Provence from Fayence: Provence Guide

Keira Knightly buys Provence property

Keira Knightley has spent £1.5million on a secluded estate in Provence. Insiders say Knightley has bought the retreat, a stone's throw from Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis' home, so she has place to recharge her batteries.

"The house is incredibly private, small and cozy and they intend to keep it that way," a source explained.

"Keira is thrilled with the change of scenery and loves the feeling that she'll always have this place to retreat to when she needs to recharge her batteries. Keira is getting tired of life in London, particularly the pollution and congestion, and, although it's essential that she and Rupert both live in London for their acting work, Keira is insisting on spending as much time as possible in France."

Quite right, Keira. See you on the beach?

Topless in Provence face fines

British tourists who go topless in France this summer risk being fined as cities bring in regulations designed to protect public decency. Perpignan, near the Spanish border in the Pyrénées-Orientales department, has become the latest city to introduce new regulations to ban bare chests.

Such sanctions are not uncommon in seaside resorts – Cote D’Azur locations such as Cannes and St Tropez have long enforced a ban on shirtless men and women wearing bikinis, if they are walking around the town rather than lying on the beach.

“This is one of the key principles of public life, which has been a little forgotten,” commented Jean-Marc Pujol, the city’s mayor. “This is about education. People have the freedom to wear what they want, but respect for others is also important.”

L'Occitane Provence garden at Chelsea Flower Show

L'Occitane has sponsored a Provencal garden at the Chelsea Flower Show - I  know because Julie told me on Facebook. The landscape of Provence is the inspiration for The L’Occitane Garden, which recaptures Olivier Baussan’s vision when he set up the natural beauty company over 30 years ago.

The garden features key plant species that are found in the warm, sunny climes of the South of France and the Mediterranean, including structurally appealing olive and almond trees and iconic lavender cultivars. The planting within this wild terrain is framed by the innovative use of original Provençal props, a water irrigation feature and a new rock-scape material being introduced at Chelsea this year."

You can see the lowdown on L'Occitane's website.

Growing olives in Provence as a business

I was encouraged and disheartened au meme temps to read of Adrienne Clarkson and John Ralston Saul in Provence who had established a blossoming olive business. They’ve owned a 300-tree olive grove in France for 10 years, and another with 25 trees (that had to be rehabilitated) for six years. They grow Verdale, Berrugette, Salonenque and Picholine olives in the groves outside the village of Eygalières in Les Alpilles.

Our olive terraces in Provence.

Commenting on their olive oil: "It has got some very herbaceous green notes and really mellows into that rich, buttery taste you’d expect from that region." The product is called "Sublime" and they put 96 bottles for sale at $45.

Oddly, our house comes with 300 olive trees, although we have never classified them and my lazy daughters never completed their count - so it's all a guess.

Nice work. I now realise I could be earning an extra £3500 per annum, if only I did my pruning and harvest.

 

Cours Saleya in Nice - 2nd best flea market in France

The Guardian votes Cours Saleya as the 2nd best in the whole of France.

"On Monday, from morning to mid-afternoon, Nice's colourful, sun-drenched cours Saleya (just behind the Promenade des Anglais) is filled with around 200 flea market vendors selling their wares. This is a fairly high-quality market; however, bargain hunters can also score a good find, particularly in the adjacent place Pierre Gauthier, where odds and ends are piled on the ground. A huge variety of collectables is on offer: silver, vintage clothing, posters, nautical and travel items, ceramics (with some emphasis on regional items from Monaco and Vallauris), paintings, toys, rustic wooden items, jewellery, etc. This is a great market for visitors who are as interested in sun and people-watching as they are in purchasing collectables. You will hear many languages being spoken and some vendors speak English, as well as Italian."

Noel en Provence

Planning your Christmas in Provence? Check out this:"This square is cornered by large plane trees, cascading with tiny lights, and centred with a fountain. Above the plane trees strings of fairy lights form a canopy circus style. The square appears brilliant against the night sky as if dressed with diamonds. "

Read more Chez Kelli.

 

Coastal style Lavender sachets

Coastal style? Sea scents, driftwood mirrors etc. Am sorely tempted by these mediterranean sea-style Lavender sachets I came across from a company called Florestine.

Or the Lavender-scented candle to burn on the patio in the evening - our lavender normally does for the wasps, so maybe a replacement for citronella candles? Florestine obviously have an expensive copy-writer: how  purple is this:

"Blissfully infused with true lavender essence distilled from organic lavandul officinalis and lavanda vera, the indigenous signature scent of a Mediterranean summer. This fragranced and richly lavender coloured candle is hand-made by small family companies for Ortigia, a boutique Italian scent and accessories company in Sicily."

Books about Provence

Have updated the page about books set in or about Provence. Check out books in Provence.

Coleen and Wayne to wed on the Riviera

Coleen and Wayne are coming to town, according to Marie Claire.

Beats the Wirral, I guess, but I wonder where?

Petanque

Petanque is the native provencal ball game - it a bit like football in the UK.  I read in the Times that the name pétanque comes from the Provençal words ped tanco, or pieds tanqués in French, meaning having your feet stuck to the ground. Because there is no run-up, the pitch is shorter than in other boules games. These days pétanque is played by about 17 million people in France and in more than 50 other countries.

I sound better than the author of the piece, but then I played squash as a teenager and developed the flexibility of wrist much cherished by boulistes.

The article has a brief summary of the rules. First to thirteen, not the fifteen I've been playing.