This must be a good sign, the last time I wrote something on this blog, it was on my summer travels of 2013 of which one weekend was spent in Provence (Aix, Marseille and Eguilles). I am really excited these days as we are about to embark on a 4 day trip to Provence. It is the first time that we will travel as a family of four to another place than home. Though, this is not about kids...
I have enjoyed traveling for as long as i know myself. I would go anywhere and have did my fair share of traveling as a student and later as a young professional. However, there are some special places, which have a meaning for you before you even go there.. Provence is one of them..
I have actually been to the region already twice, as one my closest friends is from there. I went to her family house and experienced how the locals live. This is such a precious memory. We have witnessed the preparation of bouillabaisse, i would not change this with any other bouillabaisse as my friend’s dad cooked it over hours in a wood fire he set up in their garden. How French and Provençal can it get...
Though, this time i am going for the scenery, a scenery which we all know so well from impressionist art.
When I was in Provence first time, 13 years ago, I remember thinking to myself that the places look awfully similar.. we were sipping coffee at a café with my friend and i remember saying to her exactly this “the entire world is imitating Provence”. This region did not only export a lifestyle and aesthetic but also a color palette and an imagery...The impressionist art has a central part on this massive influence.
My interest in impressionist art starts comes mainly from my dad's fascination with the painters of this era, particularly Van Gogh. In an age without internet, I first learnt about this artistic current and its protagonists through the information and visuals my dad had collected over the years. In all my travels to western cities, I have been to museums and the originals of all the paintings that I knew about have been the first things I have searched for. It was probably the reason why I came up with the quote above 13 years ago, though only now I can make the connection.
This time around, we will stay in Avignon and Saint Rémy de Provence and I have a day trip in mind to Arles. Cezanne was born in Avignon, and Van Gogh spent years in the asylum of Saint Rémy and again a few years in Arles. Arles apparently has a Van Gogh museum which is where I intend to go. There is also an immersive exhibition in Les-Baux-de-Provence which people have recommended but honestly, this would not be my number one thing to do. I would let myself to be immersed by the natural scenery while I am there..
I let this be short note here, and hope it will revive my writing. Since 2012 when I dropped my first line on this blog, I have had so many pieces that I started writing in my head but none of them materialized until now. I hope starting with Provence, Van Gogh and impressionism, I will find my voice in describing my cultural encounters.
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