Our Journey to Le Farmhouse

In search of a "Slower Life" Welcome to Le Farmhouse, our slice of paradise in the heart of Provence. As an American couple, our journey to this charming 18th-century farmhouse and olive orchard has been nothing short of a dream come true. Today, we want to share our story and invite you to join us on this incredible adventure. We met and fell in love in Washington DC a little under twenty years ago. For many years, our careers kept us anchored to and living in big cities - Washingon DC, San Francisco, Chicago, London - and both work and personal travel took us across the globe. We first set foot in the Luberon region on vacation 17 years ago - it was magical. We were immediately captivated by the beauty and tranquility of this landscape -- a mosaic of olive groves, lavender fields, vineyards, cherry orchards, hilltop villages, and towering cypress trees that create a picturesque landscape that feels like it's straight out of a painting. It was love at first sight, and so started the dream: "One day, wouldn't it be amazing to live here..." In 2019, while living in London and enjoying our fulfilling but fast-paced careers, we decided not to wait for retirement to explore the South of France and search for our forever home. It took us nearly a year to find, and visits to over 75 properties from Nice to Bordeaux, before we had a "coup de coeur" ("love at first sight") with this 18th century traditional farmhouse and private 20-acre estate in the Luberon.

This was more property than we were looking for, but we fell in love with this charming, authentic four-bedroom Provençal farmhouse and olive orchard. So we took the plunge and bought our dream home in this picturesque valley.

We are not retired, and feel very privileged to be able to work remotely ("télétravail") from Le Farmhouse. We have built a community of friends and neighbors here - from local French to other expats from around the world - most of whom chose this valley as their home for similar reasons. There is a slower pace of life here - and a seasonality to things. Beautiful weekly markets, antique brocante markets, hilltop villages, long leisurely lunches -- the "slow life" in the Luberon is a welcome counterpoint for us to what felt like hectic, intense (yet rewarding) lives in the city.

It hasn't been easy moving countries, and setting up life in a rural area. But it has been immensely rewarding.