The day before yesterday we took our first trip outside of Aix. First we were brought to Mont Sainte Victoire, the mountain painted over 80 times by the famed painter Paul Cézanne. I now understand why Cézanne was captivated with this mountain. Made up of limestone, the mountain extends over 20 kilometers.
After walking around the bottom of the mountain a little ways and stopping for a picnic, the group was taken to a small museum on the other side of the mountain. Here we were able to see some dinosaur eggs that were found in the region. Outside the museum there was a small pasture full of donkeys (les ânes). I think people were more excited for the donkeys then the dino eggs!
We were then taken to Pablo Picasso’s Château de Vauvenargues, situated at the foot of the mountain. When Picasso bought the Château he said that he had bought Cézanne’s mountain. Picasso set up a studio and lived there till his death in 1973. He and his wife Jacqueline are buried on the site, and the house still remains in Picasso’s family.
After looking at the château from a distance, the group stopped at a café. In the sun it was unbelievably warm, I could have sat there for hours. It is true that everything slows down in the south of France.
After walking around the bottom of the mountain a little ways and stopping for a picnic, the group was taken to a small museum on the other side of the mountain. Here we were able to see some dinosaur eggs that were found in the region. Outside the museum there was a small pasture full of donkeys (les ânes). I think people were more excited for the donkeys then the dino eggs!
We were then taken to Pablo Picasso’s Château de Vauvenargues, situated at the foot of the mountain. When Picasso bought the Château he said that he had bought Cézanne’s mountain. Picasso set up a studio and lived there till his death in 1973. He and his wife Jacqueline are buried on the site, and the house still remains in Picasso’s family.
After looking at the château from a distance, the group stopped at a café. In the sun it was unbelievably warm, I could have sat there for hours. It is true that everything slows down in the south of France.