After layovers in Paris and Athens, I finally arrived at the Thira Airport in Santorini at close to 8pm. I couldn’t believe that I just spent 15 hours traveling (in the air and waiting at the airports) between two countries that physically aren’t that far apart -relatively speaking. I was exhausted! I prescheduled a taxi, as suggested by Erika (the owner of Chelidonia Villas - where Thao and I will be staying while in Santorini). Apparently, there are only 39 cabs on the entire island, so the waiting time would have been horrendous without an advanced booking. Thomas, my cab d [View Full Entry]

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My flight was scheduled to leave Marseilles at 8am, but I left Les Carmes at 4am. I wanted to give myself at least 2 hours for the typical 1-hour commute from Les Carmes to the Marseilles airport, because I had to drop off my rental car and I wanted to factor in the potential delays for getting lost. The good thing was that I didn’t get lost! But I also didn’t find the gas station either, so I parked the rental car in one of the open EuropCar stalls with only ¾ of a tank of gas. I easily checked in [View Full Entry]

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During my last full day in Provence, I decided to visit the three small Luberon Hill villages that Jim and Hazel liked so much. The quaint town of Bonnieux was my first stop. Although the Tourism Office was closed, the artist who shares his studio with the Tourism Office was nice enough to give me an English map of the village. It didn’t take long to walk up and down the narrow cobblestone roads, visiting the current church at the bottom of the hill, then making my way up to the 12th century church at the top of the hill (that [View Full Entry]

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I was the last one to breakfast, and everyone else had already left Les Carmes to start their day exploring Provence once again. After Ann brought my breakfast over, she asked me if I was planning on going to the largest Provencal open market in L’Isle Sur la Sorgue this morning. I quickly realized that was the reason why I was the sole guest still at the breakfast table despite the fact that it was just nine in the morning. I hadn’t planned on going, but she convinced me that it was well worth the visit. I hurriedly scarfed down [View Full Entry]

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I had to get an earlier start today because I scheduled a culinary lesson with James at 4:30p. After breakfast, I said goodbye to my dinner companions and new-found friends from Northern Ireland, Jim and Hazel. Such a sweet couple, they were gracious enough to invite me to eat dinner with them while we all stayed at Les Carmes. Unfortunately, they were heading up north to another B&B in Provence to explore more of that region for the next week. I wrote them a short note and included my business card/contact info so that we can keep in touch via email, [View Full Entry]

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At last night’s meal, Jim and Hazel couldn’t say enough about the beautiful hilltop village of Les Baux. That was enough to convince me to spend the day there and in the nearby town of St. Remy. Once the village of Les Baux came into view on the drive there, I took a ton of pictures. I parked down below the village and walked up to save the headache of trying to find parking in the designated lots near the center of town. The narrow, cobblestone streets were reminiscent of those in Tuscany. Les Baux was both picturesque and quaint. [View Full Entry]

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Today, I had high hopes that I would explore more villages than I did yesterday, but that didn’t end up happening. After breakfast, I didn’t leave Les Carmes until after 11am. My plan was to visit Avignon, Pont Du Gard, and Uzes villages. Well, I only made it to the first city of Avignon because there was so much to see and do. Per Ann’s recommendation, I parked along the city walls, instead of driving into the city’s center. Ann had given me a map of the city, so I easily found my way to the main plaza and chose [View Full Entry]

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Les Carmes' garden terrace, shaded by a multitude of vines, has become our dining area for both breakfasts and dinners. The homemade croissants at breakfast were deliciously flaky, but not overwhelmingly buttery…just how I like them. During breakfast, Mike and Ann graciously explained how to drive to the towns that I was planning on visiting today. After Ann printed out a map from the Internet to trace the route, I was on my way to the 11th century village of Gordes in the Southern Vaucluse region of Provence. Gordes and its signature castle (now museum) sit atop a hill, and [View Full Entry]

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A week came and went in the blink of an eye. Our 4:30am wake-up call was an unpleasant reminder that Boyd would have to spend the next 24 hours traveling back to Hawaii, and that I would be on my way to visit one of the final two countries of my two-month trip. The cab ride was uneventful, but the airport was a zoo. For some reason, the European airports seem to be much less efficient at checking in and processing baggage, than its US counterparts. For the first time during the trip, I did not have any weight issues with [View Full Entry]

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At the last minute (just a few days ago), I decided that I would rent a car while in Provence for the next week, even though 1) I will be by myself and 2) I am the world’s worst navigator. My only salvation is the fact that the French drive on the right side of the road (which I had to look up online, because I couldn’t remember!) The 50-minute direct non-stop flight into Marseilles Airport from Barcelona was too quick to get a decent nap. Once I arrived and retrieved my one checked baggage, I headed for the Europcar rental [View Full Entry]

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