I just got back from an idyllic week in Provence, in the South of France. It was a long awaited proper holiday with no work at all! I did do a few sketches though of course…
We explored many of the little towns in the patch of Provence near where we were staying: Aix-en-Provence, Avignon, L’Isle de la Sorgue, St Remy-de-Provence. All of them delightful with their own characteristics. We wandered markets, ate icecreams, and tried to stay in the shade where possible.
We had at least one special meal a day - here is a sampling; the first image shows sketches I made at Pollen in Avignon: many, many little courses in a beautiful tasting menu, the second is a starter in a rural bistro that blew my mind: cold soup made of tomato, peach and cucumber! The last was at the Michelin starred restaurant Chateau de la Pioline: looks like a tomato, but actually it’s a reimagined ratatouille. And every course was sort of like that…
The best bit of the holiday was the place we stayed, the absolutely sublime Le Mas de la Sorgue. It was about 20 minutes from Avignon, in beautiful countryside, and the atmosphere was so peaceful, welcoming and restful. Every afternoon we went home after a hot day exploring, and had a dip in the pool and a nap. Heavenly!
In the evenings we sat and enjoyed the sunset and wondered if life could be like this every day…
