Perched Villages of the Luburon

Seeking safety from maraudng tribes, many vllages moved up the mountainside many hundreds of years ago. When peace returned, the villagers tended to move back down to the valleys. Several of these Perched Villages were nearly ghost towns fifty or so years ago, before they were "discovered" by those wealthy enough to restore the villas and infrastructures. Today they are among the most picturesque sights in Provence.
Here is the village of Gordes, set in the lush countryside:

and here is Rousillon, with houses made from the red clay of the surrounding hills. The houses range in hue from ocre to deepest blood red, depending upon the oxidation of the clay. Its beauty has made it one of the most touristed towns in the Luberon.

 

 

 

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Music Everywhere

If you are in France on the third weekend of June, you can enjoy the music festival which takes place throughout the entire country, and, it seems, Monaco too.

Live musicians suddenly appear on every street corner. If you don't care for one band, just walk a block and you'll hear someone different.

One of my favorite memories is of dancing in the street (along with a couple of hundred others) outside the famed Casino of Monte Carlo to a truly fabulous jazz band. And what a setting, of course. High on a hill overlooking all of Monaco with a parade of formally clad patrons exiting fabulous cars to try their luck at the Casino.

On a more pedestrian note (pun intended) here is a  clip of street musicians in Paris and the Paris metro.

Villa Euphrussi, Cap Ferrat (2)

After love comes.....gardening

Beatrice Rothschild and her husband shared a love of games of sport, animals, gambling, travel and lavish parties. Maurice Euphrussi, sadly, loved gambling a bit too much and by 1904 had accumulated a debt the equivalent of 30 million Euros. Beatrice's alarmed parents arranged a divorce. Maurice died shortly thereafter and Beatrice lavished her attention on her dogs and exotic animals. She famously arranged a formal wedding for one of her favorite dogs. 

The creation of the Villa Euphrussi on the most desirable piece of land in Cap Ferrat absorbed Beatrice's attention until her death.

Villa and Gardens of Beatrice Ephrussi de Rothschild

Perched like a delightful pink wedding cake, the Villa sits on the only piece of land in Cap Ferrat which has water on two sides. Indeed, water is a central theme to the property, as you will see from the many fountains. The Baroness was so enchanted by the sea that she costumed her gardeners in sailors' uniforms. The garden is composed of nine themed gardens comprising 17 acres.

The gardens are: Rose garden (of course), Exotic garden, Provencal garden, Japanese garden, Stone garden (with antiquities in stone), Florentine garden, French and Spanish gardens, and Sevres garden.

 The Italianate Villa contains many of the original furnishings, dishes and draperies.