To borrow a line from Qian-jie: “The world stretches on forever—and I’m just a traveler passing through. Every journey has its highs and lows!”Coming to southern France in the glorious month of July and breezing through the classic sights of Provence was what I looked forward to most.
After all, how could I—theback-then-still-ayoung girl—not have all sorts of poetic, romantic fantasies about Provence? I wanted to roll around in purple lavender fields stretching to the horizon, then run through them in a white dress, acting out a whole “spin, leap, and close my eyes” routine. That was about the full extent of my girlish dreams.
With such a simple wish in mind, I somehow ended up with an unexpected bonus: practically thrown in for free, a local day tour thaton my second day in southern France took me to the stone village of Gordes, the gloriously red Roussillon, the hopelessly deep-purple lavender fields, and the emerald-green, stone-lined waters of Fontaine de Vaucluse—assembling an entire painter’s palette along the way.
On this 85-day solo trek around Europe, I relied on trains, public transport, and my own two feet. Everything naturally ran smoothly in the bright lights of Paris, my first stop. But once I left Paris for southern France, I discovered that, apart from a few larger star towns, those sweet little villages lay beyond the reach of public transport. Yet they were among the greatest highlights of the south—and that included the lavender fields! (stomps feet anxiously)
Most of the travel accounts I found online were about road trips, effectively abandoning a woman like me with zero driving ability and no independent means of long-distance transport. What was I supposed to do?
So on my first day in Avignon, I decided tovisit the Information Centre and ask whether any local transport could help fulfil my dream of running through a lavender field.。
But just as I was about to step into the tourist office—my foot a split second from touching the ground—two Chinese men suddenly appeared beside me. Speaking Mandarin with a familiar but not exactly friendly retroflex accent, they asked whether I wanted to see the lavender. A thousand thoughts instantly raced through my mind:“Is this some Provençal style of hitting on people?” “Could this be the legendary art of mind-reading? How does this guy know what I’m thinking? (twirls braid)” “Ah! Are there street-scam gangs even in southern France now? (One day in Paris, a lifetime of trauma.)”They were only two strangers standing in front of me, yet they managed to inspire this many thoughts in such a short time. If only creative inspiration arrived that easily.
I stared at them for quite a while as countless possibilities flashed through my mind. Only then did they casually explain, “We still have places on tomorrow’s lavender tour. Why not take this leaflet and have a look? We can give you a bit of a discount.”
They began explaining the route: the stone village of Gordes, the red-ochre village of Roussillon, Fontaine de Vaucluse, and so on. Having done absolutely no research, I had question marks filling my head and no idea what any of these places were. But one spot on the leaflet immediately caught my eye: the lavender field in front of Abbaye de Sénanque, practically glowing at me!
And then—yes! I paid them.
It was not until I had walked away clutching my receipt and grinning for ten minutes that it dawned on me… Wait, who were those people? Did I really just book a tour with them and hand over my money?! (apparently extremely easy to scam) I had not even secretly checked their reviews first. Was this a legitimate travel agency? What if the tour was terrible? (Mobile internet in 2012 was nowhere near as widespread as it is now, so I could not summon Google whenever I pleased.)
I remained uneasy until I arrived at the agreed pickup point the next day. Thankfully, a full-sized coach was waiting exactly where promised, and my name was indeed on the passenger list. Once safely aboard, I could finally relax a little. That was when I noticed the entire coach was full of Chinese people… specifically, compatriots from across the strait, all young and travelling in pairs.
I had assumed the agency had simply hired Chinese-speaking salespeople. I never expected this mainland Chinese tour to be run locally by Chinese people,though the upside was probably that everything was explained in Chinese, so there were no communication problems whatsoever.
This full-day tour of Provence’s classic villages departed from Avignon and stopped at a viewpoint overlookingthe stone village of Gordes, the much-anticipated lavender field before Abbaye de Sénanque, the red-ochre village of Roussillon, the Lavender Museum (no compulsory shopping), and finally Fontaine de Vaucluse.For me, it was a wonderfully leisurely “sleep on the bus, get off and take photos” itinerary—with bonus nap time.The discounted price I got in 2012 was €49,which was excellent value.
[ A recreation of our route back then—roughly like this!—with the stops included for reference ]
A Castle in the Sky: the Stone Village of Gordes
Drifting in and out of sleep, I felt the bus climbing steadily into the hills, winding along a narrow road toward our destination. Suddenly, cries of amazement and excited chatter erupted inside the coach. I opened my eyes and looked out the window—good heavens! In the distance, clusters of houses covered the hilltop. With little blocking the roadside viewpoint and hardly a shrub on the bare hill opposite, the entire town stood astonishingly clear before us.
[ The view reaches straight down to the farmland in the valley ]
Perhaps because I had done so little research and was completely unfamiliar with the hill town’s appearance, the sight moved me all the more. Perched at the highest point among the rolling hills,its solitary pride resembled a reclusive king waiting for the world to seek him out—though there was no concealing his regal radiance.。
[ When travelling alone, one great convenience of joining a tour is being able to ask the guide to take your photo—or grabbing practically anyone nearby and still being able to communicate in Chinese ]
This is Provence’sstone village of Gordes in the Luberon mountains, whose name means “castle in the sky.”Featured in the bestselling book A Year in Provence and chosen as a filming location for A Good Year, Gordes gradually transformed from a tranquil village into a French hill town everyone wanted to experience. Inevitably, it is now said to be both commercialised and crowded.
[ In the end, I only caught a profile of Gordes as our bus drove past, leaving me to guess at its true character ]
And so we only admired the hill town from the viewpoint opposite,keeping our distance and settling for a tantalising taste.。
[ Having little control over the itinerary is naturally a drawback of joining a tour, though the organisers can also use their experience to recommend a suitable route ]
The Lavender Field Before Abbaye de Sénanque
Not long after leaving the Gordes viewpoint, the elevated road gave us a view of lavender fields tucked among the greenery in the valley below. After coming all this way to southern France, I was finally about to witness this miraculous purple moment.The closer we came to the lavender, the more excited I became. Although the bus was full of Chinese speakers, I had no one with whom to share the moment. The Chinese exclamations coming from all around only made me quieter, but they also let me focus more closely on the conversation within myself.。
[ Even the lavender is just a splash of purple amid a sea of valley green ]
This field of pale purple lavender lies beforeAbbaye de Sénanque, built by monks themselves in the 12th century.Against the abbey’s calm, unadorned earth tones, my excitement gradually settled into the tranquillity of the scene. This was a painting of Provence, and somehow I was standing inside it. How incredible. The faint lavender fragrance carried toward me on the breeze made the painting feel even more vivid and real.
My 85-day journey around Europe had reached only its seventh day,yet each day I seemed to awaken inside a dream and fall asleep carrying another beautiful one. I was seeing with my own eyes the scenes that had previously existed only in photographs and other people’s descriptions, and making real a solo trip around Europe that, just months before, I had never imagined I could manage.I felt very fortunate to watch my strength and courage grow day by day as I travelled.
But it took arriving in person and seeing the behind-the-scenes reality to understand why everyone’s photos show nothing but lavender and the abbey.Where are the people? Where’d everybody go?The lavender in front of the abbey is completely protected. Visitors can only walk around the outer dirt path, which is separated from the actual field by several rows of green shrubs, apparently to stop anyone touching the lavender directly. Everyone pressed their cameras against the boundary and stretched out their arms, trying to capture the closest possible shot. Meanwhile, bees buzzed beside us as if asserting their rights as the true landowners. This postcard-perfect scene really could only be admired from celebrity distance.
[ With so little room to stand, you have to hunt for every possible angle, stretch your arms toward the lavender, and bring it close to the lens. What a production! ]
[ Behind the scenes… there is inevitably a dirt path that is not packed with lavender ]
As for those visions of running and leaping through the lavender field—better keep dreaming!
[ I later encountered a model in white in a wild lavender field along the way, completing the scene I had imagined ]
[ We passed many vineyards growing grapes for wine; the rich flavours of southern France always linger in the memory ]
My Favourite Town in Southern France: Red-Ochre Roussillon
In the time it took me to close and reopen my eyes (I was sleeping very soundly), purple Provence had transformed into a world of red earth. The little village where our bus stopped was itself a lively shade of red.
[ Red peeking through the cliff face means Roussillon cannot be far away ]
[ A red-ochre town born upon red rock ]
Roussillon was originally called Viscus Russulus, meaning “red mountain.” Its colour comes from ochre in the local soil, with shades ranging through red, yellow, and orange. Used specifically as a raw pigment, this has been a world-class ochre-producing region since Roman times.The colourful houses of hilltop Roussillon proudly display their ochre heritage in subtly different yet harmonious shades.。
[ Alleys whose ends remain out of sight always awaken a curiosity for adventure ]
Beneath the brilliant southern French sun,Roussillon gleamed like a ruby in the hills, yet the town itself felt as sweet, cosy, and romantic as a little girl.Add the free blue sky and the exuberant flowers and trees outside each doorway, and it all looked as though someone had dabbed pure poster paint directly onto the landscape. Everything in the hill town was vivid and dazzling.
Roussillon is small, yet every distinctive, exquisite shop tempts you madly to step inside and browse. I did not want to miss a single alley. Similar as they might initially appear, each was different. It was only after arriving in France that I began to realise how thoughtfully decorating your home—and placing a lovingly tended pot of flowers outside—can slowly make an entire town more beautiful while brightening the day of everyone who passes.When every view and every corner is designed with care, we live inside an art gallery.
We had two hours to explore freely, enough for me to wander at an easy pace through the undulating lanes, visit several charming handicraft shops, taste a lavender ice cream from southern France, and fall in love with this little town one step at a time.
The Lavender Museum
This was probably the stop that looked most like a shopping detour, but it actuallydisplayed everything from the earliest traditional equipment for distilling lavender essential oil to modern extraction methods.It added another layer of knowledge to our lavender tour of southern France, and there was no compulsory shopping. A tour with a conscience, then.
[ There is another lavender field on the grounds, so the hunt for opportunities to leap among the lavender continues ]
Fontaine de Vaucluse, the Village of Springs
After seeing the red hill town and purple lavender fields, we reached the final stop on this classic Provence route. I thought southern France could no longer surprise me, but the moment I stepped off the bus, the emerald green before my eyes stimulated my senses all over again. This was Fontaine de Vaucluse, sometimes called the “Jiuzhaigou of France.” I have never been to Jiuzhaigou, butI believe the beauty of Fontaine de Vaucluse needed no comparison. That first glimpse of green was enough to draw a long “Woooow” from me.。
[ The water is unbelievably green, gleaming with beauty ]
[ As one of France’s major water sources, surely drinking it directly cannot be a problem ]
Before coming here, I had no idea I was about to see France’s largest natural spring, nor had I looked at any photographs of Fontaine de Vaucluse. So I followed the crowd upstream along the shopping street without the faintest idea what awaited me. Then, behind the trees beside the path, I suddenly encountered a crystal-clear stream, its emerald aquatic plants visible all the way down to the riverbed and tinting the water green.
After a morning steeped in red and purple, Fontaine de Vaucluse looked as though God had accidentally knocked over a jar of green paint, spilling lush colour everywhere. Its beauty was intoxicating.
Travel, it turns out, does not require researching everything in advance. You need not preview every attraction. Leave a few surprises for the journey: like unwrapping a present, they will move you all the more.
[ Just like the source of Fontaine de Vaucluse, hidden deep inside a limestone cave: you can only appreciate its magic by walking quite some distance from the entrance, then climbing down toward the mouth of the cave yourself ]
After racing through five sights, my southern French palette had been loaded that day with the azure blue of the sky, the soft purple of lavender, the ruby red of the hill town, and the emerald green of the spring.It taught me new adjectives for colour and showed me that dreams really can come true. Step by step, I truly was walking upon my dream.。
Information for a Classic One-Day Provence Tour
Lavender in southern France generally blooms from early June to early August, but the climate has grown increasingly strange in recent years, so keep an eye on local updates while planning.
I joined this southern France tour during lavender season in early July 2012. The itinerary was:
Depart Avignon 》Viewpoint overlooking Gordes 》Lavender field before Abbaye de Sénanque 》Red-ochre Roussillon 》Lavender Museum (no compulsory shopping) 》Fontaine de Vaucluse
Four years after unexpectedly joining this tour in 2012, I searched again in September 2016. The closest match I could find for the agency and itinerary was this Simplified Chinese website. I had enquired near the tourist office one day before departure and may have received a last-minute discount of €49. For the actual price, please consult the current rate—and your luck.
Possibly the tour I joined back then
>> Lanpu Travel: Classic Provence One-Day Tour
There are also locally operated tours in France conducted mainly in English, with almost identical itineraries.
>> VIOLET TOUR « My scented Provence »
✈ Travel date: 2012/7/5
| Follow My European Trek | France: 9-Day Article Series
● France: Not What You Imagined?
● France Day 1 – What?! English Doesn’t Work at Charles de Gaulle, France’s Grandest International Airport?
● France Day 1 – The Palace of Versailles in Paris, France: Clearing the Blockage in My Historical Connections
● France Day 2 – No Getting Lost, No Reward: Discovering the Old-World Charm of Palais Garnier in Paris
● France Day 2 – The Historic Road Between the Arc de Triomphe and Champs-Élysées, and My Woeful Ignorance of History
● France Day 3 – The Louvre in Paris: That Faint Smile Hidden Away in a Gilded House
● France Day 3 – My Own Impressions of Paris! Impressionist Masterpieces at the Musée de l’Orangerie and Musée d’Orsay
● France Day 4 – Mont-Saint-Michel: So This Is Where the Hole in My Head Came From
● France Day 5 – Two Holy Sights in One Paris Day: Two Sides of Parisians at Sacré-Cœur and Notre-Dame
● France Days 1–5 – The Eiffel Tower: Five Views of Paris’s Magic-Lamp Tower
● France Day 6 – Avignon, an Ancient Provençal City Even More Beautiful at Sunset
● France Day 7 – Breezing Through the Lavender Fields and Red Town of Provence
● France Day 8 – Arles in Southern France: The Roman Empire Through My Eyes and Van Gogh’s Brush
● France Day 8 – Another Ancient Roman Town in Southern France: Does Old-Meets-New Nimes Do It Better?
● France Day 9 – That Year, I Became Part of the Avignon Festival….
| Follow My European Trek | 85 Days Around Europe, 16 CountriesFull List of More Articles
