Provence c'est Magnifique

Taking a day trip to Provence, France is one of the most magical experience I have ever had. 

As you may have heard, our darling friend Julia was in town so we wanted to make the most of her visit. Provence has been on my bucket list forever, so we rented a car (with a GPS of course) and gave it a go! 

Here we go!

Our trusty driver

What's a road trip without the radio?

Our first stop was Sénanque Abbey. It is still a working Abbey and the monks make everything from soap and candles to bread and cake. 

Roll down the windows and smell the lavender

Full bloom

The lovely Nicki

What an angel

Such ladies...

Maybe not (hehe)

Fresh cut!

The Abbey didn't take long to explore, its one of those things where you just stand in aw of actually being somewhere you have seen so many times before. 

If you go to Sénanque Abbey be prepared to drive a bit further than you think, there are tiny signs and you will feel lost, but you aren't, keep going, its worth it! It took about three hours from Cannes. And don't forget to frolic through the fields!

We left Sénanque Abbey and headed off to find Valensole plateau. 

On the road again

I think we may have found it!

Julia is excited

It's a sea

Nicki!

Hi Ladies!

It was so windy

Julia with the sunflowers

The sunflower and lavender fields

So charming!

What we didn't know before arriving is that Valensole plateau is not a specific place, it is an area. So we drove and drove, stopping along the way to take pictures and could never find "the plateau". Come to find out, we had already seen the whole thing! 

The lavender is in full bloom during early to mid-July and they cut it at the end of July so make sure you go in that window. We did pass them cutting one field and the air was filled with the strong smell of lavender and it was heavenly, all the other fields had a more faint smell (still wonderful). We went on July 8th and one day was a perfect amount of time. Renting a car is really the only effective way to get around since everything is very spread out.

Since we didn't have to return the car till the morning we popped down to St. Tropez for dinner! 

boats boats boats

I opted for the local moules and frites

And what day is complete without ice cream?

Provence just absolutely delightful and so easy, an ideal way to spend the day. 

Cheers!