Finally the line of hunters ended, and I reached the Chartreuse de Montrieux. “Chartreuse” or “charterhouse” in English, refers to a monastery or convent of the Carthusian Order, an order founded by St Bruno way back in 1084. The first “chartreuse”, which gave its name to all the others, is in the Massif de la Chartreuse, a mountainous region north of Grenoble. Eventually over 250 were founded all over Europe, the one here in Provence being one of the first, and one of only six still functioning in France. Those who are interested in these kind of things can find out more at the Carthusian Order’s website (http://www.chartreux.org/eng/frame.html) - obviously times have changed since the twelfth century!

The Chartreuse de Montrieux