At 5am each morning, I watch the sun rise over patchwork fields of wheat and lavender. The mix of gold and purple with the rolling hills as a backdrop is one of the best things about living in this quaint village. Over the past month, I procrastinated photographing the fields until I could no longer. We are leaving for vacation and when I return, all the fields will have been harvested.
My husband and I drove to fields within five to fifteen minutes from Banon with our cranky daughter in the backseat. Her fifth and sixth teeth just broke through her gums. We reached the first field and saw a barren tree sticking out in the middle of such beauty. This field was not very well maintained and I was hoping for something a little more lush, so I took a few photos and we continued our journey.
We stumbled across an amazing field with a view of the hills. I jumped out of the car, hopped over rows of lavender, and heard something completely unexpected. I was completely surrounded by buzzing bees, they were even bouncing off my shirt and pants. I froze and was not sure what to do. I came to the fields on a mission, and I was not going to let a million potentially violent bees stand in my way. I continued to the middle of the field, crouched low and took pictures of the lavender in all different angles – even gave one of those buzzers a closeup. After about twenty minutes, I returned to the car, sat down, and took a deep breathe – safe.
Up a little further was a gorgeous field with an old stone home slightly elevated behind it. There weren’t any bees in sight, so we felt better about bringing our daughter into the picture. We took turns taking each others pictures with her, and then I took some of her discovering the lavender. She forgot all about her sore gums and focused on the fragrant flowers. In her little white and blue dress and matching handkerchief covering her head, she was such a little doll.
On the way home, we pulled over to see some boris – which are tiny stone homes that abandoned about 3,000 years ago. When you drive along the road, you can see them in random places. I walked across a field and took photos from around and inside one. There is something humbling about standing inside of a building where people used to live. It is nothing like being inside an old castle, you can see how common people used to live and work.
The next day, I went to a field that I see each morning from our balcony and another that I come across when I go for runs. My husband was working so I took Juliana with me. Instead of taking photos of the fields, I was consumed with photographing her every movement. Don’t worry, I did not post all of the photos of her below! Mais, elle est mignonne, non ?
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Tallulah says
Gorgeous baby in a gorgeous setting! I bet it smelt heavenly too!
French Mamma says
Thank you! I was expecting the scent to be much stronger, but still it was amazing. One of the things I dreamed about when moving to France was to run through a lavender field… just never thought I’d be running away from a million bees. I’m so glad that we finally made our way to the fields instead of only watching them from afar.
blondie says
Gorgeous photos, wow!!
And aren’t little girls the best for dressing up in cute summer outfits?! 😉
French Mamma says
Thank you! And yes, one of the great things about having a little girl is dressing her up like a doll 🙂 I’m sure she will enjoy this pics one day when she is older.
Lark says
Just popping over from Bonjour Paris. Sounds like you are living an adventure in a beautiful setting. It must take it to a whole new level when you are also navigating life with a baby. Congrats!