Notre Aventure Française, 2013: 23rd October, Sablet

Sablet is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Region in southeastern France. It is a fortified Provençal village rich in history and it's our home for another two and a bit weeks, having arrived here on 19th.

We found our accommodation after being directed to it by another Sablet renter who advised us correctly that her place would not suit us with internal steep ladder type stairways and a climb up hill with baggage from street parking and that is if any was available at the time. Although this place covers four levels - ground with a bedroom, bathroom and toilet, 1st with living area and kitchen, 2nd with kingsize bed and bathroom and toilet and 4th with two single beds, the stairways are relatively easy and it also has its own lock up garage attached.

The oldest part of the village "inside the walls" (les remparts), is made up of narrow streets or ruelles, built in a circular fashion around the beehive shaped hill, which afforded inhabitants protection against numerous invaders over many centuries. Streets are named to reflect the activities of the village inhabitants over the centuries, for example climbing the "Escaliers de l'Eglise" to the twelfth century church of St. Nazaire or visiting the shoemaker on the "Rue du Cordonnier."

Today, the village has expanded beyond the "Remparts" and has an active group of "commercants" who provide for the day to day needs of its residents and the surrounding farms.

Main industries in Sablet are Wine Producing and Tourism. Although the village is a support center for the tourism that takes place in the area, it retains its primary role as a living village.

The major "fete" each year is the book fair or Journees du Livre which is held in July. Well-known authors from all over France and literary enthusiasts come to the village for this two-day event. During the first week of August the village celebrates its annual Fete Votive (a celebration to the patron saint of the village, as do most villages in the area) with music, dancing and events for children. Various other events such as Antiques Markets, re-enactments of historic days, open air movies, art expositions and a Boules tournament also take place during the spring and summer months. We understand an antique market will be held this weekend.

Sablet is so different to St Albans de Varese in that it dates back to at least the 10th century and with its narrow lanes and houses built right on the street and with their windows open and curtains drawn you are almost inside the houses as you walk the streets. We have visited villages like this in Italy and now in France but this the first time we have experienced living and walking these narrow lanes to go about our daily business.
Whereas St Albans de Varese goes back to the 18th or 19th century, we think, and is constructed along the lines of say inner Sydney or Melbourne with wider streets and houses setback a little more or even having a small front garden giving a little more privacy. And of course so different to current suburbia and Bundanoon.

Everybody (including the kids) offers a "bon jour" as you pass in the streets or as you enter a shop, from both the customers and shopkeepers. It is a very friendly place as was St Albans de Varese and as we have found throughout France.

Another big difference between the two villages is that in Sablet there is no through traffic. The trafic that does flow is local, deliveries or tourists and they all do it slowly and quietly. St Albans de Varese was on a "major" minor road which linked several villages and a lot of those passing through ignored the 50 km/hr limit. During the day though there is the noise from the French fighter jets flying overhead in formation from the several air force bases here in this part of Provence.