2021 - July - Hiking in Luberon, Day 3 and 4, Gordes and the Sénanque Monastery

We have experienced (almost) all the lavender fields in this area. By hiking everywhere, we naturally see more than, for example, from a car. There are beautifully maintained fields that blend wonderfully into the background (as the photographer in me says). And then there are the ones by the roadside or the one or two rows of lavender next to a large wheat field. But there are also the completely neglected fields. On our tour yesterday, we came across such an example. It was half-covered with oat plants.

And then there is THE one and only among the lavender fields. The one that everyone heads for as if it were the only one: It is the field in front of the Sénanque Monastery. Unfortunately, the monastery is currently being renovated, so that is only half the joy. But of course, everyone also wants a photo of themselves among the lavender bushes. Personally, I don't need that, but I admit that our travel time in early July was not chosen by chance. It is the ideal time to see the fields in perfect purple. In just a few weeks, they will be harvested.

By the way, the Sénanque Monastery is not far from Gordes, a very small village with high tourist appeal. Gordes was our hiking destination yesterday. Of course, we went over rocks and stones again, or rather over a lot of stones. That is always a challenge for me, especially when going downhill. It is a complete mystery to me why not all two-legged beings slip when walking on rolling stones. Mommy (me) always has to go down slowly. You could also say sneaking.

But the many stones also have a great benefit for the entire area here. They have been and are used for house construction for thousands of years. No mortar was needed, because the stones are actually just skillfully stacked on top of each other. There is a open-air museum here, the Village des Bories, which displays a whole village with these stone houses. As shown here, they were inhabited until about 150 years ago.

But even today, there are numerous paths outside of the museum that are lined with this type of stone wall. We have also seen modern residential houses built in stone construction, although only occasionally.

I also don't want to forget the small village of Joucas, through which we also hiked. It is certainly not as attractive as Gordes, but it is very well maintained, lovingly sleepy, and nice to look at.