Robin and I drove over the Alpilles to see the Transhumance pass through the town of Saint Remy de Provence. The Transhumance is when, in the Spring, the sheep from the southern plains are led back up to the cooler mountains to graze on the fresh grass there. …Continue reading …

Le Fête des Gardians is the annual festival in Arles celebrating the lifestyle and traditions of the gardians (basically the French version of cowboys that rear bulls for delicious daube provençal). There’s an enormous parade, blessings of the animals, a queen is elected and to top it all off …Continue …

Contributor blog post by Aixcentric: The tourists sitting in the sun outside cafés in the Place aux Huiles and the Cours Estienne d’Orves probably don’t realise that they are perched above an ancient system of canals that dates back at least to Roman times. I am indebted to the website …

There was a very interesting talk in St.-Rémy-de-Provence the other night, about women in the French Resistance.  It focused particular attention on St.-Rémy, where I live part of the year. The talk was organized by the local historical society and featured two historians who specialize in the subject.  The event …

In the centre of the pretty village of Saint Saturnin les Apt is a peaceful square (home to the vibrant Tuesday morning market), and to one side is a small garden area that sits in front of a dramatic stone wall, which is a memorial to the dramatic and devastating …

It’s Academy Award season, and as it was with me a year ago when I wrote of Marcel Pagnol, I am drawn back to Provence, in fact to his hometown of Aubagne. On this occasion it began last fall when I was discussing with my wife Benedicte, who is French, …

Contributor blog post by Margo Lestz: The French are a superstitious lot. They have many traditions that predict whether good or bad luck will follow a certain action. One such superstition states that you should never lay bread on the table upside down. It’s widely known that this action invites …

Contributor blog post by Margo Lestz: Aix-en-Provence, the City of a Thousand Fountains Aix-en-Provence is known as the city of 1,000 fountains. However, since the folks of this area have a reputation for exaggeration, we should probably take that with a grain of salt. The real number might be closer to …

Contributor blog post by Aixcentric: The ‘dig’ being carried out ahead of the redevelopment of the Place de la Madeleine has already yielded results in that skeletons are being exhumed and taken for examination. As expected, there was a 16-18th century cemetery beside the church. The archaeologists are also hoping …

Contributor blog post by Margo Lestz: Did you know that the city of Nice, France almost had a 49 foot (15 meter) tall statue of the Virgin Mary standing atop the Colline du Chateau (Castle Hill)? In the 1980s, the idea of the “Virgin on the hill” came to the …