Ferrari Mailing List: Dennis' guide to Provence, such as it is.... (OT)

[Dennis Liu (bigheaddennis]

Marty wrote:

>Dennis, Do you have any specific recommendations for towns and/or weekly
rentals in Provence?

=============

Gosh!  Where to begin....

Aigues Morte - way cool walled town, worth an afternoon detour, in the
Camargue.

Arles - Arles is an ancient town, with Greek, Celtic and Roman history, and
lots of ruins.  Vincent van Gogh spent a lot of time here painting.  Many of
his most famous paintings were completed there, including The Night Cafe,
the Yellow Room, Starry Night Over the Rhone, and L'Arlésienne.  

Avignon - Ancient, full of history, architecture, and more.  Narrow streets
inside the fortified walls.  We stayed a couple of nights, top destination.
Lots of shopping too.

Antibes - Cote d'azur, filled with rich folks and expensive houses.  Vieille
ville is beautiful, with ramparts and long, arched wall along the port.
Lots of small streets for exploring, restaurants of all types, and
especially a lot of shops.   Often referred to as Antibes - Juan-les-Pins.
The Juan-les-Pins part has lots of night-life and a casino.  Plage de La
Garoupe is a great beach.

Aix-en-Provence - Along with Aix, our favorite historical towns in Provence.
Lots of famous art was produced hereabouts.  The old town is the main
attraction, ringed by a circle of boulevards and squares.  Medieval Aix was
protected by a wall with 39 towers, but only the 14th century "Tourreluquo"
tower remains.

Les Baux-de-Provence - simply stunning historical (and now touristy)
curiosity in Provence.  Now a tourist site rather than an active village,
but still impressive.  And great roads around it too.  It's basically a town
that's built in a giant nest of rocks.  There are incredible rock formations
in this part of the Alpilles, with the road cut through the solid rock.  It
has narrow cobblestone streets, terrace cafés, souvenir shops and tourists.


Cannes - Cote d'Azur, hey, you gotta, right?  The "star" of the French
Riviera.  Glitzy hotels, cars, beaches and stars.  Lots of exotic cars.
Enjoy walking along the famous "Croisette" (the boulevard and the beach that
extends around the bay).  

Digne-les-Bains - check out the thermal baths that justify the -les-Bains
part of its name. 
 
Gordes - Beautiful old village on the southern edge of the high Plateau de
Vaucluse.  Stunning.  Lots of tourists, but worth it.  

Grasse - perfume capital, just a few miles away from Cannes, and a little
bit further from Nice.  We had the best meal of the trip here.  

Marseille - Great cathedrals and explore the catacombs and ossuaries.  Go
there for the food!  The seafood capital of Provence.  You MUST have some
bouillabaisse, particularly the Bouillabaisse du Ravi.   

Menerbes - you have read Peter Mayle's books, right??

Menton - nice little town on the coast.

Moustiers-Ste-Marie  - another tourist destination, but worth the visit --
and the climb!  It sits at the base of rocky cliffs, with the Notre-Dame de
Beauvoir chapel above the village.  Which means you have to climb, but the
beauty is worth it.  Oh, and be sure to bring me back some ceramics from
here, particularly a water pitcher in "Provence Blue" to replace the one
that my giant dog broke.  The mountain stream that divides the two halves
with a narrow rocky canyon goes by the chapel, and runs underneath a giant
gold star, with the chain fastened into solid rock on each side of the
gorge. 
 
Nice - flew in and out of here.  Big city in Provence.

Orange - Lots of Roman ruins, and bullfighting ring, IIRC.  Worth a
drive-thru.

St. Remy de Provence - like Arles, very beautiful, lots of history.

Hope this helps!!!

Vty,

--Dennis