1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 248: The Sky City of Provence

Come outside.

Ronan heard a noisy creaking sound coming from the direction of the dense forest, as if some machine was running at high speed, and he could also smell a faint burning smell at the tip of his nose.

He immediately quickened his pace and came to the area where the military trucks were parked.

Maybe it was because this place was too far from the village, but he didn't see any villagers watching.

In order to find out the situation, Ronan used the social skills he learned from the enthusiastic people of Provence, hoping to get some useful information, but this time all the social targets were "hard nuts to crack".

The people moving between the dense forest and the trucks were wearing large goggles and helmets, so their faces and expressions could not be seen at all. Ronan tried to talk to several of them, but they all ignored him.

Ronan seemed to have seen the 'cold' expressions behind their goggles and helmets.

He walked cautiously into the dense forest again, and the passing 'wooden man' did not stop him.

From this situation, Ronan analyzed that there was definitely no danger inside, and there was probably no chance of witnessing the arsonist being brought to justice.

After walking about fifty meters, Ronan saw a tall worker commanding the wooden men to clear the bushes under the tree. The creaking sound he heard was the sound of sawing wood.

The smell of burning plants is the smell of cut dwarf wood piled outside the dense forest and burned under the supervision of professional equipment and staff.

The tall man turned his head and glanced at Ronan, as if asking with his eyes "where did you come from?"

Ronan greeted him in a friendly manner:

"Hello."

But the other party didn't even nod and turned his head back to continue giving orders to those "wooden men".

Ronan guessed that the man's mental activity before turning around was probably:

There are still foreigners in Provence at this time of year?
Ronan didn't leave in a hurry, but watched the old man cursing indiscriminately.

There were only a few reasons for cursing, either they were sawing the wrong species, or they were damaging the trees, or they were operating improperly. This made Ronan even more curious about who these people were and what they were doing.

Before a certain wooden man was about to be scolded again, Ronan saved him first:
“Can I have this thyme?”

There are two main types of scrub in Provence.

One type is the 'Machis' shrub, which is dominated by rock rose, frankincense Pistacia, holly oak and wild strawberry tree. The Luberon Mountains are covered with limestone, and most of the shrubs seen are of this type.

Another common shrub is the 'garrigue' herb, which is the source of all the spices loved by the people of Provence, but they are not common in the Luberon because they prefer sandy or gravelly soils.

Other shrubs, such as juniper and acacia, are also found in Provence, but are less common.

According to Ronan's observation, the bad-tempered old man's job today was to direct these people to clear all the low bushes except the 'Machis'.

If it is summer or flowering season, these shrubs are easier to distinguish, but in autumn and winter, it is still difficult to distinguish them.

But that old man just cursed at everyone he met without thinking, no wonder those wooden people were in no mood to deal with Ronan's talk.

Ronan's "help" did not earn the wooden man's thanks. He dully changed his target and continued to chop down trees. However, the tall man with a bad temper made a comment:

"You have learned it all, but they still can't recognize it. God, why did I take on such a task?"

Ronan saw this as a good opportunity and walked over to chat with him:
"I am more interested in plants, and my current job is also related to these crops, but what are you doing?"

Ronan's brief self-introduction worked, and the man finally looked at him directly:
"What do you do?"

What do I do?

Ronan picked out the two titles that are most likely to bring him closer to this guy:
"Ronan, a farmer from Lourmarin, goes into the mountains to pick truffles in the winter."

The guy's expression changed several times in one second:
"Bruno, from the National Forest Service."

Ronan asked back in a horrified tone:

“What is the National Forest Service doing here?”

Bruno took off his helmet, revealing his bare head:

"It's all because of that arsonist! In order to improve the fire prevention level, the whole of Provence will carry out a comprehensive 'brush sweeping operation'. Forest experts from all over the country have come to support, but there are still not enough people."

He pointed at the wooden figures and said angrily:
"These workers, who were brought in from nowhere, have no knowledge of plants and no common sense. The work is progressing too slowly. At this rate, I won't be able to go back to Paris by Christmas, no, by next Christmas!"

"There's nothing good about Paris." Ronan stopped joking and asked, "Who found these workers for you?"

Bruno scratched his head:

“The Maasai Forestry Department.”

"Are these people from Marseille? Why don't we look for them locally?" Ronan asked puzzledly.

Bruno patted his helmet and said:

"It's a complete mess now. It's good enough to find people to work. It may be December before the local government can arrange for them to work!"

Ronan sighed.

This is indeed in line with the Provencal style of doing things.

He pointed in the direction of his house and said, "I live over there. If you are fed up with these workers, you can come find me there. I can introduce you to some farmers who have common sense and can work efficiently."

Bruno stroked his bald head and asked:
"Can you call on the locals?"

Are you kidding me man??

Ronan smiled brightly:

"I can't guarantee it for other places, but in Lourmarin I can find as many people as you want."

Bruno didn't really trust this guy he had just met for a few minutes. He put his helmet back on:
"I'll come to you if I need you."

Ronan felt that the whole month of November was particularly long.

This may be due to the constant northwest wind and the pressure from the arsonist, which resulted in few customers in the restaurant.

I don’t know when the restaurant’s customer flow will pick up.

However, the truffle harvest is still stable. As long as you go into the mountains, you can find about 3 kilograms of truffles. With the subsidy from the grape vine wreath, my plan to buy a house from the government at the end of the month will not change, and I can still get married smoothly next year.

The heating installation project, which was undertaken by Zoe, has also completed the first phase of accessories and is ready to start construction.

In this way, the Parisian family can live in a warm heated room before Provence officially enters winter.

Although there would be some good news occasionally, Ronan always felt heavy-hearted. In order to adjust his mood, he went to find Cotillard and Thomas.

Pascal had long invited them to his olive grove.

Why not fulfill this promise in November, when the temperature is not that low?
The northwest wind blew for more than half a month in November. Who knows what the weather will be like in December?
Just go out and relax.

As soon as a few people met, they immediately decided on the itinerary.

This week Ronan came back from the Lourmarin market, and they immediately set off for Gordes, the most famous 'bird's nest village' in Provence.

Thomas drove Ronan and Cotillard out of Lourmarin at noon on Friday.

The car drove northwest, slowly moving along the winding D36 road in Luberon along the mountain road.

There are no houses or buildings along the way, but every one or two kilometers you can see a low stone wall, and then you can see a sign next to it indicating how many kilometers away you are from Gold.

Ronan traveled through many villages and towns of all sizes in Provence, and the road signs in Gordes were the clearest and most dense.

In 1986, when there was no navigation, it was common for tourists unfamiliar with the Luberon to want to go to the village of Mena but end up driving to Lourmarin next to it.

But Ronan guessed that no matter which direction a tourist went to Gold from, east, south, west or north, he would not get lost because there were so many guides.

This fully reflects Gordes' unusual status in Provence.

This is the first place among the medieval villages in Provence to be "conquered" by tourists from all over the world.

Even many years later, in many materials mentioning Provence, you will still see people using photos of Gordes to represent this area, so you can imagine the importance of this village.

But since Lourmarin, where Ronan lives, is in the Petite Luberon area, closer to the other two villages in the Golden Triangle, Mena and Bonnieux, this is his first time to visit this famous tourist town since he moved to Provence.

Shortly after seeing the road sign "1 km to Gordes", after a turn, the road ahead opened up and a mountain village made entirely of stone "fell from the sky".

Even though Ronan had seen many photos of Gold, he still felt shocked and astonished when he actually stepped foot into it.

"This is a village that is almost 'carved' out of the mountain." Ronan couldn't help but sigh.

Thomas knew that this was Ronan's first visit to Gold, so he told him about the legendary history of this place:

"If it weren't for the rugged terrain here, this village might have disappeared long ago. During World War II, there were only three 'disaster-stricken cities' in the Vaucluse department, and Gordes was one of them. It was once violently attacked by the Germans, and the residents put up a tenacious resistance to preserve it. After the end of World War II, the government gave Gordes a medal of honor, which is the only 'War Cross Medal' in Provence."

Cotillard gave Ronan some insights from another perspective:

"The residents of Gold have their own name, they are called Goldis, and they are known for their rebellious spirit. Whether it is the invasion of wars in the Middle Ages or during World War II, they have never given up resistance."

Thomas smiled and patted the steering wheel:

"I heard that the girls here are extremely 'hot' and it's hard for them to marry outside the area."

"That was many years ago, Thomas?" Cotillard rolled his eyes at Thomas beside him and said proudly, "After World War II, reconstruction was needed, and Gold began to actively attract artists. André Lhote, Marc Chagall, Victor Vasarely and Paul Mara all lived here. The ideas and atmosphere here are the most open in Luberon."

Ronan asked curiously:

“Gold started attracting artists so early?”

Blanco said that Mena Village only started to actively attract artists from all over the world during its transformation in the late 70s. Was Gold decades earlier than Mena Village?

Cotillard stroked his afro and said:
"Of course. Although the government has positioned Apt as the capital of Luberon, the locals only recognize one capital - that is Gordes. When Gordes was developing, the village of Mena was full of sheep running around. Let's go to Pascal's olive grove first. After picking olives, I'll take you around Gordes. Saint-Remy is only a holy place for painters, but Gordes is full of flowers and it's very interesting."

The car passed Gold and continued north along the D36 road.

Ronan turned around and looked at the city in the sky from another angle.

Gold is like a sculpture created by an artist on a cliff. There are castles and churches on the top, and houses and cottages descending layer by layer, from the top of the mountain to the top of the mountain, stacked up in an orderly manner.

No wonder artists are drawn to Gordes; the village itself is a work of art.

(End of this chapter)