Love that Blue Sky
The Provencal blue sky after a quick spring rain is the bluest of blue. Held up with voluminous puffy white clouds and various colors of green grass and trees the sun shines upon your soul. Some say the sky in New Mexico goes on forever. The sky in the south of France must be reaching to meet it as it too goes on forever. The vast sky jogs your senses and makes you want to take out your paint brush and canvas and paint away.
Being back in the Languedoc region is like coming home. It wraps us up like a warm blanket and immediately relaxes every bone in our bodies.
We arrived on April Fools day in Montpellier staying with friends for the night while moving on to Pezenas to settle in for our stay for the next week at our friends Barbara and Danny’s apartment in the old village. A charming renovated home with beautiful art from around the world and all the comforts you could ask for. The village was given to Moliere by King Louis IV, but he turned him down saying it was for the people (what a gentleman). Its narrow cobblestone streets remind us of our beloved Uzès and its Saturday morning market was equal in charm. A ten step walk to the marché I bump right into my favorite stand, colorful straw baskets. Without a second thought I bee lined to the most beloved two tone green basket with leather handles. It was made for me.
Within 5 minutes I felt at home strolling down the market aisles with my new straw basket swinging on my arm as I began my shopping for the bright red farm fresh strawberries and juicy tomatoes. .
Today, being Easter we drove back to Uzès (1 ½ drive) to our friends the Tills who were hosting an Easter hunt and Tea for a dozen families from the area. A mixture of English, American. Canadian, Dutch, and German it is quite a group. Some were permanently living in the area and some were in Uzès area for a few years. All were on the journey of living a life that embraced the French joie de vivre.
It was wonderful to see old friends and all the kids (and a few chickens) run around the 2 hectares yard built around the grand Mas the Tills had bought and remodeled. A beautiful setting for an afternoon Tea Party that seems to easily happen in the south of France on a spring day. Next weekend we will return for a few days and spend more time visiting friends and hanging out in our old town of St. Quentin la Poterie and Uzes.
The culmination of the day was seen in the most beautiful rainbow that scrapes across the entire sky screaming, “Look at me,” as you drive down the road. It is these times when the car just comes to a stop and stares into the sky that you see how beautiful the world can be.
The rest of this week we are spending time on the west side of Montpellier, eating Moules at Bouzigue the area that harvests moules (mussels) and oysters from the sea, while taking long walks on the beaches and in the countryside.
By the way I am having to go to an internet café every few days but in between we are all noticing how being forced to be totally disconnected totally changes how we feel about the day, the evening, and our ability to truly feel like we are on vacation.—Disconnecting from TV, Computers and iphones is truly the way to go if you want to make the most of your vacation (at least for 4-5 days in a row). Try it and see how you feel.
Meanwhile stay tuned until I get back to the internet café.
If you are thinking about vacationing in the south of France, send me a note. I have lots to share.!
