Hello friends, and happy Friday!!

So..I know what you’re thinking (or were thinking when you read my last post)..that the decision to include ‘Part One’ in the title was wildly ambitious. As we all know, ‘part one’ generally implies that one or more additional parts will follow. And considering my recent lack of regular posts, you probably either rolled your eyes or had a quick chuckle thinking ‘I’m not holding my breath’.

But here I am with a part two! And less than a week later, I might add!  And I suspect you’re now thinking  ‘two posts in one week, did she get laid off or something?’. Nope. Just keeping you on your toes.

What if I told you that I’ve even reserved photos of a few places for a part three? You’re probably either hysterically laughing at the idea, or think I’ve taken the joke too far. You never know. Dare to dream, friends. Dare to dream.

Anyways. A few days into our trip to Provence, on Sunday morning, we set off to explore the villages of the Luberon valley. This charming. picturesque, tranquil region has so many beautiful villages to offer! I had a nightmare of a time trying to narrow down the choices!

Long story short, we got too late of a start to make the Sunday market at L’Isle sur la Sorgue, and had to come up with a plan B. We ended up visiting Lourmarin (wonderful atmosphere!), Roussillon (beautiful, but quite touristic), and Gordes (stunning scenery on the way in, but otherwise underwhelming).

One of my favorite pastimes while in France (in addition to the cafe lounging mentioned in prior posts) is just wandering around the old villages. I know this doesn’t sound like a real ‘pastime’.. but I could do it for hours. Days even!

Now, I’m well aware of the fact that spending a week on vacation somewhere doesn’t always give you an accurate perspective of the day-to-day, but there seems to be a noticeable difference in the quality of life.

I think the below photo exemplifies this perfectly. Driving through Bonnieux, we stopped to take in some stunning views of the valley and happened to capture this delightful family having Sunday lunch! It struck me as such a joyous occasion! We could hear lots of voila’s and bon appetit’s as we creepily looked on. What a wonderful way to spend Sunday afternoon!

I also really appreciate the fact that people make an effort to beautify their surroundings!

From an outdoor seating area..

To what I believe may be a tool shed? I mean, do you see this type of thing outside of France? This is a serious question, by the way. I’m not sure if this charm is specific to France or just old medieval villages of Europe..

We spent some time contemplating how many of these rattan (I think?) cafe chairs exist in the country of France. At least as many as there are people, in my opinion.

If I’m being honest, I don’t remember which villages many of these pictures were taken in. It’s just one charming town after another, and they start to look somewhat similar (although I don’t think I could ever get sick of them!).

The one exception to this would be Roussillon. The warm tones of the ochre this town is known for contrast beautifully with shutters painted in the sun-drenched pastel blues and greens typical of Provence.

And views like these certainly don’t hurt.

I only wish we had more than a week in the region! I suppose there’s always next time. And for those of you considering a trip to the region, we had the pleasure of staying at the absolutely beautiful Domaine & Cie. Hands down, this was my absolute favorite place I’ve ever stayed…like something out of a Procencal dream (complete with shutters!!!). Located a few minutes outside of Aix-en-Provence, the location felt remote although easily connected to the autoroute.

Well, friends..I hope you’ve enjoyed these little tidbits from our trip! And wishing you a bon week-end!

— Lusine

Hello friends! Long time, no talk..how have you been? Apologies for the extended absence! I don’t even have a great excuse. It’s been a hectic few months, and when things get hectic..the blog seems to get neglected. My bad.

What have we been up to, you ask? For one, we just got back from France! Since last year’s trip, my infatuation with Paris has only magnified. So we headed across the pond yet again to spend some time in my favorite city! While we were there, we decided to head out of the city for the weekend and experience some of France’s magnificent countryside!

So we rented a car, and headed to the region that churns out some of the world’s best wine. Burgundy, or Bourgogne as the locals call it, is located a couple hours south east of Paris and was delightful beyond words!

Picture an endless sea of rolling French vineyards punctuated with the most charming, picturesque villages you could ever imagine.  We stopped in the town of Chablis (above) above for lunch. You may have heard of the town’s namesake wine, which is often used for wines produced outside of the region, even outside of France! And if you’ve tried these imposter wines, there’s a chance you’re not a huge fan of Chablis.

By no means am I a sommelier, nor will I attempt to give any sort of technical description of the flavors outside of telling you that the wine we had in Chablis was darn good. I mean, can you imagine that anything produced here tastes bad?!

No. No it does not. Especially since there seem to be a million wine producers (or domaines) in this little town. I can’t imagine you’d stay in business with a crappy product. Now that I’ve given you my two cents on the Burgundian wine industry, I suppose we can move on.

I find it kind of tough to take a decent picture out of a moving vehicle, so I don’t have many of the drive, but I did manage to get one of some grazing cows! Is it me or do even the animals look happier here? I suppose since these are French cows, they too subscribe to the notion of ‘joie de vivre’.

And just when I thought Burgundy couldn’t get any more charming, we stopped at Semur-En-Auxois. I know this is a strong statement, but it’s the prettiest place I’ve ever been.

If it wasn’t for the occasional car, we would’ve thought we stepped back in time. This place was seriously breathtaking! Cobblestones, old shutters with chipping paint.. you know,the stuff dreams are made of. My dreams, at least.

Obviously we had to stop for a glass of wine at a cafe on this charming cobblestone terrace. Because when in Burgundy..

I  know what you’re thinking – is this where Chocolat was filmed? No, that’s a couple of villages away. Is this what Belle’s village is based on in Beauty and the Beast? Perhaps. But I didn’t see any locals burst out of the windows into a spontaneous song about a strange girl that likes to read. Bummer.

But I did see a cat sitting in a window with the most delightful chippy paint shutters.

I could have stayed in this little town forever. In fact, I declared I was moving here several times as we were strolled around. I know that this is unrealistic given my French skills, or lack thereof..but one can dream! But rest assured, I will be back..Semur-en-Auxois!

After leaving Semur-En-Auxois, we spent the night in Dijon. I don’t have a ton of photos because it was dark when we arrived and I take terrible nighttime photos. Dijon has a largely pedestrian town center, which was lovely. The part we stayed in seemed somewhat sketchy, so we took of for Beaune the following day and loved it! If I had a do-over, I’d totally stay in Beaune. I had mistakenly assumed that Dijon (being the larger city) would have more to do on a Sunday. Evidently, since Beaune relies heavily on tourism, there is quite a bit open on Sunday (which is not the norm in France). We even came across a carnival! Oh, and lots of places to stop for a glass of wine. Again, when in Burgundy..

Well, I hope you’ve enjoyed hearing about our weekend getaway in France! I’ll be sure to  share some photos from our time in Paris soon! I swear, this doesn’t mean three weeks .. 🙂

Ever had the pleasure of exploring the French countryside? I’d love to hear about it!

— Lusine