South of France

The current fascination that people have with the cathar castles is perhaps because of the simple pure life that the cathars pursued; or perhaps because of the terrible persecution the cathars suffered at the hands of the Albigensian Inquisition.

Equally, whispered suggestions that there might be a connection between the cathars, their castles, and the hiding place of the Holy Grail have done little to dispel interest. The book ‘The Da Vinci code’ has doubtless played a role.

Of course, now in the 21st century, we are all on the side of the peace-loving cathars and not the side of the terrible crusaders. Perhaps the pendulum has swung too far, and at the time there was a case for the attack son their way of life and principles, but it is easy to sympathise with the plight of the cathars as they tried simply to live moral, good lives - but without the Catholic church to guide them, a rejection that was ultimately to be their downfall. Read more

Less well known than the Dordogne to the north, the Lot et Garonne department contains some hidden treasures in the form of the medieval bastide towns that dot the region.

Head south from Lalinde or south-east from Bergerac and you will enter the quiet countryside that typifies the region. Agriculture and small scale farming are the main business here with fruit, sunflowers and maize being among the main crops grown. The fruit includes many plum orchards that produce the fruit for the very popular (and very tasty) ‘pruneaux d’Agen’ - the prunes are only half dried, so much more most than the prunes you might be familiar with.

The bastide towns were founded in the 13th century, half by the English and half by the French, partly for administrative reasons and partly for defensive reasons. Some of them have disappeared into the history books, and others have been swallowed by larger more modern towns, but there remain plenty of these small medieval towns for you to discover in this part of France. Read more

The Luberon is towards the west of the Provence region. It is the beautiful region made famous by Peter Mayle during his year in Provence. It is to the east of Avignon and to the north of Marseille.

The Luberon is best known for its hilltop ‘perched’ villages - small, often steep, traditional villages built centuries ago on top of rocky spurs in the region. Many of these ‘perched villages of Provence’ are now also classified as ‘most beautiful villages in France’ - the region has perhaps more of these than any other part of France.

The area is also quite compact - hence it is easy to visit several of the villages during a week vacation in the Luberon without spending too much time in the car, and still allowing plenty of time to sit by the pool at your villa!

Read more