Provence from Fayence: Provence Guide

Provence dumps goo

"Provence dumps goo and cools scallops" came into my Google Alert this morning & I was intrigued. I read on:

"The vat of orange goo is gone. The Palm Pilots are history. The flambe light-show has been canceled. Bouillabaisse and bourride have been bumped -- for now. Welcome to the new Provence. The empty seats have disappeared, too. "

Ha and then I see: "Provence, a charming regional French restaurant in Manhattan's Soho, closed last year following a two-decade run. It reopened last week. "

Oh well, chasing ephemera has its pitfalls.

Best Villas in Provence

The secret is out, courtesy of the Belfast Telegraph and I'm gutted. "Premiere maison a gauche" is not even on the list of best French rental villas. Provence provides three out of five. The villas in Aix-en-Provence and St. Tropez are 10 times what we charge, though.

Maybe we should be investing!

Church in Fayence

Church in Fayence
Originally uploaded by rogerwillco.

Fayence

Fayence

We ventured into Fayence for market day on Easter saturday. The French seemed fairly chilled about Pacques: most of the shops were open on Good Friday and Easter Monday - rather pleasant for we Brits to have all the colourful, local establishments at our disposal when we're used to shut shops.

This photo is right in the middle of the village - looking up the cobbed streets to the old ruined castle (a good vantage point, but not many bricks). On the left you have the Hotel le France, a Swedish-run restaurant, good food, well presented, moderately smart. Market-weary visitors take a morning coffee by the roadside.

Looking in the other direction from the top of the market, the market square is dominated by the church. Spring is in the air, it is 22c and the branches are budding. Down below, the aromas of local produce for sale at the markey waft upwards and you catch the chatter of folk going about their business, haggling over Provencal fabrics and saucisson.

Provence villa rental

Provencal Mas for rent in Mons

For those of you looking for the perfect Provencal holiday, I''m sorry to say that we are down to our last two weeks of availability - 9th to 23rd June.

Having said that, middle of June is the ideal time. Still quiet, uncontaminated by the Euromasses and great weather.

Here's a recent picture from the Easter break.

Figs and parma ham

Imagine my suprise when I logged on to Ocado to do my weekly online grocery shop (as I have been for four years now, like a good Internaut) and I see...Google videos. At our house near Fayence, we have several fig trees and one sooo large it won't stop yielding in July & early August. We can eat fresh figs, fig tarts and now...figs wrapped in Parma ham.