Les Baux-en-Provence and La Carmargue

The  ruined castle and the medieval village of Les Baux are situated on a very steep, isolated island of rock high above the valley floor in the Alpilles. The region is famous for the discovery of Bauxite in 1822 and for its fine vineyards. Once a proud fief of its own, it is now a picturesque tourist destination and a favorite with hardy bikers.  We visited with TZ and MK. The village also has a small museum of "santons," locally carved figures in the costumes and activities of local peasants thatnwere used in rural households after Nativity scenes in churches were forbidden after the Revolution.

The Carmargue is the romatic heart of Provence, a vast, marshy delta region bordering the Mediterranean at the mouth of the Rhone.  It is famous for the walled crusader city founded in the early 1200s by Louis IX (St Louis) from which he launched his two crusades, but also for its rice fields, its stocky white horses, its herds of black bulls headed for the arenas, and its seafood.  Much of the area is a regional natural park, which is where we visited a huge bird sanctuary filled with flamingos, herons, storks, etc.

Click for a few pictures.