Aix = Abricot

This was going to be a post on marchés in Aix. Instead its a study of the color apricot/abricot. You never know.

Aix is such a warm beautiful town in Provence.

There are many areas with no tourists...especially if you get lost

Just you and the warm, apricot architecture.

Une homme toute en abricot.

An apricot pup visiting SALON COTE SUD. 

Next year I will wear apricot too

An apricot wall inside Cezanne's house from a year ago.

 I'm in good company.

I fell in love with this apricot wall on rue Mazarine a year ago. I went back and its still as beautiful.

This year I painted it.

Voila.

The apricot view out my window, over the central marché at Place Richelm, after climbing 5 tortuous flights.

Rows and rows of apricot houses.

Rows of tarte d'abricot at Salon Cote Sud

These unforgettable, apricot figures line the Cours Mirabeau. A don't miss!

An exhibit of French artist, Nicholas de Staël's Provence paintings on 

At musée HOTEL DE CAUMONT. Plenty of delicious apricot.

Drop-dead gorgeous color blocks of slathered paint. My first encounter with his sumptuous works. 

On till Sept 28. Don't miss it in Aix.

Back out in the street - warm, toasty colors.

I didn't expect to fall for a Paul Boulangerie pot of apricot jam. After numerous visits, I succumbed and it tasted very good. Don't ask why I left the half-eaten jar behind, thinking it would be so easy to find in Paris. Not. Only mini-sized jars so far. I'll have to go back to Aix. The new June pique-nique letter is on Etsy. Get French abricots in your mailbox. Thanks for reading Parisbreakfast.  If you liked this post please share with another Francophile. Bonne Week-end

Provence Colors

Warm colors...earth colors

Aix en Provence is one big apricot.

Walking apricots too with matching man purse and trousers.

Keep cool wearing sheer whites to keep cool and look good in the surrounding earth colors.

You can't go wrong drinking Italian granité - syrup drizzled over crushed ice 🧊 to keep cool.

The fountains provide cold water. I wanted to jump in.

So much eye candy

So many shades of ochre

Against a robins egg blue = perfection

Peeking into a courtyard.

Why do people ask ' What should we DO in Aix'? Or anywhere for that matter.

Just walk and walk some more.

Feast your eyes.

And eat pistou, a traditional Provençal dish.

Pinky terra cotta walls with olive green doors. The color names sound delicious.

Everywhere places to stop and repose

Browse restaurant menus and never go inside. I do that all the time.

Look at the shadows! 

No wonder Cézanne didn't want to live in Paris.

Don't miss the terrific playing-forever Cézanne film at Caumont centre d'Art (something you should not miss) an exquisite 'hotel particulier' on 3. Rue Joseph Cabassol off the Cours Mirabeau.

L'orange d'abricot

Tarte Abricots Frais by Gerard Mulot by me.
 

It's the season (July - August). Gorgeous orangey-red apricots everywhere in the marche. It's my favorite childhood fruit . The color orange. These really taste intense. Ripe and ready to eat au moment. You better eat them fast. Mostly from Provence and the Rhone valée.

Coming from the pool I spotted a tarte d'abricot. It called my name.

When they packed my pastries at Frederic Cassel, the server popped in an apricot-colored hatbox full of Macarons planting a seed in my mind - I've been eating apricots nonstop since.
 

Even though it was 4pm and no one with any sense should be out in this blasted heat, I went looking for Patisserie Rollet-Pradier to get some apricot desserts to paint. I ended up at apricot-colored Metro station Duroc to change trains.

On board I was staring inappropriately at this business man’s deep apricot-colored man-purse. He clamped his hand on it protectively. I wonder if it was by Hermes? I must look like your average Metro thief, especially wearing my macaron T-shirt.
 

Rollet-Pradier was CLOSED even though the website said they were open on a Monday. OK so everyone is closed on Mondays. God only knows what I'll do in August :(
 

I passed this apricot sign in the Metro. This Anthelios XL (get the lotion) is a terrific sun screen if you're into protecting your skin.
 

You can always depend on Gerard Mulot, to be open on Mondays Pierre Hermé is also open but not big on apricots.
 

Mulot is at 76, rue de Seine, 75006 close to Odeon where you can stop in an air-conditioned movie house. I did yesterday.
 

Here's a perfect example of a mini version of the summer tarte base piled high with your 5-fruits-a-day portion. Just don't take this anywhere offsite or your 5 fruits will separate like crazy - happened to me so I know from experience.
 

I picked the fresh apricot tarte to eat at the counter in the back.

Voila. Excellent though I left the crust. That's nothing new being a non-crust eater. I need an assistant who loves crust! I got an excellent apricot macaron for company.
 

Here's your weekly DIY watercolor demo PBers. I am surrounded by apricots here. Warm shadows are dropped in first - Bt Sienna.
 

Then a touch of cool French blue on top while still wet.
 

My setup. I'm loving my new mini paintbox on the left. You can run your brush across the top and get a nice mix of yellow + red + Sienna on your brush at one go. Note the basket of apricots on the right. I'll probably turn a pleasant shade of orange sans soleil. Well I hope so. Who needs sunbeds?
I guess you could say I've got on my orange-colored glasses.