What better way of preparing both heart and mind for the holiday season than by turning to the Provence region and its traditions, including the absolutely magical world of Provençal "santons"! This is where our "Noël in Provence" workshop transported us to last week at the equally magical venue of Cook's Barn, near Cambridge.
Starting with a overall presentation of the region, from the marshland Camargue to its rocky hills made famous by such artists as Paul Cézanne, our group rediscovered how beautiful Provence is in all seasons. At this year's workshop we specifcially focused on the period that leads to Christmas and the way in which the Nativity is celebrated there. We marvelled at how extraordinarily different from our Northern habits the Provençal traditions are. We essentially enjoyed learning about the presentation of the Nativity scene in Provençal homes (and homes throughout France) and regional Christmas Dinner specialties.
From December the 4th, the population, young and old alike, gets into the "faire la crèche" mood. This activity is not restricted to churches and has become over the years a most enjoyable pastime for the entire family. The traditional little clay figurines can be bought of course in shops or at the Christmas market. Making "santons" has become an art practised by "maîtres santonniers" such as Charbonnel, Scaturro or Escoffier, some of them are renown internationally and take part in exhibitions and festivals in Provence, Italy and even as far afield as South America. Yet anyone can have a go at modelling the little "santons"! A lot of families encourage children to make their own.
Over the centuries, legends, stories and songs even have evolved from and around the characters, departing from a strictly religious nature to become a way of artistic and folkloric expression. The "santons", or "little saints" in Occitan language soon took on the attributes of the society and the customs around them, creating a sort of ideal Provençal village from the olden days with its various artisans, shopkeepers, country people of all ages including Monsieur le maire of course but also sheep, horses, goats, dogs and cats placed in a hilly landscape complete with miniature houses, windmills, trees, rivers and bridges. "Crèches" take pride of place in households and include, in a prominent place, the stable complete with a kneeling Virgin Mary and Joseph standing up, the ox and the donkey watching over the empty manger. They are joined by a couple of shepherds who are also patiently awaiting the arrival of the baby Jesus. Later in January the Three Wisemen will make their entrance! The"santon petit Jesus" or "pitchoun" will only be placed at midnight on December 24th. People add to the scene of the "crèche" year after year, some even have a whole room dedicated to it and give freedom to their imagination and creativity. One can have members of their own family represented there or even local or national celebrities. By coincidence the capital of "santons" making, Aubagne happens to be Marcel Pagnol's birth place. Very naturally the characters of Pagnol's own literary and cinematic world found themselves transformed into "santons", thus reinforcing the local tradition. A visit to the Musée des Santons in Fontaine de Vaucluse will illustrate this well.
From December the 4th, the population, young and old alike, gets into the "faire la crèche" mood. This activity is not restricted to churches and has become over the years a most enjoyable pastime for the entire family. The traditional little clay figurines can be bought of course in shops or at the Christmas market. Making "santons" has become an art practised by "maîtres santonniers" such as Charbonnel, Scaturro or Escoffier, some of them are renown internationally and take part in exhibitions and festivals in Provence, Italy and even as far afield as South America. Yet anyone can have a go at modelling the little "santons"! A lot of families encourage children to make their own. Over the centuries, legends, stories and songs even have evolved from and around the characters, departing from a strictly religious nature to become a way of artistic and folkloric expression. The "santons", or "little saints" in Occitan language soon took on the attributes of the society and the customs around them, creating a sort of ideal Provençal village from the olden days with its various artisans, shopkeepers, country people of all ages including Monsieur le maire of course but also sheep, horses, goats, dogs and cats placed in a hilly landscape complete with miniature houses, windmills, trees, rivers and bridges. "Crèches" take pride of place in households and include, in a prominent place, the stable complete with a kneeling Virgin Mary and Joseph standing up, the ox and the donkey watching over the empty manger. They are joined by a couple of shepherds who are also patiently awaiting the arrival of the baby Jesus. Later in January the Three Wisemen will make their entrance! The"santon petit Jesus" or "pitchoun" will only be placed at midnight on December 24th. People add to the scene of the "crèche" year after year, some even have a whole room dedicated to it and give freedom to their imagination and creativity. One can have members of their own family represented there or even local or national celebrities. By coincidence the capital of "santons" making, Aubagne happens to be Marcel Pagnol's birth place. Very naturally the characters of Pagnol's own literary and cinematic world found themselves transformed into "santons", thus reinforcing the local tradition. A visit to the Musée des Santons in Fontaine de Vaucluse will illustrate this well.
To make this event even more exciting we had the pleasure of welcoming Thirza Vallois to our workshop that evening. The comments based on her great historical knowledge provided us with further insight into the subject. Bearing in mind that our workshop is not only about the language and the culture of the region but also about its culinary specialties, we then joined Christine a Provençal native and The Way to France advocate Marie, who were poised in the kitchen to prepare the "Gros souper". The dinner is, despite the name, traditionally a rather simple meal of fish and vegetables. What makes it special are the Thirteen Desserts and the ritual around it. The table is covered by three tablecloths, with three candles in the middle symbolising the Holy Trinity. An empty seat is always kept at the end of the table for the "pauvre" or the "absent person " (during war time).
We enjoyed eating delicious "filets de rougets" with olives and tomatoes, a scrumptious "gratin de cardes" and a Christmas salad with (and without) "anchoïade". We also enjoyed sharing the thirteen desserts of raisins, figs, nuts, nougats, calissons and all sorts of regional fruits as well as learning about their symbolism. 
In the meantime all of us at the Way To France we wish you all a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year. A big thank you to all the members of the team, from Francine!
