I know where the wild thyme grows

 Oh, such a delightful day.  We travelled from our little gite up into the Luberon, a range of mountains north of here.  Once when we stopped up in the mountains, the air smelled of wild thyme and I could see it growing all over the hillside.  Dry sandy soil, small pine trees everywhere and the thyme, some in bloom, a lovely pink.  Oh my gosh.  We left here at 8 this morning and drove up to Ansouis where we had coffee outside in a little cafe and then went around the corner and bought a 'pain'..slightly larger than a baguette (and, ok, I confess, a pain au chocolat) to have with lunch.  These first two pictures here are from that little village.

 We then travelled to Cucuron, another little village that was a bit more spread out than Ansouis.  In Ansouis our car barely fit through the streets and some of the corners were almost impossible to turn, and remember we are driving a little postage-stamp of a car!  (In most of the villages we visited today we parked and walked around.  Made life a bit simpler and it is a great way to see the little towns.)  Cucuron was easier to get around in and we spent a while getting lost and then finding our way again. We stopped there and bought some brie and some tomatoes for our picnic.  This is sort of becoming a staple for our picnics and I suspect it is one of the things I will remember about our trip here!

 More tiny little streets (that I'll straighten up in photoshop a bit later when I get home!!) These next two shots are also in Cucuron but I admit that they might also be in Vaugines (sorry).

These next two shots were taken in Lourmarin (I know that for sure!).  The first one I took whilst we were sitting enjoying a cafe au lait; the next shot, of the steps, I took as we were walking back to the car.....I couldn't resist!!  Lourmarin is quite a tourist-y little town.  There were several tour buses here and we heard quite a lot of english spoken by the people wandering around.  But it is no wonder, because it is very lovely and has an impressive chateau overlooking the village as well.

 Next, we climbed up even further into the Luberon and visited Bonnieux, a little town that hugged the rocky mountainside.  The first shot below is taken from the village looking down over the rooftops to the countryside beyond.  Just stunning.  There were a number of little restaurants with tables on the view side of the road and most of them were filled with people enjoying lunch and the view.  Nice combination.  We stopped on the side of the road as we were driving out of Lourmarin and had a picnic for lunch and the last two pictures here are of the view we enjoyed whilst eating.  (Yup, view plus lunch IS a nice combination!)  There was a cuckoo calling in the woods below us and I believe the broom that is growing wild here is the beautifully scented spanish broom that I have in my garden at home.

It was a pretty special day (but when I think about it, most of them have been) filled with beautiful views and heavenly scents.  I'm still pinching myself to see if I'm awake!!!
Back soon.....