Europe In 30 Days - Pernes-Les-Fountains and L'Isle-Sur-la-Sorgue

Well I'm sure you are thinking by now "Boy that Stijn and Debbie sure don't let any grass grow under their feet". True.

Today we decide to see two more places that we read about in our Provence books that look very interesting. Our first stop is Pernes-Les-Fountains. We read that this village has a total of 36 fountains and I am very intrigued by this and feel it is a must see. On our way we need to stop and fuel up the car and I see the most amazing thing! Wine being sold from a little stand at the gas station. That's right people! Wine bottles lined up on shelves in a little stand situated right next to the propane cylinders! God love France!

We arrive in Pernes-Les-Fountaines and park to the side of Bar de la Paroisse and walk over the bridge of the 16th century Porte Notre-Dame which takes us over the Nesque River and we immediately see a fountain. We spot a clock tower and of course must head in that direction. This 13th century Tour de l'Horloge (clock tower) is a last remnant of the chateau of the Counts of Toulouse. We follow the path to the top and again we are in awe of the view of the medieval village below and the snow capped Mt. Ventoux. After some picture taking we head back down to stroll through the narrow cobbled streets and squares, discovering the many fountains.

We then come to a bakery and I must have a pastry! So we go in and I pick something out that looks like nothing I've ever seen and Stijn picks one that he loves. We sit just outside the bakery on a ledge and enjoy our pastries in front of yet another fountain. We decide to head back to the car and Stijn has a grand idea! "How about we stop in at Bar de la Paroisse and have a drink before we go onto our next destination"? You see why I just love this guy?

Now this was definitely a "Man's" hang out. Besides the lady behind the bar, I was the only other female in the place. I of course have my favorite drink on a chilly day, Irish coffee and Stijn has a beer. We notice that there is a card game going on at a couple of the tables and Stijn says that they are playing a game called "Belote" I watched for a little bit to see if I could figure out the strategy of the game, but a round went really quick and I just couldn't figure it out. More men continued to come in and the place was becoming quite crowded. So we figured we better get going and let them have a table because it seemed a tournament was about to begin.

So on to L'Isle -Sur-La-Sorge. From the moment we drive into this town and see a mossy covered water-wheel at the first intersection, we know immediately that we have made a very good choice in making this one of our destinations while in Provence. We park in the middle of town on a street that just so happens to be lined with antique shops and pop inside one of them while on our way to get some pictures of the water-wheels. We walk through a park and find some men playing a game with small metal balls and Stijn tells me that the game is Jeu de boules. We continue walking through town along the canal and I am taking several pictures of the water wheels and then we see this great big yellow building with writing all over it indicating that they sell olive oil, olives, honey.....Oh my gosh!!!

So we go inside "Les Delices Du Luberon" and I see a small table with a sign that says "Degustation Gratuite"! That means free samples people! I am having the time of my life sampling all of the different tapenades!

After I had my fill of samples I picked out a couple of tapenades to purchase along with some lavender honey and olive oil for myself and my daughter Crystal.

It's now time for a hot toddy.....yep, Irish coffee for me and beer for Stijn. We pick a little cafe with seating on a terrace facing the canal and a water-wheel. We then decide to walk along "place de la Liberte" to take a look at the shops that line this cobblestone street. This narrow street opens onto a small square and there we see the 17th century church, Notre-Dame-des-Anges.

Satisfied with our day we decide to head home. Stijn prepares a platter of meats, cheese, olives and bread and we settle in with a glass of wine by the fire and reminisce about our day.

If you would like to see more pictures of our day please go to Wheres Debbie and click on the albums Pernes Les Fountains and L'Isle Sur La Sorge.