Postcards from the South of France

Ever since I first stepped foot in France when I was 16 years old, I felt all my Francophile dreams come true. I loved the lyrical sound of their language, the slower pace of life and an emphasis on enjoyment of all things: wine, cheese, love. After all, who couldn't deal with a little more of that in their lives? So even with apprehension about how I could eat well as a celiac in this land of croissants and crusty bread, I couldn't say no to what would become my seventh trip to this beautiful country.

In late April, we enjoyed a truly lovely Airbnb within the walls of Avignon's old town, perfectly located for exploring the city on foot. After an unfortunate start with my first day there spent in bed with a raging fever, we explored the city and took several day trips out to the surrounding areas. We saw Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Malemort-du-Comtat, Roussillon, Gourdes, the beach at Carnon, Montpellier and Lyon. There was stereotypical Provence dreaminess everywhere - great cheese and wine, charming crumbling architecture and rolling vineyards - but also many thing that surprised me, like my first-ever sighting of flamingos in the wild, the incredible, 100% gluten-free Montpellier café and Avignon risotto spot we found, and Roussillon's stunning Ochre Trail (more on that in a later blog post). The saying may be 'Paris is always a good idea', but really you can't go wrong anywhere in France. Ahh, la belle vie...





Want more? See my Provence album on Flickr.