In previous posts, I have shared the criteria that we considered as we searched for a house to buy in the South of France. Near the top of the list after Shirley's #1, "no-fixer-uppers", was our desire to own a house in a village that was active year around so we could visit whenever we wished.
This meant we wanted a "living village" which for us meant, not tourist dependent as they essentially shut down from early November to middle of March. This eliminated a lot of villages in the Alpilles, Luberon or near the Mediterranean Sea.
We discovered as we searched that small villages in the Cotes du Rhone and other wine making regions are open year around as wine making is a year around process. Thus, we considered these villages "living villages".
It seems that our village has only gotten better as a place to live or visit since we bought back in 2008. The village of Sablet has a population of 1381. We have a boulangerie that is open 365 days a year. We have a butcher shop; a very well stocked grocery store called an épicerie, a bar/cafe in the center of the village, a pizzeria, and a fine dining restaurant called La Table de Magali.
We have a pharmacy, a medical office, a dentist, a floral shop, two salons, a dress shop, a tourist information center where they sell local wines, and a tabac where they sell stamps, and French, English, and German newspapers and magazines. There are two churches and a bank with ATM machine.
More recently, the village has seen their Friday morning market in the center of Sablet expand with the addition of new vendors, some of whom are shown in the pictures below. While the market is small (we recommend you go to one or more of the larger weekly markets in the area), the quality of fish, cheese and fruits and vegetables sold at the Sablet market is excellent.
 |
| View of Sablet from Rue du Stade |
I have written posts about weekly markets in Vaison-la-Romaine, Nyons, Carpentras, Sainte-Cecile-les-Vignes, and Uzes, I have never written about our own smallish market that takes place every Friday morning on Place De L'Aire De La Croix, in front of Bar des Sports.
Between the shops in the village and the Friday weekly market, you can live very well in Sablet and never venture out to shop anywhere else. Parking gets a little tight late Thursday night until after market on Friday as there is no parking on Place De L'Aire De La Croix, which normally is full of cars.
If you are looking for a home to rent for a holiday in Provence, we still have multiple weeks available in May and June as well as a few single weeks through the end of October. I hope to hear from you.
You have described our dear Sablet perfectly. I’d add that every merchant in town and in the market is so friendly and very helpful. In fact last night at dinner with friends who have stayed at your house with me, they mentioned how much the butcher and his wife helped them select items even though my friends speak no French. They solved the problem by saying Moo if they wanted beef or baaa if they wanted lamb etc. Apparently all laughed their heads off during each shopping venture. Not to mention Janine at the bakery who predicts the weather as you buy your morning croissants. The fish monger always tells me how to cook my purchase. I could go on but I’ll end by saying you will really get to know France with a stay at Michel and Shirley’s house.
ReplyDeleteThey are not the only ones who communicate with the butcher in that manner. We were visiting with some new friends who come from Northern Ireland and speak very little French. They described communicating about what kind of meat they wanted the same way you describe and added that they let the butcher know the cut by pointing to their own body parts. It is not only the fish monger who will tell you, but all of the ladies standing around listening to your conversation. Among the many reasons we love Sablet.
DeleteI just discovered the amazing Monday Market at Bedion— now that was impressive! So add that to everyone’s list too. I have not seen the Italian Market set up around here (in Cassis but close) so thanks for the tip and excuse to visit Sablet again too.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reminder, Julie. We have been to the Bedoin market several times over the years and yes, it is a very nice market. Bedoin is also a very pretty village at the base on Mont Ventoux, so worth going for that reason alone.
DeleteDelightful memories of our visit last summer. The cheese lady comes all the way from Avignon and is very up to date with accepting credit cards. Ususlly we paid in cash when in the markets. We found a helpful book in English on the markets of Provence, which helped us locate a market each day of the week. Your post is another reason why it is so delightful to stay in Sablet!
ReplyDeleteThanks for taking the time to read my blog and for commenting on my post. I did not know the cheese lady comes from Avignon. Nice to know. You can literally go to a different market every day of the week; Sunday, Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, Monday, Bedoin, Tuesday, Vaison-la-Romaine, Wednesday, Saint-Remy-de-Provence, Thursday, Nyons, Friday, Sablet or Lourmarin, Saturday, Saint-Cecile-les-Vignes or Uzes.
ReplyDeleteI have just discovered your blog! What a treat. I will be spending many hours reading your archived posts. We are a retired American couple who sold our house in Philadelphia and have been spending months trying to find the right place to call our next home. Just last night I was telling my daughter and husband how I wish I could find a resource that would help me identify those "living villages" such as the one you were lucky enough to find. Sablet sounds wonderful.
ReplyDeleteI am very happy you discovered my blog. Keep me posted on how your house hunt is progressing.
DeleteI will! Currently using your blog as a source of info re: villages and towns we might want to rent in while we are house-hunting (we have to leave our current rental on July 31 and even though we currently have an accepted bid on a house I am pretty sure the sales process won't be done by July 31!)
Delete