Unfortunately, we were there too early to see this.
I have heard before that the Texas Hill Country has a lot in common with Provence. Now I have witnessed it for myself, and I think the resemblance is growing stronger all the time. Of course, we don't have a fortified city with a pope's palace at it's heart, as they do here in Avignon, but we do have a similar climate, the same limestone hills and rivers, and we have both built many of our structures using that limestone and those river rocks.
Looks a lot like my new shower floor, non?
The Hill Country has a growing passion for local food, which has led to a plethora of farmers' markets in the area, and many wonderful restaurants that take pride in using local ingredients.
We got the best cherries from this place!
Like the people of Provence, we also enjoy live music while dining out of doors, though it is more likely to be guitar, fiddle and mandolin or banjo, than accordion and violin.
And, don't forget our lavender fields and rosemary. But wait, there's more! Have you heard about Le Mistral?
D. almost lost her hat to Le Mistral!
Le Mistral is a northern wind that can blow through Provence at any time of the year, can last for a week or more, and can drive people absoluetly mad. On the other hand, it is also responsible for those intense blue, cloudless skies that Van Gough was obsessed with painting. We awakened to a mini-mistral yesterday morning as we were heading out for a walking tour of the city, and my first thought was "Wow, feels like home!" We were all quite relieved when we made it inside the protection of the city walls. I wonder if I could convince John to begin work on a fortification around our property? Not only would it cut down on the wind problems, it might even help with the deer!
