“I do not like living alone
in a hotel…It is too impersonal. I miss my children. I hate the sounds of the
Vespas revving up on the Place des Augustins.”
-
M.F.K. Fisher, "Map of Another Town"
©twmcdermott2012
 |
| Cours Mirabeau at Night |
We had flown to Marseille
through Heathrow on British Airways. We were tired after a long airplane
journey, and I was driving our rented Peugeot diesel north up the D9 to Aix en
Provence, already worried about having declined insurance as I maneuvered to
avoid French commuter traffic. No matter where I travel, it seems that I must
adopt some local worry or other. It is my way of assimilating.
My wife the DG (Darling Girl)
and I arrived in Aix, the ancient Roman and Provencal city of water and rotundes or roundabouts, exactly at rush
hour. Round and round we went as if we riding the real carrousel we kept
passing, but we were losing patience and were not so amused. On one of those
revolutions it occurred to me that there are only two kinds of people in the
world: drivers and navigators. For anyone contemplating a long marriage, in
addition to promising to honor through richer and poorer, I advise adding a vow
to love through lost and found. I also realized that I'm a born navigator, but not when I'm driving.
Eventually, I suggested the
unthinkable; that we, meaning the DG, humbly ask for directions. Et Voila! We
were within meters of the entrance to Parc Rotunde, near Aix’s famous central
fountain and a very short walk from our hotel. And thus our wonderful week
began.
Those Vespas, which M.F.K.
Fisher mentioned above, are still revving on the small Place des Augustins, but
we didn’t mind. Unlike Fisher, we had chosen a small stylish room in back on a
quiet courtyard in the same Hotel De France for an affordable 90 euros. Plus,
the point of our trip was to be near one of our children, Ginny, who was
“studying” in Aix for a term.
What did we do first? Look
for that memorable meal in a special restaurant, or a seat at a café on the
Cours Mirabeau from where we could people - watch during France’s Toussaint
holiday?
 |
| Rotunde/Fountains |
Non!
Whenever we arrive in France we quickly go to Monoprix, which in this case was
just around the corner from the hotel. It was there in Fisher’s day too, except
she called it the “dime store.” So hier!
There is nothing quite like
Monoprix in the U.S. CVS? Please. Seven-Eleven? Gosh – a - mighty – no! It’s
kind of like a department store attached to a drug store, attached to a
grocery. It’s...ah, forget about it; let’s agree that there’s a lot of good,
affordable stuff there, and it’s a great way to throw yourselves into everyday
French life.
I bought two merino sweaters
for 88 euros. I purchased water, Perrier, organic yogurt, and cranberry juice
for our hotel room. Monoprix makes the
best travel size shave cream with a hint of lemon for 2 Euros; I got three. DG
bought cosmetics and her own sweater. We did early Christmas shopping there
too.
No sooner had I quit worrying
about the car insurance than I commenced worrying if my debit card would work
at the parking garage. It did not, since it didn’t have the all-important chip.
Not to worry, a nice madame walked me through how to pay with cash. Soon, we
were orbiting the garage and the first of many rotundes of the day, headed for
the famous road, N7, northwest in the direction of Avignon and a few pretty
towns of the Provencal countryside.
I was finally
“reconnoitering” in “Gaul,” as I had learned reading Caesar’s commentaries in
high school. Now I could see why the Romans had liked hanging out there. The N7
was lined with plane trees and cut through fertile vineyards and farms in a
dozen small villages on our way to St. Remy de Provence, about an hour’s drive
from Aix.
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| Les Baux, About Ousteau |
Since it was off-season, St.
Remy was quiet, but in summer it’s bustling with British and American tourists.
We had a quick lunch and encountered the only disagreeable waiter on our trip,
an amateur, judging by past experiences. Then we headed south. DG, a born
driver, negotiated the steep, winding road to Les Baux very nicely, then we
descended to take a close look at perhaps the best hotel and restaurant in the
area, Oustau De Baumaniere. Lucky for me that its highly-rated and even more
highly priced restaurant, a haunt of several generations in DG’s family, was
closed during on weekdays in November.
On the way back to Aix, we
stopped at another charming small village, Eygalieres, perched on a low bluff
overlooking the D24 road. We did not have time to stop, but marked this as a
place to which we should return.
We spent a day and night
wandering, eating and shopping back in Aix, which was crowded with students and
Toussaint visitors. Aix is a walking town like Paris, except that one can see
the entire old town in a couple of days and it is nearly impossible to run into
a native who a) is not extremely polite and b) will not gladly speak some
English. It is also possible, as in Paris, to acclimate quickly and find your
own small teashop with perfect pastries and a pharmacie, providing cures only French hypochondriacs could know
about.
Then it was back on the road
southwest on A8 for the quick tour of the Riviera, where: 1) We missed the turn
to the famous St. Paul de Vence, in the hills between Antibes and Nice; 2) Went
to Vence instead and were cornered in Le
Pecheur De Soleil by its owner and had an unplanned lunch; 3) Dented the
uninsured Peugot while parking; 4) dashed around Nice, Cap d’Antibes, and Juan
les Pins and; 5) negotiated dozens of
rotundes at dusk and headed home to Aix. All in about seven hours!
My recommendation would be to
stay on the coast for a couple of days and take your time. Not to mention,
closely check your auto insurance policy before leaving home for foreign
coverage.
How can we visit Provence and
not rave about the food? The easy answer is that we had very good, affordable
food everywhere we ate (see list) in Aix, but it wasn’t our main aim. Aix is a
busy university town and many of its restaurants, bistros and open - to -street
vendors cater to hungry students on the go. We had some fun dinners with Ginny’s
(Hobart & William $mith) roommate, Maddie & friends from Colgate University.
Our favorite meal in Aix was
one that we cooked ourselves. Vraiment! Ginny arranged a cooking class at
L’atelier des Chefs near her school. Yes, it was in French, and the chicken
curry was simple to make and even better to have for our lunch. Highly
recommended!
We also enjoyed hors d’oeurves
and champagne served by Ginny’s very kind host “parents,” Fred and Clair in
their charming house in town.
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| Le Band/Cours Mirabeau |
A fun band, similar to a small
college marching band played on the Cours one market day, on another night the
Christmas lights came on, and there were fountains and the sound of water
running everywhere we turned. The weather was like October here in the east,
and it rained only one day.
Aix marks the spot, where we
will return for more treasure someday soon.
Recommended hotels
and restaurants:
Hotels:
Hotel de France, 63 Rue
Espariat, contact@hoteldefrance-aix.com
Hotel Cardinal, 24 Rue
Cardinale, www.hotel-cardinal-aix.com
Hotel de Gantes, 1 Rue
Fabrot, www.hoteldegantes.com
Restaurants in Aix en Provence:
La Caleche
(traditional/pizza), Le Four Sous le Platane (pizzeria etc), Coquillages
(oysters etc), La Mado, La Patacrepe, Pasta Cozy, Petit Bistrot, Simply
(road-trip sandwiches/salads)
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