France - heading South

My brother moved to France permanently 4 years ago. He left the hectic, expensive life of London for a tiny village of 1100 inhabitants in Southwestern France......... and has never looked back.

For many years he, his wife and daughter had always taken their holidays in the countryside of France, loving the relaxed lifestyle, the fabulous food and the abundance of great wines at cheap prices. About 12 years ago they bought a holiday home in a village in the Minervois, just twenty minutes from the famed double walled city of Carcassonne and historic Cathare country, less than an hour from the beaches of the Mediterranean, and a two hour drive from Northern Spain.

Within a couple of years, and much traveling back and forth, they owned a wine importing business, my sister-in-law doing most of the work while my brother continued his stressful corporate job in the fashion business in the bustling center of London. Then Sara Lee Corp. bought his company, moved their American directors to London and subsequently, after many years of giving his all to his job, he was given the "golden handshake". It was for the best........................he now has a completely different life, happy and stress free, and has traded his Armani suits for shorts and flip flops!

Their London property sold and a second French house was purchased in a village just five minutes from where they were living. This area is famous not only for excellent wines, but also the red marble quarried to build the Palace of Versailles and many other famous French historic buildings. Their 200 year old rustic beauty with a huge two level garden, unusual in a village setting, needed a complete restoration. For almost four years they worked on this house and finally moved in just before Christmas last year. The first house sold and they are now "at home, at last" and loving their life.

If you've read my earlier posts you'll know that last Summer DH and I, together with our traveling granddaughter, Jasmin, flew to France. Following the few days in Paris we headed South - it was a fabulous time. Seeing family and sharing their new life was exciting. I have to admit I could easily be comfortable in that picturesque village, surrounded by vineyards and olive groves, with the mountains in the distance, and the colorful open air markets selling everything one needs for a simple, yet rich life. I've always said I can survive on bread, cheese and wine....and they have the best!

The 200 year old stone house - Jasmin at the upper window. I love shutters - and the European ones actually work - you open the windows inward and then throw open the shutters outward - I love doing that at the start of a fresh day!

My sister-in-law's potager (kitchen vegetable garden) on the lower level. There are three natural springs on the property - one here to water the garden, one on the upper level where the swimming pool was built which can be filled from the spring, a nice water saver. The third actually ran through the kitchen in a trough in the floor tiles - that one they've had diverted as they prefer modern faucets to fill the tea kettle! The local bakery - we'd walk through the village in the early morning to buy warm croissants just out the oven, and farm style bread to spread with butter and my sister-in-law's delicious homemade jams and marmalade. Late afternoon the bakery would reopen to sell fresh crunchy crusted baguettes for dinner. I thought I'd died and gone to heaven when I saw the fresh produce at the outdoor markets! Every shiny fruit and vegetable was so perfect. The farmers were obviously proud of what they had lovingly grown and now displayed on their stalls.

After wine production this area also grows olives and produces oil. The markets always had several stands like this with many different types of olives.

Later I'll show you more of the Minervois and also of our visit to Spain and Provence.