Me and Mathilde have a tradition of organizing surprise weekends for each other as birthday presents. This year, I wasn't taking Mathilde far - just down the road to the Var Department.
We started the surprise weekend with a visit at the Domaine de Rayol. It's a kind of botanical garden located by the seaside, not far from Saint-Tropez. The domain was originally built by a Parisian businessman as his retirement home in 1910. The place eventually fell into neglect during the 1960, until it was taken over by the Conservatoire du Littoral in 1989, who have restored the place to its current glory.
And it has to be say it's quite a remarkable place - a real haven of peace and tranquillity on the Cote d'Azur. It's divided into a number of different areas representing habitats from various corners of the world.
After a couple of hours walking around and exploring the gardens, we decided to head down to the beach. We found a rather stunning little place just a couple of kilometres from the domain, surrounded by almost unspoilt coastline. I say almost - this is the Cote d'Azur after all ;-) (although it has to be said that the coastline of the Var Department is considerably less built-up than the Alpes-Maritimes, where we live...). The water was surprisingly chilly considering it was late June, but we (or at least I ;-) didn't mind, the site was just so perfect...
We then headed off to our hotel, located near the medieval village of Grimaldi, a rather sublime place called Le Verger Maelvi. Pretty much the perfect place for a romantic break. After chilling out for an hour or so at the swimming pool, it was time to get dressed and head off for dinner. For dinner, I'd chosen a place with a nice terrace in Port-Grimaud. Port-Grimaud is a kind of modern-day Venice, built in the 60's (probably one of the rare esthetically successful housing developments from that era...). A good choice, I think - the view from the terrace was pretty much perfect (especially since we were treated to a full moon). And no complaints about the food either - we both fresh, well-prepared fish.
The next day, after some contemplation, we decided to head off to Saint-Tropez. It's a place I find a bit over-rated (in the sense that there are equally pretty places much closer to where we live), but since we were in the neighbourhood, we decided to pay it a visit. Actually, the peninsula where Saint-Tropez is located is stunningly beautiful - surprisingly untouched by developers (mind you, there are plenty of fancy villas just 10-20 meters from the untouched coastline).
We spent a few blissful hours walking around the peninsula. The views along the coastline are just stunning (first, towards Saint-Tropez, and the imposing yachts moored in the bay, and then of a more "untouched coastline" type as we left the glitz n' glamour of Saint-Tropez). And what's best, there are plenty of superb beaches along the hike, where we stopped for a quick swim to cool down...
That brought an end to what I hope was as enjoyable a weekend for Mathilde, as it was for me ;-)
And it has to be say it's quite a remarkable place - a real haven of peace and tranquillity on the Cote d'Azur. It's divided into a number of different areas representing habitats from various corners of the world.After a couple of hours walking around and exploring the gardens, we decided to head down to the beach. We found a rather stunning little place just a couple of kilometres from the domain, surrounded by almost unspoilt coastline. I say almost - this is the Cote d'Azur after all ;-) (although it has to be said that the coastline of the Var Department is considerably less built-up than the Alpes-Maritimes, where we live...). The water was surprisingly chilly considering it was late June, but we (or at least I ;-) didn't mind, the site was just so perfect...
We then headed off to our hotel, located near the medieval village of Grimaldi, a rather sublime place called Le Verger Maelvi. Pretty much the perfect place for a romantic break. After chilling out for an hour or so at the swimming pool, it was time to get dressed and head off for dinner. For dinner, I'd chosen a place with a nice terrace in Port-Grimaud. Port-Grimaud is a kind of modern-day Venice, built in the 60's (probably one of the rare esthetically successful housing developments from that era...). A good choice, I think - the view from the terrace was pretty much perfect (especially since we were treated to a full moon). And no complaints about the food either - we both fresh, well-prepared fish.
We spent a few blissful hours walking around the peninsula. The views along the coastline are just stunning (first, towards Saint-Tropez, and the imposing yachts moored in the bay, and then of a more "untouched coastline" type as we left the glitz n' glamour of Saint-Tropez). And what's best, there are plenty of superb beaches along the hike, where we stopped for a quick swim to cool down...That brought an end to what I hope was as enjoyable a weekend for Mathilde, as it was for me ;-)
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