Theatre Antique d'Orange

Monday 28 May 2012

I woke up bright and early to finish packing before we needed to clean the Gite and leave Vergons.  Cleaning was a chaotic affair of too many cooks in the kitchen and not sticking to the plan.  It resulted in sweeping twice and some not quite getting their breakfast when they wanted.  In the end, all was accomplished and we were ready to go on time.  A few more group photos and Erica taking her last chance to ice her knew in the fountain, then on the bus and away we went.

Erica "icing" her knee

How quickly the landscape changed once we were no longer in the mountains.  Hot and flat, different vegetation - I missed the mountains almost immediately, well except for the curvy, crazy roads.  Those I can do without.  We arrived at Orange (stop saying it like the color we all know and love - more like Oar - rawnge).  Right of the bat - a war memorial in the parking lot, only this time it was for "l'arrondissement d'Orange a ses Enfants Morts Pour la Patrie - 1870-1871" commemorating the children from Orange who died for the Fatherland in the Franco-Prussian War.  

The really neat part of this monument was the extra plaque attached near the bottom (the bit of blue in the photo).  It marked that the city was "liberated by the soldiers of the 3D infantry division during World War II."  Ahhh the layers of history you find in France!

Exterior Wall - The Most Impressive in France

When we walked the block and first spied the Théâtre antique d'Orange I completely understood why Kind Louis XIV called it's exterior wall the most impressive in his kingdom.  While I have not seen all of France, from what I have seen I'd have to agree.  The whole Théâtre is so grand in size, it just boggles the mind.  I did my best to try and capture it with my camera, but I'm sure I failed miserably.  No matter what I tried, I could not get all of it to fit in a single photograph!

View of the stage from as high up as I could get

Oh how I'd love to see a play or an opera performed on that stage!  They do that from time to time.  The acoustics are still amazing.  Marissa and I were down by the stage and Cindy was up in the seats taking our picture and she could hear us without us really shouting at her.

View of the seats - my back is against the stage wall

They had a nice film about the history of the Théâtre and the city of Orange.  Very strange to think that people once built their homes within the walls of the Théâtre and even more amazing to think that someone had the foresight to preserve the structure before it was too badly destroyed.  From the Théâtre antique d'Orange we walked across town to L'Arch Commemoratif - but that is another story for my next post!

For more photographs from Théâtre antique d'Orange click here.

Festival in Annot

Sunday 27 May 2012

We headed to the neighboring village of Annot.  They were celebrating their patron saint's feast day - St. Fortunat.  I'm not sure why he is their patron, but it was interesting to see how they celebrated his feast day.

Poster for the week's festivities

  A parade was scheduled to start at 9:30, but as we gathered along the parade route, we noticed that we were the only ones.  Very unlike the typical parade in America where people line up for hours before to ensure they get a good spot.  It seemed as if no one was particularly worried about this.  The parade consisted of a fabulous marching band followed by some men in traditional military uniforms of the Napoleonic era and women, also in traditional dress bringing up the rear.

Me and some soldiers :)

The parade continued into the old part of the village and into the church for mass.  I also attended, arriving after all the parade members were settled but before the band finished and the service started.  For the most part of I was able to follow along - combination of poor French language skills and being a life long Catholic.    It is really hard to think/respond in English while everyone else is speaking French.  I missed that the prayer books were at the back of the church and not in the pews.  Communion was the most haphazard I have ever experienced in a Catholic Church - instead of nice orderly lines, everyone went up when they were ready.  Not sure if this was normal or due to the fact the church was added onto at one point that there was no center isle anymore.  The band ended the service with the most moving rendition of "You Are My Sunshine" that I have ever heard.  I'm not even sure how to describe what made it so good- perhaps the amazing talent of the band itself combined with the fact that I recognized the song and could join in with a group of people I had been struggling to understand for the last hour.  Not that anyone was actually singing . . .

Check out this video of the parade - the band was amazing!

Following mass the parade reformed and processed back to the main square where the statue commemorating the war dead was located.  All the speeches were in French without any translations - this was to be expected since it was a celebration for the people of Annot by the people of Annot.  During the ceremony, some of the women in costume placed a bouquet of flowers on the monument and the soldiers were subjected to an inspection by the mayor and the leader of their unit and ended with a salut of arms, firing rounds in unison with their guns and cannon.

Note: Memorial to the right, Mayor wearing the banner just to its left.

The band and reenactors paraded out and it was time for the apéritif- apparently free drinks draws a crowd, including us.  We enjoyed whiskey and Pastis before catching the bus back to Vergons.

Lines for the apertif

Back in Vergons we headed to Gilbert's (pronounced Gee-bear) house for lunch.  We made sandwiches out of tuna, eggs, olives, etc.  Very different, but very good.  Laughter and drinks made for a good start to the afternoon.  After lunch, I headed back to the Gite to read and take a nap only to wake up to a huge crack of thunder.  A few more games of Carassonne before dinner, our last in Vergons.  The restaurant owners out did themselves with a wonderful roasted pig.  It tasted amazing, as always.  They even put a candle in Tim's dessert since it was his birthday and as a result of all of this we were the built in entertainment for all the other patrons of the restaurant that evening.  Very much a bettersweet feeling packing and preparing to leave Vergons for the next leg of our journey.

For more photographs click here.

Moustiers-Sainte-Marie

Saturday 26 May 2012 Continued

When we entered the village of Moustiers-Sainte-Marie (pronouced Moos-Tee-Ay Sant Marie) we immediately began looking for bathrooms and a place for lunch.  We found a nice looking pizza place.  Before arriving in the South of France, I never would have guessed that there would be so much good pizza available - it's not what I think of when I think of French food.  The waitress go a little snippy at us - Marissa and David just ordered drinks and she reminded us that it was a restaurant and not a cafe.  The rest of us were planning on eating, so it all turned out okay, but it did sour the experience.  Cindy and I split a wonderful Hawaiian pizza - it was just the right amount for lunch.  

View of the Village

Following lunch we headed our separate ways to do some shopping and poking about.  It wasn't until David and I were looking at postcards (I swear I had about $30 in postcards by the end of the trip) that I realized this was the city with the star suspended above.  It took us a little longer to realize that we were standing right underneath it.

The Star Hanging Above the City

Legend has it that the star was placed there by the Duke of Blacas, a warrior taken prisoner by the Saracens during the Crusades, after his release.  Of course the star has been replaced since it was first hung, but it is still pretty neat.  The chain the star hangs upon is 227 meters and weighs 400 kg, the star itself is 80 cm in diameter and has ten points/rays.

David and I did try to find a couple of geocaches, but no luck.  One was way up on the cliff and the other very tiny in a very public area.  I didn't really feel like trying to explain the game with my limited French, and I had forgotten to pack a brochure about in French to show people if they did ask me what I was doing.

Bryce walking through my photo opp of the WWI Memorial

Near where we met the bus was the village's WWI memorial.  This was was unique and featured a woman next to the tablet type stone listing all the names of the dead (18 in all) with "1914-1918" on the bottowm.  There was also a small plaque for a man killed in Indo-Chine in 1947, but no memorial for WWII.  I wonder if I just missed it or if no one from Moustiers was killed during that war.

L-R: Bryce, Minda, Tim, David, Cindy, and Erica

Back home to Vergons for more games of Carassonne.  Bryce and David each won a game.  I'm glad I brought it along - who knows what we would have done without it!

For more photographs from our time in Moustiers click here.

Les Gorges du Verdon

Saturday 26 May 2012

This was our day to tour the Gorges du Verdon - the Grand Canyon of western Europe   Starting near Castellane, the gorge was formed by the Verdon River and ends with the Lac Sainte Croix.  The first thing that struck me about the gorge was its colors - blue, green, and grey.  So many have compared it to the the United States' Grand Canyon I had subconsciously expected the desert color pallet to go with it.  Frankly I like the Verdon's colors better. :)

We saw tourists everywhere - hiking, participating in water sports, driving fancy cars, and taking scenic photographs.  Amazing to think that this place was only "discovered" 106 years ago.  I guess that really didn't surprise me when you factor in the roads.  They make a challenging drive - narrow and right next to the edge at many locations.  They must have taken years to care out, and at great expense!

Cindy and Me

We stopped at a scenic location by the Tunnel de Gloige (at least that is where I think we were).  Dr. O'Brien let us borrow her flashlight so we could explore the tunnel.  Several of us went in together as a group.  We had to be careful as part of the tunnel floor were covered with about two inches of water in some spots due to the recent rain.  We made it to the first couple of windows without needing a flashlight too much, as those openings provided fairly good light.  

L-R: Muaamar, Cindy, Tim, Erica, Minda, Michel

Some of the group wished to go beyond the second window with the flashlights, so I joined them.  I'm not a huge fan of the dark and underground, but with a group it was fun.  My feet got a little wet, but not too bad.  When we got to another window, I stopped to enjoy the view.  Alas, I was promptly left behind without a flashlight.  Thanks guys.  Bryce, Minda, and Erica caught up to me, as they too were left behind in the dark when David went on a head without them.  Decision time - stay and wait for them to come back or start wandering along in the dark.  There was no way to get lost - the tunnel was straight, but plenty of little holes to trip on.  After a brief discussion, the four of us decided to head back in the dark.  Amazingly we did make it - some nice French hikers helped us get through on large puddle (and probably thought we were crazy without a light).  

Point Sublime

As we continued to drive, it was one amazing view after another.  We even saw some people rock climbing - something I'm sure my brother, sister, and brother-in-law would love to have a chance at.

Climber in Red on the Right

The road back down the other side of the mountain ridge made me thankful for good breaks and Stephinie's good driving skills - again narrow roads, few guard rails, and several steep drops.  We saw le Lac Sainte Croix du Verdon as we decended the mountains and entered the village of Moustiers Sainte-Marie in the early afternoon.  More on that village in my next post!

For more photographs of Les Gorges du Verdon click here.

Saint Honorat

Friday 25 May 2012 Continued

The city of Cannes was crazy busy due to it being the last day of the famous Cannes Film Festival.  No, we didn't see any famous people, just got caught in a lot of traffic.

Banner for the Festival

At 2:00 pm we boarded the "St. Honorat III," the ferry boat that took us to the island of Saint Honorat.  After a twenty-minute boat ride, we immediately went to the fortified monastery on the southern coast.  Dr. O'Brien explained the history then we were sent off to explore.

Again, the views of the sea were amazing.  Not a bad view no matter what direction you pointed the camera.    A beautiful place to relax and recharge.  Also a very strategic place to build a fortification - you can see a ship coming miles away!

I like capturing views framed by gaps in the stone

Coast and the modern Abby of Lerins

View of the Sea

Minda, Jim, Cullen, and Erica enjoying the view above.

After our time in the fortified ruins, we headed to the active part of the island - the Lérins Abbey.  As the church was empty at that moment, we were able to spend a little time in it.  It was very plain and simple compared to the other churches we had seen up to that point.  We then wandered back toward the north side of the island where we would meet the ferry to go back to the main land.  As it had started to rain, we gathered at the resturant for a drink before heading back to the mainland.  

Jim (on left) with best glass of wine ever

Jim thoroughly enjoyed is 9 Euro glass of wine - he didn't know it was going to be that expensive when he ordered it.  (Just a note, on average we were paying 2-5 Euros for an entire bottle of wine)  Note to self - always check prices, don't order without seeing the wine list.  We caught the ferry at 5:00 pm and once on the mainland it took forever (over an hour) to get out of Cannes due to the festival traffic.  Dinner back in Vergons at about 8:00 pm then back to the gite for journaling.

For additional pictures on Saint Honorat go here.

Antibes

Friday 25 May 2012

Early morning again - on the bus by 8:30 am for our two hour drive to Antibes along the coast.  The nice part was I slept most of the way there. :)  We were dropped off by the pier and walked  to the market to check things out.   It was much larger (and more expensive) than the last market we were at.  Everything from fruit and veggies to meats and cheese all under one large pavilion.

Following the market, we walked the ramparts.  Absolutely beautiful views of the sea from this part of the city.

In exploring the rest of the city - we stumbled upon this unique monument.  It was titled "1940-1945 Antibes a la Resistance et ses Martyrs"  What was different about this monument from others I had seen was the look as if the figure was carrying a heavy load on his shoulders.  Was he weary with the weight of sorrow or was it something else?

With our limited time in Antibes, we saw what was left of a Roman cistern we had missed on the rampart and caught some lunch before boarding the bus at 12:30 to take us to our next destination - Cannes and the Isle of Saint Honorat.

For additional photos in Antibes go here.

Olives

Thursday 24 May 2012

An early start to the day - we had to catch the bus at 8:30 a.m.  We drove about an hour and a half to tour  Moulin des Penitents Olive Oil Mill.  When we were almost there, we stopped at a rest stop and saw the  Les Rochers Des Mees - a series of rocks that look like penitent monks.  Legend has it they were the monks of the Lure mountain who were petrified by Saint Donat during the Saracen invasions as punishment because they fell in love with the beautiful young women that were brought back from a crusade.

In front of Les Rochers

When we arrived at Mouin des Penitents, the first then we did was take a tour of the olive orchard/grove.  These farms have some trees that are up to eight hundred years old!  They used to have more trees of that age, but a bad frost hit the area in the 1930s, killing many of them.  

800 Year Old Olive Tree

Look closely to see the little flower blooms - they are not quite ready just yet

Did you know that bees do not pollinate olive flowers?  The flowers are actually too small and instead they have to rely on the wind for pollination.

I enjoyed wandering through the grove.  When we finished we headed back to the shop and saw the traditional equipment used to press the olives to make olive oil.  Then we were able to head to the factory and see how it is done today - in a state of the art press!  They are even able to use some of the byproduct to fuel the heating system in the building - very eco-friendly.

One of the machines used.

Following our tour of the factory, we headed to the city of Digne les Bains.  We found a great pizza place - too much food!  Mine had a paper napkin attached to the bottom, that was interesting.  It's a good think I mostly finished what I was going to eat before making that little discovery.  Minda needed to find a pharmacy in order to get some motion sickness medication.  I still am so proud of myself for successfully asking for it in French.  The pharmacist spoke really good English, so we finished out the conversation that way, but it was still good.

WWI Memorial

Of course no city trip is complete without finding the WWI Memorial.  This was the first one that I saw that was more than just a pilliar.  The woman represents France, she is holding a wounded/dying soldier and I believe she is standing on top of an Eagle, which probably represents Germany.  Fascinating!

Shortly after leaving Digne les Bains, we stopped to see a large wall of sea creature fossils - way cool!

Closer to Vergons, we stopped at another memorial.  This time for eleven men who were shot by the Germans during WWII for being a part of the resistance.

The rest of the evening was Boule, than an amazing dinner of ravioli that no one could finish.  Not for lack of trying, it was really, really good!

Winning Boule team of Minda, Erica, and Tim

Winning Boule team of Cullen, Nathan, and myself

For more pictures of the day go here.