Chateau des Ravalets

Living in a little corner of Normandy, we find ourselves constantly discovering new things about this area and its rich history. I had long heard about a castle in Tourlaville (basically a suburb of Cherbourg) so we took the Harpers there to visit on a lazy Sunday afternoon. We ran around the grounds, enjoying the beautiful gardens and scenery, and we determined to come back the next day for a free visit of the castle.
The next day we participated in the two hour guided tour, and since it was in French, we were thankful to have the help of Jocelyn Manceau, a friend and assistant hired by Areva to help us with our transition to this country. She translated for us the long and surprising story of the Chateau des Ravalets. To make a long story short, the Lord of Tourlaville, Jean II de Ravalet built this Renaissance castle in the sixteenth century on the site of a medieval manor. Jean II presented it to his nephew, Jean III, whose children, Julien and Marguerite, are the subject of its most famous story. Julien and Marguerite were accused of "loathsome deeds" and were decapitated in Paris in 1603 by order of the the king Henri IV, who was heavily influenced to do so by the queen, Marie de Medicis. Their story can be found at:
http://www.ville-cherbourg.fr/uk/tourism_discovery/history/marguerite_and_julien_de/marguerite_and_julien_de/default.asp

Since it was built, the castle has changed hands, been damaged, survived through the Revolution, and been restored many times. Along its long history it was used as a farm, later a hospital, and eventually occupied successively by French, German, and American troops. Above you see the "blue bathroom" on the left and a painting of Marguerite on the right. The massive garden was designed and added in the late 1800s. It was purchased by the Town of Cherbourg in 1935. It is still in a state of restoration. The gardens are open seven days a week, with some of the most beautiful flowers we've seen in Cherbourg.

Day Seven: Avignon

On day seven of our trip, we took a break from all the driving and big-scale sight-seeing and just walked around the city of Avignon and relaxed. We had seen so many "fortified cities" that week, but this was the first one that actually looked like a medieval castle. The outer walls remind me of the sandcastles we build on the beach, or, like a Waffle King sign...

We saw the Palais des Papes, or the Palace of the Popes. It was begun in 1316 by one pope and construction continued through other popes until 1370. We also saw the Notre Dame des Doms, (large cathedral with a gilded statue of Mary on top), built in the 12th century, and the Pont d'Avignon.

After a day of relaxing and a nice dinner, Daniel and I hurried back into the walls of the city to se the theatre festival. Two nights earlier in Avignon, as we walked through the city to find a place to eat dinner, we kept noticing all these flyers and posters, covering every inch of fences, posts and public walls. We learned from our nice waiter that the famous Avignon theatre festival was starting that very night. It is an annual summer event (started in 1947) that runs through July, and about 100,000 people attend! So, Saturday night we parked outside the city walls and rushed into the city to try to see at least one play. The streets were packed with people, street vendors, amateur performers, magicians, clowns, lights, excitement, people going to shows or just enjoying the shows on the streets... It was truly an environment of excitement, dance, music, comedy, and fun. We enjoyed the last show of the night and then walked around the city, enjoying the ambiance. There was actually a night time outdoor market just outside of the city walls, by the ferris wheel, that we visited as well.

Day Six, Continued

Continuing on our road trip south of Avignon.. we came upon Les Baux de Provence, purported to be one of the most beautiful villages in France. We listened to the advice of Rick Steeves and drove up to the highest point of parking possible before ascending the "citadel on a rocky spur." There's a castle at the top, and nice places to walk through on the way up. The views from above were very pretty. We walked a long way but did not linger long in this village on the rock.

By the time we hit Arles on this the warmest day yet, I think we were all somewhat tired from our days of travel, walking, and exploration. We hit a few market stores, peeked in the big Roman amphitheatre, walked through a couple of photography exhibits, visited the boutique of the Van Gogh museum (this was yet another town he painted in, site of the unfortunate ear-severing incident), lingered by a fountain to enjoy the view of the Cathedral de St. Trophime (pictured below), and walked along the river. I called my parents in Georgia from one of the shops and couldn't even remember the name city we were in; we had visited so many cities (especially that started with "A"). But there were some pretty places to see, and we have nice, though brief, memories of Arles. It is, after all, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Our final destination of the day was the Pont du Gard (yet another UNESCO World Heritage Site--we can't stay away!) I learned later it was one of France's top five tourist attractions. It is believed to have been constructed in the middle of the first century AD, to carry water (5 million gallons each day) across the water valley. It is part of a 31 mile aqueduct, constructed entirely without the use of mortar (instead, the stones are held together with iron clamps). I tell you what, those Romans were pretty smart!! We enjoyed the sunset over the Pont and then headed back to Avignon for dinner and a welcome night's rest.

Day Six: South of Avignon

After checking into our hotel late the night before in Avignon, we continued our roadtrip south of Avignon. We were delighted to find ourselves surrounded by countryside dotted with beautiful sunflower fields. We couldn't help but stop and play in those too.

We stopped in St. Remy-de-Provence for lunch, an artsy town for painters, writers, musicians, etc. We walked around to explore the architecture and an old cathedral (empty, dark, and cold, but very pretty). Van Gogh stayed in St. Remy for a time (there is a mental isylum just south of town) and painted many famous paintings around the area. There is a trail here that you can walk with 21 signposts noting places where he painted. The most recognizable painting that came out of St. Remy is "Starry night." I'm sure we all remember the Don McLean song about Vincent and his struggles revealed in his paintings...

Starry, starry night

Paint your palette blue and grey

Look out on a summer's day

With eyes that know the darkness in my soul

Shadows on the hills

Sketch the trees and the daffodils

Catch the breeze and the winter chills
In colors on the snowy linen land...

Day Five continued: La Route de la Lavande

One of our favorite places on this trip was the Provencal lavender fields. On this trip we had already spent time touring the museum factories and seeing lavendar products in all of the markets and stores, plants scattered throughout the villages and cities of Provence. The presence of lavender and its essences are strong in this part of France. We were anxious to see the plants in their natural form, covering the landscape of the Alpes de Haute Provence. We followed a map and kept our eyes peeled all over the countryside for these beautiful fields.. We were beginning to be discouraged when we didn't find them, until late in the day we finally hit the right area (perhaps where it was yet to be harvested). It was so beautiful!

When you step into the field you find yourself quickly aware that you are surrounded not only by the sights and smells of lavendar, but also the sound of bees! All around, a not-so-faint buzzing sound...(see bee in picture? above right). Thankfully, the bees ignored us as we played in the lavender. On this route we drove through some different towns named Manosque, Volx, Sigonce, Cruis, Ongles, Simiane-la-Rotonde, and finally to Apt where we enjoyed a delicious meal at a restaurant named Le Chat Qui Peche, or, The Fishing Cat.

Day Five, Aix-en-Provence

We arrived late in Aix-en-Provence, checked into our hotel, and quickly headed back out to get some dinner. We found there was a lot of new construction, and in the dark the streets were hard to follow. We had some adventures getting there (including a brush with the police), but we finally settled down to a delicious Italian dinner (lasagna, pizza, Nicois salad) in the heart of Old Town.

We woke up the next morning to another beautiful day. After breakfast we strolled down the Cours Mirabeau, a very wide avenue lined with double rows of plane trees and famous fountains every few hundred feet. We shopped the expansive market that seemed to fill the whole town, talked with some locals, and took pictures of the fountains.

We said goodbye to Aix-en-Provence to head north toward the "route de la lavande," anxious to see some fields of lavender. As we headed north we stopped at a olive oil mill and experienced our first olive oil tasting (a carefully chosen bottle now seasons our food at home). We drove by acres of olive tree groves, vineyards, and fruit tree groves, finally stopping at one roadside farmer's stand in the middle of a grove for the freshest, juiciest, plumpest white peaches, nectarines, and apricots we've ever had (almost all eaten on the spot). Off the beaten path we found an ancient Roman bridge, old abbey, and a beautiful old chateau. We hit both the chateau and the L'Occitane factory at the wrong time for touring, but... c'est la vie. The lavendar fields made up for that.