A great thing about driving through the French countryside is that there are plenty of picturesque little villages to stop and see - what I like to call petit France. Yes, there is an actual place called Petit France in Strasbourg (see picture above), but the title seemed fitting for each of the quaint towns we visited on our trip through France.

Strasbourg, France - cathedral

Every small town has a cathedral or an old play house or a castle of some kind to see. We started out our drive in Strasbourg, which is part of the Alsace region of France. It has a distinctly German feel to it, being near the border and having been a part of Germany for many years.

Stasbourg France

The food in Alsace definitely demonstrates the German influence- some local favorites that we tried (and loved) included spaetzle, sauerkraut, and several types of sausages. Coupled with the cold chill in the air and the smattering of German words throughout the city I almost felt like I was in Germany instead of France.

Strasbourg, France

As we made our way south and into the Burgundy region, the thick dark forest and German architecture of Alsace begin to give way to more rolling green hills and white-washed towns. Dijon was our first stop and we felt warmer already as we climbed out of the car and walked through the mostly empty streets (it was a Sunday and few people were out, almost nothing was open). Some of the German influence was still around here though. It was an interesting mix of the whiter and warmer towns of the south with the darker and colder towns of the north.

Downtown Dijon, France

Dijon, France

The white buildings and calm streets of Dijon were a good indication of what we could expect as we made our way through the Rhone Valley to Lyon where we stopped for the night. Much of the German influence was left behind as we entered this light and airy city on the rivers Rhone and Saone.

River Rhone - Lyon, France

We got in at dusk and walked along the river for a while and near the bustling college campus. After walking around we ended up in a nice area with several squares filled with restaurants, their outdoors seating made comfortable by heat lamps and charming lights.

It was our first real French feeling meal, starting with an apertif then three courses (heavy on the cream!) accompanied by a beautiful bottle of wine and finished off with a digestif. We felt very French as we walked back to our hotel, ready for a good night sleep before hitting the road again.

The next morning we passed through a town called Orange, small but with immense old ruins of a play house right in the center of town.
After Orange we visited the walled city of Avignon to see the Pope's Palace and walk on the old cobblestone streets. The Palace was beautiful and definitely deserving of its world heritage site standing.

Palais des Papes

The cream colored old buildings towered over the small streets and tourists crowded everything.
We spent the night in a small town in Provence, enjoying a great gourmet meal and a peaceful morning under olive trees soaking up the earthy smell of the land. We started the day in Aix-en-Provence to walk in Cezanne's footsteps.
Then to Marseille, but only to drive through because the driving was so awful we were afraid we would never find parking, and finally to the end of our road trip, Montpellier.
Each small town is so unique, and has something different to offer. The regions are all very distinct with their own dishes, wines, customs, and architecture. Driving through petit France I got to see the incredible variety that makes up this beautiful old country.

5 comments

1. Katherina on October 16, 2010 at 2:33 AM

   Wow.... great pictures !!! Aix is great (also for shopping)... and I've always wanted to go to Dijon - when I think if the mustard.... mmmm.... I'm happy you had fun! :)

    
2. Lauren on October 18, 2010 at 2:58 PM

   Oh my gosh! I think I read this entire post with my mouth open! Absolutely fantastic photos!!!!! Oh, a dream for me would be to plop myself down at a cafe, eat and paint for the entire day then sleep, wake up and repeat. thank you so much for sharing. you gave this stay-at-home mommy the closest thing to a vaction, she'll have for a while.

    
3. Romantic bed and breakfasts on November 1, 2010 at 2:36 AM

   The Petite France is a beautiful historic area in Strasbourg, Alsace, France.
   
   It is located on the Grande lle where the river Ill splits up into a number of canals and cascades through a small area of medieval half-timbered houses and baroque sandstone buildings.

    
4. Opatija apartmani on November 24, 2010 at 3:55 AM

   Those small villages in France seems to be a beautiful cities... Doesn't seems like a village.

    
5. miami beach condos on September 24, 2011 at 5:54 AM

   Really this is very nice collection..these all pics is looking very nice..beautiful post..thanks for sharing here..