Aix en Provence

Mevsimine ters geziler en sevdigimiz seylerden birisidir. Jb bana yilbasi tatilimizi nerede gecirelim diye sordugunda ilk aklima gelen yerlerden birisi Provence oldu. Aslinda ilik bir bahar yada yaz gunu  doyamayacagimiz lavanta tarlalarini, soguk ve o kadar ruzgarli yilin son gunlerinde sokaklara tercih etmek mecburiyetinde kaldik. Iyi de ettik. 

Low-season visit is one of our favourites. When JB asked my idea about where we can spend a new year, one of the first answer was Provence. Instead of wandering around the lavender fields in a breezy spring or a warm summer day, we had to choose wandering around indoors or on the cute streets at the last days of the year. Why not !!! 

Eger Provence' daysaniz ve henuz varmadan Fransizcaniza bir goz atmak istiyorsaniz isinizi bir tik kolaylastirayim; hiz anlamina gelen "vitesse" kelimesini haznenizden cikartin. Zira Cézanne ve Émile Zola gibi sanatcilarin da sehri olan bu kucuk yerde bulamayacaginiz tek sey hiz olacak. Hatta bir an sokaklarin birinde durup aslinda Cézanne aklimdan gecenleri bir tabloya donusturse nasil olur diye dusunmedim degil. Hayal edelim; gunesli bir gun, rahat elbiselerinin icersinde bir yerel marketten digerine kosan insanlar, hamamlarinda keyif yapip Romalilara da bir tesekkur gonderenler ve meydanlardaki kafeleri doldurmus pastisini ya da yerel rosesini yudumlarken aksam uzun uzun keyfini surerek yiyecegi Povençale usulu bifteginin hayalini kuranlar... Iste tam bu noktada gerceklere donup Fransizca kelime haznemize yavaslik anlamina gelen "lenteur" u ekleyip huzurun dayanilmaz hafifligine geri donuyoruz. 

If you're in Provence, before coming here, check out your French and forget about one word "vitesse"!  It means speed and which is something you can not find around this easygoing hometown of Cézanne and Émile Zola. For a one moment I even thought about if Cézanne would paint what came into my mind about this city, what he would paint exactly? Imagine; in a sunny day locals in their easy dresses, shopping around from the local boutiques, enjoying the spas by sending their appreciates to the Romans then everyone fills the cafe terraces to sip pastis or a local rosé before heading off to enjoy long dinner ceremony of slow-cooked daube de boeuf Provençale. Then, here, at this point, we are adding the word " lenteur" or "slowness" in our vocabulary and turning back to the unbearable lightness of peace. 

Ayrilmadan once yapmaniz gerekenler; 

-Cours Mirabeau da yuruyus ve sonrasinda Émile Zola'nin ve Cézanne in ugrak mekani Leas Deux Garçon da bir seyler icip etrafi seyre dalmak,

-Musée Garnet'i mutlaka ziyaret edip essiz koleksiyonunda kaybolmak, 

-Cézanne in adimlarini takip edip atolyelerini ziyaret et ve tablolarina konuk olmus Mont Sainte - Victoire a bir de onun gozunden, atolyesinden bak, 

-Lavanta tarlalari ? Tabi sicak iklimde gidecek kadar sansliysaniz onlari da kacirmayin derim :) 

Don't leave before; 

-Walking around Cours Mirabeau and drink something in Les Deux Garçons where Émile Zola and Cézanne hung out often and one of a clutch of cafes. It buzzes with people watchers, 

-Visiting Musée Garnet and lose yourself into a selected collection of it,

-Following the steps of Cézanne, visit his studios and look at Mont Sainte - Victoire from there, on his eyes, where became a subject of a number of Cézanne paintings,
-Lavander fields ? Well, if you're lucky enough going there in a warm climate yes why not, don't miss them too :) 

The garden of Musée Garnet from inside. 

Ve son olarak "Le Petit Verdot" nun buyuk bir ziyafetten sonra 3 farkli crème brûléesini tatmadan donmeyin. 

And lastly don't leave without tasting three different kind of crème brûlée after a great meal at "Le Petit Verdot"

Woolrich parka / American Apparel leggings / Comme de Garçons x Converse shoes / JB's grand father's fur cap 

Pics by me and JB