It’s hard to believe our last day of touring is here! What a wonderful time we have shared together.

We’re spending today in Arles. Just outside town, we stopped by a reproduction of the Langlois Bridge, one of many such structures that Vincent van Gogh painted during his time here.

Then we parked by the Rhone and entered past the ancient Roman gates. Nearby a plaque marked the spot from which Vincent van Gogh painted Starry Night Over The Rhone. His spirit is felt throughout the town of Arles.

Les Arènes, the 2000 year old Roman amphitheatre … and we had a touch of a mistral to blow us around.

The ruins of the ancient Roman theatre  (Theatre Antique) just across the street from Les Arènes.

Then we wandered through the Place de la Republique into the heart of town.

A stroll into the Place du Forum, brought us to the storied Café la Nuit depicted in one of van Gogh’s more famous pieces.

Some of us wandered through the market and ate lunch as we were tempted.

The hospital in Arles where van Gogh spent some time. The gardens and setting have been reproduced to reflect that period.

Dinner? We saved the best for last at L’Essential!

And celebrated Trudy’s birthday …

The evening was filled with laughter, love and promises to stay in contact with each other.

Liz made a touching toast on behalf of the group.

ANNIE, CAROL, CINDY, CRYSTAL, DAWN, JOAN, JOYCE, JUDY, LIZ, MARG, MARIE, MILLIE, PATTI, RICKIE, SUSAN, TRUDY ~ Susan and I cannot thank each of you enough for the wonderful experience we had spending the twelve days touring Provence together. You truly are an exceptional group of women. It was our privilege to share this time with you and become friends. À bientôt!

(I have many more photos to share with you and will let you know when I have them organized and ready for you to access. It will be some time in July.)

 

 

The monastery of St. Paul de Mausole, just outside St. Remy, was to be our first stop. However, on the way …

SUNFLOWERS!

Then we had time to appreciate this special place, with a wing still used as a psychiatric treatment centre, where Van Gogh had spent a productive 10 months. Sadly, his demons were not cured.

The back garden was a beautiful surprise.

Putting on “the pose” (below) for us. :-)

And, finally, we had poppies!

After a typical lunch at a boulangerie, we carried on to Les Baux, with a stop for this photo op of the village and castle ruin. We decided it was too hot to walk up into the village.

The cool cave of the Carrières de Lumières was a welcome relief. The show was spectacular.

An early arrival back to the hotel left time to relax by the pool.

And at the end of another awesome day … dinner, of course! This time back at Le Petit Chaudron where we’ve become the new favourites with Chef Pascal, Marie Carrol and Sarah.

 

Another hot, hot, hot, day!

We set off to explore the Luberon and find some lavender fields. Marcel brought a much smaller bus so we were able to make our way along the narrow roads more easily. Yay, Marcel!

 

Marcel and Valerie were diligently on the hunt for a poppy field for us. Although we knew we were a little too late to see the full effect, they did find this one for us. Seeing all the seed pods we could just imagine how spectacular it must have been.

 

Our first stop was the Musée de La Lavande in Coustellet, where we learned a thing or two about the healing powers and benefits of pure lavender oil.

After meandering through the scenic roads of the Luberon, we could see some lavender fields were more advanced than others.

Our destination was the charming and colourful village of Roussillon.

Of course, we had to pose for the iconic group photo. Love it!

Some of us walked part of the famous Ochre Trail … Joan walked it all! This unique area is why Roussillon and surroundings are known as the  Colorado of Provence.

Others wandered the winding streets, relaxed over lunch on terraces or did a little shopping.

After lunch, we drove on to the 12th C, Abbaye de Sénanque. Valerie took us into the Abbaye for a private tour and, although the lavender was not at its peak, the setting was as stunning as always.

I’ve snuck in a photo for you of how it looks when the flowers are in full bloom. :-) Another week or two would probably have done it for us this year.

With temperatures in the 30C/90F all week, we decided it was too hot to attempt the steep streets of Gordes. However, we did stop so everyone could record the breathtaking setting.

 

Dinner! Our second visit to D’Ici et D’Ailleurs and the lamb tajine was a big hit!