Advertisement
Published: October 22nd 2017
Edit Blog Post
Geo: 43.1432, 6.38085
It's been a while coming, but here's an update on where we are and what we have been doing (not a lot).
Whilst the site at Sommieres had all the campsite bells and whistles, for me it lacked the more personal touches and ambience of the smaller owner-managed ones that we have enjoyed so much in the past. So, last week as we travelled to a familiar site which we visited in 2014, we had every intention of putting down roots for a considerable stay, of perhaps, two weeks. Yesterday, we added another week, such is the feeling of being 'at home' and contentment. You never know, we may even go beyond that.
We are not alone in liking this peaceful oasis of calm as many fellow campers have been coming for years, some now store their caravans locally to be brought to site and pitched for weeks on end, taking several days to get everything just so. These silver-haired, sun seekers often come for two periods during the year, Spring and Autumn, preferring to be out of the way when mainly French occupy the pitches in August. We even recognised some from our previous stay. Notice that I have not
named our exact location since I risk the wrath of these regulars should I prompt a surge in bookings and a disturbance of their much loved holiday routine. You would be hard pressed to find the site listed on any online resources or, indeed, any reviews.
David in particular was keen to return due to the cycling opportunities round and about, having been out with Rien several times during our previous stay. He was here during April and May apparently, so missed him by a couple of weeks. This year, his bike buddy is 70-year old Chris who we had met before, having ridden out with them on one occasion. His wife, Gordana, who fears for his safety when out alone, is delighted and relieved that David has taken him under his wing.
We have done some very ordinary activities so far, such as, visiting the market in Cogolin last Saturday, stopping off on our return journey at a couple of wineries to try some of their Cotes de Provence, coastal walk into Le Lavandou for coffee, and enjoying the sociable ambience of the site where come 6pm it is boules time and it's a case of ladies v the men, followed
by 'happy hour' over drinks and nibbles.
Yesterday, we were out for lunch at La Petite Fontaine at Collobrieres set in the hills some 17 miles inland from the coast. We last visited in 2014 and this time it was equally delicious and memorable. The weather was kinder, so much so, that we dined outdoors under the shade of umbrellas and is clearly very popular. I guess it could be described as rustic Provençal cooking, but it is so flavoursome. Familiar favourites were still on the menu as I remembered so we dined on onion tart, roasted red peppers, stuffed tomatoes, garlic chicken, chestnut ice cream and set cream with red-fruit coulis. We skipped the cheese board this time, including the curious jar of fermented cheese. A refreshing bottle of local rose helped it all down, ending with coffee and a tot of the local spirit.
There's a book and brocante fair in Le Lavandou over the weekend so we may take a look, other than that, no plans.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.425s; Tpl: 0.046s; cc: 7; qc: 41; dbt: 0.1017s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb