Ely (Elyjia Baxton) keeps herself busy! It was just back in January when I wrote about her (then) recently-opened Full region design entitled After the Rain. It was a delightful place to visit and wander, and I was happy to add it to my growing list of articles on her region designs. However, After the Rain has now gone, and in its place has sprung Sous les Oliviers (“Under the Olive Trees”).
As the theme of Tuscany, Sous les Oliviers is a place to relax, explore, or simply admire the view. Sous les Oliviers is the ideal retreat. Every nook and cranny is designed to offer you an immersive and soothing experience, away from the hustle and bustle.
Sous les Oliviers About Land / Destination Guide description
Whilst stating – and primarily displaying – a Tuscan theme in terms of architecture, the setting carries broader European themes within it. There is, for example, its very French name, coupled here and there with signage on walls. The local open-sided chapel bears the Spanish name Parroquia des St. Maria de los Caballeros – Parish of St. Mary of the Knights, as it sits on its own little island, and the windmill almost overlooking the chapel (but for the intervening olive tree!) is perhaps atypically Tuscan in styling, and would look equally at home in, say France or England. There is even a little touch of Americana waiting to be found!
This is not in any way to complain; rather it is to note that Ely cats a wide net in the creation of Sous les Oliviers, and the catch she brings forth offers a delightfully rich study and setting for people to enjoy.
The landscape is, for the most part, flat and cut through with waterways which break it up into island-like masses of differing sizes. This in itself is suggestive of low-lying wetland as might be found elsewhere in Europe rather than being specific to Tuscan. Say, for example, the Netherlands or England’s fenlands to name but two. This further enhances the setting as being a place of the imagination, rather than having firm roots in the physical in terms of location.
The waterways are in part fed from waterfalls dropping from the western border of the land. These separate Sous les Oliviers from the neighbouring Loulou. However, a path leading to their mid-point and the gates to be found there suggest the two regions will be linked; but at the time of my visit, Loulou was under reconstruction and so closed to public access.
Most of the landmasses making up the setting have structures on them, the majority of which are distinctly Tuscan in styling as noted. One the houses on the lowlands artificially elevated above the land on which it sits, suggesting there is a risk of flooding that had to be countered. The large, raised terrace of this house sits as a place where live music might be enjoyed.
No such protection is required for the houses to the south of the setting; they sit elevated as the land naturally rises. They also overlook a cliff-sided, rocky cove. One of the villas here sits before tidy rows of vines, together with large casks, suggesting it is a home to local wine or sherry production, if on a modest scale. The presence of bee hives might also hint at a little mead might be on offer as well!
A little eastward from this villa, the land rises further, passing by way of an old stone-built cabin with steps down to the cove, to reach a large, flat-topped table of grass. This is home to both a large villa and a pool of deeply blue water suggestive of great depth. The pool feeds two streams which further add to the setting’s waterways, the first sitting at the foot of sheer waterfalls dropping away from one side of the pool, and the second being more of a bubbling brook dancing and bouncing away from the opposite side of the pool, as it tumbles down the slope to the waters below.
As one might expect, multiple bridges help connect the various parts of the landscape together, allowing visitors to wander from place-to-place without getting their feet wet. The Landing Point sits mid-way between the lowlands and the upper highlands in terms of elevation, and alongside one of the aforementioned streams as it tumbles down waterfalls from the large villa. A paved footpath gets arrivals started on exploring, running as it down south towards the local beach or north down to the lowlands proper, where a choice of routes to follow awaits.
Wherever you wander, however, there is plenty to enjoy. The landscape is – as one would expect – entirely natural and flowing in its look, rich in grasses, flowers, trees, and lots of little details. Runs of sand offer miniature beaches, deckchairs and benches offer places to sit outdoors, gazebos and pavilions offer both the opportunity to sit and also to break bread or enjoy a meal. Lavender fields alongside the windmill dash the land with deeper purple, and so much more.
About the only places where feet might get wet is in taking a wade through the waters to reach the chapel on its little isle or to reach that of the local lighthouse. However, as the latter sits on the shoulders of rocks which appear intend on rebuffing visitors from climbing them and leaving only the sands at their feet as an easy visit, then the lighthouse is perhaps better appreciated from the other sides of the waters!
In all, a delightful – as ever – setting from Ely, and one highly recommended as a place to visit.
SLurl Details
- Sous les Oliviers (Ely, rated Moderate)
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 