I do enjoy a good festival – whether it’s a big County Show in England or a small local food event in France such as The Honey Fair at Goult this year. With that in mind, the signs for the Fete de la Lavande at Sault were too much to …

French Riviera Jazz Tunes Summer on the French Riviera and in the Alpes-Maritimes (department #06) residents are really spoilt by the choice of low cost, or free, fabulous assaults on the eyes and ears. The Nice Jazz Festival 2018 with its 70th edition, promised a rich programme, which I am …

Provencal Coastline Images Even a photographer born in Provence, Camille Moirenc, a South of France native who has spent 30 years photographing the region and has published the same number of books, was surprised at the math. His most ambitious project to date might be “Exposition 438, Notre Littoral” a …

Contributor blog post by Aixcentric: Ai Weiwei and Marseille This is a highly political show – highly personal too. Much is about the artist’s relationship with his father (Ai Qing) whose ship from Shanghai back in 1929 docked right next to where MuCEM is today. Indeed it was France that inspired …

Here’s a suggestion for an interesting art lover’s outing, about an hour’s drive from Aix-en-Provence.  La Commanderie de Peyrassol is not only a successful Var vineyard producing 500,000 bottles of wine a year but is a fast-growing contemporary sculpture park. Continue reading here for details from Lynne’s visit to this vineyard’s modern …

I have always loved gardens, although I have to admit to not being a great gardener myself. A summer garden with deep herbaceous borders, filled with the scent and colour of roses is always a delight and we have some delightful ones around us in the UK, such as this …

Aixcentric is the name of Lynne Alderson’s blog, an online resource for anyone looking for current events in the Aix-en-Provence area. The blog was “born” out of Alderson’s frustration regarding discovering details about interesting happenings…just a little too late. Her second book “Art in the South of France, The Inside …

Hemingway aficionados should put these books together on your summer reading list for an inside look at the man behind the words & Paris in the 1920s I’ve started to make my university students read a few Hemingway short stories each quarter as a means of teaching them how to …

Contributor blog post by Aixcentric: Here is some information from two French teachers who have moved from the classroom approach in favour of walking around Aix, visiting the markets, having lunch together, all the time having French a conversation – with notes of new vocabulary being emailed to you later.   …Continue …

Contributor blog post by Aixcentric: The Bastide Rose is the beautiful honey-coloured home of Poppy Salinger who was married to JFK’s press secretary, journalist and writer Pierre Salinger. It stands by the translucent river Sorgue and is the setting for an annual sculpture show. This year, its theme is Amour, in …