August 8: A week has now passed at our rented “summer home” in Velleron, France. What was once an idea and a dream has now passed into experience as we all move on to the next adventure. I’m off to Paris with the running room ladies: Christy, Sava and of course, Kate. During our stay here old friendships have been refreshed, new friendships formed, and relationships given new dimension. Herewith, some tales from Velleron.
When the idea of a group vacation emerged more than a year ago, we scouted destinations including (mostly) Italy and France. Since this was a group of 11 people including only (then) 2 couples, our house had to have a large number of bedrooms. And bathrooms. People really want their own bathrooms. After much scouting around and advanced math trying to figure out the bedroom / bathroom conundrum, we settled on Velleron. It’s difficult to describe, being part restored farmhouse and part “modern” addition.
In this case, modern is a relative term. There is a date scratched into the facade of the house showing 1929 but that may not be when it was built. It’s been completely renovated and has modern touches like air conditioning ( which we have not used ), and a pool. Two large dining tables – one indoor, one outdoor – are big hits and constantly being used. Eating has been a communal affair with different tastes and skill levels combined at each meal. We’ve also been out to a few of the local restaurants, as seen here in Venasque.
Velleron is in Provence, a lush and lovely part of France. We’ve spent most days touring the back roads and seeing the sights. Many of the oldest towns here and in the Luberon to the south, were built on hilltops for protection and to place the seemingly mandatory church at the highest point of land. This means that many of the towns are spectacularly beautiful. Gordes, seen here, is the superstar and attracts thousands of tourists. It’s Yorkville in the Luberon. Others like Rousillon, seen below are similarly picturesque but less crowded.
I’m off the motorcycle for the week, and that has been a small relief. However, I have had to spend time getting out of its’ resting place and off to a Honda dealer to replace the right mirror which was broken off by a Yamaha rider backing in to a parking space. Interestingly, the entire process cost the same amount as replacing the left mirror in Mannhiem (225 Euro), but took about a quarter of the time.
All things considered, I think our week here has been a great success. Predicted strangulation and mayhem have been avoided and much laughter heard. So we are all off to new adventures and the next stage of our collective journey.