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

[JAshburne (JAshburne]

I don't know if it is still there, but a dozen years ago we happened upon  an 
inn and restaurant somewhere on the road between Les Baux and St. Remy that  
was a charming place to have a meal.  And the best part of it was that it  was 
the house formerly owned by Ferrari long distance racer Olivier  Gendebien.  
The living room was a wonderful place to have an after dinner  drink, shoot a 
little pool and look at the various news articles and memorabilia  from 
Gendebien's racing career, including 4 wins at Le Mans.
 
Wish I could remember the name of the place...
 
John
 
In a message dated 4/18/2007 4:41:50 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
MStark [at] Copper.net writes:

Yes.  Yes.  This really helps.  Did you stay mostly in hotels, or did you  
do a weekly rental?

Dennis Liu wrote:

>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


 



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