Our Grand Tour of Europe

At home in America, the Christmas season was always horribly stressful for me. December was one of the most demanding times of the year in my work, and it was also one of the busiest times in our family life. I was one of those women who always wanted to do Christmas right: a carefully-prepared Christmas letter sent to a long-mailing list of family and friends, a house decorated both inside and out, a big beautiful “real” tree, carefully-selected and elaborately-wrapped gifts, homemade casseroles for potluck dinners, a large homecooked family meal, special programs at our church, tickets for the Nutcracker and our symphony’s musical program, a series of holiday parties to attend wearing a new holiday sweater…. by the time Christmas Day arrived, I was frazzled and exhausted. We started taking Christmas trips to relieve some of the pressures of Christmas—and also to give Mom a much-needed rest! This year I finally had the opportunity to have a Christmas season without a job. I wasn’t worrying about the December board meeting or the budget or the new healthcare plan or the new bonus plan or the company Christmas party. I could relax this year with Charley and Kelly and truly savor the Christmas season.

Christmas is filled with traditions that differentiate cultures and even families. We saw this very clearly when we spent our two Christmases in Austria. We were looking forward to learning more about the Christmas traditions in Provence, participating in activities in and around our village, and incorporating Provençal customs into our own celebration. We were also looking forward to sharing the holiday season with special friends from home.

We want to arrive early because parking can be a challenge at this popular market. In the summer it’s so crowded that there is satellite parking at the old train station and people are shuttled into the center of town. Today we park as usual on the street near the music school and walk several blocks to the west end of the market at Place de la Bouquerie. Several other people also walk briskly down the street; everyone has a straw market basket. One man has a small dog that Kelly thinks is cute. We pass an elderly lady, very stooped over, who moves much more slowly. She pulls a shopping basket on wheels and is dressed nicely in a dress, heeled shoes, a woolen coat and hat. “Bonjour Madame,” we each say politely, as we circle around her. “Excusez-moi, s’il vous plaît.”