Photo of market day in Aix en Provence (source)
Open-air markets are colorful Saturday morning events that spring up across France every weekend. Local growers and village artisans converge as the sun rises on la place in the center of town. They erect a city of bright canvas umbrellas to shade their tables covered with succulent fruits, crisp vegetables, fragrant cheeses, dried meats, fresh-cut flowers, and artwork ranging from sculpted wood to lace curtains and everything imaginable in-between. A French market is the liveliest slice of heaven you'll find here on earth.
The photo on the left is the only picture on this post I actually took myself. This is the market in Cusset, the village where my in-laws live three kilometers outside Vichy. Like many smaller communities that can't support a weekly market, this market is every first Saturday of the month. It is a town event throughout the year, and even when the weather is very cold in winter, everyone turns out for a stroll around the market, to chat with neighbors and vendors, and to stock up la cave, or root cellar, with dried saucisson, vegetables, and wine. 
The most wonderful aspect of the market is its jovial ambiance. I never get the feeling there is serious competition between vendors, but they all seem to enjoy the game of shouting humorous slogans to attract the attention of passersby, hoping to make them laugh; and, if those appreciating the vendor's humor should wind up buying a bagful of vine-ripe tomatoes in the process, so be it. And the most entertaining vendors invariably have the longest lines of customers.
The market is one of the best places to pick up souvenirs to bring back to the States. The prices are reasonable for tablecloths depicting regional patterns and images, or beautifully crafted bowls and salad utensils carved from the wood of walnut and olive trees. The quilter in me goes a bit crazy, picking up yards and yards of provincial French fabrics for a fraction of what they cost back home.So if you're ever in France, be sure to visit a market on Saturday. And if your travels keep you in Paris, you can find neighborhood markets on any day of the week. I promise, it will be one of the highlights of your trip!
Leave me a comment and earn one entry in my Vive la France! Contest.
37 comments:
REminds me of the markets here in Athens. Though I think the French one's look a little more organised :o)
Ahh . . . I love Aix! And I agree, the market was my favorite part. So much to see, so many things to buy! Love it!
They look like wonderful events.
Markets have really taken off in Ireland lately, there's a great one near my flat that sells the best cupcakes and cookies. . . The French version looks even more fantastic though :D
So jealous, that looks awesome!
My dream date would be a trip to that market. Thank you for describing it so clearly.
Sounds like a French market's a bit like Twitter. Everyone tweeting stuff, hoping to amuse people so they follow and maybe swing by the ol' blog and buy our books and read our stories and such. Yes? Yes.
You know you want to tweet. It's only a matter of time.... :)
Oh, wow! It looks like a lot of fun!
This would definitely be my favorite part of the trip - I could spend hours combing through all the goodies here!
Oh my gosh I'm in love! We don't have any markets that look quite like that here in Houston!!! I'm jealous... Beautiful!
Britain still has market days like these, but you can be sure no vendors are shouting jokes. Not the done thing. :-D
You make the experience sound so deliciously engaging of all the senses.
Um, so now I want to go there. You could be a travel writer, Nicole! The descriptions are all so rich!
I've always wanted to go to an open-air market like that.
Farmers' markets just aren't the same...or maybe they are, but they're in rural Georgia, so it's not as interesting. :-)
awww! I want to go to an open air market! They look so cool
Wonderful pictures! Look at all that great produce!
Wow, that definitely IS a slice of heaven. I love our local farmer's market but it's only once a week for a few months out of the year and very small, almost a joke.
I would love to go somewhere like this. It is right up my alley!
Happiness is a French market. One of my fondest memories of Paris was strolling through the market, picking fabulous fruit and pairing it with cheese. Happy marketing to you.
The picture reminds me of the market in Helsinki, Finland. Sigh.
Lola LOVES French markets. LOVES. *swoon*
I hope you guys are having fun!
Love,
Lola
Oh my gosh, I'm so envious. I can just imagine going to the market each day to pick up fresh, fabulous tasting food. Enjoy your time there. :)
wow! i love markets cause you could get mostly everything for living and see stuff you never saw in your life and taste stuff you never tasted ever in you life. fun stuff for sure.
Both your photos and your descriptions make me yearn for a European outdoor market. *pouts pathetically* Je voudrais être là avec vous.
Markets look like so much fun! There seems to be many hidden treasures in those delightful stalls! I wish the U.S. had something like this going on.
Okay I cannot get any greener from jealousy! it looks like you are having a blast!!
;o)
Visit My Kingdom Anytime
All we have here in the States are flea markets, but you can't always find beautiful items.
I would literally go crazy in a French market. I'd buy so much, I wouldn't have enough for the plane ride home! Would that be a bad thing, though? :)
These look amazing, and so fun. I love open markets, because that's how markets usually run in Vietnam. It's just so robust and fun. :)
Looks like you're having a great time. Even more important - you found the food.
I'm a cook so that French market is so appealing to me. Loving your French blogs.
I linked to you on my last post yesterday, before I go on vacation this weekend.
Hope you're having fun!
Love the markets - we have a farmer's market here on Saturdays in the summer, but it's nothing quite like this!
I. Am. So. Jealous.
I love this post! How fun! I agree with the above comment though... I'm a little envious of your trip. Okay, not a little...more like a lot. :) I hope you're having a wonderful time!!!
What gorgeous pictures. Thank you so much for letting me vacation with you vicariously. :)
How many more days is it until you come back? :)
I wish I could jump into those pictures. What a wonderful adventure!
Ah, Paris. Si belle.
I hope you're having an absolute blast!
When you get back, there's an award for you on my blog.
http://mavieenviolet.blogspot.com/2010/06/thanks.html
Oh, you've made me so jealous! Well, we do have markets here in Montreal; I should make more of an effort to get out to them on weekends!
In my daydreams about visiting Paris for the first time on my own (I've gone with parents once, and school three times) I imagine going to the market to stock up on lovely fresh food to make simple meals for myself in my rented studio apt. English food markets just don't seem as fun, somehow. Boredom of association, perhaps.
- Sophia.
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