Tuesday, 12 June 2012

Provence with Kiwis

Here's the group: they were set in the town of Fontaine de Vaucluse for the week, and I took them on 4 hikes through the countryside.





The magnificent and rainbowesque Colorado Provençal, whose ochre sands are a playground of trails and discovery: 



I always provide a substantial picnic lunch, multiplying my hearty appetite by the number of guests in the group. Inevitably there are leftovers...




Is Joe somewhere in Sahara desert, or still on Provence's trails?




Our once-American-but-longtime-kiwi-scientist Rick examines the ochre sands:




Helen walks up the old cobbled streets of Gordes...




... where the tomato season has brought these splendid varieties to the local épicerie:




Helen and Rick observing the scrub vegetation just outside Gordes:




Sénanque Abbey, as seen through the cloister:




Roseanne and John frolicking through the lavender fields:



The old stone homes of Lacoste framed by its old village gate, with Mont Ventoux looming in the background: