Callian is a lovely medieval hill-top village in the Var. Callian is older than medieval: it is first mentioned in the 1st century, as part of the logistic base of Caesar's legions. Apparently it was a rather important rural group settlement, around a sanctuary of "our Lady of Rose" (the chapel is the most ancient building of the village and can be visited). In 1249, Callian appears as "castrum" in the documents, but after the big plague of 1348, followed by the famine of 1364, it was completely deserted by its inhabitants. In the 15th century it emerged again and has florished since then.
Callian has a very Provençal and authentic atmosphere, exactly what you expect from such a lovely, old, historic place, but it also lies close to the beautiful lake of Saint Cassien, and therefore offers the possibility to sail, fish and swim.
In the nicest residential area of Callian, my RHF colleague and friend Karin has a beautiful newly built villa for sale that has everything you can wish for. Apart from the great location, it has the combination of the quiet Provençal area with all possibilities to go out for sports, shopping, great food and culture. And it is roomy - 260m², built with the best quality fittings and a landscaped garden of 5065m² with a terrific pool, but also a romantic, old stone country shed on it.
The villa is south facing (towards the famous 5 star golf resort Terre Blanche) and has a fully equipped Siemens kitchen and a large living room with Boley fireplace. It has 4 bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms. It doesn't need work, you can start enjoying the good life as soon as you enter the door... And all that for € 1,250,000... For more information click
this link
Ok, and then sometimes the Marina Artists team paints beautiful houses for friends and acquaintances... we had so much fun painting the two pools... Hard work, sipping your drinks in the sun whilst moving your brushes... The house is a very good example of the ideal home in the South of France! The kind of villa that our clients would love to have - lots of room, facing South, great covered terraces, a pool... OK, and one more pool (for the kids). And then the location, close enough to Valbonne and at the same time peaceful and quiet. OK, so this one is not for sale - but if you are interested, we have a couple of other true finds in that area-just have a look on our website!
Behalve zonnige weidse uitzichten en een heel mooi, authentiek oud stadscentrum, is Vence ook een zeer culturele plaats: er zijn 22 Ateliers (die je kan bezoeken en waar je de kunstenaars aan het werk kunt zien) en minimaal 12 Galeries (ik ken er 12, misschien zijn er meer) Een van de galerieen is galerie Chave, de oudste Galerie van Vence. Hij werd gesticht in 1947 door Alphonse Chave er er is werk te zien van grote jongens als Marx Ernst, Man Ray, Fred Deux en Slavko Kopac. Het is een symbool voor “Art Brut”... En dan heeft Vence een eigen museum, in de Rue Grande, en tenslotte is er de fantastische Fondation Maeght: een privé museum, met een geweldige permanente collectie van moderne kunst. Er is een Giacometti binnenplaats, een Miró doolhof en keramiek en mosaiek van Chagall. het zwembad en een gebrandschilderd raam van Braque... en veel meer. En natuurlijk hebben ze ook tijdelijke tentoonstellingen. Kortom - een goede plaats voor lichaam en geest! Als je dicht bij de kunst wilt zijn, kies dan voor Vence. En als je serieus geinteresseerd bent in een huis zoals hierboven, neem dan vooral contact op met 
Apart from sunny views and a lovely authentic old centre, Vence is a very cultural place: it has 22 Ateliers (you can visit them and see the artists at work) and 12 Galleries (maybe even more- but 12 I know for sure). One of them is galerie Chave, the oldest gallery in Vence. It was founded by Alphonse Chave in 1947 and it has work of impressive guys like Marx Ernst, Man Ray, Fred Deux and Slavko Kopac. It is a symbol for “Art Brut”... Then Vence has a museum, in the Rue Grande, and, last but not least, the splendid Fondation Maeght: a private museum that has a stunning permanent collection of modern and contemporary art. There is a Giacometti courtyard, a Miró labyrinth and ceramics and mural mosaics by Chagall. The pool and a stained glass window are made by Braque and there is so much more.. of course they also have temporary exhibitions. In short - a good place for the body as well as the mind... If you want to be close to the arts - choose to live in Vence. And if you are seriously interested in a house like the above, you can contact 
In the village itself there are beautiful old buildings, churches and fountains as well as the ruins of a 12th century château - at the highest point in the village. Apart from its interesting caves and old hardstone romantic architecture in the center, 
the village is also wellknown for its wine, the Beaumes de Venise Muscat wine is very distinguished and a perfect combination with for instance fried foie gras.
And Beaumes has another excellent wine: the red Côte du Rhône Villages... Like many other South French villages, Beaumes also boasts an excellent high quality olive oil - that you can purchase, together with a whole range of local products in the shop of the oil mill. In short, people who live in that lovely, authentic, sunny South French village, have interesting sites to visit and great wines to drink - it is indeed a dream come true... 
Around the corner of "our" villa is the property of Pablo's daughter Paloma. And what's more, the villa lies at l'Etang de Fontmerle, a large open area that is very very popular for strolling, kite-flying, playing with the kids and having picnics.The Etang de Fontmerle is a lake,covered with lotus flowers, the largest collection of them in France. 
Another great thing about Mougins: wining and dining! Mougins is filled with restaurants. There are around 50 restaurants there, most of them (I have tried a lot) very good, with star-quality food and great, friendly service. Great place to be, great place to live... If you are interested to join us, for more sunshine, better food and the good lifestyle in general, you could look for a place to live in or around Mougins (or elsewhere on the Riviera) on the 
L'histoire de Babar is gebaseerd op de verhaaltjes voor het slapen gaan die Cecile Brunhoff (de echtgenote van Jean) aan de kinderen vertelde. Ze gaan over een olifantje dat vanuit de Jungle naar de grote stad reist, en die terugkomt met allerlei kennis en voordelen van de beschaving - die hij deelt met de andere olifanten.
De volgende stukjes gaan zoals gebruikelijk weer over de aquarellen die het Marina Artists' team maakt voor Riviera Home Finders... ze zijn al klaar om cadeau te worden gegeven aan de nieuwe eigenaren, als die hun handtekening hebben gezet bij de "Notaire"... maar onder de lezers van dit blog bevinden zich toevallig ook die toekomstige eigenaren, dus ik hou me nog heel even in. Zo blijft het toch een verassing!
The first English language version (The Story of Babar) saw the light in 1933 -in Britain and the United States. The story is based on the bedtime stories that Cecile Brunhoff (his wife) made up for their kids. They are about a young elephant thatleaves the jungle to the big city, and comes back with the knowledge and benefits of civilization for his fellow elephants.
Next posts will be about the paintings of the Marina Artists' team again - they are ready for handing out by the RHF-agents at their respective signatures he coming weeks but we don't want to spoil the surprise for their future owners!
To be close to Vence is wonderful - it is a town that has something new to offer everytime you go there (even if it is every day!), be it cultural, monumental or "just" the friendly athmosphere! Vence itself is medieval, the town exists since the 12th century. It combines the grandeur of a historical town 
with the lively charm of a popular place in the south of France: terrific shops, mediterranean colours and smells, terraces, plane trees and many galeries with fabulous art and a great court for our local sport - pétanque! 
Sainte Maxime is situated in the Gulf of Saint Tropez and faces straight south. It has the great advantage that it is sheltered from the Mistral by the surrounding mountains. A visit to the 
Some of these medieval aspects, like the cannons, 15th century town hall and the Tour Carré, have survived the times and can be admired today. The centre is pedestrian area and looks lovely, in a way you 'd expect from a village in the South of France! "Sitting in front of the bakery with a warm croissant, strong coffee on a sunny morning" gives you a feel for what it's like...
Sault is a small village in the Vaucluse (Provence) with a population of just over a thousand people... It is one of the major stages of the "Road of the Lavender" (a discovery track organized around distilleries, fields of lavender and activities related to lavender).
The other restaurants have their tables outside in the streets. Everybody at the long tables, is eating, drinking, talking to each other (hilarious as this is in many many different languages) and having a good time. 
