We awoke to a very foggy morning, but decided to chance a drive to Cucuron's market, thinking perhaps the fog would lift as we traveled south over the Grande Luberon. It did, and by 10:30 when we arrived, it was sunny and warm. Cucuron's market rings the village L'Etang, (pond?), a rectangular pool surrounded by old plane trees which are encouraged to grow up, rather than out, with heavy straps that pull the branches in and up. I liked this market a lot - for one thing it seemed "real", and not so much for tourists. There were 2-3 clothing vendors, a maker of hand-made leather purses, several sellers of "produits du terroir" such as tapenade, honey, confits, and chutneys, "pepinieres" (sellers of plants and flowers), a woman displaying typical Provencale linen housewares, and a fellow with all kinds of neat kitchen wares - knives, tea balls, olive wood items, and fancy corks, as well as the usual meat, cheese, and vegetable vendors. We did hear a bit of English now and then, but most of the shoppers were locals.
As it wasn't quite noon, we wandered back to the car with our purchases, passing the area's busy wine cooperative where grape growers were pulling in in their farm tractors and trucks, then backing up to dump their grapes into the coop. The smell of grapes was quite overwhelming! We drove about 5 km. down the road and paid a short visit to the handsome village of Ansouis which was nearly empty of people; most all of the businesses were closed for the season, but the village itself was worth a stroll. At noon the church bells started to peal, and we stuck our noses into the old church for a minute to appreciate the aged interior with it's a symetrical layout and deteriorated decorations.
Back in Cucuron we had an omelete with fries and salad while some musicians entertained the crowd around the L'etang as the market vendors dismantled their booths. The sun was out when we returned to our little apartment in Villars, and it was time for a nap.
No comments:
Post a Comment