The fortified city itself is essentially of concentric design with two outer walls with towers and barbicans to prevent attack by siege engines. The castle itself possesses its own draw bridge and ditch leading to a central keep. The walls consist of towers built over quite a period. One section is Roman and is notably […]
Author Archives: jim
St-Remy-de-Provence
A visit to the charming village at the foot of the Les-Alpilles in the Luberon, Provence. We had lunch there the other day and here are some vignettes from our stroll around after our meal.
Postcard from France
The hamlet of Le Percy, in the French Alps near Grenoble.
Vézelay burial place of the relics of Mary Magdalene
All photographs on this blog by James Derheim, founder of European Focus Vézelay’s hilltop location has made it an obvious site for a town since ancient times. According to legend, not long before the end of the first millennium a monk named Baudillon brought relics (bones) of Mary Magdalene to Vézelay from Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume. In 1058 […]
Pont du Gard, France
The Pont du Gard is a notable ancient Roman aqueduct bridge that crosses the Gard River in southern France. It is part of a 50 km (31 mi) long aqueduct that runs between Uzès and Nîmes in the South of France. It is located in Vers-Pont-du-Gard near Remoulins, in the Gard département. The aqueduct was […]
Les-Baux-de-Provence
We made a scenic drive from our home base in Gordes through the valley of the Luberon yesterday, making stops for picture taking in Oppede and in Menerbes before continuing on to St. Remy for a lovely lunch where Jenean’s birthday was celebrated with a glass of Cremant and a sparkler presented in a slice […]
Today in Isle sur la Sorge, France
We visited the market in this small town today, a colorful event, crowded even in this early part of the tourist season. Finding a place to park is an exercise in extreme patience and perseverance. This town, and other market towns, would be smart to initiate a park and ride service. Oh well. You can’t […]
Beautiful Burgundy, France
Random photos along the back roads in Burgundy.