Spectacular Provence - Gordes, Goult & Fontaine de Vaucluse

Gordes is the first village we saw from the car driving into the Luberon valley and it is a mighty sight. It is one of the most beautiful and most well-known of the hilltop villages in the region. It's charm lies in it's narrow cobblestone streets and the emergence of it's stone houses and buildings from the mountainside. This village also makes it into our top 5 villages and is beautifully lit at night.

The Provence landscape...

The following images are from an ancient fortified hilltop village named Goult.

Fontaine de Vaucluse is a medieval village tucked away in a closed valley with it's biggest feature being the river. The water actually gushes up out of the ground and begins with a still, deep pool of crystal water (first photo) and is amazing to see. The river then turns into rapids crashing over black rocks and continues through the centre of the village.

Chris re-filling his water bottle and sampling the river...

Roussillon - Provence, France

The ocre-red village of Roussillon built mostly around 300 years ago, was the first village we visited in the Provence region. Is is beautiful with it's red rocks, red buildings and red roof tiles. This was also the first village we drove into and let's just say it was an experience trying to drive down the narrow lanes where both mirrors were just about touching. Small cars are a MUST. The village is set high on the side of a mountain with lovely views over the surrounding countryside. It was an awesome little Provencal village to explore in the late afternoon sun and was one of our top 5 favourites.

This is the Avignon TGV train station building, where we arrived from Paris and collected our hire car.

Planning a trip to the south of France?

If you have ever considered visiting the south of France and exploring the stunning Provence region, we have a charming little secret to share. In the heart of the Luberon Valley, perched high on a hill lies Au Point de Lumiere, a charming bed & breakfast with a view of the valley. Annie & Jean-Claudes' warm hospitality and knowledge of the area will ensure you stay is enjoyable and relaxing.

Imagine starting the day with a lazy breakfast overlooking the pool and surrounds, followed by a country drive to neighbouring stoned villages, perhaps the lavender fields and returning for a well earned swim and chillout by the pool. Then maybe, dinner in a hidden alleyway or a cavern that you never even knew existed. Ahhh.....

We loved staying here, it is so central to all you need in the Luberon Valley. A very special place.

Chris & Sonia

Sweetie the dog is such a poser! She loves showing her wild side.

Lucky the cat enjoying a morning stretch.

Jean-Claude & Annie would love to welcome you to Au Point De Lumiere.

Photos from Provence coming soon.

More from Paris...

Here are a few images that missed the last post. The first two are from our day stopover in Singapore, when we left the airport and walked the streets. These two are of the Esplanade Theatre buildings. And the others are from a night outing in Paris with the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre.

We are currently preparing more images from out last week in the Luberon Valley, Provence. It was an amazing week in stunning countryside exploring scattered stone villages set in the side of mountains joined together with little windy roads. It was hard to leave such a peaceful place.

Today we are on the French Riviera. We visited Cannes and the Antibes coast yesterday and are heading to St Tropez today and Nice, Monaco and Monte Carlo tomorrow.

Stay tuned, photos coming soon....