NEW in Lourmarin– An Englishman in the vineyard | Comité Régional de Tourisme Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Published on 16 July 2014 by CRT-PACA William Chase, this name sounds familiar? This English entrepreneur founded the crisps company « Tyrell’s » (sold since) and is now the new English vodka magnate with the company bearing his name. When he bought Chateau Constantin vineyard in Lourmarin last year, he decided to use integrated agriculture methods and let the terroir reveal its natural and exceptional qualities. This summer, the domaine will be the setting of the event « Les Constantines », an event mixing music, wine, food and art. Château ConstantinRoute du Jas de Puyvert84160 Lourmarin
50 Awesome Photography Websites Feature Shoot Recommends for Daily Inspiration With the demise of our blogroll in our new site design, we thought we’d shine the light on 50 unique photography-based websites that inspire us on a daily basis. While we follow many great sites not listed here, we decided to compile a diverse selection of those that you may not already know about. The blogs you see here met our criteria of being regularly updated and showcasing work we find to be consistently awesome. Think we are missing someone noteworthy? The Ardorous (above) Curated by the exceptionally talented Petra Collins, The Ardorous is an explosion of feminist collaborations and creativity. Art Photo Index (API) A service of Photoeye, API is a powerhouse of a database when it comes to searching for fine art and documentary photography, toting 3,513 photographers, 20,829 images, and 23,685 keywords to search from. Disphotic dvafoto Professional photojournalists Matt Lutton and M. Dodge & Burn (Diversity in Photography History) Dodge & Burn (George Eastman House) Firecraker MPDrolet
Novel! A Japanese paper workshop in little Rome | Comité Régional de Tourisme Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Published on 7 April 2014 by CRT-PACA Paper maker Benoit Dudognon spent a year in Japan learning how to make Japanese paper (Washi). This extraordinary skill is now ranked a UNESCO intangible heritage. The wonderfully natural aspect of this art inspired Benoit to open a Japanese paper workshop teaching the Nagashizuki technique (when the pulp is run over a sieve) and Tamezuki technique (European method). The main plant used to make Japanese paper is an invasive species and the paper requires a combination of two plants, together with high-quality water. Atelier Papetier Benoit DudognonShow-room : 56 rue Lubières – 13150 TarasconAtelier : Arles+33 (0)7 50 27 00 81atelierpapetier@hotmail.comwww.atelierpapetier.com
TRAVEL CONTEST The Dream Trip Photo Contest is now closed. Thank you for voting, and stay tuned to find out who won the $25,000 vacation of a lifetime! Opulence down to the smallest detail 9849 likes Eagle Hunter at the Golden Eagle Festival in Western Mongolia 7131 likes A Chinese bride poses in front of the Temple of Heaven in Beijing, China. 4174 likes Arashiyama's Bamboo Forest 3969 likes View of St. 2141 likes Dancing in the Streets, Cerro Concepción, Valparaíso, Chile, July, 2002. 1331 likes Sandboarding in San Pedro de Atacama, Chile 1286 likes X Ostrich crossing X! 1136 likes Negril; a jumping Jamaica sunset 789 likes I took this photograph during my first trip to Cappadocia in August of 2013. 621 likes Taj Mahal, India 494 likes Gargoyle View of Paris,Towers of Notre Dame 460 likes Golden Midnight Sun, Savonlinna, Finland. 416 likes A KLM 747 moments away from landing at Sint Maarten's Airport (SXM). 355 likes Cooling off. 339 likes Masai friends 254 likes A misty morning at the Chicago Botanic Gardens 249 likes 233 likes
Hands-on dining in Avignon, France | The Life Blog Cooking with irreverence in Avignon, France Legions of faithful come to Avignon for religious reasons. After all, thirteen popes (yes, 13!) made their home in the papal city of Avignon, in the south of France, in the 1300s. Far from a religious experience, the evening chez Corinne was sheer indulgence, though I profess my friends and I were not guilty of the sin of gluttony – there was too much laughter for that. La Maison de Fogasses is in a 15th-century townhouse on a narrow street in the heart of Avignon, at 37-39 rue des Fourbisseurs. When I first entered through the large nondescript wooden doors from the street, I thought I’d entered the Mad Hatter’s tea party but then I wandered into yet another room on the second floor and thought I’d stumbled into the costume department for the movie “Moulin Rouge.” The name is a nod to the previous owner of the rambling building(s) and tower, Gabriel de Fogasses, who lived here during the 16th century. And let us not forget the art.
Provence- Alps-Cote d’Azur Road Show Kicks Off In Vancouver Atout France and Provence-Alps-Cote d’Azur Tourism hosted a trade show and reception that showcased the regions of Provence at the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts in Vancouver last night. The event was the first stop on the Provence west coast road show, which moves on this week to Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles. As travel agents sampled wines from Côtes du Rhône and Châteauneuf-du-Pape and mingled with representatives from the tourism boards of Provence-Alps-Cote d’Azur, Vaulcluse, Avignon, Aix-en-Provence and Countryside, Cavaillon-Luberon, Marseille and Saint-Tropez, Avignon’s Michelin-star Chef Christian Etienne was busy behind the scenes preparing an array of cuisines from the region. Also on hand to showcase the top properties of Provence were supplier partners from La Coquillade, Domaine de Manville, Hotels Prestige Provence Group, Hotel Best Western Soleil, Ocre & Azur Group, New Hotel Group, Ariane Group, as well as KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY: June 6th, the MuCEM celebrates its first anniversary! | Comité Régional de Tourisme Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Published on 6 June 2014 by CRT-PACA Visitors from Marseille or elsewhere have become accustomed to hear from this new landmark in the Marseille landscape! Some even had the chance to take a stroll in the Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilizations, from the “J4″ to Saint-Jean fortress, through gateways, corridors … and puzzling bridges. On June 6, starting at 6 pm to midnight, the public can visit new exhibitions, attend the closing cycle of major conferences “Civilization and barbarism” with guest of honor Todorov and enjoy throughout the evening several surprises, concerts, performances and shows … A free artistic and festive way to end the week! A year after the opening of the MuCEM in June 2013, the public will discover the “MuCEM strolls” with Ultima eRikm Arnaud Saury, Jean-Marc Montera and Fanny Paccoud, or Mekanik Kantatik. And from June 27 the MuCEM starts the summer with the “the summer intensities” : shows, meetings, cinema … outdoor events, all for free!
Open Jaw :: A Tasty Tease From Provence :: Bernard Mouze, Instructor, Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts; Melody Raynaud, Provence-Alps-Cote d'Azur Tourism & Michelin-Star Chef Christian Etienne Aix-en-Provence Tourism Office's Flore Boubila; Claude Maniscalco, Saint Tropez Tourism Office & Cyrille Saboya, Marseille Tourism Office Chef Christian Etienne with the Provence delegation Now, how often does one get an invitation to a meal whipped up by a Michelin-Star chef? Atout France’s Director – Canada, Armelle Tardy-Joubert was in Vancouver with a delegation from Provence (Vancouver was their only Canadian stop) with their star attraction. The venue was the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts, a school for cuisine with an onsite restaurant that is open to the public. Chef Christian Etienne hails from Provence and runs Restaurant Christian Etienne, which is situated in a medieval mansion in front of the UNESCO-listed Palace of the Popes, in Avignon.
The new Marseille "In all things, we are the victims of The Misconception From Afar. There is the idea of a city, and the city itself, too great to be held in the mind." George Saunders. I love this George Saunders quote about perceptions vs. reality when it comes to travel. Having spent the past four days on a first-time visit to Marseille, a Mediterranean port city and the second-largest city in France, I can say that if you haven't been here in the last year, you haven't seen Marseille. Here's a good example. Le Panier is a neighborhood filled with steep, narrow streets, colorful houses with wooden shutters and laundry hanging from the windows, not unlike some parts of Naples, Italy. "Five years ago, this street was empty,'' says Phil Bacle, above, who runs a vintage shop called Espace 5.7.2 on Rue Le Panier. Sarah Nawi, and her husband, Alex Alloueteau, above, transformed an old garage into an elegant Moroccan restaurant called Place Lorette. Almost as well-known as bouillabaisse is Cagole beer.
Provence sweeps board at rosé tasting Wines from the tasting The top scoring wine was Chêne Bleu rosé from a 600 metre site in Provence’s Dentelles de Montmirail, closely followed by two labels from the Côtes de Provence AOP: L’Hydropathe from Domaine Sainte Lucie and high-profile pink newcomer Miraval, from celebrity couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. Then, with all four of its wines featuring in the top 11, were the Provençal labels from Domaines Sacha Lichine: Whispering Angel, Château d’Esclans, Les Clans, and the £60 Garrus. Not only were the top 11 highest scoring rosés in the tasting all from the Provence region, and all dry, but they all contained Grenache, attesting to the suitability of this somewhat underrated grape for making the world’s best rosés. Furthermore, the top five wines were all from the 2013 vintage, highlighting the importance of a youthful flavour and bright colour for a pink wine’s appeal.
TOPICS : Remembrance at “Les Milles” internment camp | Comité Régional de Tourisme Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Published on 2 June 2014 by CRT-PACA D -Day is more than ever at the heart of the international current events. 70 years after one of the greatest battles of all times, it’s time for remembrance. D-day, is the plan stemmed from the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, who alleged that the only way to beat the Nazis was to resume fighting in occupied Europe. The night of June 5 to 6, the largest armada ever assembled approaches the Normandy coasts. From August 15, 1944, begins the landing in Provence, called “Dragoon” by Winston Churchill. The extent of successive intolerances, xenophobic and anti-Semitic ideology of the Second World War sparked the definition of crimes against humanity and war crimes, as well as the first genocide trials. Open to the public in late 2012, the site of “Camp des Milles”, 10 kilometers from Aix-en-Provence, hitherto unknown is now considered as one of the nine major French memorial sites and a UNESCO Chair since 2013. www.campdesmilles.org
Avignon travel tips: Where to go and what to see in 48 hours | Europe | Travel | The Independent Travel essentials Why go now? September represents Avignon's sweet spot: after the hectic weeks of the twin theatre and fringe festivals – when beds are like gold dust and the streets are heaving – but the city is still blessed with balmy evenings, food festivals and other events. Until 11 October, Les Luminessences d'Avignon (00 33 4 32 74 32 74; www.lesluminessences- avignon.com) is an immersive musical 3D romp through the city's history that lights up the courtyard of the Palais des Papes (1) – the city's raison d'être. Meanwhile, "Rêves d'un Collectionneur" ("A Collector's Dreams") showcases Provençal painting of the past two centuries at Musée Louis Vouland (2) (00 33 4 90 86 03 79; vouland.com; noon-6pm Tuesdays to Sundays until 26 October; €6). The Independent Travel Offers: Our favourite Provence holiday Touch down Get your bearings The lozenge-shaped old city, enclosed by 4.3km of 14th-century ramparts, is flanked to north and west by the Rhône. Day One Take a hike Lunch on the run
Discover our press file “Christmas time in Provence” | Comité Régional de Tourisme Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Published on 27 October 2014 by CRT-PACA In Provence, Christmastime traditionally lasts 40 days, from Saint Barbara feast day (4 December) to Candlemas (2 February). Provençal culture truly awakens during Christmas festivities. The region’s towns and villages are brought to life with living nativity scenes and pastoral plays. Locals sit down to share the gros souper on Christmas Eve, a lean yet hearty meal that ends with the thirteen Christmas desserts. At Candlemas, nativity scenes are taken down and the feast of the purification of the Virgin and “renewed fire” are celebrated. Christmastime is also an excellent season for gourmets, with prestigious Christmas and New Year’s Eve dinners and cooking classes provided in exceptional settings. Exploring the Christmas traditions of Provence is an opportunity to get a glimpse of and take part in authentic regional culture and the local experience. Christmas in Provence Press File 2014
Où se réfugier en cas d'apocalypse zombie? Dans le massif des Ecrins En mai 2011, le CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention), l'agence américaine fédérale de sûreté et de santé publique, publiait sur son blog des conseils pour survivre à une invasion de zombies. L'article était en fait un moyen assez futé pour le centre d'informer les gens sur des risques plus probables comme une tornade ou un ouragan plutôt que de les préparer à un scénario catastrophe digne du film 28 jours plus tard ou de la série The Walking Dead. Reste que les zombies fascinent, faisant même l’objet d’études scientifiques (les zombies studies). Un designer basé à Toronto, Ryan McArthur, a pour sa part créé et mis en ligne une série de cartes de zones préservées des zombies. Le graphiste est parti du principe qu’une fois l’épidémie en marche, tous les systèmes de communication seraient hors service, y compris les cartes interactives comme Google Map. Pour Londre par exemple, il faudra aller au nord et remonter jusqu’en Ecosse pour se réfugier dans le Cairngorms national park.