10-05-09 Midday update from Chateauneuf du Pape

The Caravan has arrived….Camel and bears are happy campers..they get to taste some wine

What a morning it has been so far and there are still 2 scheduled vintner visits that Steve prearranged to go today.  I hate to be a winery pooper but if I am going to last the rest of this week with my head cold….I decided to come back to the B and B and let Steve do one winery without me.

I’m not going to say much about our visits today because Steve is going to do a thorough update for you all on his impressions of the wines and our experience.  I’ll tell ya though…it has been incredible so far!!!

This photo above pretty much sums up the area…wine, more wine…and much more INCREDIBLE wine.  Many of the grapes are from over 100 year old vines.  I took photos of some of those “trunks”…omg the history in the grapes alone is mind boggling

We have been noticing that a predominate color used for shutters and doors is periwinkle blue…the color of the sky!

Lovely old tile roof with moss growing in the ripples

Its amazing where you find World Wildlife showing up!! This we thought was a clothing recycling  container similar to Goodwill

A good example of the periwinkle sky!!

We visited a few of the hilltowns today and hiked one of them looking for lunch.  Not a speck of food to be found but it was an incredible hike and view!!   OMG I had to pee so bad!!  Finally I had to just wing it and find a shrub….gawd that’s so tacky!!  But then when we headed down the hill we saw the familiar WC (water closet) sign tacked to the hillside with a door leading into the rock wall.  The WC was right next to where we parked out car.  OH WELL…it makes for a good story!

Little details like this are what I adore about travel photography.  There is a fine line between an “art” photo and a “journalistic” photo.  So much of waht I show you all when we travel is more “journalistic” to give you a genuine feel for the people, the sights and CONTEXT which is so important to pull you into the scene.

Not all of those kind of photos are my favorites for display however.  It’s the tight shots like the geranium above or a scenic overlook I would consiser my “ART” image

Many of these photos will get a second going over and a better crop and adjustments once the trip is over.  Above is most  certainly a “journalistic” image to give you a broad picture of the Provence vibe!!

Here is the entry to that hilltown which was bordered by the typical wall to keep out unwanted intruders

There was a beautiful old cemetary up there as well

Finding your way around can be a challenge but getting lost is actually more fun than knowing your way aroiund here

This is one of my favorite shots of the day.  This Terracotta cat was sooooooooooo awesome lying behind his periwinkle cage

This really shows how narrow the streets are and people are living in these homes!!

You could hear the whistling of working mothers and laughter from children coming from the houses.  I can’t believe what a peaceful place this is.  Tourist season is over and it is so quiet where I am sitting out on our little patio at the B and B you can hear a pin drop!! Every so often the crow of a rooster or a dog barking resonates  through the grape vine valley that surrounds the  house.  We are the only people staying here at hte moment.  They have 3 rooms total.

King of the Hill!! Boy Steve felt like a king too when our gracious hostess served up a PERFECT soft boiled egg for him for breakfast in a traditional egg cup.  She used an egg guillotine to slice off the top  and I showed Steve how to eat the egg with the french bread, some salt and pepper using the egg as the container.

The egg had just come directly from under the chicken before she prepared it and the yolk as orange as the setting sun!!!  It looked so good I’m having one tomorrow too!!!

All the streets in the hilltowns are original cobblestone

It was quite the hike to the top of the city but was worth the effort!!   What a view over the terracotta rooftops

How picture perfect is this???? We will be seeing the sunflowers in peak bloom tomorrow!

Takes your breath away

The old and new combined

Mom, why can’t we grow morning glories like this?????? They are everywhere.  I bet they don’t have slugs !!

An ancient carved lion over a doorway

We were starving after our trek and found a local cafe with no tourists and packed with locals.  No one spoke a bit of English so we winged it and loved our choices!! Steve chose a duck leg and pomme frites (french fries) and I got a baby greens gourmet salad with 4 toasted slices of baguette on top with melted chevre slices (goat cheese)  It was a perfect lunch

And to end this update….Steve finally found a cat who didn’t like him.  The crazy cat wandered in front of Steve , positioned his butt to him and prepared to spray.   He hissed at Steve too and he hadn’t even said a word to the cat or made any advances towards him.  When I walked up Mr. Kitty was all giggles and purrs………….go figure cats! lol