Aix- en- Provence

 This is me making a picture of our hotel bathroom in Aix-en Provence. I am wearing my newly acquired french clothes bought at  a street market  explained  here.  Shelia, who writes the blog, Note Songs, has inspired me to finish writing  posts about our trip to Provence.  Her bathroom Diva's fun got me going today.

http://notesongs.blogspot.com

 We stayed in a fabulous hotel in Aix named La Maison d'Aix. It  is in the Mazarin quarter of Aix-en-Provence and is a 3 minute walk from the Cours Mirabeau.

This is the address and was a little hard to find because the sign was so small.

Do you see the sign to the right of the window? When we parked and walked around we found it. Later we found out due to the historial integrity of the area they did not allow large signs.

Our room was on the third floor.

We meet co- owner and  one of the architects, Laure Juhen that refurbished this private mansion now boutique hotel in Aix En Provence. She had come in to pick up several things as we were about to have breakfast. As it turned out that morning we were the only guests and had a delightful visit with her as she told us about the history of this home that took three years to refurbish. There were strict regulations about refurbishing a historic building.

The fresh figs and apricots were the best I have ever eaten!

I have forgotten the concierge/ chef's name. Such an interesting experience. Glad he was there to carry our bags to our room on third floor. I believe they were not allowed to install an elevator because of historical restrictions.

Our breakfast served on Juliska dishes. I was so impressed!  We were on cloud nine with the espresso.  So good!

This picture was hanging in the dining room. Our hostess told us about this very beautiful woman that owned the mansion. She was a noted courtesan that had famous clientele. The website for La Maison d'Aix describes  Mademoiselle Henriette Reboul as a renowned antiques collector and a love priestess that bought this private mansion dating from 1789 in 1903. She reputedly had numerous celebrity friends, lovers and mistresses, who all took abode in this magnificent residence.
We could have talked to Laure for hours but we were in Aix-en Provence and had to pull ourselves away to begin our short stay there seeing as much as we could in a short amount of time. As we left for the day I remember Laure saying," Enjoy strolling among the fontaines."

As we began our walk just across the street I peeped in this doorway because workers were busily going to and fro. It was very beautiful just as it was.

This was the first fontaine we strolled past. It is called the fountain of the four dolphins and dates back to 1667! So beautiful and exciting!

Can you image the excitement I felt as we turned the corner and saw this!
It was beautiful.

Look at that quatrefoil.

Church of Saint-Jean-de-Malte is a thirteenth century gothic church, the first in Provence. We went inside and felt reverence and awe at the beautiful paintings, architectural features and worshipful atmosphere.

Now, we are on the Cours Mirabeau and now I am understanding what strolling among the fontaines meant. Cours Mirabeau is a grand boulevard and is alive with people strolling along perusing the shops, stopping for espresso or aperitifs, people watching and checking out restaurants for dinner. All the fontaines have names but I did not take notes.

Shops and cafes line both sides of the street.

Architectural features abound.

This was the grandest fontaine, Fontaine de la Rotonde a cast iron fountain built in 1860.

Unlike the other towns in Provence we visited Aix en Provence had traffic. It is a city and once we parked our rental car we did not use it again. Finding a parking place was a nightmare.

Unfortunately we only had two nights and one full day in Aix. I would love to go back because there were so many other wonderful sights. I especially wanted to see Cèzanne's atelier.

A night view of Cours Mirabeau in Aix-en-Provence.
Look at the lush plane trees just beginning to leaf out in early April on the Cours Mirabeau. There were so many choices of restaurants it was hard to decide where to have dinner that night. It is a challenge to read a menu in french  and when an english menu was available we were pleased.  Only on one occasion did we get something we didn't order due to the language barrier and it was good just not what we ordered! We enjoyed all the food especially the artistic presentation. Observing the french culture and the welcoming atmosphere of the french people made our stay a great experience.

The night view out of our hotel window. I enjoyed sharing my memories with you. Would you believe we went to Provence in 2011. Now, why have I waited so long to post more of my pictures? We visited Orange, Chateauneuf'du Pape ,   Pont du Gard, Avignon, Arles, Les Baux-De-Provence, Bonnieux, Roussillon, Gordes, L'Isle-Sur-La-Sorgue, Saint Rèmy-De-Provence and I am sure I will remember others and left from Marselles.  I still have other pictures to share that I hope to get to soon. Do you enjoy travel posts?  My other posts can be viewed here:Provence posts:
 "Provence....One trip is not enough!"
  Provence-Part Deux
  Provence-Part Trois
  Voila! A gift to you from FRANCE!

Aix-en-Provence


I am excited to FINALLY join, The Tablescaper at Oh, the Places I've been. Thanks again Shelia, for inspiring me with one little bathroom pic to post more pictures from a wonderful trip. It was a dream come true.