Village
Welcome to the enchanting medieval village of Saint-Jeannet
Saint-Jeannet, our village on the french riviera
Perched above the lush estuary of the river Var, with breathtaking views of the French Riviera, Saint-Jeannet is the quintessential French hilltop village, where everyone says “Bonjour” when they see you, whether or not you have met them before, and children play in the village square in complete safety. It’s narrow medieval alleys are protected by a wall formed of the external walls of the houses in the periphery of the village. We’re at the end of the road up here right under the mighty “Baou”. Baou is the name in the local Provençal language for the 5 hills that mark the end of the foothills of the Southern Alps, and the one in Saint-Jeannet is the most impressive of all, with a cliff drop of a good 300 m. You can climb up the cliff face if you have a stomach for heights, but on our regular hikes, we take a more civilised hiking route!
The word “Baou”
"Baou" is said to come from the Latin “Baousum” which was the name the ancient inhabitants gave to the seats of their infamous stadiums.
You’ll see why when at the end of your hike you sit up there having your picnic lunch admiring the gorgeous Cote d’Azur, all the way from the Italian border to the East to Saint Tropez in the West; and no gladiatorial battles or lions in sight! Instead, on a clear day, you can see Corsica from here.
We have in fact two of the Baous nestling our little village, those of Saint-Jeannet and La Gaude named after the neighbouring village, but lent to us for safe-keeping its ancient treasure, the magnificent oak tree which while not quite old enough to have seen the Romans, was around when the Provençal language was being formed. What language did it speak before then? Take a guess! (hint: across the sea!)
Enough history !
Saint-Jeannet today is a haven of serenity. One thousand inhabitants, young and old, live within its walls year round, with a fairly even mix of ages: we have both a primary school and a retirement home here. It’s not a showcase village. It is a living one. It is quiet but not sleepy: plenty of entrepreneurial spirit about, a good proportion of it dedicated to sustainable and environmentally respectful ways of doing things, being the change we want to see: Mariano runs the organic farm, George & Denis, with their respective families, the two organic biodynamic vineyards, and Anaïs, and Sebastian practise their gastronomic magic on their produce, each in their own restaurants. Camille & Matteo run the organic chocolate workshop working directly with producers from Perou, as well as the said wineries, farm and the restaurants, to create our very own chocolate heaven right in the middle of the village: the sorbet they make from the white pulp of the cocoa fruit is out of this world.
It’s not all about food of course
Cécile runs her ceramic workshop where adults and children can take lessons, Jérôme makes jewellery by hand in his little shop, Miriam, Florence and Linda offer therapeutic practices as wide as TuiNa, Shiatsu, Ayurveda, and even physiotherapy to the village folk, there is the newly opened spa that you can book for private use during your retreat, Aude fills the village square with children's toys for all ages once a fortnight for all the kids to descend on - it’s a sight to behold - and many many other characters make this village such a wonderful place to live.
We have around us this beautiful, bountiful nature and wonderful people
And on our retreats, we are proud to present the delights offered by all of them. We all live here with all the respect and gratitude that we learn to embody from the teachings of yoga. Our yoga is one that is rooted in our present, and that includes this village where we live with our friends.
There are many more
Hugue and his sourdough starter, which he treats like a pet, make their organic gluten-free bread and pizzas in the old village oven built into the fabric of the shop, burning little eucalyptus branches for added aroma. Ludemilla and Laurent, who run the quintessentially French bakery, give us our daily dose of crusty bread, and of course the croissants and pains au chocolat - which we consume in moderation, or try at least!
Ugu makes fruit Kefir, which if you don’t live in France, sounds really odd. We find the milky stuff just as strange: somehow Kefir lost all its lactose when it crossed the French border - perhaps it saw all the cheese and just gave up trying to mess with perfection.
No little French village is complete without its butcher of course and although we don’t serve meat on our retreats, those of us in the team who are not vegetarian, get their meat produce from Pascale who sources it from local responsible producers.
