To be or not to be a tourist village
I just got back from my whistle-stop tour around the Camargue, Arles and Nimes, and very nice it was too. I saw everything I wanted to see, ate all alone in restaurants while others sat in happy family groups, and generally rushed about with an “it’s Tuesday so this must be Nimes” type visit.
There is one thing that troubles me about Provence which I haven’t come across anywhere else in France and that is the commitment to depriving tourists of their hard earned cash, and more importantly the impact it has on the places concerned.
Larger towns like Nimes or Arles escape the problem, despite attracting loads of tourists - they are big enough to need other industries I suppose, and keep their unique charm. But then we get to the pretty villages.
As light relief from walking the city streets I set off into the hills to a village called Baux-de-Provence. It is a lovely ancient village in the low hills known as the Alpilles. The remnants of an ancient castle stand above the village, which itself has lovely views of the surrounding countryside. All very picturesque and perfect.
It was pretty busy but not too bad - the first week of June was probably the ideal time to visit. But, almost every single house had been turned into either a cafe or a shop selling things you don’t want. If real people live in the village I saw no sign of them or their activity.
Parking anywhere near the village costs a few euros. At the top of the village the route was blocked by a turnstile and admission charge to go further up the hill, to the castle.
Now if we remove all occupants from a village, and turn every square inch into a gift shop, what kind of feel do we get for the village as it really was? Did I want to buy a piece of wire twisted into the shape of an elephant? Not really, but I suppose someone does, or do they…
I had the impression I was looking around a tourist site, and a very attractive one, but not a place which had any relationship to France or the French way of life. These little Provençal villages have crossed the line and become nothing more than ‘medieval castles’, places to admire and explore, but with no relationship to real life.
Over here in the Dordogne region we have very touristy villages - Domme, La-Roque-Gageac and so on - but they are not at all comparable to the popular French villages. There is nothing like the same level of tourism…and fingers crossed it doesn’t arrive any day soon.
But note in case I sound too negative…I had a great time and will soon be going back to do some more exploring, and I’m not suggesting you shouldn’t do the same!
