"GOURDON" Gourdon by vibi68

Only 354 souls live in Gourdon, this little village perched at 758 m in altitude, dominating all of the Côte d'Azur. Its 12th century Castle offers a beautiful collection of old weapons and a tortures chamber. One can admire here, beautiful point of views of the hanging gardens drawn by Le Nôtre, which also drew plans to the Versailles gardens; these terraces accomodate many samples of the alpine flora also found higher in the Alpilles. The origins of the Village loses itself in the mists of time, in the most remote times, this insulated rock was used as defense site and a place of refuge. The Romans occupied the area at the time when a fortified camp with strenghten double enclosures and oppidum existed, 1,5 km North West. Even as it is presented today, Gourdon gives a perfect idea of the feodal village it once was, for almost nothing was changed, built or demolished. Built on a peak whose formidable slopes fall over several hundred meters chutes, down at the foot of the Loup river; only one entrance leads to its grounds, giving access to the principal street. Formerly, a single Roman door, simple and harmonious, defended it; unfortunately, it was demolished at the beginning of the 20th century being one of the only missing artefacts to the town's architecture. The thick and high ramparts close the town's Northern side remain, still today, the only accessible point. Some important dates to Gourdon's latest hapennings are April 19th 1891, Visit of the Queen Victoria in Gourdon, for which the the Place that dominates the littoral's panorama, is named. November 22nd, 1907, tumbling mountain rocks kill 17 people working at the building of the Gorges route. And August 24th, 1944, destruction of the Viaduct of the Provence's Railroads, in Pont-du-Loup, by the Germans (One can still admire the greatness of its pillars when visiting Pont-au-Loup). To put a term to rural migration, Gourdon opened itself to tourism and welcomes each year, more than one million tourists. One visits it for his shops and arts and crafts boutiques, but especially for the site itself, so impressive for its elevated situation and picturesque character of lanes and villages houses.

• Pros:Great little arts and crafts shops, beautiful castle and a short but very sweet and serene visit of the town
• Cons:So small, not much choice for restaurants and such, extremely crowded with Germans in high season