The Image Goddess
Paris to Provence, Côte d'Azur & Beyond
This archive so far contains just a few
highlights of a 1998 trip upon which the Goddess and her best minion embarked, beginning
in Paris with a brief stay in the St-Germain neighborhood (courtesy of our lovely friend
Frances), then quickly moving along - uncontaminated by French World Cup enthusiasm -
to Montpellier (via TGV), where the World Cup final match was being observed with much
festivity. (More, in fact, than we had ever before witnessed in French people!)
While in Montpellier for a week, we explored and enjoyed that wonderful city thoroughly,
and found time for a trip to the nearby ancient walled city of Carcassonne. Our next base
of operations was Brantes, a truly tiny perched village in the Hautes Alpes overlooking
Mont Ventoux (I did say perched - it was way up there). This was a prime location for
wine tasting (we did a day trip to Gigondas and tasted more local wines than we should
admit at a cave collective), driving through gorgeous countryside, swimming in
rivers, picnicking and just plain lazing about.
The lazing ended abruptly with a brief but
awe-striking visit to the Gorges de Verdon, an amazingly deep and beautiful marble gorge.
If you're afraid of heights, this isn't the ideal vacation spot for you. But it may be
worth a visit nonetheless. The sturdy can hike the short distance into the gorge on a
very steep and somewhat slick trail (marble polishes right up with all that foot traffic).
The swimming at the bottom is divine, but make sure you check with the authorities before
making the descent - some days they open the dam at the top of the river, and you wouldn't
want to be down there when they do!
Some notes on Montpellier:
This southern city gets 4 thumbs up, with a large and beautiful old town; the
world's best sorbets (cassis, myrtille... yum factor 10); quick (20-min.) and easy bus
ride to beaches on the Mediterranean (essential if you're there in summer as we were);
and countless great little places to eat good regional cuisine and drink local wines of
the Languedoc region, which the Goddess and minion strongly recommend to those who can
appreciate good wines without paying an arm and a leg for them. The same is true of the
wines of Provence - our next area of exploration during this visit - from the better
known Rhône Valley varietals to those you'll never find in the U.S. The joys of
Provence are well-documented; let us simply add our voices of assent. If you love to eat,
drink, see beautiful countryside, hike, swim, and eat some more, even on a modest budget,
you will find all that you desire in a journey through Provence. As anywhere in France,
decent command of the language will enhance your experience (especially if you speak well
enough to understand l'accent provencal); you will get a warm reception everywhere
you go and, more importantly, you will be better able to absorb the rich culture in which
you are steeping.
Bit by bit, the Goddess is adding to
this page images from the rest of our 1998 trip, which also took us to the French Riviera
(see below), to Cinque Terre (Italy), and to
Vienna and the Czech Republic (including, but not limited
to, Prague - a city remarkably reminiscent of Paris in some ways).
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| Jardin du Luxembourg, Paris |
Jardin du Luxembourg |
Jardin du Luxembourg |
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| The Seine, aerial view |
Carcassonne |
Jardin du Luxembourg, Paris |
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| World Cup fans, Montpellier, July 1998 |
Young fan gets a leg up from Dad |
Meat Marketeers, Montpellier |
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| Aqueduct, Montpellier |
Cynthia, baking in Brantes |
Carrousel, Carcassonne |
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| Brazilian World Cup fans |
Streetlamps, Montpellier |
Colorful café, Montpellier |
Doorway, Montpellier |
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| Gigondas, land of wine & song |
Bench and tree, Gigondas winery |
Ancient graves, Provence |
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| Sospel, Haute Provence |
Lavender fields, near Brantes |
Lavender & Mont Ventoux |
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| Lac de Ste-Croix, Provence |
Gorge de Verdon from above |
Gorge de Verdon, river bottom |
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| Famous but unprepossessing Pont du Gard |
Goddess arising from coffin, Vaison-la-Romaine |
Seguret |
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| Rocks, St-Jean Cap Ferrat |
Peillon |
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| Jardin du Luxembourg, Paris |
Carcassonne, walled city |
Chapel, Lou Barrous, Provence |
Brantes and Mont Ventoux |
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| The incredible Gorge de Verdon |
Gorge de Verdon |
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| Texas finds the Côte d'Azur |
Sospel |
Evening lamp, Sospel |
"Shangri-La", Peillon |
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| Château ruins, Nice |
Port de Nice |
Peillon (en haut) |
St-Jean Cap Ferrat |
All images copyright Cynthia Mitchel 2000