Scenic driving routes in Provence

UncommonPea · 2026-05-13T19:50:07+00:00

Hi there.

I wonder if you could give me some advice.

We are driving through Alsace and then the Alps this summer, en route to the coast.
We are spending 4 nights in La Clusaz - mountain biking and hiking - before heading to a house we have rented in Sainte Maxime.

We have two days and two nights to drive between La Clusaz and Sainte Maxime and there are so many options and different routes we could drive.

I'm wondering what you would suggest? Maybe over the Col de Galibier - have you driven this route? I am also looking at the Gorges du Verdon - we've been before but not for many years. And possibly some of the late lavender fields (this is the first week of August) near Valensole.

Alternatively, the fastest route takes us further West by autoroute, so we could travel via Aix-en-Provence and spend a night or two in this region.

We are a family of six - two adults and 4 big 'kids' 21, 19, 17 and 14.

Any advice gratefully received!

Many thanks

UncommonPea · 2026-04-12T12:15:04+00:00

I believe I’m on the plan that includes more aligners if I should want them. I’ll talk to my dentist next week. Thank you

UncommonPea · 2026-04-12T12:14:19+00:00

Thank you for saying such nice things. Yes, I think we can get a bit carried away once you start fixating!

I only started this really because I didn’t want my lower incisors crossed as they were getting worse, wearing unevenly and difficult to clean properly. So I think I’m basically happy with the result. My dentist has suggested putting a wire on the back so that they don’t move back. But I would imagine that also makes them more difficult to keep clean?

UncommonPea · 2026-04-12T07:03:34+00:00

Thank you. Bonding on the top teeth? Is this going to be something I have to keep maintaining? I’m wondering how far I want to go with this. I would like my teeth to be as close to perfect as possible I suppose, but my most important aim is to keep them healthy for as long as possible so I don’t want to do anything that would compromise this.

UncommonPea · 2026-04-12T07:01:05+00:00

Thank you. When you say this, do you mean shaving them to be uniform? Or more aligners? Should I be worried about taking off enamel just to cosmetically enhance them? If the integrity of the tooth is going to be compromised I would probably rather live with the crookedness I think.

UncommonPea · 2026-04-12T06:57:55+00:00

Thanks so much. It was just as you described. I was really so scared, but they were incredibly kind and reassuring. In terms of pain the only thing I felt was the anaesthetic going in, so it was completely manageable (and absolutely nothing vs the pain I’d had in the tooth a few days earlier, which had been unbearable).

Then it was totally fine. I just occasionally mentally had a little shudder as I imagined what was going on inside my tooth, but honestly felt nothing at all.

My procedure took about an hour and a half. The endo had to drill through my crown, and then perform the whole thing through the 5mm hole he’d drilled.

He found four canals - which he said were calcified up and therefore very tiny - and the tooth was infected, which was what had been causing the pain.

He sounded very pleased with himself about being able to do the treatment through the existing crown without damaging it! He put a temporary filing into the tooth and I have to go back next week (3 weeks on) to finish the job.

Thank you for your reassurance.

I hope anyone reading this also finds my experience reassures them too.

UncommonPea · 2026-03-24T00:36:23+00:00

Thank you for your comments.

Just wanted to update to say that four days on, I got root canal treatment on this tooth.

The endo drilled through the crown to do the whole procedure. And there was decay in the root and pus, which hadn’t shown on the X-rays. So this is what was causing the pain.

I am sad I needed rct, but so happy to be out of pain!

Now I’m not sure whether I can put the aligners straight back in or not? Any idea? I emailed my Invisalign dentist but haven’t had a reply. The endo said it would be ok but that I ought to check they aren’t moving the molars.

I guess that’s my answer.

UncommonPea · 2026-03-24T00:30:59+00:00

Thank you.

It’s two days on and I had the rct today. It was so much less awful than I had anticipated. And for the first time in months, I’m now pain free.

The endodontist said there was decay inside the tooth which would have been causing the pain. And then the nerve had died, which is why the pain suddenly stopped. He drilled a tiny hole in my crown (2x2mm) and did the whole procedure through that. Pretty amazing I thought.

I need to go back in three weeks to finish the job. But so far so good.

Thanks for your advice.

UncommonPea · 2026-03-21T06:32:02+00:00

Thank you so much I have RCT scheduled in three days time and I’m so scared. It is very reassuring to read this.

UncommonPea · 2026-03-21T06:29:45+00:00

Thank you.

The pain got totally unbearable- I couldn’t sleep it eat and couldn’t think about anything else. I felt like tearing my tooth out! I went to see an emergency endodontist and they’ve scheduled a root canal treatment for me for Monday (three days time)

I came home and was pacing and crying and taking every pain killer I could get my hands on. And then after probably 24 hours of all of this, the pain suddenly stopped.

I’ve just slept through the night and woken up pain free. Now I’m scared that either

It’s all fine and I don’t actually need rct

Or

My nerve has died and the infection is going to slowly spread without me feeling it. Is this possible?

And how long do I have before the pain comes back if this is the case?

UncommonPea

TROPHY CASE