For what value of "small" ? There's plenty of choice for that... And quite a lot reachable by train. What kind of landscape around ? Mountains ? There are plenty of that in, say, Alpes de Hautes Provence, like Manosque, for a bit or Provence feel. But that's what would be called a village in much of the world, and you may not find many people around...

Un roi sans divertissement est un homme plein de misères

Given that you're coming from Italy, Provence (Lubéron, Baux de Provence) is an excellent idea.

I'd suggest you visit Strasbourg on your way to Germany from Paris.

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes