Elegant fountain town, Cézanne's birthplace
Aix is the kind of French city that makes everywhere else feel slightly underdressed. It’s elegant without trying too hard about it – which is, of course, the most elegant thing of all.
Founded by the Romans in 123 BC, Aix grew into one of the most cultured cities in medieval France. The 17th and 18th centuries were particularly good to it. Grand aristocratic mansions sprung up, alongside ornate fountains on every other street and a university that filled the city with ideas and ambition. Much of that energy is still here.
The old quarter – the Quartier Mazarin and the streets around the Cours Mirabeau – is a truly beautiful place to spend some time. Wide avenues shaded by plane trees, excellent patisseries, fantastic bookshops (for those who speak French) and bustling markets. Yes, markets, plural – Cours Mirabeau, Place Richelme, Place de l'Hôtel de Ville, Place Verdun. Some are even daily.
Paul Cézanne was born and died here. He painted Mont Sainte-Victoire obsessively, from dozens of angles, across his entire career. The mountain still watches over the city from the east – a quiet reminder that sometimes a place gets under your skin and never really lets go.
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