Artist's reflection

Welcome back to another (long awaited) installment of the Opera Scouts France Blog! Today we made our way to Aix-en-Provence, courtesy of a loverly train ride. Led by our fantastic tour guide Bill, we navigated across the city to the studio of Paul Cèzanne!

As an aspiring art historian I found it incredibly impactful to stand where the master worked and take in the breathtaking views from his window. After a quick stop at the gift shop (where many post cards were purchased), we strolled back into town to tour an incredible cathedral.

We have been lucky enough to see many breathtaking cathedrals on this trip but this one was particularly unique because it was a mixture of the Romanesque and Gothic styles!

We finished the day off with some gelato (a necessity) and a wonderful diner at the hotel.

Thanks for joining me on this installment of the blog, au revoir!

David's Dish

Today was a day of discoveries. Despite waking up at 5 am with only 4 hours of sleep, it was an exciting day. After traveling to Aix-en Provence we were allowed to explore an open market and the old city. For lunch, we were given free reign over what we ate. Kids split up into groups and roamed around. My group stumbled upon a plaza with so many stalls. Running out of time, we looked around for any restaurant that looked good. Ultimately, we stumbled upon a paella shop. But being the adventurous tourists we were, we got beef bourguignon. It was a powerful broth with bits of carrots, caramelized onions, and polenta.

It was very salty yet still held a hint of sweetness. The beef was local beef and was slow boiled to the point where stabbing it resulted in shredded beef. It was a wonderfully complex taste with layers of flavor coming in in waves of warmth. Now, based of the description, one might guess it to be worth at least 20 euro. However, it was only 12!!!

Overall: 4.8/5

Incredible deal.

Superb flavor.

Hidden Gem!