Patricia Sands

Author

Aigues-Mortes

Memories Tour/18 ~ Day 9

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Whoops! I got a bit behind on sharing posts about our September south of France tour here. I was sidetracked for the past two weeks with copyedits and cover details for my new Christmas book releasing on November 15. I’ll share that info with you in my next post.

The cover art was created through two of the women on our tour! How’s that for exciting? Major thanks to talented artists ~ Clare Strohman and Donna Fedele.

Now back to our unforgettable South of France Memories Tour with an amazing group of women! I’m having so much fun reliving those days as I sift through the photos.

Our day in the Camargue got off to an exciting start. We were ready to explore the world of the fictional Jacques de Villeneuve, from Drawing Lessons, and eager to see the legendary horses, bulls, and flamingos of this unique region.

A welcoming committee was waiting for us. The famous white horses are brown or grey when first born.

 

We began with a Jeep safari, chauffeured by three enthusiastic and well-informed guides. Great fun!

We drove past the ancient walled town of Aigues-Mortes and into the countryside of the Camargue, passing the classic manade dwelling of the Camargue gardiens (cowboys who work with the bulls and horses) as well as black bulls, flamingos, horses and ending with a tailgate wine tasting!

After an adventure-filled morning, we returned to the 11thC town of Aigues-Mortes for a short tour and time to browse and eat lunch.

The Matafère Tower in the background was ordered built by Charlemagne in 795. King Louis IX twice departed for the Crusades from this town, first for the Seventh Crusade in 1248 and again for the Eighth Crusade in 1270 for Tunis from which he never returned.

The last stop for the day was a visit to the famous salt marshes.

Dinner was a few minutes’ walk from our hotel, in yet another stunning setting.

Now this is the part that is hard to write about. As Deborah, my co-leader and dear friend, and I were walking back to the bus after lunch, she tripped and fell. Without going into all the details here, we had to send her off to the hospital in Nimes by ambulance. It was an upsetting incident for all and we were fortunate that an old friend of Deborah’s was on the tour, who is also a nurse. She went along in the ambulance, for which we were most thankful.

Deborah has detailed her journey with her injuries on her blog ~ click right here to go to the Barefoot Blogger page. and it is best to read about it in her words. We missed her for the last three days of the tour and everyone has stayed in touch with her as she continues in rehab therapy. The good news is that she is doing well and has maintained her amazing spirit and good humour … and she is keen to do the tour again in 2019. <3

Have you ever visited the Camargue? Please share your story if you have. And by the way, contrary to popular lore, we didn’t see one mosquito!

Please visit co-leader and BFF, Deborah Bine’s Barefoot Blogger site for an excellent article on the Camargue as well as tons of other great info on her travels in France.

Sharing the love …

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If it’s Friday, it must be France …

Bonjour everyone! It’s been a busy few weeks for me since Drawing Lessons was published on October 1st! How’s November going for you?

In fact, Saturday was here before I realized Friday was gone, so please excuse this post being a day late. There’s always a lot to do once a new novel is published and most of it includes writing blog posts to share on other websites. We all try to help each other passing along the good news!

If you have some time this weekend, you might want to pop over to my dear friend Steena Holmes‘ blog. This photo was taken at the NINC writers’ conference we attended in Florida last month. It was SO good to spend time together in person. Steena’s home is in Calgary.

It’s always a pleasure to visit on her blog and fun to share a few secrets … that’s one of her specialities! She consistently manages to tease a few tidbits from the friends she invites over …  just one reason she’s known as Sweet Steena! There’s also a giveaway for a print copy of Drawing Lessons, so don’t forget to leave a comment there to have your name entered! Click right here and Good luck ~ Bonne chance!

Be sure to investigate the great novels Steena has written and subscribe to her site so you receive all of her news. You’ll notice a lot of chocolate featured there too! Another passion we share …

Now, here’s some more love for you ~ a post written by another dear friend, Deborah Bine aka The Barefoot Blogger.

This photo, to the left, is from Deb’s visit with us in Antibes last summer. We were on our way home from the market that day. The house my husband and I were renting is just behind us with the blue shutters. We loved it! And the rooftop terrace … what a treat that was …

Deb’s visits to us on the Côte d’Azur, with her fab friends, Paula and Rich, have become a happy tradition.

Always a deliciously good time!

Deb lives in Uzès and gets around France more than most people I know. Then she writes great articles about her travels. This post of hers about the ancient and enticing walled town of Aigues-Mortes in the Camargue, ties into the story from Drawing Lessons and really tells you everything you would like to know about the history and the charm of the area.

I hope you will take a few minutes to linger there and feel like you’ve truly had a visit! Then you’ll understand why Arianna, the main character in my novel, was so smitten with the town and … well, I’ll let you read the novel to discover the answer to the rest of that sentence.

Click right here to read Deb’s article and enjoy Aigues-Mortes! In fact, it would be a good idea to subscribe to her site so you don’t miss all the other travels she shares.

This is a photo I took inside the walls of Aigues-Mortes when I was doing research for Drawing Lessons. Click this link to hear how to pronounce the town’s name. It’s easier than it looks!

Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to post a review for Drawing Lessons. I’m delighted you’ve enjoyed the story so much it has a 4.6 stars rating. Every time a review is written, it’s like sharing the love for an author … and it is most appreciated.