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Down the D900 national road from Menerbes lies the old Roman town of Apt. To-day, it boasts a great Saturday market, an atmospheric old town and some great little restaurants, some dear friends but certainly is not a tourist hub.

Industrial areas encircle the town of 12,000 people and, unfortunately as a consequence of the European economy, unemployment is high. It was into one of these industrial zones that we went in search of the headquarters of the lighting company, Blachere. It’s situated just off the little road to the hill top village of Saint Saturnin-des-Apt and you can;t miss it - a huge green building covered in bright stars and twinkly things.

Blachere is a world leader in festive, Christmas and ornamental lighting. amazing to believe that this factory is not in Chine, but in Apt! Think Times Square, the Ginza, thousands and thousands of large Christmas displays are all crafted and manufactured in the Apt workshops.

We popped in. The wedding needs lights! The store is a wonderland and we picked out a few gems for approval.

A few weeks ago, Mark and Arnem came to stay for the weekend. Last week, the telephone rang and our friendly DHL man was in the parking area - ‘une colis pour vous’. Two cookery books tumbled out of the amazon packaging - Otto Lenghi’s The Cookbook and another Otto Lenghi Plenty.

It takes a lot to get Madame away from the latest Ken Follett or her Provençal books, but these have succeeded. This weekend saw two delicious creations -and they were vegetarian!

We have been busily painting the Doll Museum and, as happens, either you run out of paint at the moment critique, or the suggestion is floated that the final coat should maybe be a different colour to that originally selected! Of to our local paint shop Arc-en-Ciel in Coustellet and what do we find outside? An example of local creativity! Quite different you must admit!

Au bientot : Lovonne and Simon xx

So-named in honour of the great street food in the French capital, the Paris has long been a firm favourite amongst our family and friends - especially the boys. A superb lunch or supper dish, it is a baguette, with mustard, ham, viennas and melted cheese all grilled together and served piping hot with the obligatory tomato sauce (or if your name is Will, then you add Tabasco).

Over the weekend, Madame decided to lift the bar and created the Bastide -

Here we go:

Baguette sliced and smothered  in Maille 1747 mustard

Lay over sliced ham, folded to add quantity (this is more important than presentation)

Thinly sliced red onion (I’m told that the red one is very important for taste) placed on top

Sliced knackis (the French derivative of a good old-fashioned vienna sausage) on topSprinkle over grated Compte or Gruyere cheese

Use up the remainder of the onion on top

Grill in the oven till crisp (don’t burn - a catastrophe!)

Serve hot with lashing of Heinz tomato sauce, and if you’re feeling healthy, raw sliced tomato

Although Maison Olive is still full for another three weeks before it too closes for a month and the new terrace building episode commences, we have been luxuriating in the free time afforded during this time of the year when you can get things done.

Like fetching fire wood. Erica was here for a month. That means, plenty of fires! At this time of the year, the search is for small, dry pieces of wood. We managed to find some and not being able to wait for a delivery, we did the work ourselves!

January and February are really peaceful times when many restaurants and shops take their annual leave but the construction folk move into full swing with he deadline of the season approaching.

It’s also a time to enjoy our surrounds and look at what’s new in Menerbes….. I nearly forgot!! Madame has been given a new MacBook Pro by Erica, she has her iPad courtesy of William and my Orange fidelity points stumped up for a new iPhone 4GS. Tech support, is here and present.

Au bientot: Lovonne and Simon xx

Galerie Pascal Laine is an institution in the Luberon. Situated in Menerbes, Pascal specialises in contemporary art and has provded much needed publicity and exposure for many artists over his more than 20 years in owning art galleries (Avignon, Gordes and now Menerbes).

During December and January, Pascal Laine has been exhibiting works by the sculptor Nadine Fourre. Nadine was born in France in 1957 and settled in Japan in 1981 for some time. These influences permeate her work, and she has just finished an exhibition of her rock sculptures in Menerbes.

Elegantly crafted and, in some cases, quite spectacular, the works are a master class in balance and precision. Nadine collects her rocks from the Durance river and her driftwood from beaches around the Marseilles area.

We have reason to visit the Galerie Pascal Laine as Beachstone Interiors of Chatham, Cape Cod USA was purchasing a few pieces for clients.

Nadine goes to the source of the 740km long Durance (which is one of the main tributaries of the mighty Rhone River) high up in the glaciers of the Alps and she says that “if you place your ear to the mountain, you can hear the rocks swirling around as though they are in a washing machine!”, and then tracks her stones down to the Cavaillon region where she harvests them.

She is a resident of the tiny, atmospheric village of Eygalieres, a few minutes from glitzy St Remy-de-Provnce, in the heart of the Les Alpilles region of Provence. Fourre says that her art form does not yet have a ‘name’ but her and about 20 others world wide who practice this art form are gathering in Japan later in 2012 to formalise the genre.

It was fascinating watching Nadine Fourre teaching Erica of Beachstone Interiors how to reassemble the pieces when they reach the USA - an art form in itself and really steady, calm hands are needed!

Nadine’s work can also be seen on her website and via Galerie Pascal Laine. (www.galerie-pascal-laine.com).

“I just received the book Footsteps from Amazon!  So excited to relive our time in the beautiful Luberon.  I read that notebook over and over again while we stayed at La Maison Blanc…  I commend Simon on all the work he has done.  The historical tidbits and sections are the most fun to me.” - Nick, New York.

Coming to the Luberon this season? Your ultimate guide…..

NOW ON AMAZON!

When we started Bastide les Amis as a self-catering rental property in Menerbes, we provided our guests with a printed Guide to the property and some useful day trips and items of local interest which are often not carried in the more commercial and established Guide Books.

We’ve had such a great reaction and coupled with the growing readership of this website, we felt that we should expand the concept into a 100 page book. Lovonne’s beautiful photographs taken over the seasons, complement the words which give you a highly personalised view of the Luberon and surrounds.

From a [very] short History of Provence, to day trips, some quirky trips like discovering the secrets behind the ‘turnarounds’ (the roundabouts!) to ‘Finding your way around a French supermarket’, Footsteps has been designed to give you an insight before, during and even after your trip to Provence - no matter how many times you have been here.

Footsteps - the Luberon and Surrounds, is available from Amazon as a hard copy book or can be downloaded via the Kindle App on to your ipad, iphone or any other smart/tablet device. The price is €19.00 (GBP16.00;US$24.99;AU$25.00;ZAR206.00). Downloading the Kindle app is free - merely go to your favourite App Store.

*Currency conversions apply from US$ at time of writing, Amazon will provide their own ruling price at purchase.

NOW ON AMAZON!

When we started Bastide les Amis as a self-catering rental property in Menerbes, we provided our guests with a printed Guide to the property and some useful day trips and items of local interest which are often not carried in the more commercial and established Guide Books.

We’ve had such a great reaction and coupled with the growing readership of this website, we felt that we should expand the concept into a 100 page book. Lovonne’s beautiful photographs taken over the seasons, complement the words which give you a highly personalised view of the Luberon and surrounds.

From a [very] short History of Provence, to day trips, some quirky trips like discovering the secrets behind the ‘turnarounds’ (the roundabouts!) to ‘Finding your way around a French supermarket’, Footsteps has been designed to give you an insight before, during and even after your trip to Provence - no matter how many times you have been here.

Footsteps - the Luberon and Surrounds, is available from Amazon as a hard copy book or can be downloaded via the Kindle App on to your ipad, iphone or any other smart/tablet device. The price is €19.00 (GBP16.00;US$24.99;AU$25.00;ZAR206.00). Downloading the Kindle app is free - merely go to your favourite App Store.

*Currency conversions apply from US$ at time of writing, Amazon will provide their own ruling price at purchase.

Vence is known as the “City of Art.”  Artists flock to this little town on the Riviera, using the previous geniuses—Dufy, Matisse, Chagall, Dubuffet—as inspiration for their artwork.  Visit one of the many galleries, or simply wander around and admire the sculptures and buildings around the town.  Take a stroll down Avenue Henri Matisse and explore the Chapelle Matisse (also known as the Chapelle du Rosaire des Dominicanes de Vence).  If you’re lucky, you may even get a chance to visit an outdoor art exhibit.

This little town is not just about art; it has a great medieval history as well.  There are five medieval ports that lead into Vence: Portail Levis, Porte du Peyra, Tour-Porte du Signadour, Porte du Faubourg ou Pontis, and Porte d’Orient.  Stop by the Office de Tourisme and pick up a map for a self-guided walking tour.  Throughout Vence, there are pale-grey numbered panels that describe the historical sites on the Visite de la Cité Historique.  Don’t miss the Fountaine de la Foux, which supplies mineral water from La Foux river.  Visitors have been known to take a jug-full of the pure water!

The content of this article comes from www.mymelange.com, a great website on matters Italian and French. Have a stroll on the site.

COMING SOON ON AMAZON!

When we started Bastide les Amis as a self-catering rental property in Menerbes, we provided our guests with a printed Guide to the property and some useful day trips and items of local interest which are often not carried in the more commercial and established Guide Books.

We’ve had such a great reaction and coupled with the growing readership of this website, we felt that we should expand the concept into a 100 page book. Lovonne’s beautiful photographs taken over the seasons, complement the words which give you a highly personalised view of the Luberon and surrounds.

From a [very] short History of Provence, to day trips, some quirky trips like discovering the secrets behind the ‘turnarounds’ (the roundabouts!) to ‘Finding your way around a French supermarket’, Footsteps has been designed to give you an insight before, during and even after your trip to Provence - no matter how many times you have been here.

Footsteps - the Luberon and Surrounds, is available from Amazon as a hard copy book or can be downloaded via the Kindle App on to your ipad, iphone or any other smart/tablet device. The price is €19.00 (GBP16.00;US$24.99;AU$25.00;ZAR206.00). Downloading the Kindle app is free - merely go to your favourite App Store.

*Currency conversions apply from US$ at time of writing, Amazon will orovde their own ruling price at purchase.

COMING SOON ON AMAZON!  To pre-order, contact: simonburrow@orange.fr

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