Mas Vacquières

This is a very special place.

It is not expensive or exclusive
but it has a magical quality
that seeps into your dreams.

You drive through a countryside
of vines, ripe wheat and sunflowers
and arrive in a tiny hamlet.

At the far end of the hamlet
is a cluster of buildings
with yellow shutters
looking out over a sheltered valley.

As soon as you arrive
you are enveloped in quiet.
The rooms are cool and tranquil
each with a tiny terrace.

In the beautiful gardens
there are places to sit and dream
or fall asleep in the shade.
You can swim. Or just admire the flowers.

This wonderful place is the creation of
a Dutch couple, Thomas and Miriam van Dijke,
and their hospitality is courteous,
with their guests comfort as top priority.

There are historic towns to visit nearby
and lots of places to eat delicious food
but you are always making plans
to return to Mas Vacquières
and make the most of every moment there.

On the first night I saw a doe
step out of the woodland
and look up to the terrace
where I was sitting.

As I said, it is a very special place.

Mas Vacquières

a tragic case of the wanties

You know that thing when you leap out of the car on the first day of your holiday ready to fall in love with everyone and everything and then the very first shop that you walk into is adorable and there is this one scarf and you want it so badly and your best friend (in this case the lovely Mary) says that it would really suit you but you look at your husband's face (in this case MrM) and you can see he is thinking that if you are like this in the first shop of the holiday what are you going to be like for the rest of the fortnight so even if your bestie is saying that you really should buy the scarf you bravely walk out of the shop just to prove to your husband that there are no other shops that look remotely interesting and then when you go back after lunch it is closed. Well, that.

So then you spend the rest of the holiday dreaming about the scarf and blaming yourself for not standing your ground and it is a personal tragedy.

And then on the last day of the holiday you realise that you are driving past that little town and you persuade your husband who is now relaxed and will indulge your eccentricities to stop just in case the little shop is open. And it is! So you buy the scarf and one for MissM too.

Yes, since you ask, of course there is a website but I didn't know that, did I?

Gris Piedra

vert

These photos were mainly taken after lunch. I am most snap-happy after a couple of glasses of wine - I am sure that David Bailey worked in a similar way.

The meals before the photos:

Artisan ice-cream with the most delicious selection of flavours. I had salted caramel but MrM was more adventurous and tried honey with wild thyme.

A rustic galette in a creperie hidden down a cobbled side-street. We were the last customers to arrive and sat near the kitchen so we saw the great armfuls of plates hurrying past through the narrow doorway, down the steps, across the road.

 

Lamb that fell away from the bone as you touched it with your knife and melted into a rich thyme flavoured jus, a perfectly dressed salad and a velvety crème brulee with a frail, crisp sugar crust in an old fashioned bar on market day filled with local familes.

Tartine pissaladiere in a smart café - a smoky concoction of olives, anchovies and peppers on grilled artisan bread.

 

Tiny vegetables in bubbles of tempura batter and a dish of homemade mayonnaise on a terrace under a clock tower.

Watching the sun set through a frame of vine leaves, thinking about the fish soup I had just eaten. Dense broth laden with flakes of fish, small toasts with creamy anchovy paste glowing on the surface.

 

A return to Au Fil du Temps in Pernes les Fontaines. The couple who were there when we last visited have moved on but there is another young couple working hard, learning their trade in this charming restaurant. We ate outside next to the fountain, savouring the grilled fish and exquisite raspberry tart.

blanc

I have become very lazy about taking pictures and there was a danger that I would return home with an empty camera so I set out with the objective of adding to my Pinterest boards. Here are the pale tones of white, ivory and cream to contrast with the vivid Provençal landscape.

 

It has been fun organising my holiday photos by colour although I suspect that unless I add titles soon the memories will vanish just like those sepia photographs of anonymous faces. I have always admired people who organise their photos into albums because my printed photos remain in a drawer, still in their paper envelopes, waiting for an unspecified time when I will sort them out. In contrast, my digital photos are all here in a virtual album with dates, names and places. It is an important source of family information - which is why I started writing in 2007 - and I mustn't lose sight of that.   

jaune

It has been a joyful holiday
although it started in an unpromising way
when we got tangled up with
the French air traffic controllers' strike.

Our holiday list was straight forward:
eat good food,
read lots of books,
drink rosé wine,
soak up the sunshine,
catch up on sleep.

We have achieved all of those things.
High-five us.

bleu

Bonjour!

 

Apologies for the extended absence...

le wifi, it was unreliable,

la gastronomie, it was copious,

l'esprit, it became idle.

Au Fil Du Temps

Pernes-les-Fontaines outside Avignon
has 52 fountains or perhaps 35 or 43
depending on which guide book you have.

We only discovered 5 fountains
in the warren of tiny streets
before we got distracted.

I saw it first, a few tables,
stylish glasses, young families
in the sunshine of the quiet square.

Au Fil Du Temps is tiny
with only 18 covers and so
there was an agonising pause
when we asked if they had a table.

My instincts were right...
the set menu was a joyful marriage
between the freshest of ingredients
and a playful approach to flavours.

A featherlight savoury mousse
apparently suspended in mid air
was followed by steamed celeraic,
the melting texture contrasting
with a granular quinoa dressing.

The fish was miraculously perfect.
Crisp skin, steaming hot,
flaking as the knife touched it.
I tried not to sigh with delight
but it was embarrassingly impossible.

And here is the dessert:
limpid green fennel poached in vanilla
draped on a soft bed of buttery cake
dotted with white chocolate,
studded with apricot puree.

It was a real thrill to stumble across
a restaurant which celebrates
a passion for food with such creativity.
The decor is utilitarian chic
and the service is quietly efficient.

If you visit Pernes-les-Fontaines
don't try to find all the fountains,
they will still be there next year.
Make a beeline for Au Fil Du Temps
and enjoy the hospitality of
this talented young couple
before they are lured away to new challenges.

Avignon : Soundscape

the first autumn leaves crisp underfoot

glasses clinking against metal bistro tables

a luggage trolley rattling over cobbles

laughter somewhere out of sight

Disney tunes tinkling at night-time
on the gilt roundabout in the square

the muffled yap of a lapdog
at the next restaurant table

motorbikes, cars, lorries.
brakes, sirens, car radios
outside the city walls

and an accordion player
outside the Palais des Papes