L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue · Luberon
Two gîtes in the heart of Provence
Two self-contained gîtes in an old stone house, among olive trees and lavender. A pool, a garden, a pétanque court — and the garrigue, the wild Provençal scrubland, starting where the path ends.
I · THE GARDEN
Apale gravel path between the olive trees, a dry-stone wall, a few cypresses. At the end, the house with its round terracotta tiles and clumps of lavender at the foot of the wall. You take it in on foot: a few minutes to walk the whole place, and you come back to it every day.
The two cottages are entirely separate — each with its own entrance, its own patch of shade. Everything else is shared: the pool, the garden, the boules, and the silence.
The garden
The pétanque court
secured by a gate
at the edge of the grounds
The independance of each cottages
« Quand le Bon Dieu vient à douter du monde, il se rappelle qu'il a créé la Provence. »
"When the Good Lord begins to doubt the world, he remembers that he created Provence."
Frédéric Mistral
II · THE WATER
The pool, framed by olive trees
You catch sight of it through the leaves first: a turquoise rectangle set into the green, a low stone wall along one side, a cream parasol and sun loungers on the other.
It is shared between the two gîtes. In the hottest hours the shade of the trees reaches the edge; in the evening the water holds the light longer than the sky does.
Stone steps lead down to it
A few steps cut into the stone, a dry wall on either side, oleanders leaning over the way down. At the bottom, the parasol.
This is the path you take with a towel over your shoulder, and climb back up in the evening in no particular hurry.
III · THE GARDEN
Lavender at the foot of a stone wall, an olive tree in the foreground, the round roof tiles just above: the garden is those three things, and in June it is all scent.
IV · THE PATH AND THE BENCH
The pale gravel runs between olive trees, cypresses and lavender: this is where the game of pétanque is played, until the sun drops behind the trees. A little further on, a wooden bench waits in the shade, its back to the stone wall. There is nothing to do there, and that is exactly the point.
V · THE STONE RESIDENTS
There are two of them, carved in stone, and they never move. A little boy in a straw hat, sitting at the foot of an olive tree; a little girl on the steps, a little further down. By the end of the week you find yourself saying hello as you pass.
« La Provence dissimule ses mystères derrière leur évidence. »
"Provence hides its mysteries behind how obvious they are."
Jean Giono
VI · ARRIVING
The car in the shade, the gate closed behind you
A gravel area under tall trees, a carport, a small vaulted stone building at the far end: parking is free and closed off by a gate. Your car spends the week in the shade.
From there everything is on foot: both gîtes, the pool, the garden — and the garrigue, which begins right alongside.
« Je suis né dans la ville d'Aubagne, sous le Garlaban couronné de chèvres, au temps des derniers chevriers. »
"I was born in the town of Aubagne, beneath the goat-crowned Garlaban, in the days of the last goatherds."
Marcel Pagnol, MY FATHER'S GLORY
Our two cottages
They share everything above, and nothing else: each has its own entrance, its own outdoor corner, its own habits.
Le Jas
SLEEPS UP TO 3 · AIR-CONDITIONED
"The Nest" in Provençal. A stone gîte at the edge of the garrigue, a private courtyard behind a heavy wooden door, and the silence.
Les Parpaillous
SLEEPS UP TO 4 · 2 BEDROOMS
"The Butterflies" in Provençal. A covered terrace opening onto the garden, two bedrooms, and the pool a few steps away.
Dates in mind?
Send us your dates and the number of guests — we will get back to you as quickly as we can.
Yves & Patricia