I have been living in the US for over 25 years and a couple of years ago I realized my dream, building my own tour company and taking Americans to France and to some of my favorite regions. My company is very upscale and accommodates clients who are looking for a different approach to travel. My company’s approach is Luxury Villa Accommodation with pool, private chef, drivers, wine tasting and more….
The Tour took us to La Camargue, in the south of France. La Camargue is almost a lunar landscape that the river and the sea have created over which the huge Tour de Constance of Aigues- Mortes stands guard. Before flowing into the sea just after Arles, the Rhone forms the delta, ( as we were told) where gypsies believe two saints named Mary were washed ashore. As we discovered la Camargue , we saw Caravans and trailers parked along the sea wall, while high-spirited bulls wait for the feria in their enclosures. A single main road runned past rice fields, we could see peaceful pools thronged with pink flamingoes and across salt marshes , crisscrossed by narrow paths. At Salin-de-Giraud we made a bumpy coastal track leads to an isolated beach . The only way back to Terra Firma was by Ferry & that’s what we all took. ( It was planned in the tour).
The food there was wonderful and we got to go to some restaurants for lunch and I will recommend Lou Cardelino/Stes-Maries-de-la-Mer, the restaurant is packed as soon as the boss ( 33 years in the business) lights the oven. Try the wild-boar or the brandade de Morue ( puree of salted cod)
I do recommend Le Maguelone Aigues Mortes, they serve a wonderful bull’s meat stew and the restaurant is off the beaten path. They also serve very good fish stew.
On of our Lunches was at Le Mazzet de Vaccares/Etang de Vaccares, overlooking the lagoon. A former fisherman – turned- chef skillfully prepared fish for our lunch ( Fish stews, gratin and Bouilabaisse to order. Tha meals were served with excellent local wines.
La Camargue is a wild life sanctuary and it is best advised to get binoculars and camera handy while visiting. We did stroll down the delta and then drove a while to find this amazing Abbaye. L’Abbaye de Montmajour in AD 948 is a community of hermits and was founded in the middle of the Marshes. This abbaye became steadily wealthier and added on a cellar, a church, a refectory and chapels. For all its wealth , starkness was de rigueur in the abbey; only the capitals in the cloister were adorned.
We spent time in Arles, which definitely gives a little foretaste of Spain, with its blend of Roman, Romanesque and baroque. In the 11th century their amphitheater was similar in size to its rival in Nimes in the middle ages. Visit the 12th century cathedral of Saint Trophime whose sumptuous portal and cloister – the most richly carved in Provence – recount bible stories and local legends.
Algues Mortes, where we spent a couple lof hours is the port of Louis IX and was built in 1248 as a base in which his ships could set sail for the crusades. then we moved on to Stes Maries de la Mer has a legend and the legend tells of a boat opcarrying Mary Jacobe, sister of the Virgin Mary, and Mary Salome, mother of the apostles James & John , were washed ashore at this seaside village between Rhone & the Mediterranean. Their statues are in the 12th-century Romanesque church of Notre Dame de la Mer recall the event in the crypt, dressed in sequined robes my tour guide explained. The third statue is of their maid servant, Sara, venerated by the gypsies. The three saints are carried in procession to the sea on May 24 and 25 each year.
