We travelled to the south of France for Semana Santa (Easter break). Here is my account of our journey:
As we hurried to finish packing and cleaning on Wednesday morning, the electricity went out in the apartment (this may or may not have been my fault, as I was blow drying my hair at the time). I am always EXTREMELY organized when I travel, but, as we could not access the flight information and I did have the confirmation numbers written down, I decided to THIS ONE TIME skip the paperwork. So, we boarded a train to Madrid, stepped onto the metro to the airport, and easily checked in with our airline with plenty of time to spare!
As a matter of fact we had amazing luck the entire way to Manosque. I finally got to experience Craig's famed "Harrison Luck!" The staff was terrific and the flight was good. We stepped off the plane and our luggage was the first to emerge. We stepped out of the airport and directly onto the correct bus to Aix-en-Provence. We stepped off the bus with just enough time to grab a panini and my first-ever Orangina before stepping onto the correct bus to Manosque, where my friend Alex and his lovely girlfriend Mathilde were there waiting for us. FLAWLESS.
Mathilde had invited us to stay with her family in the picturesque city that is Manosque. She and the rest of the Serre family were amazing! Their house was beautiful; the garden, with its flowers, herbs, and olive trees, overlooked the tiny medieval town. Mathilde's mother is a killer cook and her father was eager to introduce us to various French wines and cheeses. Luckily for us they spoke English!
Meals in this house were delightful. One night, for example, we had veal cutlets simmered with carrots and garden-grown thyme, served with potatoes baked in cream. This was followed by the salad, which was followed by the mmGOOD cheeses and homemade bread, which was followed by fruits and an apple tart with locally made ice cream. Delicious, and so much more because it was taken slowly, with good conversation, good wine, and good spirits! We stayed full the entire vacation.
For several days we ventured to various cities, but Manosque itself was very special. We took some time to tour the town, observing the great hand that is the symbol of the city, checking out the doors to the city, and exploring local cafes.
The last day we were there we were lucky enough to catch the open-air marketplace where every Wednesday and Saturday the local farmers and vendors gather to sell fresh fruits and vegetables, meats, cheeses, preserves, flowers, herbs, and honey. Craig and I purchased some home-grown, homemade raspberry jam, vegetable curry pate, and goat cheeses. Alex bought some sun-dried tomato paste which we included in the sprawling lunch Mathilde's mother prepared for us before our departure. It was great! Everything about Manosque was absolutely pleasant.
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