Provence Herb Gardens

Sunday July 22 Today after breakfast, we headed out for a Guided visit to the famous herb gardens, medieval potager and ethnobotanical centre at Prieure de Salagon. Here a permanent exhibition of the story of lavender in Haute-Provence shows the landscapes and farming activities connected to lavender growing. The tight, turning, winding roads did not settle well with our stomachs, so we all sucked back some peppermint to balance the motion sickness. The medieval gardens were so interesting and divided by, food, health, witchcraft and floral. A beautiful some  church sat in the gardens and I found the Perfect place to rest Steve. our guide was the most delightful French Countrywoman named Dominque. Her knowledge. Passion and accent was delightful. We then headed to the town of Forcalquier and managed to climb our way up the steep cobblestoned roads.  We came across a flea market, where I purchased a piece of French lace, visited some exquisite no,e decor stores, then lunch.  Jim suggested a French Pastis as an aperitif and it was wonderful.  It is a liqueur that tastes a little like Sambouca, but you add a bit of ice and water and sip it. We then had a lovely Rose, warm goat cheese salad with toasts and tapenade and Cold Gaspacho, with melon and prosciutto,   We headed down to the church in the main square where we were treated to. A wonderful chamber choir. On our way home, we came across more lavender fields, or "more purple stuff" as Jim refers to it.  The farmers were just harvesting, so we jumped out of the van for more photo ops.  There is nothing like standing on a field of lavender while the tractor drives closely by, spraying you with freshly cut lavender. We returned back to our village for some local shopping, and rest before dinner.  We enjoyed a wonderful meal at a local restaurant, where we dined on more melon and proscuitto, a fabulous Duck a l'Orange and gateaux chocolate.  We had wonderful conversations and went around the table sharing three things we are most grateful for.  This of course produced tears, hugs and laughs.  A short stroll back to our hotel to pack for our move to St. Remy the next day.