Our Olive Grove!

Today is the day! Finally, after a year of negotiating, documentations, designs and approvals we have started work on our land. Existing on our little piece of paradise was a disorderly but 'ancien' bunch of olive trees (oliviers) and 2 'parasol pins' (pines).


As the trees have struggled to stay alive over years, with no bore water or clipping, they must be as excited as we are to sort them into proper lines, 6 metres apart from each other , and to install the watering system (arrosage).


This will be a third lease on life for these trees - they had a good start in the earlier part of the last century only to 'die' (literally chopped off at the roots - ground level) after a severe winter, apparently the coldest yet ( - 27C) in 1956.


Determined, the trees grew new shoots around the old sawn off stump - hence they look a bit strange with 3 or 4 smaller trunks in stead of one. There are many olive groves in our area that were affected that year and discussion about our trees never fails to include much gesturing, puffing and eye-rolling about 1956.

Almond Blossom is out in force and so so beautiful

Spending my days leaping out of the car or from off my bike to capture arguably the prettiest sight of the year. Heralding the coming of Spring after one of the coldest winters on record the almond blossom has randomly burst out of fields, olive groves and along roadsides. Truly breathtaking. Here is my friend Jon's house on a cool and windy but sunny day with the first blossom looking gorgeous.

Surrounded by ancient stone

Once the 'door decision' has been made the next step is to work out how it will present itself.
What better way than an 300 year old door to be surrounded by 'pierre ancien' - ancient stone.
All over Provence are yards that stockpile old staircases, stones, oak and pine floorboards and terracotta tiles of all shapes and sizes. 


Hours can be spent just gaping in awe at the sometimes acres of options. Huge beams ('poutres') lie side by side waiting for a makeover - often ear marked for serious renovation jobs at a local chateaux, bastides, wineries or public buildings - it's often hard to decide which way to turn.


However, this stone surround will make its way to our place and perfectly surround our door - not for a while yet - it will take 12 months to build our 'old mas' ('mas' - French farmhouse). It will be worth worth the wait! (and the work ...)

It starts with a door

A 'porte d'entre' or entry door can set the tone to the whole house.

We found a very run down and damaged door made of 'noyer' (walnut) with hundreds

of years of wear and tear and flaky paint. This wonderful 'porte ancien' is dated from

the 18th Century and was salvaged from an old farm in Cadenet, Provence.

The top of the door has been shaved off, probably to discard rotten bits and over the

years the three iron bars (very decorative with a heart shape at one end ) have ended up on

the wrong side of the door. They are meant to be at the back. What a story this door

could tell of past eras in the 'collines' beyond Aix-en-Provence. 

We have commissioned a local artisan to restore the door and look forward to giving

it a new life as the front door of our home in Provence. 

'Still Lifes' around the house

'tis the season for Clementines

19th Century metal letters from an old French pharmacy

Autumn is ..walnuts, pomegranates, chestnuts and clementines...

I picked the walnuts in this pic from trees in our garden...so satisfying!

If you associate walnuts with cinnamon buns and other rich pastries, you might not realize what a healthy food they really are. 

Particularly noteworthy for their omega-3 fats, walnuts are also high in antioxidants. In a recent Spanish study, a Mediterranean diet supplemented with walnuts was shown to significantly lower risk factors for heart disease.

These delicious little packages are dense with nutrients, an excellent source of manganese, copper and tryptophan.

Traditionally is served with ravioli filled with greens. In Turkey, a thick, garlicky walnut sauce called tarator is served with cooked vegetables, much as aïoli is in the South of France.


In France, walnuts are added to salads, breads and many desserts, and they are eaten fresh as well as dried - a great delicacy in the fall, just after the harvest.  Walnuts are used in sweet and savory dishes throughout the Mediterranean. Along the Italian Riviera, a rich ricotta and walnut sauce.

NYTimes HealthyFood 

Village LIfe in Provence

From living in a city where the daily grind takes over all aspects of life to the tranquil ancient countryside takes a bit of getting used to. Probably the most amazing and awe inspiring thing is being constantly surprised by nature and the seasonal art of renewal. Arriving in March to start a new life in an ancient Provencal village the welcome could not have been sweeter than roads lined in irises and fields full of cherry and apple blossom.