Gourdon Things to Do

To buy or not to buy, that is the question. We both paint so we love to see the work of other people. Hence, we seek out every gallery we can find no matter where we are. Since we have long since run out of wall space, we don't buy as much as we used to, but it's still lots of fun to look.

There are quite a few galleries in Gourdon, some memorable, some not. We enjoy it all.

Also, if you get a quick rain shower, a gallery is a great place to stay dry and have an interesting conversation.

I love to visit Grasse for perfume. It's fun and makes great family gifts now that we've all decided our favorite scents. However, did you know that Gourdon is a perfume center too?

You see the bottles of brightly colored liquids displayed all over town and you will see the copper distilling equipment in front of (and inside) several establishments.

If you enjoy perfumes and scented soaps, let your nose try a few. If you are interested in the history of perfume in the area, ask the proprietors. They love to share their knowledge.

Le Notre designed the gardens. He designed the gardens at Versailles to give you an idea of the delight awaiting you.

The gardens here have one huge advantage over Versailles . . . the views from the gardens are spectacular. You can see forever from nearly every vantage point.

Open every day from June 1st to September 30, 11:00 until 13:00 and from 14:00 to 19:00
Open every day except Tuesday from October 1st to May 31, 14:00 to 18:00.

We see these spice bread shops in Alsace all the time and love them. I'm not sure I've noticed one in Provence before. I was taking pictures of quaint street scenes and completely missed that this was a spice bread shop or we would have done more to support the local economy. I'm from Ohio originally, descendant of German immigrants and lover of gingerbread, i.e. spice bread. My grandmother used to make it every Christmas and I always "helped."

With helpers like me, it's a wonder she had any to share with guests . . .

This falls in the category of walks. We love to look for sun dials. I've seen many photos of this one since we have returned home. What attracted me was the little statue in the window above the sun dial. It looked so friendly. How nice to be a sun dial and have company instead of having to work all by yourself.

You will want to walk all over this tiny and beautiful village. It is picturesque from any point in town. There are tourist shops up and down the streets that include restaurants, snack places, crafts stores, art galleries . . . you name it. I know some people avoid anything that smacks of a tourist trap, but if you're a tourist, why not enjoy the things there for you?

Even if you decide to avoid the shops, just looking at the outsides, watching all the other people and stopping often to enjoy the wonderful views makes it a worthwhile trip.

Gourdon is a very small village, easily walked from the entrance at the north to the Queen Victoria plaza at the south end. There are stores along the way featuring crafts, arts, perfumes, and all the usual sales items. This village is much more commecial than most hill villages. The street is paved and open fronted stores like the walkway. The second picture shows the view from the promontory.

From the great panoramic views at Victoria Pl., to the vendors square close to the castle... as little as it may seem, Gourdon hides many architectural and natural sercrets. Take a walk from its entrance between the high Northern ramparts, into its sinuous little streets to discover the four headed fountain, the St-Vincent chapel and St-Pons chapel which holds relics of St-Vincent, Ste-Luce and St-Just, as well as the tombs of many of Gourdon's lords under its austel. The village's tall antique stone houses some of which are still decorated of wooden hand sculpted mouldings, the paved roads, old bread oven and scents of honey, lavender and many other flowers in bloom are as many reasons to take your time to stroll all of Gourdon's pretty streets.

After a walk through the village, under the hot summer sun, a stop in Gourdon's first and oldest church Ste-Catherine, is a nice recommendation for a breath of cool air. With only the sunlight filtering through its opened door, the place is dark and fresh... as only little round and square openings fonction as windows... one can put a coin in a wall slot to have the lights turned on for a few minutes, but who would want to kill such a great mood created by colors emanating from candle holders. The churches style is in the purest and simplest tradition, no wall ornementations, rich guilding, nor stained glass can come between the human soul and divine power. Opened everyday for free visits.

Even in such a little town, one will find a lot of little shops and arts and crafts boutiques along the few town's streets. From crystal chandeliers for which Gourdon is famous, to perfumes, jewelry, specialty candy and so much more. The tour of the town's attraction might be short and sweet, but be prepared to spend an entire afternoon admiring lace accesories, embrodered linnens and other hand made products, as Gourdon truly oozes beautifull souvenirs to bring back home.

Built in the 9th, 12th and 17th century, Gourdon's castle is one of Provences most extraordinary architectural site. In the 9th century, three centuries before Paris even laid down the very first stone for the Louvres' construction, the Gourdon castle had already been erected. Certainly different to what it is today, but its old foundations still exit, embeded in the rock. Up until the 12th century, the Earls of Provence, drew up plans for a real fortress to make their frontier more resilient. Insurmountable high walls were put up in the north wing, and look out posts on the southern and western sides. Later on, with three towers and a dungeon crowning the castle, Gourdon watched out for France. In 1598, Louis de Lombard bought it and began to transform it. Everyone witnessed the construction of Gourdon's asymmetrical trapezium shapped castle. The main facade was transferred to the west wing, as defence was no longer the main objective; arcades and a first floor inspired by Paris "Vosges" square were built as well as second floor for working purposes. Masters of the castle, the Lombards succeeded one another until WWI, when tumultuous times had the castle undergo terrible hits. When peace finally reinstated Gourdon, it became the property of Miss Norris, an generous and cultured American who was charmed by a past that she couln't acquire in her country; she became Lord of Gourdon until her death. Occupied by the Germans through most of WWII, the castle became a privileged station for them. It was finally opened to public visits in 1950, but it only took its true vocation as a historical monument in 1971 when its collections was finaly displayed, as it is home to a great museum of old weapons & armors, antiques, paintings from the 16th and 17th century as well as naïve paintings. The castle and its LeNôtre hanging gardens are open from June 1st to September 30th, 11h00-13h00 and 14h00-19h00. From October 1st to May 31st , 12h00-18h00 (closed on Tuesdays).

If you have a time and don't feel hungry then just walk and enjoy views and nice narrow streets in this medieval town.

Seems that main economic branch in Gourdon is tourism. There are lot of souvenir shops where you can buy various pieces of art including glasswares.

When you are on 800 height town don't miss a opportunity to take a snapshot of great panoramas around.