Yesterday was la rentrée des classes–back to school–though it’s the official end of summer for those without kids, as well. The cars on the roads seem more purposeful, if not exactly rushed. Folks in these parts don’t rush very often.Although the end of summer and the return to routine marks the passage of time, in the little villages of the south of France, time seems to stand still. Time feels less linear and more like accretion, layers upon layers, with the old still there, forever.Welcome to the village of Trausse, on the edge of the Black Mountains, not far from Carcassonne. Host of a cherry festival in May and home year-round to excellent Minervois wine. As you can see, it’s bustling.
In that way of small villages, life is both intensely private and lived in public.
There are old stones, remnants of an illustrious past. In the late 1700s, there were more than 800 residents; today there are about 500.
Nothing is straight. If the walls in the photo above look like they’re leaning in toward the street, well, yes, they are.
People come and go, but the stones remain, sometimes putting up with modernization, like electricity.
Although fetching water was probably a moment for gossip and camaraderie, I doubt folks regret having indoor plumbing. Somebody told me my village got plumbing in the 1970s!
Trausse is overshadowed by its neighbor, Caunes-Minervois, which is undeniably adorable and which attracts many tourists. I heard that J.K. Rowling recently spent time in Caunes. But that might just be bragging. In any case, Caunes is a good place for somebody like her to be incognito, just another British lady renting a holiday home.
There are so many cute villages here–I’m hard-pressed to think of any that don’t have at least a picturesque ancient center, even the ones surrounded by ugly subdivisions. It’s easy to skip the subdivisions and stick to the quaint old streets, where elderly residents sit in the shade unperturbed, cats nap in the middle of the road, and time meanders gently.
Thank you for sharing our village of Trausse with your readers!
Debby Jennings
Sent from my iPad
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You live there? Lucky you!!!
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I enjoyed that very much. Thank you.
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My pleasure!
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I LOVE this! A lovely little escape from my workaday life – thanks so much!
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You’re so welcome!!!
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What a wonderful village!
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It’s so pretty. I didn’t do it justice.
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Oh, all those lovely blue shutters and doors… inviting and restful. Thank you for sharing he village of Trausse with us.
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Yes, they have the French country color palette down pat.
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It’s a lovely place and easy to see why you love it ….
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Especially the cherries! And the wine!
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Love the blue shutters! Some inspiration for our replacements that need to be painted this month. I will add the village to our ever extending list of places to visit.
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It’s a gem, like Caunes and like so many others. Wait until I get to the Timbuktu of Aude….
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I’m intrigued now!
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What a wonderful – TASTE OF FRANCE – we are thinking of sometime during the last week of October…on our way south…
Starting to get just a bit excited.
Ali
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Hurray! (and hurry)!
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I love your photos of the buildings. We can see how they’ve been repaired or restored over the years. The archaeologists who restore Mayan ruins and the five Spanish Missions here in San Antonio, where I live, all put small pebbles into the aggregate to indicate the part that’s been rebuilt.
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That’s interesting. Just south of here, where France bleeds into Spain, it’s the style to put pebbles into the stucco.
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What a great post! Sortie de velos, impeccable. I lived in the Languedoc, in a similar village but a bit more touristique, Roquebrun, for 7 years. Chairs in the street and all of it, so authentique. I’m in Provence now, numerous reasons, but still own my house in Roquebrun, and I miss the Languedoc life that you have portrayed. There are things I don’t miss, like how far it was to a real town (45 minutes) and how far it was to the street where I parked (34 stairs), but what a wonderful experience to live in a village like that….
bonnie now in provence
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Trausse is a good half an hour to Carcassonne. And it is VERY authentic.
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You have captured something so lovely here. The gentleness of time I suppose – it appeals to my senses, and for someone not crazy about crowds…bring it on. The beautiful blues, the crumbling stone, the leaning structures…all of it whispers peaceful charm to me.
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Yes, it’s quite peaceful! And it’s surrounded by vineyards and garrigue–lots of nature.
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HELLO…thank you for a wonderful post…we live here for 6 months a year…1st house bought in 1997….and we now have 4 and a barn… http://www.ourhouseinfrance.com.au…THX AGAIN STEVE
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Lucky you to be able to have it both ways!
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What a fascinating and adorable little village!
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It’s very cute. There are so many cute villages!!! More to come.
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We love returning to this village to stay when we have the chance. We never tire of it’s charm.
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Aha! You know Trausse already. I am not surprised you go back again and again.
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Beautiful doors, especially the one with the red wooden surround. I love the sense of time flowing gently through the streets and around corners.
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It does seem as if someone dressed from the 1200s or the 1700s or the 1900s could walk around the corner at any time and not look out of place.
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Stunning photos! Thanks for helping me dream today.
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I hope you can visit in person one day…
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Those French villages are so lovely! I especially adore the colors they choose for doors and windows :))
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Some of it is fading by the sun, but the blues, grays and greens are very popular.
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And there is this special blue, with a hint of lavender, which is so French South :))
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So marvellous, I spent a little part of my childhood in this village where my best friend’s grandparents lived in the eighties. It is a very tiny village but so typical of the south village ! Thanks for the souvenir which came back so far !
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How wonderful to trigger happy memories!
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All I can see, is since our last visit in 99, the village has not changed. My friend’s parent still live here and his parent in law too ! Now I see again your pictures, my wife and I would like going again at Trausse !!
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What a beautiful, quiet village. Authentic in every way. And I love the way you described time in these villages, no beginning or end, just a layering from year to year. That must be part of the charm! Thanks for sharing.
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Yes, the interweaving of past and present into a single village fabric is definitely charming. I hope you get to visit sometime.
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I a do behind on my blog reading. I have been doing a lot of babysitting. I have so enjoyed your Casablsnca posts and this post was a feast in itself. Gorgeous photography!
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