Contributor blog post by Aixcentric: Looks like the 3-year renovation at Piscine Yves Blanc is going well and that the pool will re-open in September 2018 (yay!). The main work of enlarging the pools and developing changing rooms and offices is done; now it’s over to the plumbers, electricians and tilers. …

Contributor blog post by Aixcentric: Peter Mayle once wrote that Chez Etienne was his favourite Marseille restaurant for lunch and it seems he is not alone. As the locals say, ‘Il faut absolument passer, un fois, dans sa vie, chez Etienne’. Even Gault & Millau call it a ‘veritable institution’. Mayle …

Contributor blog post by Aixcentric: The former convent and college des Precheurs in Aix centre ville has been sold for 11.5 million euros to house an extensive collection of Picasso’s works – paintings, ceramics, sculptures – 2,000 in all. The Musée Jacqueline et Pablo Picasso will be the third museum …

Contributor blog post by Aixcentric: Picasso’s work has been chosen to be the co-subject of the summer show at Aix’s Musée Granet. ‘Picasso/Picabia’ begins on at the Musée Granet in Aix-en-Provence on June 9th and runs through to 23rd September.  It promises to be an intriguing juxtaposition of two very different artists working in …

As most of you living in and around Aix will know, the region has long been associated with Mary Magdalene, the companion of Jesus who, according to legend, was driven out of Palestine during early Christian persecutions. She was expelled together with other saints in a boat without sails which …

Contributor blog post by Aixcentric: What with Chandeleur in France and Pancake Tuesday in the UK, February is a good time to get whipping up some batter for pastries and crepes. But if you prefer to buy something in town, there’s lots of choice. The traditional pets de nonnes – nuns’ farts  – …

I have to hand it to the Musée Regards de Provence seems to keep finding interesting local artists to introduce to us all. This time, André Maire (1898-1984) was an inveterate traveller. He was very curious about people, civilizations and religions, and painted his impressions as he went. …Continue reading …

Contributor blog post by Aixcentric: A major expansion of the Marseille Provence Airport (MRS) has been announced with British architect Norman Foster winning the design contract. Airports are in keen competition with each other and Marseille Provence wants to be able to welcome 11 million passengers a year by 2025. Foster …

Contributor blog post by Aixcentric: Surviving Provence is a humorous account of the people (and animals) who share author Barbara Farber’s daily life in the South of France. It is a far cry, she explains, from an ode to lavender and sunflowers. She writes: “Although my husband and I were both …

Contributor blog post by Aixcentric: On Sunday, January 21, 2:30 at the Renaissance Hotel, there will be a broadcast of Stephen Sondheim’s ‘Follies’. The production had terrific reviews when it showed at London’s National Theatre. Here is a short video trailer of the show: “Setting the Stage”: It’s New York, 1971. There’s a …