Carcassonne to Sablet

We left our lovely B&B in Carcassonne after a great breakfast. Our rooms, including breakfast, were 100 euros each. We'd love to visit again, when the weather is warmer, so we could enjoy the beautiful garden and pool.

Caterina was worried about an armload of clothes she left somewhere, and we were calling, texting and emailing our previous accommodations to see where they might have been left.

We stopped in a little town called Villetelle for a lunch of tapas and pizza at a wine bar/restaurant called Les Copains. Lunch was tasty, and was served quickly, and we were back on the road. The drive from Carcassonne to Sablet took about 3 hours, and we spent about 22 euros on tolls on the A9 highway. It might seem kind of expensive, but it was an easier drive than all the little backroads of a few days ago.

The hill town of Sablet, in the Vaucluse area of Provence

When we arrived in Sablet, we called the property manager to let us into the house. She suggested we have a drink at Bruno's, which is the Café des Sports, the only bar in town. It's right on the main square of Sablet, so it's a great place to watch the world go by.

Nadia, the house manager, met us at Bruno's, and walked us over to the house to let us in. Ricardo and I had stayed there before, so we were familiar with the layout. Our House in Provence is located in the little hill town of Sablet, about halfway up the hill. I suppose we could drive almost up to the door, but there's no place to park, so we left our car a few blocks down, right in front of Le Pain Médiéval Boulangerie (what luck!). The house is owned by a charming American couple from California, Michel and Shirley. Michel writes a great blog about the area too at Sablet House.blogspot.com.

A little, winding lane in the hill town of Sablet

We got situated, and walked down the few short blocks to the little grocery store, Votre Marché, owned by Mimi and Alain. It carried everything we might need, but the selection of meats and poultry was limited. I suppose most of the locals get those things at the weekly market here or in surrounding villages. The closest supermarket was a few towns away, but we never felt the need to venture that far for food.

We got a message from the B&B in Sarlat, saying that Caterina's clothes had been found in the closet there. Chris, our host, agreed to mail them to our last stop, Aix-en-Provence. He went out of his way to check the price of two different mailing options, and suggested that we use a more expensive private company, rather than the Post Office, to ensure that the package would arrive before we left for home in the U.S. (The package weighed 5 kilos, Chris said, and oddly, the only thing I've ever heard weighed this way in the U.S. is cocaine, so I guess I know how heavy a 5 kilo package of cocaine feels now.) We were relieved, and grateful for Chris' prompt assistance.

Dinner was spaghetti, with Ricardo's homemade sauce, and some brown and serve baguettes that were just great, considering that the boulangerie was closed by the time we got to town, so no fresh bread was available.

Ricardo cooking in the wonderful kitchen at our house in Sablet

Santons above the stove

I love the collection of santons displayed above the stove in the house. Santons are handmade figures depicting the inhabitants of the village, and are part of the traditional nativity scene in Provence. They come in all sizes and are sold all over Provence.

Marco beneath the bell tower of the church at the top of the hill in Sablet

After dinner Marco, Ricardo and I walked to the town wall, overlooking the valley below, to watch the sun go down. The green vineyards below us stretched off to the horizon and beyond.

The view from the wall in Sablet