B&B Brignoles

Late start today but I managed a quick refreshing dip in the river before we set off. I said to Kim give me 5 minutes she reckoned I would only need 2! She was right. Easy drive to Lac du Ste-Croix which is a huge blue lake. We found a fantastic park overlooking the lake, alongside several ...

... charmed him with our amazing french skills and naturally he fell in love with us...well ok maybes not, but he told us the history of the area and said we could even contact him if we ever needed help with french.

anyway so we went on to see amboise, which was medieval. Chambord, which was built as a hunting lodge. A HUNTING LODGE?!?!?!?? gah crazy castle people. its just about the most amazing and grand thing ive ever seen. the staircase on ...

... in real english translates to....have sex with chris's mother......
and also " i like drink vodka and go club" from a certain unenthusiastic young lady.


well, at least they understood the question...

so i informed them that all of that was simply UNACCEPTABLE and my classroom is a microcosm of the US, ergo if you are under 21 ( which thankfully they are only 19,20) drinking is strictly verboten and i don't want to hear about illegal ...

... love the sunshine. sorry kids at home, but the weather here is gorgeous!!!!

anyhoo so we're finally moved in and making the place a little home-y. until our landlords get us a futon downstairs im living in the mezzanine above beccas bedroom. its such a cute little nook i feel all hidden away. :) hella mignon. oh and we have really cool door thingys downstairs. theyre the typical ...

Just paid a fleeting visit to St Tropez on the way to Avignon (so we thought)... had to be done really.. a quick wander around and a very quick coffee. It was much smaller than I thought. Lots of nice boats but loads of tourists too.... that was about it!

... believe our luck. It was so nice. Still, warm and crystal clear water on sandy beaches. We had a quick swim but knew we had to leave to get to Avignon on time. We then decided that if we found a campsite that was open we would stay. The first 2 we came to were closed and we were sad...but around at st clair beach one was open! Woo hoo!!!! 2 very happy girls. That night we played in the sand like kids ...

We also took the short drive to Port Grimaud, to visit this small but new harbour town built in what was once marshland, but is now row after row of condos and homes built in a web of jetties to allow the homes to anchor their boats at their doorsteps. Of course, we would have rather spend our time on the beach, but with bad weather, Grimaud was a nice alternative.

... basics and most of the food/wine lingo...and we had trouble! Bathing Beauties......NOT! We so stand out ...

... of larger proportions, tall with elegant windows, walls dark with age, the root sloping at a more pitched angle. It is beautiful countryside- I'm not sure how it differs from England, but I think if I landed in each place, not knowing where I was, I think I could tell the difference. The perspectives here are wider, longer, and now and again when we top a hill with the overcast fields somewhat dappled with sun, I can get a glimpse of an Impressionist landscape. In ...

... get l*st and figure ev**ything *ut" when y*u get t* a new city. Y*u have t* learn a new bus schedule, train schedule, mem*rize a new map, and figure *ut wh**e all the h*t sp*ts are. I g*t *n a bus that was headed f*r the *ld t*wn. Th**e was a y*ung c*uple sitting next t* me that w**e fr*m the DC area. We g*t t* talking *n the sh*rt 10 min bus ride, and next thing y*u kn*w, I was having lunch with them at a cafe right *n the beach in Nice. They c*uldn't have been m*re then 20 ...