Tag: Experience Sabbatical in Provence

Getting to understand village life! Winter in Provence: no tourists, just locals, friendly French interactions, grabbing bits of sunshine

A nice lie-in after a fab Christmas dinner with Patricia. Around lunchtime, we took the leisurely route to St. Tropez, enjoying the sunshine

Wow. You wait 365 days a year for it, and then suddenly it’s here. Christmas Day. And here we are in the South of France, with our great buddies, celebrating Yuletide.

What a lovely way to enjoy Christmas? Cozy and warm with candles and a lovely fire, amazing smells emanating from the kitchen and a relaxed vibe. Life is Good!!

It was after 5pm when Rob, Diana and Naomi trundled into town. Bienvenue chers amis!

What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.” ~ Dr. Seuss, author of Cat in the Hat

It’s been raining solid for 2 days. I’m not complaining. We’ve had amazing sunny weather, and the land needs rain. But when it stopped today, Patricia and I hopped and skipped our way down to the village. I wanted to pop into the tourism office to find out things to do for when Rob, Diana […]

Watching Breaking Bad late into the night and meeting a 90-year-young legend, Patricia’s Mum.

The final DIY touches, decorating for Christmas and a slow-cooked “best dish I’ve made” lamb curry

If this post is a blurred mess, please forgive me. I think we got about half an hour’s sleep last night. Don’t ask me why. Just couldn’t sleep. Eventually I gave up trying and came downstairs to a bewilderd Mado … “What? It’s breakfast time already?” He thought it was Christmas. Peeking through the windows, […]

Gosh, we’re in week 4 of our sabbatical! Time is flying by. And finally we’ve managed to move into Pen’s room and unpack!!

Installing a 4-metre Christmas tree into your lounge is a lot easier with more than two hands. Marcel and I lent ours. Even if I say so myself, it all ran very smoothly.

Maggi and Derek have done their very best to recreate an “vieille maison” using Provencal features and techniques, and the result is marvellous!

I adore mirrors. Not because I enjoy spending hours looking into them. But because of reflections are like memories.

Sidsel gave us a tip for the washing machine, Darty. And that you can order online. But we thought we’d go check it out in person.

Last night’s carol service took me back 3 decades to watching my parents sing in Pretoria. One of my proudest moments, they have both got such beautiful voices. And it seems the local antique dealer is harbouring the voice of an angel! I had to close my eyes to fully absorb the nuances of tenors, […]

“Is it 12 o’clock yet?” Marcel was trying to read himself to sleep, and I kept asking until he said yes. “Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday my darling Marceeeeeel, happy birthday to you” … and then five minutes later in Dutch, and five minutes after that in Afrikaans …we won’t even […]

Maybe it was all the fresh air, olives and excitement, or maybe it was sheer exhaustion, but I slept like a baby. We woke up late 🙂 Even Mado seemed to understand and only meowed once. Our first task of the day was a semi-panic SOS call to Christiane … during the evening, we sniffed […]

3am and I can’t sleep. Wide awake and thinking about everything and nothing at all. A little blue light on the screen casts a lovely shadow of Marcel on the wall. He looks like a reclining Moore sculpture. Tossing this way, turning that way, I eventually nod off again. Mwaauwwww. It’s late-o’clock and Mado, the […]

A sunny Sunday perfect for a day of rest, or vin rouge in the village.

It’s amazing the difference between being a guest and being a caretaker. Don’t think I got a wink of sleep last night.

Our sabbatical in Provence officially begins. We find ourselves settling in to the farmhouse without auntie and uncle, and pinch ourselves again … is this real?