As faithful readers of Our House in Provence blog know, a visit to Avignon is an essential part of our time in Provence. During the first years, it was to shop for kids' clothes for our grandchildren, now that they are older and prefer to choose their clothes, we go to visit the Nespresso store, near Place de l'Horloge, to buy espresso capsules to take back to California (way cheaper).  Avignon is 40 km southwest of Sablet, enclosed within ancient walls along the Rhone River. The largest town in the Vaucluse, Avignon is very old, full of history, art, music, and activity. Notre des Doms ..read more

Chateauneuf-du-Pape is a small medieval village located about 30 km from Sablet. The village spreads out on the hillside at the foot of ruins of an ancient chateau that I told you about here. From the chateau hill, you have an impressive view in all directions, mostly of vineyards and the Rhone River, 1.9 miles to the east. The village is best known for the wine that is produced from the vineyards that surround the village. There are several cafes with outdoor terraces and a gastronomic restaurant with one Michelin star in the center of the village. Although this is a tourist town, there are ..read more

Every year, thousands of tourists' travel to the sun-drenched South of France region of Provence. One of its biggest draws, field upon field of perfect rows of sweet-scented, violet-colored lavender.  There are four main regions where lavender is grown in Provence. They are the Plateau de Valensole, the Luberon Valley, Pays de Sault, and the Drome Provençale. We have visited all of these areas several times except for the Plateau de Valensole.  Last summer, with friends from Washington DC in tow, we loaded into our car in Sablet and headed out for the 122 km drive to the ..read more

Happy New Year dear friends. Bonne et heureuse annee mes amis. Anyone who takes the time to read my recently, infrequent posts, are truly friends. One of my New Year's resolutions is to write posts more frequently and regularly.   2023 has been a crazy year with some wonderful highs as well as some challenges, including spending the last few days of the year isolated with my first bout of Covid despite being vaccinated and boosted a total of 6 times. I am grateful my symptoms have been very minor. Christmas Eve in Windsor, California One of the highlights of the year was ..read more

I figure that many of you have seen the immersive Van Gogh Experience in one of the many US cities that have offered this program. But how many of you know that the "Van Gogh Starry Night" art and music program was first exhibited in the Carrières des Lumieres at Les Baux de Provence in the South of France from March 1, 2019, to January 5, 2020? Les Baux de Provence is a picturesque village about 47 miles southwest of our home in Sablet, France. The village sits in a strategic location on a rocky outcrop with ancient houses and a ruined castle perched on top of the village overlooking vineyar ..read more

On a warm Saturday a couple of weeks ago, we headed seaside to Le Grau-du-Roi, a fishing port and beach resort, with cousins Jean-Marc and Christine. We figured we would find cooler temperatures near the Mediterranean Sea and bonus, we could try out a new restaurant I had read about.   Le Grau-du-Roi is a commune in the Gard Department about 1.5 hours south from Sablet. Le Grau-du-Roi is the only commune in the Gard Department to have frontage on the Mediterranean Sea. Le Grau-du-Roi is the second largest French fishing port on the Mediterranean.  Port of Le Grau-du-Roi ..read more

As long time readers of Our House in Provence blog know, one of our favorite villages besides Sablet is Villedieu. Its a small village (population 514) built on a hill overlooking vineyards, olive grows and pine trees near the Eygues River on the border of the Drome Provencale. Villedieu is located about 7 1/2 miles northwest of Sablet in the direction you would take if you were headed to Nyons.  Villedieu Cafe Villedieu dates back to medieval times when the village was a Commandery of the Knights Templar who owned a chateau with a single tower. The village was founded durin ..read more

Avignon is 40 km southwest of Sablet, snuggled inside ancient walls along the Rhône River. The largest town in the Vaucluse, Avignon is very old, full of history, art, music and activity. I never get tired of wandering the narrow streets inside the fortified walls. We come to Avignon to shop and meet up with cousins. Our stops always include a visit to the Nespresso Boutique, near Place de l'Horloge, to buy espresso capsules to take back to California (way cheaper). Shirley prefers to shop leisurely by herself so I go off to explore and take pictures. Notre Dame des Doms Cathedral seen below ..read more

Last July, we went to Provence for the first time since the beginning of the Coronavirus pandemic. As I wrote in this post, shortly before our trip, about our favorite things in Provence, seasonal "floral" attractions such as red poppies, lavender, and sunflowers are high on our list.  Since July is sunflower season, we set off one morning to look for sunflower fields around the town of Orange. We had been told there were large sunflower fields north of Orange and while we were there, we should take the time to hike up to the Fortress of Mornas. Sunflower field near Mornas ..read more

One of the many things that drew us to Sablet was its location in the Cotes-du-Rhone wine appellation and proximity to renown villages such as Gigondas, Vacqueyras, and Chateauneuf-du-Pape. We like all the wines from this region but our favorites are the wines produced in the AOP located around the village of Chateauneuf-du-Pape.  Chateauneuf-du-Pape is a small medieval village spread out on the hillside at the foot of ruins of an ancient chateau. From the chateau hill, you have an impressive view in all directions, mostly of vineyards and the Rhone River 1.9 miles to the east. It is bes ..read more