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A Day In: Cotignac

You reach Cotignac by rolling through a valley of vines, olive
trees and pines in the lush, water-happy countryside of La Provence Verte. The D13 road dips and Cotignac appears, pushing against a tufa cliff. 

On the rectangular square cours Gambetta, huge platanus trees line up behind the two hundred year-old fontaine des Quatre-Saisons.
Local cafes fill up their water carafes from the fountain's cool drinking water.  On each side of the street, boutiques and cafés slow your step. Cotignac can not be rushed.

Chez Paulette, you purchase a pound of nails just for the pleasure of  entering the old dreamy blue store. You swing by rue de la Victoire to the honey boutique Les Ruchers du Bessillon where Fabienne and Laurence's family traditions of apiculture date back to the late 1800's. They offer you a taste of the shop's many flowery honeys. You melt with the sweet tinge of lavander honey.

You stroll down Grand' rue towards the Place de la Mairie and snoop into more shops: a kilim rug store that glows in reds and browns, a dash of boulangeries, antique stores full of china, boutis and secrets.

At the place de la Marie, you let a tea steep at Le Temps de Pose or just sit by the fountain. Did you notice the Tour de l'Horloge bell tower and its 15th century campanile?

You walk by the Mairie and head up the Promenade du Rocher that leads you part-way up the 80-meters-high and 400-meters-long fence of tufa.

The natural wall appears ghostly, like thick rounded roots hanging under oak trees. You hike closer to discover troglodyte caves where locals hid their food supplies during the region's turbulent times of invasions and pillages.

Two small towers from the 12th and 13th centuries stand atop the cliff.  To take a closer look outside the towers, extract yourself from Cotignac and head north on the D13 road - veer left just after Cotignac into the Chemin des Tours. 

For an additional treat, head up D13 north and then D22 to Sillans-la-Cascade about 7 km north east of Cotignac, and hike down its refreshing water fountain.

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Office de Tourisme
2 rue Bonnaventure, Cotignac
Tel : 04 94 04 61 87 - Fax : 04 94 04 61 87
Email : officetourisme-cotignac@wanadoo.fr

Les Rûchers du Bessillon
Closed Sunday afternoon and Monday
Shop: 5, rue de la Victoire, Cotignac
Tel : 04 94 77 75 69

Le Temps de Pose
11 place de la Mairie, Cotignac
Tel : 04 94 77 72 07

Kilims & Jarres
Galerie Anatolie
20 Grand Rue, Cotignac
Tel: 04 94 04 74 67
email:kilimsjarres@club-internet.fr

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Map of Cotignac

A Day in: Le Val

What I like in Le Val are the sounds, soft and muffled, as if the village moved under a cotton cloud.

Like in many local villages, fountains gargle at street corners.  In Le Val, you can hear them. 

Kids ruffle around on the side of the street with a soccer ball.  There are no screams.  The TV murmurs from the front door of an old stone home.  The wings of pigeons flock as you approach one of the town square at Place Gambetta.

You might consider it modesty. 

Le Val is a trove of historical gems.  The "tour de l'horloge" and the "passage de la dime" date back to the 12th century and are the remaining rampart doors of the ancient fortified city.  The Notre Dame de l'Assomption chuch sits in the center of town. Consecrated in 1068         A.D.,  its 18th century frescoes uplift the church's interior with gold and blues.

Begin your tour next to the Lafitau boulangerie on Place Gambetta.  Walk in Rue de Montmajour and reach the side of the Church.  Meander by the Rue du Prieure to discover the 12th Century Passage de la Dime (Oustaou de la Dimo) .   The Tourism Office is by your side, next to the main entrance to the church.  Behind it, the Musee des Santons displays its colorful collection of provencal santons and further down Rue Niel, the Musee de la Route Medievale.  Head down towards the town's other main square, the Place Louis Fournier to sip on a drink.  By the Place des Moulins, an old olive oil mill exhibits local art.  Visit the Maison de l'Olivier next to it to learn all about olives. 

To wrap up the day in nature, meander through the city's edible Jardin Public des Gorguettes garden and its pear, cherry, peach, quince and fig trees.   

Slow Stats:  

• It tooks us a half-day to stroll though Le Val
• We walked a grand a grand total of 0.6084 miles or 0.9791 kms. 
• Stroll includes time for munching flour-dusted artisan bread, tasting Curry Chicken, dribbling into 11th century century nooks.   
  
• Here is the Road we followed.   

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