We've visited the nearby village of St. Saturnin-lès-Apt several times, mainly in connection with our hiking. We've met our friend Kevin there for coffee before beginning a walk or had our normal after-hike beer at one of the three cafes. Once we had lunch there with Kelly. We felt like we knew the village well, and what we knew, we liked. But strangely, we'd never been up to the big château ruins above the village, and it was a "must" on our list for this trip.
St. Saturnin is one of the larger village in the Luberon with a population of almost 2400 people. More recently-constructed houses cluster around the old village, but they harmonize well with the environment, mostly stained in ochre colors. The full name of the village is St. Saturnin-lès-Apt, which differentiates it from a fairly large number of other towns named for Saint Saturninus (also known as Saint Sernin), including another village in the Vaucluse, St. Saturnin-lès-Avignon.
This morning we decided to go over early and have our breakfast at one of the cafes. I also wanted to visit a local artisan's workshop to make a purchase for a friend We crossed the N100 and took the road that connects Gordes and St. Saturnin, passing by the turn for the hamlet of Croagnes where we'd started our walk to the Falaise de Lioux. The Mistral wind we've had for the last three days had cleared, the temperatures were extremely pleasant, and the sky was again that clear, clear blue. Another gorgeous day in the Luberon!
Looking down on the village from the chateau ruins
We spotted the workshop of Martine Guimet on the west side of the village, but decided we first needed breakfast and headed toward the main square. Much to our surprise, today (Tuesday) was market day. We were interested to see what sort of market St. Saturnin had. We also wondered if we would run into Kevin again, but I'll go ahead and end the suspense... here in his very own village, we didn't see him!
The market sellers were still setting up. We stopped in the boulangerie by the little bronze horse sculpture, bought croissants and a baguette, and sat down at a table at the St. Hubert. If a cafe doesn't sell bread (and many don't), it's perfectly okay to buy your bread elsewhere and eat it there. I thought I remembered this particular boulangerie having a broader selection, but it didn't have the beignets I wanted, so I wandered down the street a few doors and found the other (better) boulangerie/patisserie, and bought tiny sugary beignets (donuts) and two chocolate sacristans. We devoured almost everything, eating much more breakfast than we had planned.
We've seen the man at the St. Hubert before. I don't think he remembered us, but he called Charley "Crocodile Dundee". That hat!!
We walked back down the street to Martine Guimet's workshop. She makes plaques, house numbers, sundials, tables, and other objects from lava rock stone in bright appealing colors. I placed the order for my friend's plaque, and we'll pick it up on Saturday afternoon. We've seen Martine at the Apt market, and she does beautiful, unique work. I'd love to give our house a name and have one of her plaques, but somehow a plaque on a condominium doesn't seem to fit!
Sundials and plaques at Martin Guimet's workshop
I liked the St. Saturnin market, and I especially liked the way it was arranged. The tourist stands (tablecloths, jewelry, handbags and straw baskets, hats, artwork, pottery, olive oil, wine) were set up along the main commercial street. The food stands-- where the local people shop every week-- were set up in the big square below: a fish truck, a couple of fruit and vegetable stands, a traiteur, the cheese man who comes to Bonnieux, and a man selling chicken and fresh eggs. The layout of this market makes it very accessible for locals to come and buy their fresh produce. (It's very difficult for local people to access the market in our village of Bonnieux during the summer season. In fact, in the summer there's now a farmer's market on Wednesday mornings at the Bonnieux Cave Cooperative-- just so locals can easily buy fresh farm products.)
It's the cheese man we know from Bonnieux!
Today there was a very festive air in Saturnin with a couple of live performers. Yes, there were some tourists but there were also many locals doing their shopping. St. Saturnin is a very "real" village.
I like that hat on the pony statue!
And then we headed up the next street, following the signs to the château. The older part of the village includes some beautiful architecture...some very impressive buildings, several with very ornate doors.
An 18th century door in St. Saturnin
The church sits on a quiet square near the top of the village...and from there a rocky street leads steeply up along the ancient remparts and finally to the ruins of the massive old château that run all along the edge of a rocky spur. Some of stonework is incredibly intricate.
Along the ancient remparts
Unusual stonework on the old walls
Climbing up to the old château
The first fort (castrum) was built up on this point in the 9th century! (And on the nearby Perréal, they've found traces of a Celto-Ligurian settlement over 2000 years old.... and also prehistoric animal bones!)
Much to our surprise there was a dam and a man-made lake at the top-- a "barrage"-- built to collect the water draining down from the Vaucluse Plateau. How did we not know about this?? We've had almost no rain in the month we've been here, and the lake wasn't very full. Built between 1765 and 1835, for many years this was a major source of the village's water. Today it is apparently stocked with trout a couple times a year, and fishing is allowed.
Mom and Dad at the barrage (photo by Kelly)
From the barrage, the stone road and walls led higher still and finally at the very top to an ancient chapel enclosed within walls and gates, with a calvary in front. We were able to enter the spacious garden courtyard through the gate, but the chapel was locked. There were stations of the cross around the garden.
La chapelle du château
Down a level, on the other side of the chapel was a small chamber with the stone effigy of a man. (I haven't seen many of these around here at all.) I was peering in through the bars when I heard an eerie voice say, "I'm coming to get you!" I jumped and probably even screamed. It was Charley, whispering down from the top. Kelly thought it was hysterical. He really had me going....
I thought this stone man was coming to get me!
We walked back down to the barrage, passed through a doorway in the old stone walls, and crossed to the other side of the little lake. We climbed the steep path to the other side where there were two large concrete tables and a sign about the fishing restrictions. (You must have a license and you can only catch six fish a day.) From this area there was a great perspective of the chateau ruins along the other side. Charley realized that he had parked the car in a lot just on the other side of the barrage!
At the big tables on the other side of the barrage
Looking back at the castle ruins
Hiking trails lead higher up into the hills, but we walked down through the scrub to the restored windmill that stands at the opposite end of the cliff. There were actually remains of three mills here, but one had been incorporated into what looks like a rental gite and the other smaller one was a ruin. The restored windmill was beautiful, with big wooden vanes. This is one of several windmills in this area.
The restored windmill above St. Saturnin
Have I mentioned the magnificent views from the ruins above St.Saturnin? This is another candidate for "best view in the Luberon"-- on a clear day like today... just beautiful! From yet another vantage point we could see a broad sweep of the Luberon mountains (all the way to the end in the west), the ochre cliffs of Roussillon, Gordes, Lacoste, a glimpse of Bonnieux... and closer, the village of St.Saturnin down below, the orchards and vineyards in the plain, the rounded Perréal mountain with its pre-Roman remains, and Kevin and Elisabeth's Le Mas Perréal, the outskirts of Apt.
Another candidate for the "best view in the Luberon"
The Perréal, site of an important settlement thousands of years ago
In the distance... Roussillon and the western end of the Petit Luberon
We loved our morning at St.Saturnin. We keep finding new and magical spots in the Luberon, even in those places we've been before.
Comments (2)
Another wonderful post! Now I need to explore further in St. Saturnin. We brought home a house number plaque this year that Martine made for us!
Posted by chris![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.slowtrav.com/blog/wood/nav-commenters.gif)
|
August 2, 2007 3:53 PM
Posted on August 2, 2007 15:53
Another village that I loved visiting. Beautiful photos as usual. Can you just imagine what the chateau must have looked like in its day? And talk about a view!
Posted by teaberry![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.slowtrav.com/blog/wood/nav-commenters.gif)
|
August 4, 2007 4:59 AM
Posted on August 4, 2007 04:59