普羅旺斯的浪漫

No other region of France stirs the imagination and stimulates the senses as strongly as Provence. The soft light and its vivid landscape of pastel colors have inspired writers and artists like F. Scott Fitzgerald， Van Gogh and Picasso. Whereas Provence already attracted painters and foreign visitors a long time ago， it still attracts a lot of Francophiles. Hills covered with thyme， olive groves and lavender fields set off old villages.

Almost as soon as you enter Provence， you come across these marvelous fields of lavender. Just breathe and follow your sense of smell！ The perfume from these fields stretching before your enchanted eyes becomes heady very quickly.

Many of the cities in Provence were founded by Roman colonists and still contain striking ruins which remind visitors of the Empire’s glorious past. The fragrant countryside， redolent with wild herbs， is 1scattered with historic， fortified medieval towns such as Avignon and Aix—en—Provence， while the ancient Roman towns like Orange and Arles are famous for their great monuments， arches and coliseums. On the coast is the great port of Marseille， a melting pot of cultures so in contrast to the traditional social landscape of most French provincial towns.

Orange is a lovely city full of Roman sights. As soon as you come inside the gates you will find yourself in the midst of Roman civilization with the Arch of Triumph （three arches） standing majestically over the city. Another marvel， listed as a monument of the world， is the famous Antique Theater built in the early days of Christianity. The ancient capital of Provence， Aix—en—Provence is worth a detour as well as Arles， one of the most important agricultural and industrial centers in France. Arles came into prosperity during the Roman Empire and has been an important town ever since. Vincent Van Gogh lived here for over a year and painted 200 paintings here. Some of the buildings and squares he painted can still be seen around town. Of course the majestic city of Avignon with its walls may not be missed. Avignon is a great city in the south of France and is home to the beautiful Pope’s Palace.

The beauty of the lavender fields is indescribable. The fragrant and tiny flower not only enchants all who behold it but manages to bring in big tourist dollars along the “Lavender Route，” a wide purple swath that connects over 2000 producers across the flora area in Provence. Lavender has colored the landscape and brought prosperity and clean smells to village life since the Middle Ages. The word itself comes from the Latin lavare， which means “to wash.” Since its discovery in ancient， unrecorded times， it has been used for anything from perfume to cleansers to tonics for the prevention of freckles. Although the harvest doesn’t start until July， the best season to wander about the fields is between June and early September. The most generous patches of color are along the edge of Mont Ventoux. Here， the fields are simply glorious. Arranged in nodding little rows， the lavender seems to stripe the landscape， maturing from baby blue to deep mauve amidst a haze of bees. A walk or a bicycle ride—in season—is like being transported into a magical world， one usually only found on a picture—perfect postcard.

There is probably no better excuse for sitting down in one of the vineyards， tasting a glass of the famous wine and then indulging in the delicious cuisine of Provence. Influenced by traditional French， Italian， and North African cuisine， the food and drink of Provence presents a variety of tastes which are sure to please. Ros？ de Provence is the famous local wine. The wine is fresh and fruity. It is a good companion to any meal with food coming from the Mediterranean Sea and Provence. Tomatoes， garlic and olive oils are the most important ingredients of almost any meal in Provence.

The word “l(fā)avender” conjures up images of purple fields that extend as far as the eye can see， and whose subtle perfume delights those who travel up and down the roads of Provence during harvest season. In fact， Provence is a beautiful region all year long. Low—cost and convenient transportation has made Provence increasingly accessible. Come to Provence and experience it yourself！ You will definitely enjoy the winding and picturesque roads lined with vineyards or purple fields releasing heady perfume.

在法國，沒有一個(gè)地區(qū)能像普羅旺斯那樣讓人浮想聯(lián)翩，調(diào)動(dòng)人們的全身感官。柔和的光線與帶著輕淡色彩又生機(jī)勃勃的景色已激發(fā)了不少作家與畫家的靈感，比如F·司各特·菲茨杰拉德、凡·高以及畢加索等。盡管普羅旺斯在很早以前便已讓畫家與外國游客流連忘返，如今它依然是許多法國文化愛好者的熱衷之地。滿山遍野的百里香、橄欖樹叢和薰衣草田都映襯著古老的村莊。

幾乎當(dāng)你一進(jìn)入普羅旺斯，你就能見到令人驚嘆的薰衣草田。深呼吸，跟隨你的嗅覺走吧！不斷向遠(yuǎn)方延伸的薰衣草美不勝收，它所散發(fā)出的芳香很快就變得濃烈起來。

普羅旺斯有不少城市是由古羅馬殖民者建造的，如今它們依然保留著令人嘆為觀止的遺跡，讓游客不禁想起古羅馬帝國過去的輝煌。香氣撲鼻的鄉(xiāng)村到處是芬芳的野草，鄉(xiāng)村零散地分布在歷史悠久、固若金湯的中世紀(jì)小鎮(zhèn)之間，比如阿維尼翁和埃克斯；而像奧郎日和亞爾這樣的古羅馬小鎮(zhèn)則以其雄偉的歷史遺跡、拱門及大劇院而著稱。臨海的著名港口城市馬賽是一個(gè)“文化大熔爐”，其城市面貌有別于法國大部分省會(huì)城市的傳統(tǒng)人文景觀。

奧郎日是一個(gè)充滿古羅馬遺址的美麗城市。當(dāng)你一踏進(jìn)城門，你就會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)自己身處古羅馬文明的懷抱——三面環(huán)抱的凱旋門莊嚴(yán)地高高屹立在城中。另一個(gè)令人驚嘆之處便是建于基督教興起初期的著名古劇院，它已被列為“世界古跡”。普羅旺斯的古都埃克斯很值得繞道游覽一番。亞爾也是如此，它是法國最重要的工農(nóng)業(yè)中心之一，它在古羅馬帝國時(shí)代進(jìn)入繁盛時(shí)期，并從此一直是舉足輕重的城市。文森特·凡·高在這里住了一年多，創(chuàng)作了200 幅畫。他所畫的一些建筑和廣場現(xiàn)在仍可以在城里看到。當(dāng)然，不容錯(cuò)過的還有雄偉壯麗的阿維尼翁與其城墻。阿維尼翁是法國南部的一個(gè)大城市，并且是美麗的教皇宮所在地。

薰衣草田的美麗難以訴諸言語。這些芬芳的小花不僅迷住了所有注視著它的人，“薰衣草之旅”還給當(dāng)?shù)芈糜螛I(yè)帶來了經(jīng)濟(jì)效益?！稗挂虏葜谩笔且粭l寬廣的紫色花帶，覆蓋了普羅旺斯花卉種植區(qū)內(nèi)2000多戶花農(nóng)的花場。自中世紀(jì)以來，薰衣草已為這片地區(qū)增色添彩，并為鄉(xiāng)村生活帶來了繁榮與清新的氣息。薰衣草一詞來自拉丁語“l(fā)avare”，意為“清洗”。自從它在無歷史記載的遠(yuǎn)古被發(fā)現(xiàn)以來，薰衣草的用途便很廣，從香水到清潔劑，甚至還用作預(yù)防雀斑的滋補(bǔ)劑。雖然薰衣草在7月才怒放，但在薰衣草田里漫步的最好時(shí)節(jié)是6月至9月初?；ㄉ罘笔⑵G麗的地區(qū)是沿著馮杜山山腳附近。這里的薰衣草田壯觀極了?；▋号帕谐尚须S風(fēng)晃動(dòng)，好像給這一地區(qū)劃上深淺不一的條紋，從嫩嫩的嬰兒藍(lán)到成熟的深紫紅色，吸引了成群的蜜蜂。當(dāng)令的時(shí)候，在花叢中漫步或騎著自行車就好像進(jìn)入了一個(gè)奇妙世界——通常人們只能在一張完美的明信片上才能找到這樣的畫面。

能在某個(gè)葡萄園里坐下來，品嘗一杯有名的葡萄酒，然后盡情享受美味的普羅旺斯佳肴，沒有比這更好的了。普羅旺斯的餐飲受到傳統(tǒng)法國、意大利及北非烹飪的影響，味道豐富多樣，絕對令客人滿意。普羅旺斯桃紅酒是當(dāng)?shù)刂钠咸丫?，酒質(zhì)清純多汁。它是與所有來自地中海和普羅旺斯的美味佳肴一起品嘗的不錯(cuò)搭配。番茄、大蒜和橄欖油幾乎是普羅旺斯所有佳肴中最重要的原料。

“薰衣草”這個(gè)詞讓人聯(lián)想到紫色田地延伸到一望無際的遠(yuǎn)處，清淡的芬芳使那些在薰衣草怒放之時(shí)前來普羅旺斯游賞的人們歡欣喜悅。實(shí)際上，普羅旺斯地區(qū)全年的景致都美麗如畫。廉價(jià)便捷的交通使到達(dá)普羅旺斯變得更加容易。請到普羅旺斯來親身體驗(yàn)一番吧！你一定會(huì)愛上那蜿蜒如畫且兩旁遍布葡萄園的小路，你還會(huì)愛上那散發(fā)著濃郁芳香的紫色田地。