by Anne Woodyard | Dec 2, 2017 | Aigue Brun, Aix en Provence, Aix en Provence market, Aix en Provence restaurants, Ambiance d'Aix, Bonnieux, Cassis, Cours Mirabeau, fountains, France, France travel, French Word a Day, La Ciotat, Le Riad, Lourmarin, Luberon, Pavilion Vendome, Place de Trois Ormeaux, provence, Roussillon, Santons, south of France, truffles
Thanksgiving Week, 2017
Aix en Provence, France
Interested in a Music and Markets Tour? We’d love to hear from you!
We’re looking ahead to Spring – Aix en Provence for the Easter Festival.
What’s first on the Aix to-do list when we arrive? Flowers, of course! And what a glorious morning we have for our first market foray!
The usual produce, flowers, clothes and textiles fill stalls, and the annual Santon Fair is set up beyond the grand Rotonde fountain at the end of Cours Mirabeau – every imaginable figure for your creche scene.
Most of the week we’re walking around familiar lanes, but for a couple of days we rent a car to see friends further afield. After a near-freezing morning, we’re off to La Ciotat, where we’re surprised to see hardy souls braving the water – from stand-up paddlers beyond the waves, to swimmers and sunbathers.
Our friends Jean-Marc and Kristin (author of one of our favorite blogs, French Word a Day) have recently moved here from a few miles away, and after that chilly start to the day, it’s turned out to be perfect for a garden lunch. Kirk channels Van Gogh in one of Kristin’s hats,
and we while away the hours together in the sunshine.
After stopping for some big box store supplies outside of Aix while we have the car, we take a side road home and pull off to take in a glorious sunset.
One more day with a car, and we’ve invited new friends Jim and Brenda to see more of the area – the lush and varied Luberon north of Aix calls us today, beginning with ochre-toned Roussillon,
always a favorite.
Rewinding south towards Bonnieux, we pause at Pont Julien,
a hearty Roman relic that survived when new bridges perished in floods over the centuries.
Just down the road is bonnie Bonnieux, where we pause for a look across the rooftops and the lower church –
to the valley beyond. A few elegant doorways from centuries ago attest to the former wealth of the village,
popular again since Peter Mayle’s A Year in Provence. Pulling away towards Lourmarin, we’re grabbed with the sight of the village tumbling down its hill, framed in glorious autumn colors – wow!
Between Bonnieux and Lourmarin we stop for a half kilometer hike down a path beside an old mill trace to a stone bridge built by the pre-Luther Protestants called Vaudois. They left Italy where they were known as Waldensians and where they developed considerable skill as stone masons.
This low, short bridge over the insignificant Aigue Brun stream has as an anchor on the right, a stone concave fan. Those Vaudois cut and laid those stones with such skill that the bridge still stands after about 500 years.
Last stop, chic Lourmarin, with its eye-catching chateau.
The guys pause for a coffee
while Brenda and I peek in the shops.
Mt. St. Victoire greets us in the sunset as we approach Aix,
where a surprise awaits us. Our friend Xavier told us to call him when we got back since he had something to bring us. He’s a collector of contemporary art, but has saved for us a piece from his parent’s estate that he gave to them years ago – of a place he knows we enjoy. Venice!
We’ve been looking for something for this corner – how nice to have a piece with a personal connection!
Friends and family make life so delightful….the family arrives tomorrow!
by Anne Woodyard | Jun 13, 2017 | Aix en Provence, Bonnieux, France, Le Riad, Lourmarin, Luberon, Plus Beaux Villages de France, provence, Roussillon, south of France, Theatre de Jeu de Paume
Easter Week 2017
The South of France
Interested in a Music and Markets Tour? We’d love to hear from you!
Why not join us on our newest tour in September – Bordeaux and Dordogne
We’re sharing some favorite villages of the lush Luberon region north of Aix with our Aix Easter Festival tour guest today. And as she collects artisanal pottery, we’re seeking out more than just fabulous vistas. At the top of the russet-hued village of Roussillon
is a tiny boutique specializing in local ceramics – and now Janice has a few choice pieces that will wing their way to her US home!
From atop the Castrum we take in the views – the shocks of red clay amidst the dark green of the pines, a lone poppy in the grass,
a chateau nestled far below. It’s a perfect day to take in all the colors of Roussillon.
In the parking lot below, market stalls cluster
among the surrounding colors.
Beside the cliffs, scraped in decades past for their ochre pigments,
we pause for lunch, then we’re off to our next village, Lourmarin. On the way we pass Bonnieux, tumbling picturesquely down a hillside –
it always demands a photo stop!
After zigagging through the Luberon range, we coast down to Lourmarin, with its elegant chateau,
and wander through the peaceful lanes for a bit
before returning to Aix.
This evening’s concert is in the historic Jeu de Paume,
a restored handball court originally constructed for the entertainment of the nobility in the 1700s. Beneath this elegant ceiling
we listen to tenor Mauro Peter sing Schumann, Strauss and Liszt, ably accompanied by Helmut Deutsch on the piano, before completing our day with a Moroccan feast at Le Riad – the best tagines in town!
Our waiter effortlessly pours tea from yards above the cups –
that takes some practice, I believe!
by Anne | May 23, 2014 | Cezanne, Le Riad, Mt. Saint Victoire, Terrain des Peintres
Thursday, April 24, 2014, continued
Aix en Provence, France
Interested in a Music and Markets Tour? We’d love to hear from you! Join us on a summer tour on the Amalfi Coast, in Provence, or in Amsterdam/Belgium
Kirk and I often walk up the steep hill to Cezanne’s atelier and the Terrain des Peintres (Painters Garden) when we’re in Aix – the views towards Mt. Saint Victoire are what drew Cezanne here, and remain breathtaking to this day. On the way back to town from Cassis, we detour up the hill, find a parking place (not easy on this busy two lane road!) and lead the way up the zigzag path through the olive trees.
Our guests are as impressed as we always are, snapping photos of the view,
and noting the museum locations of the many canvases that were painted right here.
An exotic dinner awaits us in Aix – delicious Moroccan cuisine at Le Riad,
where middle Eastern themed tents are arranged around a delightful courtyard.
Bowls of steaming couscous and tagines of lamb and chicken, strewn with almonds and dried fruits,take us to the far reaches of Francophone influence – delicious!
A sampling of Moroccan pastries is the perfect light dessert,
served with coffee or tea – Ruth does a good job of a high pour,
but not over her head as the waiter did!