Having grown up in Marseille, Alice Pol feels a deep attachment to the south of France where she has chosen to put down roots. Since childhood, she has been more attracted to rural areas than to the city and the seaside: she loves the moments spent in the hinterland picking fruit, frolicking in total freedom! “In love with Jean Giono’s Provence, I have always been reassured by the presence of trees and people working the land.” If she goes to Paris to start her acting career, she will never stop returning to live closer to nature. “As soon as I earned three cents, I started by buying myself a small shack near Marseille, and over the years, I moved further and further inland.” For the past four years, she has taken up residence in green Provence, “much less known than the Luberon and the Vaucluse”, in Cotignac, a magnificent village located at the foot of a cliff. When she is not filming, she goes to her little paradise to take care of her animals, her vegetable garden, her orchard, her olive trees… and she even produces a little oil. She also writes there, because if we know her among other things for her roles in Cezanne and I or The Old Furnaces, Alice has proven herself to be a talented crime novelist. Following the success in 2023 of Shovel blowshe has just transformed the test with In white waterhis second thriller, published in May 2024.
Cotignac, a little paradise, cliffs, incredible beauty
To discover Cotignaca little treasure nestled in a generous and preserved natural setting, start with its majestic rock. Culminating at 80 meters, this limestone tuff cliff, which overlooks the village and refreshes it with its shade, will allow you to enjoy an exceptional panorama of the terraced hills. You can also explore caves and ancient cave dwellings (photo) that have housed humans and animals over the centuries. Then dive into the Bessillon forest “which houses in its heart a farm producing delicious cheeses”. This enchanting walk will reveal two high places of Provençal piety. “A wonder hidden among the trees” and built following the apparitions of the Virgin in 1519, Our Lady of Graces is a miraculous sanctuary that has welcomed many pilgrims for centuries. Louis XIV himself came to show his fervor in 1660, accompanied by his mother Anne of Austria. Continue towards the Saint Joseph Monastery. Run by nuns, this “haven of peace and spirituality of incredible beauty” was built on the only place in France where an apparition of Saint Joseph is recorded. The foster father of Jesus is said to have revealed himself there in 1660 to a young shepherd dying of thirst and saved his life by causing a spring to flow. After following in the footsteps of the Holy Family, you can enter the village, classified among the most beautiful in France. You will immediately feel the soul and character of Provence, as you stroll through its “encaladées” streets, that is to say paved with limestone, and stop in its small squares to find the cool shade of the plane trees. On the Cours Gambetta, the nerve centre of Cotignac, you can enjoy the sweetness of life on the café terraces, stock up on delicious local fruits and vegetables at the market and admire the magnificent Fontaine des Quatre Saisons, as well as the splendid wash house. Don’t forget to stop by Lou Gourmandises to treat yourself to Provençal delicacies, including navettes, pompes à huile or even chocolate palets mendiant style, “my guilty pleasure!”. You can end the day with a show at the open-air theatre or a session at the Marcel-Pagnol cinema “before going to dinner in the middle of the vineyards!”.
Visit Cotignac: practical guide
From Sillans-la-Cascade to Barjols via Tourtour, Alps, Bauduen or Correns
The surroundings will not fail to charm you too. Sillance-the-Waterfall (photo), you will cool off in a waterfall before reaching Tourtoura splendor all in height, nicknamed “the village in the sky of Provence”, where you can admire in particular a typical oil mill, with its stone millstone. Do not miss Aups which hosts the largest truffle market in Provence every year. From there, you can reach Bauduen (photo below), one of the villages of Verdon, located on the edge of the Lake Sainte-Croix. “So beautiful! It looks like a nativity scene!” But above all, don’t leave without stopping at runningthe first village to be awarded the organic label. “Bordered by water and as beautiful as Cotignac”, you will find there, among other things, renowned wines. You will also see the winegrowers working the vines with draft horses. As you leave the village, go to the Vallon Sourn. “In the middle of vineyards and olive trees, this river is absolutely magical for swimming.” Then push on to Barjols for a stop at the Logis Hôtel du Pont d’Or, “an old-fashioned hotel that I love”, where you can taste the tasty and “unmissable” Friday aioli!
*In white water et Shovel blow, by Alice Pol, ed. Robert Laffont.
Carnet pratique: Cotignac
To visit
Rock and troglodyte caves. Tel. 04 94 04 61 87. Full price: €2.
Our Lady of Graces Shrine. Notre-Dame Road. Tel. 06 12 26 13 55;
Saint-Joseph-du-Bessillon Sanctuary. 5248 Chemin de Saint Joseph. Tel. 04 94 04 63 44;
@ Tourtour and its topiaries
Where to sleep?
La Bastide des anges (guest house). 1190 chemin Azenas. Tel. 06 71 13 08 36;
Room for two with breakfast: €135.
Where to eat and drink
The Clos des vignes. D22 Montfort road, Claou de Vachoun, Nestuby district. Tel. 04 94 04 72 19;
Dish from €21.
The Secret Garden. 13, rue de l’Araignée. Tel. 04 94 78 30 51;
Three-course menu: €58.
Brasserie Café du cours. 23 cours Gambetta. Tel. 04 94 04 60 14;
Daily special: €16.
The Time of Pose (tea room). 11, Place de la Mairie. Tel. 04 94 04 69 17.
Read also> Scented oils are invited to the table
To have fun
Market. Cours Gambetta. Tuesday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Lou Gourmandises (bakery). 6, Grand Rue. Tel. 04 94 04 63 88.
Penelope Pottery. Cours Gambetta. Tel. 06 15 89 61 78.
Les Papillons verts (biodynamic agricultural farm). Chemin des Adrets, hamlet of Saint-Joseph. Tel. 06 67 27 74 00
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