aixcentric

It always seems a little sad to take the tree down and see the Christmas activities in town coming to an end, but here are some dates.

2-25th January  Collection of used Christmas trees – ‘Collecte des sapins 2014”; details here: http://www.aixenprovence.fr/Collecte-des-sapins

5th January: The closing date of the Camus Centenary exhibition has now been moved to 11th January.  A very interesting show if you haven’t been but it’s all in fairly intense French.

5th January: Last date for the children’s roundabouts at the Rotonde. They seem to have been a great success this year. (Christmas market already closed)

But not everything is ending!

8th January:  The Sales begin.  If you are new to Aix the regimented start and finish to the sales period can come as a surprise, especially if you come from a country like UK where sales pop up all the time.  That having been said, shops are increasingly having ‘promotions’ to side-step the regulations.  Until 11th Feb.

12th January:  Marche des Rois – the Epiphany parade of the Three Kings.  Not to be missed!   The kings process with their camels and a retinue of Provencal characters complete with sheep and goats. A couple of years ago something spooked the goats half way down the cours Mirabeau and they ran off into the antiques market, pursued by a sheep dog and a couple of shepherds….families were hopping up on to benches out of the way as the animals ran amok!  Great fun.  They set off from cours Saint Louis at 13:50 and arrive at the Cathedral for the 200-year old ceremony at 16:00hrs.  In the cours Mirabeau and at the Rotonde, there is traditional music and dancing.

Incidentally, the tourist office is running a promotion ‘Aix en Soldes’ to encourage visitors to stay in town and sample some of the local attractions.  It comprises 25% off the lowest current price at a lot of the hotels in town with free breakfast and a free bottle of local rosé.  It also offers discounts at the Grand Theatre de Provence and treatments at the Thermes Sextius, a free tour of Cézanne’s studio and a discounted guided tour of the town.  Seems like a good deal. Details on www.aixenprovencetourism.com.