city) turning off near Gannat in a north easterly direction towards Moulins, Nevers and the A77, and eventually the A6 up to Paris.  We made our first stop in the rather attractive village of Charroux where the church bell tower has a very odd look and where there are old bicycles with baskets full of flowers and vegetables strategically placed around the place.

Where has the rest of the belfry gone?  Charroux church

  By contrast with the old stone houses we had coffee in a very modern establishment that was all big glass windows and a minimalist style garden.  After this short stop it was rather a long and somewhat slow trip north beside the Loire River - lots of traffic and often only a two lane road.  Eventually we hooked back on to an autoroute and picked up the pace as we headed north.
Our only other stop was at Charite-sur-Loire for lunch and we were lucky to find a restaurant where the kitchen was still open.  It was in a cave like building next to the magnificent (but closed) church and after a bit of a long wait we enjoyed a really delicious meal.

Part of the beautiful church, Charite-sur-Loire

  The restaurant was full, even at almost 2 pm - obviously it has a good reputation!  Charite-sur-Loire is of course a riverside town, and here the Loire is very wide although the main streets of the town wind up the hill away from the river - maybe it floods at times.  We didn't linger after lunch as we were keen to reach Orly Airport, drop off our car and make our way into Paris and our substitute apartment.

Charite-sur-Loire

Although the autoroute was not too busy, our GPS decided to exit us towards Orly rather sooner than I had anticipated, resulting in a long and somewhat hair-raising drive through the outer suburbs at peak hour - certainly not the best way to approach our destination.  Despite misgivings we decided to follow the GPS and finally found our way to the depot.  After a quick check-in the Peugeot shuttle service took us to the terminal where we were soon in a cab and speeding our way into the city - fortunately at this time of day most of the traffic was leaving central Paris.  We arrived at our apartment building on time but ended up waiting for ages for the owner, Patrick, to arrive.  We had been moved from our original booking in a much better location because of a plumbing issue in the original apartment.  As we only found out about this a few days earlier there was nothing much to be done.  Technically we were still in the Marais, but really on the very edge and the area beyond was a bit seedy.  Fortunately it was not far to walk to St Paul for a good Metro connection and the Place des Voges where we had a really great meal in a restaurant called Le Petit Marche (recommended by some people who worked in an office next door to our apartment).
Gerri was thrilled to be meeting some friends from London who had decided to visit  her in Paris and I was happy to spend a couple of days shopping, strolling and enjoying a final couple of sunshiny days in France.before flying across the Channel to see Jessica. On Friday I revisited familiar places on the Right Bank and enjoyed a little retail therapy as well as a return to my delicious macaroni restaurant in Rue Montorgueil - yummy!

Beautiful autumn days in Paris

  My final day in Paris was a lovely warm sunny Saturday so I ventured further, walking to the Left Bank and through the busy streets (especially the market street, Rue du Buci which was teaming with people) of St Germain-des-Pres to the Luxembourg Gardens.  I was delighted to find an Angelina's tearoom cafe beside the Luxembourg Museum at the entrance to the park and was seated on the lovely outdoor terrace for my lunch.

Floral splendour, Luxembourg Palace

  Everything about this place is exquisite and delicious and there was a continuous lineup at the ice cream cart.  After lunch I strolled through the gardens - a very popular place on a Saturday afternoon.The flower displays are stunning and despite the crowds it is a lovely refuge from the busy streets of Paris.

Luxembourg Gardens

I decided to check out the famous Rue Mouffetard which is in the Latin Quarter and took the Metro.

Saturday afternoon, rue Mouffetard

  It is a long pedestrian street with many artisan style food stores and innumerable cafes - and obviously very popular.  It was interesting to wander and look but to my mind Rue Mouffetard does not have the atmosphere of Rue Montorgueil.

Rue Mouffetard

  I didn't linger and soon caught the Metro back to Bastille and spent some time exploring the area - again crowded with shoppers enjoying this lovely Saturday afternoon.  All too soon it was time to take the Metro back to Saint Paul and our apartment to meet my taxi ride to Charles de Gaulle Airport where I stayed the night at the very convenient Novatel Hotel - best for early morning flights and my London flight was definitely that.  So, the end of another wonderful sojourn in France - can't wait to be back before too long!

Volcano Land

Monday September 29 to Wednesday October 1 

The Puy-de-Dome department is right in the middle of France and named for the highest peak in the area which at 123 metres towers above the city of  Clermont-Ferrand, just twenty minutes north of our village, Saint Vicente. There are a large number of extinct volcanic peaks which pop up above the rolling hills and many of them are topped with ancient villages with remains of watch towers and crumbling chateaux.

View from our kitchen window in Saint Vincent

After a month of lovely weather we woke on Monday morning to steady rain and grey skies.  Our hosts, Helen and John Clark, English expats, had suggested the market at Besse further up the valley and close to the skiing areas so we set off with clouds hanging over the hills and everything looking very damp.  Besse was only 20 minutes away and by the time we had parked the car the rain had stopped and there were some rays of sun peaking through showing off the distinctly alpine architecture of the town.

Besse

  The market was not large, but there was plenty of local produce on offer - fruit, vegetables, meat and of course plenty of cheese.  The town also has quite a few shops selling very cosy looking knitted clothing and sporting paraphernalia.  Besse is a really charming old town and on the slopes surrounding the commercial centre are a large number of new houses, many looking like ski holiday homes.

Modern houses above Besse - ready for the ski season

  There are a number of restaurants in Besse but none appealed -however the town boulangeries had lots of yummy looking tarts and quiches just begging to be taken home for lunch.  Before returning to Saint Vincent we followed the road higher up the mountainside to see the crater lake, Lac Pavin, apparently the youngest such geological feature in Europe.  The lake is a pretty intense blue, almost circular and mostly edged by forest.  From our vantage point we looked across the lake to the high peaks beyond - grass covered at this time of year but I imagine that the snow will not be far away.

Lac Pavin

The road carried on through the lush pastures where herds of happy cows were munching away - their one mission, creamy, tangy Saint Nectaire cheese!  Along the way there were fields where crops had recently been harvested and we were thrilled to see a number of beautiful birds of prey hovering and then swooping low in search of food - they are so graceful and majestic. The views across the hills and valleys was quite stunning as we made a loop back to Besse, stopping for a quick chat with a couple of pretty grey donkeys in a field - they were happy with Gerri's offering of a carrot that she had bought at the market.

Donkeys in the countryside near Besse

On the way back to St Vincent we stopped briefly to admire the higgle-di-piggle-di stone bridge in the village of Saurier - very quaint!

The bridge at Saurier

By the time we arrived home the day had improved heaps and while Gerri opted for a restful afternoon I took myself off to a couple of neighbouring villages and a bit of walking.  After shopping for a few supplies in Issoire, I drove a short distance north to Montpeyroux, a village that tops one of the  Mt Fuji-like volcanic peaks.

Montpeyroux

 The car park was of course at the bottom of the hill, but I enjoyed the walk up through the woods with tantalising glimpses of the countryside and the many other pointy hills in the area.  Once into the village I discovered a spiral road lined with immaculate stone houses winding its way to the summit where there is a tall donjon (keep) - obviously providing a great view of approaching danger in times gone by.

Winding path to Montpeyroux

 The village was very quiet, just the occasional dog barking at me through the beautiful wrought iron gates of some of the houses - I must confess to peaking in to see the gorgeous gardens -usually terraces with fantastic views!

Garden with a view (and a barking dog!) - Montpeyroux

Although it was late in the afternoon, the clouds were breaking up allowing the sun to shine intermittently and there was not a breathe of wind to be felt.  I drove a little further on to another hillside village, St. Saturnin, where there is an imposing church dating from the 12th Century  and a partly ruined small chapel, circa 1060!

Ste Madeleine Chapel, St Saturnin

 I took the lovely walking trail which skirts the village, running alongside some pretty woods, with the sound of a rushing river below.  The first signs of autumn are beginning to appear with some foliage taking on golden and russet hues.  The trail led me up past the church and the through the outskirts of the village, along a road (Grand Noble -unsurprising!) where the houses  are indeed grand.  It was a little odd to see such magnificent houses in such a small place, especially when I discovered that the architecture on the opposite side of St Saturnin was definitely more of the peasant dwelling variety.

Magnificent tree blooming in St Saturnin

Anyway, a lovely walk and an equally lovely drive back over the rolling hills to Saint Vincent.
On Tuesday morning the skies were clearer so we packed a picnic and drove about 20 kilometers to to the east and the hilltop village of Usson which was the home of Queen Marguerite, wife of Henri lV, when she was exiled for her religious beliefs.

Lovely old stone buildings in Usson

 It is a typical medieval little town with a great view far over the surrounding lands.

Looking over the lovely countryside from Usson

  The most interesting part however are the ruins, just some rock walls now, with grass between, and part of the local park and playground.  We stopped to watch a tiny red squirrel gather some pines nuts in its cheeks and then scamper away - no doubt stocking up for winter.  The ruins area is lovely, very peaceful with picnic tables - just the spot for lunch.

Picnic spot in the ruins of the castle at Usson

We drove back via the supermarket, and headed to Saint Nectaire, a spa town in the mountains which has given its name to the famous cheese.  We thought the town looked quite shabby - some old decaying hotels gave a hint of the grand spa days when people flocked to the town for the rejuvenating properties of the spas. This activity was once sponsored by the government but lack of funds have now reduced the popularity of such holidays.  Our destination was not a spa but the Bellonte Farm which has been operated by the same family since 1663 where we saw a large herd of cows being milked and the round cheeses being made in the adjoining dairy.  There were quite a number of visitors wandering about but the cows seemed unperturbed and stood patiently waiting for the milking machines to be attached.  The all have names and look very large and very healthy.

Milking time - Bellonte Farm, St Nectaire (cheese on the way!)

We were able to watch a video about the history of the farm and the cheese making process and then peeked through the glass partitions to see the real thing.  We didn't need any of the cheese that was for sale in the small shop so took the narrow winding road back to St Nectaire-le-Haut, stopping to view the huge 12th century church, which is an excellent example of the Romanesque architecture which is well represented in the area.

St Nectaire and its famous Romanesque church

  Further down the hill in St Nectaire-le-Bas the old hotels sit alongside the main road and the river but it was not a village that had very much appeal on this rather grey afternoon.  However it was worth a visit to see the old farm.  The route home took us through rolling green hills and forests - we had a feast on some roadside blackberries (hope they hadn'tbeen sprayed).

Juicy blackberries - yum!

Wednesday, our final day in Saint Vincent was sunnier and having read about an old monastery, one of the so called "daughters of Cluny", in a village only about 20 km away we decided to visit, although a detour was necessary owing to road works on the most direct route.  We drove east past Issoire to Sauxillanges and there discovered that the part of the monastery accessible to the public is a museum which was unfortunately closed.  We strolled through the medieval streets for a while and then peaked over a gate to view what seemed to be the cloisters.  To our surprise a very chatty lady emerged and invited us into the forecourt of the buildings - apparently her mother lives in a section of this ancient building.  In fact most of the monastery is now privately owned and seems to have been converted into apartments.

Privately owned monastery, Sauxillanges

  We had a delightful conversation and took some photos before madame had to hurry away for an appointment.  There didn't seem to be much else to see or do in Sauxillanges and no restaurants that appealed for lunch so we drove back through the lovely rolling hills to Issoire and the large shopping centre on the edge of town. We though the spacious, modern cafeteria style restaurant there might be good but as it turned out it was quite expensive and the food was not great.  Shame. Heading back towards St Vincent we made one last stop at the Plus Beaux village of St Floret, a riverside community which is in rather a crumbling state of repair - very ancient houses, a castle ruin on the hilltop and a pretty stone bridge.

River at St Floret

 Definitely not No 1 on the Plus Beaux list.

St Floret

  So it was back to our house to rest and pack - off to Paris in the morning.  The evening was quite nice and sunny so I strolled through the village of Saint Vincent.

Lovely house and garden, Saint Vincent

  Not a lot going on here - just a number of very old houses, a school and a church - no shops or amenities, but it is only a few minutes to the next village for supplies.

Charming lane in Saint Vincent

  A peaceful, rural community that shows no signs of joining the 21st century any time soon!

The Old Hayloft - our apartment in La Maison Bourgeoise

Journey to the middle of France

Saturday 27 And Sunday 28 September

The weather is continuing to be amazing and we left Sablet this morning with blue sky, sunshine and the promise of two warm days for our drive into the middle of France. We followed the main road through to Aubenas -which lies in the rugged hills of the Ardeche department, stopping to admire the views as we crossed the first range just west of the Rhone River.

Viewing point on the road to Aubenas - heading for the Massif Central

 Heading further west we followed the Ardeche River, climbing all the time towards the Massif Central. Today we had a picnic lunch and found a remote little spot, obviously frequented by fishermen, right beside the river.

Typical tree lined road through the Ardeche

 By now we were in the heavily forested hills and signs of civilisation were few and far between.
Although it is a long haul up into the mountains, the road is wide and beautifully surfaced making the drive quite straight forward. Being Saturday there were virtually no trucks on the road in fact very light traffic all the way.

Into the mountains - a beautiful drive

We eventually reached what appeared to be some kind of summit and pulled over for a view into the valleys and to check out the sign that announced the separation of the watershed in France - eastwards to the Mediterranean and west to the Atlantic.

Parting of the waters - the central divide

There were a lot more ups and downs on the journey but we were now in the region of Auvergne and the department of Haut-Loire - source of the river which is famed for chateaux and wine (much further downstream). The landscape here is very agricultural and simply stunning with wide vistas of rolling hills, green grass, crops and very contented looking cows. In the distance are the faint hazy bluish outlines of high hills. We really enjoyed driving through this area which is quite different from anything we have previously encountered.
By mid afternoon we made a short coffee stop in a village called Pradelles which seems to be very old and is set in the rolling hills with huge views over farms, forests and a large lake, Reservoir de Naussac. Pradelles is on the route of the Camino de Santiago Compostela and the church is quite significant with undoubtedly the best views of the surrounding countryside. Despite the sunny day there was a bit of chill in the air - probably an indication of the altitude -we seemed to have been driving uphill for hours.

View from Pradelles - a distinctly alpine feel to this place

A little further on we made a short detour to visit the Plus Beaux village of Arlempdes, dropping
down into a deep valley where the Loire  River has cut through leaving huge rock formations on either side.

Loire River near Arlempdes

 Perched on top of one of these high rocks is a small chateau, with Arlempdes village at its base. It is a spectacular and beautiful site, well worth the detour.

Approaching Arlempdes

We walked through the few village streets and up to the entrance of the chateau for a lovely view of the the river and the valley. It was so tranquil and scenic that it is hard to imagine a time when conflict would have necessitated the building of such a stronghold in this valley.

Loire Rive with Arlempdes beyond

 Our route out of the valley was a little circuitous but eventually we climbed back up to a high plateau with more gorgeous farming country and then descended into Le Puy-en-Velay, our stopover for the night.
We found our hotel, Ibis Styles, easily, along with a handy and free carpark, settled in and the strolled through the town which is the starting place for many who walk the Camino trail. In the town there are several curious rocky volcanic outcrops with religious structures on the top - a church, a huge Madonna statue - and these dominate the skyline.

View of Le Puy from the hotel window

 Le Puy is a very pleasant town and quite lively on this Saturday evening. We found a modern, funky restaurant on the square beside our hotel with the unlikely name of Hippopotamus where we enjoyed a very tasty meal - such enormous servings that we were both unable to have clean plates!
It had been a really interesting and beautiful drive up to Le Puy but we were both ready for a sleep relatively early tonight.

One of the many hills of Le Puy-en-Velay

Sunday morning was clear and bright for our drive across the Haut-Loire department and into the Puy-de-Dome to our destination, the village of Saint Vincent, near Issoire. Once again we travelled through beautiful country and were struck by the greenness of the paddocks - obviously appreciated by the grazing cows! Again the road was up and down through hills and valleys and we took a short detour to visit the pretty village of Lavaudieu which is beautifully situated by a small river.  It was a thrill to see a number of hunting birds, probably kites, swooping and gliding so gracefully as we travelled through the countryside.

Beautiful Lavaudieu

A little way along we stopped in the centre of Brioude thinking of coffee, and unfortunately an elderly gentleman reversed his car into us as he was leaving his parking spot. We all got a fright, but luckily the damage was minor and after filling out the necessary insurance forms we carried on. Did find a cafe on the edge of the town where we had cappuccinos and the yummy eclairs that Gerri had bought from a handy boulangerie.
As it was early in the afternoon we decided to skip the autoroute and take a more leisurely trip to Saint Vincent along a winding river valley. We entered the valley at a little town called Blesle and the hotel restaurant seemed to be doing a roaring trade so we enquired about lunch. Unfortunately lunch
service was finished but we were able to sit out under the huge plane trees which lined the main street and have coffee.

Too late for lunch but a nice place for coffee - Blesle

 Blesle turned out to have many streets full of medieval houses, as well as some quirky towers and ancient ramparts so we had a bit of a stroll around before setting off along the river valley.

Ancient streets of Blesle

 In these parts there seem to be fortifications on every high hill - some in ruins now. It didn't take long to drive along the narrow L'Alagnon River valley and back to the autoroute for the last few kilometres into Issoire which is a large town just 10 km from Saint Vincent.

Wandering through Blesle

 Although it was Sunday afternoon we did find a boulangerie and a small epicerie open for a few supplies and then it was on to our Hayloft Apartment - a large three bedroom gite attached to La Maison Bougeoise, a rather substantial house set in a lovely garden at the edge of the village. Saint Vincent is on a small river, La Couze Pavin, which flows from a crater lake in the nearby mountains. We are only 20 minutes drive from Super-Besse, the ski resort of the Puy-de-Dome area. The landscape has many mini Mt Fuji shaped hills, forests and lush pastures enjoyed by large herds of cows. Besides the extinct volcanos, the area is famous for its cheese, especially St Nectaire, which I particularly love. We quickly settled in to our nicely appointed accommodation and discovered that the only sounds to be heard were evening birdsong - not a breath of wind and so peaceful and relaxing.

Our trusty little Peugeot enjoying a well earned rest in the garden at St Vincent

Rambling and Antiquing

Friday 26 September

More blue skies and sunshine and our destination this morning was the town Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, about 40 minutes to the south of Sablet, and as the name suggests, located on an island surrounded by the clear and rushing waters of the River Sorgue.  This town is famous for its Sunday antiques market, apparently one of the largest in the whole of France.  Parking was tricky enough on a Friday so I can imagine the difficulties that could be encountered on market day.  Anyway we were fortunate enough to locate a spot in a parking area at one end of the main street and made our way to an inviting cafe for coffee and croissant.  The river flows along the middle of the main thoroughfare and is overhung with large shady trees so it is all very picturesque.

Centre of Isle-sur-la-Sorgue

We spotted a number of antiques shops as we strolled along, and then ventured into the narrow side streets where there were a large array of interesting stores to browse.  We found a delightful little creperie and enjoyed a nice lunch and some fun conversation with the owner who hailed from Brittany (hence the galettes!).
Having exhausted the points of interest on one side of the street we crossed the river and discovered the entrance to an antiques emporium which was very intriguing.  We walked through the lobby of an ancient building and emerged into a huge courtyard lined with shops selling antiques of all descriptions - some very over the top and ornate, others more simply and country-style.

Entering the Antiques Gallery

 Some lovely trees shaded the courtyard making it a very pleasant place to wander and to check out the wares on offer.  At the far end of the courtyard the river appeared again and we realised that this part of the town is actually situated on an island in the middle of the Sorgue.

Beautiful courtyard lined with antiques stores

As we made our way back to the car we discovered even more shops and galleries selling antiques - the place is a real treasure trove of old stuff!  Lots of fun poking about but we didn't find anything that we wanted to purchase - at least nothing that would fit in a suitcase!

Riverside homewares store, Isle-sur-la-Sorgue

It was still early afternoon when we decided to move on, so we drove a short distance to the famous Luberon village of Gordes, which is a very attractive place situated on a bluff overlooking the Luberon valley with its patchwork of olive groves, cherry trees and vines.

View of the Luberon Valley from Gordes

 Although a bit touristy it is a pleasant place to stroll and to have a cool drink on such a lovely day.

One of the many cafes in Gordes

 From Gordes it was homeward bound, although in my wish to avoid the traffic of Orange, we ended up on a rather winding and circuitous route back to Sablet - one that seemed to be favoured by rather intrepid cyclists.

Spectacular approach to Gordes

After arriving home I decided to end our week in Provence by walking to Seguret, the Plus Beaux village which clings to the hillside a couple of kilometres away.  I look across to this quaint village from my bedroom window and had discovered a signposted walking track leading through the fields which looked very inviting.

Looking towards Seguret from Sablet

  It was early evening when I set out and what a gorgeous walk it was, amongst the vines with glorious views of the Dentelles Mountains beyond.

Strolling through the vineyards with the backdrop of the Dentelles

  The path eventually ascended into some woods and finally emerged at the lower edge of Seguret.

Out of the woods and into Seguret

  I walked through the cobblestone streets enjoying the peaceful atmosphere and the delicious aromas of cooking wafting through open windows.

Cobbled streets of Seguret - and an artist at work

At the edge of the village I met the charming Dutch man from the photography shop with his poodle Simone - we had met him earlier in the week when we visited the shop (which he runs).  We walked and chatted until he reached his car and then I carried on back down the hill on the road which took me on a loop back to Sablet.

Heading back to Sablet - golden hour!

 As I made my way home the sun began setting behind the hills on the western side of the Rhone River valley, casting a gorgeous orange hue across the sky - magnificent sunsets in this part of the world!  And so it was back to our gorgeous village house to pack and make preparations to move on in the morning.  I have really been taken with this part of Provence and it is certainly a place I hope to revisit and explore further one day.

Sun set over the Rhone Valley