We are now officially half-way through our month in Provence...
We're following the tried-and-true vacation formula of a day close to home followed by a day with an outing/adventure. The villa is so enticing and the villages of Mirmande & Cliousclat so beautiful, that we're having a harder & harder time encouraging the children to leave home.
Thanks to Eric's sister and brother in law, Rachael & Ian Phillips, who have been coming to the Phillips family homes in Mirmande every summer, we are fortunate to have many lists of what to see and do. Armed with these lists, we feel like veterans to this area. (Thanks Rachael & Ian!)
The other day at L'Office de Tourisme in Mirmande, Jeanette, the local guide, recounted a conversation she'd just had with a village resident who remembers meeting Mike Phillips (Ian's father) when Mike was a little boy. We think this must have been in the 1950's?? Americans are few and far between in these small villages and, despite our rusty & limited French, we've received a very warm welcome.
On July 14th, French National Day, we drove to the village of Tain L'Hermitage to visit the Valrhona Chocolate factory. Of course, being a national holiday, everything was closed. Thanks to Rachael's vacation notes, we drove to the local chapel on a hillside covered with grape vines and had a beautiful day picnicking & playing.
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| Tain-l'Hermitage with Tournon-Sur-Rhone across the Rhone River |
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| The vineyard of Paul Jaboulet Aine |
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| The Chapel |
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