France - Part Deux

After a couple days in Lyon, we rented a car and headed south into the Provencal countryside. It turned out to be a really fun trip, and by driving everywhere we were able to appreciate the beauty of the region. We were headed to a tiny village outside of a small town called Uzes.

Along the way we passed many cute towns like this one



We stopped for steak frites in a small town, and realized they were just finishing up their Saturday morning market. We made it just in time to sample and buy some cheese and sausage.



The sausage was covered with some sort of herbs, and it was delicious. I also really liked the Brebis cheese they had. Here I am sampling our purchase.



The place where we stayed was wonderful. It's called "Les Sardines Aux Yeux Bleus", or the blue-eyed sardines. :) It's run by a really sweet couple. A Swedish model falls in love with a Parisian photographer, and they decide to leave the big city behind and open a cute French guest house in the countryside. You know, your average story.

Here are some pictures of the place:






Our room:




After relaxing in their peaceful garden, we decided to head out and see what we could find. Our first stop was the historic town of Uzes. I love the light in this photo of the city:



Cute balcony in the town square:



Sunset



The next morning we hit the yard sale in the next town over. We didn't manage to find anything we couldn't live without, but it was fun looking.




One thing we really wanted to see was an ancient aqueduct called the Pont du Gard. It was built in the first century AD! In its heyday it carried about 44 million gallons of water per day to the citizens of Nimes. It survived during the Middle Ages by being used as a toll road, which helped support its upkeep. Today it is one of France's most popular tourist attractions. Here are some pictures.






We drove on to Nimes, and after parking we found the main street to be roped off due to a bike race for young kids. Maybe we witnessed a future Tour de France winner in training?



Lunch in the town square consisted of croque monsieurs and beer, naturally



Palace and elephant statue in Nimes




Then we were off to Les Baux de Provence, which is a really, really, really old town (I don't know how else to describe it) that dates from 6000 BC. It is built way up high on top of a rocky outcrop, and was unlike anything we'd seen before. Here is a picture I found online - an aerial view.




Yup, there is an actual town built up there!


What we found funny is that walking around, it felt like you were at a Renaissance festival. Except that you weren't. You were in a really, really, really old town. Built on top of a mountain.

On to the city of Arles, where we checked out the town's coliseum. What's neat is they have restored the ruined parts and made it whole again. Even neater is the town actually still uses the coliseum for concerts and other performances.

The old



And the new



On one part of our trip we found the road closed with a small sign, which you could easily have driven around.



We took a detour high up in the mountains, and realized there had been a huge landslide which had completely covered the road. If you look closely in the picture below, you can see the road behind the collapsed mountain. Glad we weren't on the road at that time!



Everything was just so pretty in that region of France





We enjoyed all of the meals we had while we were there. I love French food, and I really realized how much I missed a lot of aspects of French life. They truly enjoy living, eating, drinking, talking, laughing. There is a reason they have the phrase "joie de vivre", or joy of living. I was happy that John enjoyed France as much as I do. I need him to want to visit again soon, which I'm sure we will!