A Spring Revival

Little girls have to detangle the knots in their hair EVERYDAY …

If not, even very patient grandmas hate them when everybody wants them pretty …

This « Little girl “had not seen a comb for a long, long time, she’s suffering and her grandma too!  It is a little bit normal; her mother is 27 and she’s a souvenir from great Grandma .

Five  little girls of the new generation love her..So lets shout !!…

Les petites filles doivent se démêler les cheveux TOUS les jours ..

Sinon ,même les grand-mères les plus patientes s’énervent lorsqu’il s’agit de les rendre jolies. Cette petite fille n’avait pas vu la couleur d’un peigne depuis belle lurette, elle souffre et sa mère-grand aussi !

Cette tignasse hirsute est un peu normale ,sa maman a 27 ans et 5 petites filles de la nouvelle génération l’adorent.

De plus c’est un cadeau d’arrière Bonne –Maman .Souvenir cher.

Alors tirons fort et crions pour nous défouler si nécessaire !!.

Welcome to Mas des Etoiles in Gordes, Luberon, Provence.  We tried to have a user-friendly approach.It is not yet totally completed. In fact it must be a living thing.

Main features to-day are :

- Many pictures with slide-shows. It is developped in particular for the Rooms Presentation, the overall review of  the B&B ( See EXPRESS TOUR), photos  of a few guest “live” !

- It is not a Tourist Guide,  but we endeavoured to give specific information to help the guest to take the best of his stay with us. These sections should be in continuous progress.

We have started to have a few links with guests or even  one of our 3 daugthers – Agathe – ’s blog, which features day-to -day life of a French Family (and photos taken here last Christmas with the kids).

Also we have a special link with Brasil, as we made friends with a very nice Brasilian Blogger – Jorge Bernardes -and his wife,    His narration of  his visit to Provence brought to us many guests who, themselves brought new ones etc … We recommend a visit of this blog as he explains very well what to see in Provence.

The other blog by  : “Confession of a Serendipitous Girl “  by Phil & Jen Rogers of Portland, Oregon, is also very interesting because they are traveling a lot and you also enter the current life of a smart American Family.

We have also made a link with Tripadvisor as there are comments  by guests explaining what they got.  ( There is a very bad  comment  coming from  an unfuriated and bad-mannered lady which had an unbelievable attitude, this happens.  It’s better not to meet her either for business or socially).  Annette has a lot to say about that. We cannot leave that unreplied.

Annette has started to-day with her own contribution to the website : She wills to make something on decoration etc , everything she likes. The first post is on how to do a “Tarte Tatin” !

She called the section (see above right) : The Angels’ Corner. I don’t know to whom she is referring.

The website will be in several languages but for the beginning we intend to mix French and English as most of our environment at least reads English. It is a pure homemade product started in the first days of  February. So be indulgent.

Magnolia and Laurel Flowers

Recevant des amis à dîner hier soir, je me promenais dans le jardin avec mon sécateur, à la recherche de … peu importe,quelque chose de VERT !!

Après ce « vrai » hiver, le besoin impérieux de couleurs fraîches me travaille …et au détour d’un mur , oh merveille …..Un magnolia superbe … avec ses bourgeons duveteux ravit mes yeux … et mmmm… mon odorat …..Ce bouquet est minuscule, mais avec son jumeau, il remplit très bien sa tâche :  Annoncer la  “Belle  Saison” sur notre table ..

Je ne résiste pas à l’envie de vous faire partager au passage la Tatin que j’avais préparée pour nos invités , si gourmande que la montrer c’est l’achever dans l’instant :
Prendre un moule, le beurrer . Y verser du caramel liquide tout fait ou maison . Si vous en avez un peu de confiture de figues ..Je mets les « loupées » du Mas.. Celles qui ont cristallisé.

Tarte Tatin : Apples and figs am

Elles craquent sous la dent, c’est encore plus délectable . Quatre pommes coupées « grossièrement » … en morceaux. Je recouvre d’une pâte à tarte vanillée et …zou… au four 180 degrés pendant 25 minutes…

Pour les monstres de gourmandise accompagner de glace à la vanille !!!

You know that France Countryside is beautiful. Proeminent on that, there is an association to preserve and promote the best villages. It has something like 130 members and rules are very strict. See a map at  http://www.villagesdefrance.free.fr/dept/page_vaucluse.htm

Departement du Vaucluse, which is our   area of Provence  on an administrative standpoint  boasts having 7 of them. They are Seguret which is more in the North, Venasque, Gordes, Roussillon, Menerbes, Lourmarin and Ansouis. So most are in Luberon and very close from us.

Gordes, one of "Les Plus beaux Villages de France".

Maurice Chabert, the smart Gordes Mayor is at the head of  the “Les Plus beaux Villages de France”  Association. He deserves it. Needless to say that Gordes has to be and is very well maintained  in all respects.

I am not going to repeat the content of a your guidebook, which says a lot.

Just a few advices :

- For parking, the best is the one on the road going up to Murs. It is 200 metres from main square on the left after the hospital.

- The most exciting place is the view on the right before arriving in the village. There people are so amazed that they rush out of their cat to make pictures and when they come back all their valuable stuff is gone… So, be careful. They are shrewd and they have a  lot of potential preys (in fact they look like you and not like outright bandits). You can easily park on the small square just below the place.

- A good idea is to walk down the “calades” (stone-paved narrow streets). Nice view. Like in the Middle Ages.

- Restaurants and shops like  most highly touristic places. Unequal in quality. For the restaurants, you must be very careful. See our list of recommendations.  The inside of the church and very much advertised Village des Bories have a secondary  interest (only if you have plenty of time). If you visit Musée Pol Mara ( interesting modern paintings mostly made of collage) you will also appreciate the decoration of the Renaissance Castle. (Hey, you save a trip to the Loire Valley Castles !).  Everything is in a good shape. And … temperature is cool.

- There is a way to visit Gordes by car. If you don’t have a map, you’re going to get lost immediately. We have a map for you : Very good spots for views, a lot of Bories everywhere.

- When you are in Gordes, you can think of going to Senanque Abbey. It is fine just for the scenic road. But there, if you stop, the visit takes at least one hour.

One of the best golf courses of Provence : Provence Country Club is just 20 minutes from Gordes. It is located between L’Isle-sur-La Sorgue and Fontaine-de-Vaucluse. So from here it is very easy to get there  through Cabrières d’Avignon and Lagnes.

You are facing the Luberon Hills and all the area

This course is a 18 holes, par 72 (6099 m.), architect: J. Garaialde ( one of the best French players in the 80’s).

The Golf  is very well maintained and has many facilities among which an excellent restaurant. You will enjoy superb view on the Luberon Hills (see image). One idea would be to have lessons. They have an top and friendly  teacher who can make for our guests a series of “refresher” courses. Our guests  like it very much. So,  every year we have several groups of golfers who want to play but not to do only that. So the ladies can have their own activities. And they can enjoy all the restaurants we describe in this website. The Golf has Hotel facilities. It is cheap in every respect. So it’s really a good bet, when you are in Provence not to be golf 100%.

On this hole, your longest drive ever ?

From  Gordes and Mas des Etoiles, we propose at least 7 different golf courses. Principally

and besides Golf de Provence Country Club, we propose Golf du Grand Avignon (35 minutes), Golf de Pont Royal and two real jewels : Golf des Baux and Golf de Servanes. Golf des Baux has a special mark as it is a 9 holes (you don’t wish to spend too much time and overpay) and the environment is truly exceptionnal. It’s quiet (of course you book your tee) . We recommend you to do your round by 5-6 : 00 PM as the evening shades are the best After that you can have a casual diner in Maussane- les-Alpilles (out of the Saint Rémy crowd and in one of the street café just facing the church among locals)  and after come back to Gordes direct through Eygalières. I have not played at Servanes but our guests who did it enjoyed a lot. Servanes is just south of Maussane, near Mouriès.

Senanque Abbey is somewhere in the wild just behind our house. Just behind means that it is aerial point to point 5 kilometers. The itinerary we propose has a lot of success and guests (the trained hikers) love it.

The canyon is very narrow and wild

There are various combinations : Either you start from the house but it is a bit long, or I show you where to start closer, you save 1 hour 30 in the round trip. Or you can have a car in the abbey and make it one way.

It begins with the vineyards, olive grounds, cherry trees just near-by. You walk down in the small valley of the Senancole River ( usually dry )  and then you arrive in a sort of canyon. You go on the top of the hill with a short but straight path to an abandonned farm, la Debroussede. From there you have an excellent view on the whole area  ( Gordes  on the left, and all the Luberon ridge in front ) and are in the middle of lavenders.

An easy trails get you down to the abbey. You can visit shortly. In general by 12 you have a mass every day with Gregorian Music song by the monks. There is also a good store held by the community.

From the top, the view rmbraces all Luberon valley

To go back you follow the valley trail. It is a kind of adventure but it is not difficult. One of the interrest is you can see very well the reiver was in the past very active and dug large prints in the cliffs… 100 meters above you.

It’s good to have your picnic with you. Most probably, you will meet very few people either way. You are just with unspoiled Nature.

At this level, we think it is in general a question of mood and opportunity : There are many places in this category. But if I write this, it is because the ugliest ones hide themselves inside the best. So :  No Risk taking, just try to stay in our list …

The first one which comes in mind is ” Clos de Gustave “in Gordes. This is absolutely a sure value ( and in Gordes it is very rare). Food is more than good, service is made with candor and intelligence. Be careful, it can be crowdy. So the best is to be early. We don’t tell you how  it is charming etc …

The second we are in love with is “Un Jour Charlotte” , just 300 meters from here. How lucky we were when thay started their business last year. It is just a kind of “succes story”, a family business. The father is a reputed photographer, she is a florist and together with the children they make a superb food. Last year, we had only compliments. I leave the details. You will see and appreciate by ourselves.

“La Bergerie ” in Maubec is different. Maubec Old Village is one of the most exquisite  corner of Luberon. Nobody knows. You are in a peaceful environment, just below the Luberon Mountainside. It is very typical, the house team  is energetic and you get excellent meat, pizzas and local food.

In Isle sur la Sorgue, there are many good and not as good ones. It is a bit out of our scope… Let’s mention Bistro du Commerce where you have an experience on the French Southern Style (noisy but ougoing). Good meat and pizzas. The problem of Isle sur la Sorgue is maybe its success, you will understand.

In the countryside, we can list several with excellent values :

- Café de la  Gare in Bonnieux (cheap and warmful)

- Café de la Poste in Goult. That one, if you  are interested in being in a well behaved tourist tour, it is the place. 50% of the guests are US, British or from Belgium. So very international but in the french atmosphere. Its fame came from the Peter Mayle’s Popular Novel ” A Year in Provence”. It is worthwhile and food is OK for the price.

You will love this area between, let’s say Maubec and Bonnieux. Last Spring I went direct to Oppede (don’t be confused : Almost all villages in Luberon have a more modern neighbor with the same name. The reason is the villages originally were on the hills to have a natural protection with walls etc… As the risk decreased, people started to live in the valley. So there are 2 Maubecs, 2 Oppede and so on.

The begining of the tour is at Maubec, the old village. You must absolutely go first to the camping ( first turnabout at Robion and left). There you have  a scenery with two “campaniles” in a very quiet environment. You will see a superb estate and when you are in front of the campanile you look back at the mountain. You go down, you will see “La Bergerie ” one of our favorite restaurants on the left, and then you follow the Bike Road (special signs). Far away, you will see the Oppede Castle and the chapelle. From there, you take one of the small roads and you get to park in Oppede. There is no alternative. You pay but you are right where you have to be? And the park area looks secure. So then you visit 1- The Sainte Ceceile gardens and you go uphill to the Chapelle. This is very worhwile and you have a very good view.

After that, you go down through a hamlet named Les Minguets. There is a small store on the left ” Les Atrtisanales de Provence”. They sell in particular exquisite jams and other local products. Then YOU TRY TO GET LOST … in the direction of Menerbes. And you will make a lot of discoveries. If you follow my map anyway, you will arrive in Menerbes with the best view. Normally, you won’t have  enough time to visit Menerbes which is a bit rude. Best is to go to Abbaye St Hilaire and Lacoste without wasting too  much time. Abbaye Saint Hilaire is real rewarding. They explain you well the story. In Lacoste it is important to find the way to go just behind the castle. There is the best view and often Pierre  Cardin is displaying modern scultures. You will see Bonnieux in front of you. Bonnieux is an austere place and if you have little time don’t try to visit. As it is a 2-level village you can get exhausted very fast. And it is mostly North-oriented so in the shade, and cold.

All small roads below Lacoste are very good. In fact during this trip, you will meet very few tourists ! They all are in Gordes or Roussillon. All this tour can take 2-4 hours, depending on the stops. If you do it in the morning, what we recommend because of the light, you must have a reservation for a restaurant for a quick lunch. Good options would be Café de la Poste in Goult or Caf&é de la Gare in Bonnieux (it is not exactly in Bonnieux but onthe road to D900, almost in fronty of the Cave Vinicole de Bonnieux).

An interesting spot near-by is the Pont Romain (Roman Bridge)..

In the afternoon, a good idea is to head to Roussillon.  In fact there is also several lunch possibilities over there. One is Les Glycines right in the center. You have a very nice terrace and a view on the ochres.

The great cities of Provence – Aix, Arles, Avignon, Marseille – have different qualities. We most recomment to visit Aix-en-Provence and Arles first.

To visit a city, the best advice we can give is don’t try to do too much. You must take time, sit, people-watch, absorb the atmosphere and personality of the city … and feel well.

Aix-en-Provence old center

Aix is handsome with a kind of sophisticated style. It looks attractive, wealthy , with many trendy stores, a lot of young people (there is a good University). In fact it is known as one of the best cities to live in France. As a tourist you will see France almost at its best with many good characteristics of our Country. What we call “Quality of Life”. And finally we are proud of this city. Everybody wants to live here. You can walk easily and get to most of the city in less of a day… A place we have on our list of potentialities, Annette and I, for the “next step” …

Arles is different. It is smaller but there you have a very well preserved side of Provence. Quiet and you can imagine very well the olden times back to the Romans. Arles is to-day in the headlines as a statue of julius Caesar has just been found in the river with many other artifacts of the Roman City. A new Archeological Museum seems to have a lot of interest.

We advise to clearly forget Marseille. he city is just too huge (the second largest in France) and specific. It’s like NYC for a Frenchman on the first time. In general it is out of the scope.

Avignon : Le Palais des Papes

And Avignon, why not ? Avignon is the closest from us largest city. It has a lot of History. But something goes wrong : Impossible to drive, a lot of unusual people, a dispersed center without unity. So it is good for a few spots like Palais des Papes or the famous Pont d’Avignon and that’s it. We would prefer much Villeneuve-lez-Avignon which is “human” and has a lot of spirit.

Anyway, in Avignon, a critical point is resoled when you know taht there is a unique excellent parking lot almost under the Palais des Papes. You get there from the Rhone River banks. It’s easy. We have a map.

To go back to Aix and Arles …

La Montagne Ste Victoire

Aix is about one hour from Gordes. Our advice is to go with the highway A7 you will take at Avignon Sud (Exit 31). It is better to avoid Cavaillon which is messy and you never know when you are going to get out. A7 has no interest except that you go very fast and you arrive in Aix fresh for doing things. An alternative is to go there through Cheval Blanc and Rognes ( look on the map). On the way back you might try to come back through Lourmarin or the N7. However on these roads do not expect to be fast and better take your time. In Aix, the parking might be a problem if you are not prepared. This city trafic is a nightmare if you get lost.We have a map for you and you will be very close from Cours Mirabeau which is the center spot. Our advice is you hae a lunch in one of the restaurants of Cours Mirabeau or near-by. We have a few good ones on hand.

Another point : Aix is at the foot of Montagne Sainte Victoire. For me, it is one of the most fascinating mountain in Provence. You might have a glimpse to it. There are several ways to do it. One scenic one is to take the road to Pourrieres and to comeback by A8.

Arles is also about one hour from us. But the approach is very different as you can combine several things and have an exceptional day.

Arles, a well-preserved city

I am not going to describe this city in detail. It is charming but it is up to you to appreciate.

To get there I recommend to take the small road from Orgon to Eygalière, Maussane, les Baux (Cathedrale d’Images and the old village), Fontvielle. All these names are worth spending time just to have interesting time : An oil farm here, a brocante there , a defile of guardians fiercely mounted on their horses and cows, a bistro etc …, If you stop in Saint Remy the risk is you don’t have enough time either to take benefit of Arles. Arles is a good spot to have a dinner on a terrace. Then come back with the highway. It’s easy.

Of course, Saint Remy is worth mentionning. Like Lourmarin, it is one of the jet set point of high reputation. There you can cross Caroline de Monaco or famous show bizz personalities I will not detail. You get fancy shops ans also a fine atmosphere in the small streets.

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