Tour de France, Gordes and Roussillon.

Bastille day in Venasque began with a nice burst of sunshine and some mistral wind to cool everything down.

This was the day of the big parade in Paris (which we watched on the computer) and the day that the Tour de France pedaled past the village. There was a jazz concert

and a street dance around the fountain in the evening where everyone was laughing, singing and enjoying time with each other.

It was a terrible shock to wake the next morning to the horrible news from Nice. The village statue was draped in black ribbon and on Monday there was a minute of silence as villagers gathered in front of the Hotel de Ville.

There is a subdued air here right now, in sharp contrast to the bright blue sky and brilliant sun which bring out colors and should make you feel joyful.


The Tour de France came past Venasque on Bastille Day...

 Susan took these incredible photos standing right next to the road

...I was up on the hill higher and although I could see the riders whizz by, on my photos they look like a row of stones! I guess you had to BE right there. It goes by very fast...I really did not expect that!

The street dance brought out the performer in our grand daughter Maya who just could not be stopped.

She loves village parties and Venasque is small enough to truly enjoy. The music was also good so we all had fun. Too much Mistral though for fireworks so we just danced until late. We were all in warm jackets though...after nearly a week of very hot days the wind brought the temperature down into the upper 50's!!!

The market in Pernes les Fontaines was as charming as ever and it made us feel better to walk among the stalls and breathe in the wonderful smells of fresh tomatoes, olive oil soaps and lavender.

Gordes and Roussillon are just over the hill so we aimed the car in that direction to get a look at the Luberon Valley and the beautiful ochre hills around Roussillon.

After a few chillier days with the Mistral the temperatures went back up again and we could hear the cigales singing in the trees. Anton caught this one in his yard!! They are hard to see and even harder to catch.

We arrived in Gordes early enough to see the shopkeepers putting out card stands and sweeping the front step. The narrow, stone streets are always so beautiful to walk through especially with less people and no cold wind blowing.

There are also some amazing viewpoints.

This yard had laundry out on the line.

I liked the contrast of stone and green in this street.

On the way back to the car we passed this ancient school sign and then drove on out of town. Bye Gordes!!

Our next stop was Roussillon...not too far away but really so different just because of the intense reds and oranges of that city.

We walked up to the upper part of town for the view out over the valley...I am always so taken by the magnificent colors of Roussillon it is almost magical!!

We had lunch on the main square and I looked up to see these banners across the terrace.

Across from us was  JC's favorite house in Roussillon. Not for sale!!

We were given a little glass of Limoncello after lunch! Chilled and delicious...had to have coffee and walk some more before we drove off.

Some last pictures to share of this very pretty little city...the sun was very strong and bright. Can you feel the heat radiating off the photo?

We all thought this woman looked very cool in her dress which looked handpainted.

Isn't the rose glow in the picture beautiful?? It was a very nice way to spend a Sunday.