Provence :: to market

One of the things I was most looking forward to when I read the itinerary put together by Provence Temptations was the promise of a jaunt to a local market. I felt sure that I was going to be in for a real visual treat, and I was not in any way disappointed. It was an absolutely delicious experience in every way, and I love love loved it.

We visited two different markets during the week, but my favorite of the two was the Sunday one in L'Isle-sur la-Sorgue. The town is very picturesque, with the river Sorgue winding right through and around it.

There were some lovely waterside cafés and restaurants to sit and while away  a pleasant, warm Sunday morning over a coffee or two. Did I mention how much I loved the coffee? So delicious!

This is the old part of the town where you can see the Sunday market is in full swing.

It was incredibly atmospheric and I instantly fell in love with the whole experience of market shopping here. The abundance of fresh produce was absolutely breathtaking. There were huge piles of fresh, colourful fruit and vegetables, herbs, garlic, locally picked mushrooms....

There was an abundance of local cheeses and cured meats....

....and the famous lavender scented "Savon de Marseille" soaps.

There were rich, fragrant spices....

....and there was an enormous amount of (highly priced) bric-a-brac and collectibles.

There were beautiful fresh flowers....

....and gorgeous dried flowers.

There was oodles of lavender (swooon) in bundles and bags, it smelt sooooo lovely....

....and there were lots of hand crafted and brightly painted toys, instruments and decorations.

There were gorgeous scarves and beautiful embroidered linens...

....and there were baskets.

OH the baskets!!!!!!!!!!!

I absolutely went bananas when I saw these, aren't they perfectly gorgeous and desirable? I wanted to buy at least twenty in all different sizes and colours, but hell, I was travelling by train and had to be sensible about what I could cope with carrying.

I settled on one small basket for 5 euros, it just sang out to me from the pavement and I simply had to give it a home.

The colours of the woven straw (straw? not sure what they are made of exactly, but it looks like straw) are so vibrant, I love it very much.

Something else I fell in love with was the hand painted Provençal pottery. There were many market stalls selling these gloriously colourful bowls and plates, from huge big serving bowls down to these teeny-tiny little ones. To see it in such abundance was a real visual treat, although I have to say the vendors were very grumpy about photographs being taken. I bought these little ones for a few euros each, they are just so cute! I wish I had bought more. I wish I somehow had a huge case that I could've filled with these gorgeous items, with a personal porter to carry it on and off the various trains for me. Sigh.

The other thing I had to purchase was lavender, I felt I could not leave the market without some. The scent of true French lavender is out of this world, very much more potent than our English lavender I think. I have been inhaling it at every opportunity, my bag smells gorgeous!

I want to tell you that I used some lavender in my crochet project.....the scent of merino wool infused with lavender is oooooooooooo-♥-oooooooooooo!

Hoping you have enjoyed coming to market with me.....tomorrow I want to wow you with scenery and show you some of the gorgeous Provence Landscape. See you then....

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Comments

[Lesley]

The colours are incredible! I just want to jump into that pile of produce. It looks so fresh and delicious! x

[Rosanne (California USA)]

Oh! My! I've taken my first trip to France, all thanks to Lucy. What a beautiful place - and I'm so hungry right now for some crispy fresh bread and some smelly cheese. Thank you Lucy for all you do.

[Jhona O.]

I spent time this morning at our local market and came home with Pumpkin Spice Butter, a lot of photos and a satisfied smile on my face! I would love to smell French lavender.

[Noelia]

I love travel with you!!! :)

[Melissa]

Absolutely gorgeous, what a feast for the senses!! I ADORE those baskets. I have acute basket envy right now!! :-D

[Brooke]

Hello Lucy! I am from the US, just started crocheting, and just found your pretty blog. I missed your posts while you were on your trip, I have been checking everyday. :) So glad you had a good time, the pictures are lovely! In the US we call markets like that Farmers Markets. But I have never seen bundles of lavender like that! :)

[Debra Jewell]

Beautiful pictures, I feel like I have actually been there!! Thanks for sharing them with us!!

[Barbara]

What a lovely market! Thanks for sharing it with us :)

[Katy]

Ohhhhhh - those baskets! And the flowers . . . . . Loving your words Lucy! X

[Helen]

just gorgeous!
I worked as a nanny in the south of France in the Cevannes a few years ago and these pictures remind me of it so much. The town where I stayed was famous for pottery so there were so many shops and stalls with it.
The family I worked for also used to buy goats cheese and eat about 3 blocks a day. yumm!
http://ahandfulofhope.blogspot.co.uk/

[Alessandra]

I'd love to be there, too!!!!
thank you for sharing Lucy<
xxx Alessandra

[Kate]

Plenty of sun gives plenty of oil in the lavender and thus plenty of delicious aroma.Those baskets...why can't one get such lovelies for a reasonable price over here? A mystery!
That vegetable stall holder must have been up all night polishing those aubergines!Gorgeous.

[Sharon Braxton]

Oh my, Lucy. What beautiful lively photos. It makes me wan to go to Provence. The market was fabulous and I agree, I would have wanted 10 or 20 or those baskets. Can't wait for the countryside tomorrow. I'm so enjoying your jaunt to France. Thank you so much for including us.

Hugs,
Sharon

[Sarah]

Lovely French markets! Adore those baskets. I got a gorgeous one when we went th Corsica. Unfortunately our cats liked it too... Oh how I'd love a whiff of that lavender. My favourite smell xxxx

[Kerry]

These pics are just magnificent :) would love to visit the Provence one day and do plenty of crochet to :)
Thank u for sharing ur wonderful week x x x

[janie]

WOW...thanks for all the eye candy!!

[Elaine]

Seeing the pictures of the market takes me back to when I lived in Athens, Greece & went to the markets there. It was one of my favorite things to do besides going to the beaches. Thank you so much for sharing your pictures & memories of your trip.

[Ada Bea]

I LOVE markets, especially in other countries, the colours, smells, sights and sounds, wrap around you. A sensation overload! Brilliant, I'm just going to have another look at those pictures! Ada :)

[Kezia]

Wow, you describe it all so well, I feel like I was there with you! x

[Ellie]

So familiar...! How do you get such true colours? Camera? Phone? Merci pour le voyage!

[5ladybird lane]

Maybe it's markets in the sun, but they always look better than our markets in the rain!!! Thanks for taking us along. Sarah

[Lacey]

What a trip! I wish we had things like that around here. Thank you so much for sharing with us! Truly memorable :)

[Fruitful Fusion]

Oh gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous! It looks so lovely! Thank you so much for sharing your trip with us!

[SOL]

Lovely.

[diana]

Thanks for the photo tour! I wish I wasn't on the other side of the Atlantic. ;-)