Today I've been editing photos of Lourmarin for the next Get Inspired section of the website. If you've never heard of Lourmarin, it's a small village in the Vaucluse department of Provence. It's (officially) one of the most beautiful villages in France and is still one of my favorite places we've ever stayed. The town is small and cozy but it has plenty of cafés, great restaurants, a fantastic market, a castle to explore, and it makes a great home base for day-trips throughout Provence.

Here's a couple of my favorite shots so far to tide you over.

In 2009, my family rented a gorgeous apartment for a week. We had lazy breakfasts on the beautiful little covered balcony. We toured around the countryside. We ate and ate and ate everywhere we went.

Each day we came back to Lourmarin and people watched at the little triangle of cafes on the main street. We learned about the village day by day.

On those balmy summer nights, I slept in French linen sheets with the wide-shuttered windows open listening to rhythm of the of the town. It was the first time that I got a sense of how staying in a village for awhile lets you scratch below the surface, if only just a little bit.