One nice thing about barge cruising in France is learning about the local traditions. Since Christmas is coming up soon, it made me think of santons.

During the French Revolution, when the churches were closed and not allowed to have Nativity scenes, an artisan from Marseilles started the tradition of making santons (”little saints”) for ordinary people to  have  Nativity scenes at home. 

These small figurines represent not only the traditional figures of Joseph, Mary, the baby Jesus, etc. but also various personnages typical in a French village.  For example, we have one of a woman carrying lavender and another of a man playing pétanque (a form of boules similar to bocce ball). Some of the figurines have the costumes painted on them, while others are dressed in clothes like dolls.

A santon fair was started in Marseilles in 1803, and now there are fairs and festivals all over Provence in November and December. Although this isn’t cruising season, if you get a chance to go to Provence at that time of year, be sure to check out these fairs. (You can buy santons all year round in gift shops.)

“The largest Nativity Scene in the World” (Guinness Book of World Records) is in Grignan. It covers more than 10,000 square feet and contains more than 80 houses, built of traditional materials (stone, wood, cement) and covered with 60,000 handmade tiles. Many expert santon-makers have contributed more than 1,000 santons of animals and people.

To read more about santons and see pictures of some of them, go to   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santon_(figurine)

One of the main stops on any cruise on the Rhone River in southern France is Avignon. Here, the riverboats dock right at the foot of history. A flourishing city in Roman times, Avignon is now best known for its high medieval walls, its Palace of the Popes and its broken bridge.

During the 14th century, the seat of the Roman Catholic papacy was moved from Rome to Avignon, and seven popes resided there during a period of almost 70 years. In 1348, Pope Clement VI bought the city from the Duchess of Provence, and Avignon remained a papal property until the French Revolution.

The thick walls built by the popes still encircle the city (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), and the narrow streets, while fine for pedestrians, are best left to local drivers unless you have a very small rental car and a very good navigator!

If you’ve ever studied French, you may have learned the song “Sur le pont d’Avignon” which describes dancing “on the bridge of Avignon.” The Saint Bénézet bridge used to span the Rhône River from Avignon to Villeneuve-lès-Avignon, crossing over the Île de Barthelasse. It is on this island that people probably danced under (not on) the bridge

The bridge was built in the late 12th century at the urging of Saint Bénézet, a local shepherd boy who, according to tradition, was commanded by angels to build a bridge across the river. It originally had 22 arches and was nearly 3000 feet long. However, over the centuries, most of the bridge was destroyed by floods, and today only 4 arches remain

Avignon also has a large indoor market, where you can buy anything from cheese and sausages to regional candy specialties like calissons d’Aix (my personal favorite).

The colorful title of this post captures the essence of the Camargue region, a lesser known part of southern France tucked between the ancient city of Arles and the Mediterranean. La Camargue is a lowland area shaped by the Rhône River as it fans out into a large delta before reaching the sea. This tiny part of France has a different feel to it. It is totally unlike the pastoral French scenery we are used to in Normandy, Burgundy or Dordogne, for example. As a wetland, it has flora and fauna that are truly unique. With the right timing, you will indeed spot pink flamingos feeding on shrimp, white  horses galloping in the wild countryside and black cattle being herded by the local “cowboys” (more on this in a minute).

And, it is an ideal spot for barge cruising on the slow waters of Le Petit Rhône starting near Arles - where the big river veers off on its way to Saintes Maries de la Mer - or the Canal du Rhône à  Sète from Beaucaire to Aigues Mortes all the way down to Sète, farther south on the deep blue Mediterranean.

On this trip, I joined up with an 18-passenger barge moored in Aigues-Mortes. This laid back, sleepy little town has a lot of history in its background. This is where, in the 13th century, St Louis - king of France - set sail on his way to the 7th and 8th crusades in the Holy Land. Aigues-Mortes was then a thriving port on the Mediterranean. But it no longer is, due to the accumulation of  silt brought by the Rhône River over the centuries…. Hence the name Aigues Mortes, which translates literally into “Dead Waters.” It remains a delightful place to visit today and is well worth the detour.

One of the highlights of this trip was my visit to a local “manade,” the soul of Camargue.  A manade is a ranch where cattle is raised, Texas-style, complete with its own French version of cowboys called “gardians.”  (The two pictures above give a pretty good idea.) Many of these manades offer rides through their property to go see the cattle up close and personal and show the Camargue way of life. It is a lot of fun to ride in a flatbed trailer pulled by a tractor, sitting on bails of straw and shooting pictures of the cows, the horses (with an occasional egret here and there) and with luck, as I said, a flock of funny-faced, skinny-legged flamingos. True, it may not quite come to the level of a wild-life safari in Africa, but it could get close if you’d let it. Try teasing one of those bulls and you’ll find out - these creatures are very territorial! After all, they’re raised for the local bullfights - a bloodless version of the sport in which the objective is to snatch a rosette tied between the horns of the bull. Unlike other types of bullfighting, the bull is the star of the show.

Camargue really is a gem of a place… rural, wild and completely different from any other place I’ve seen. A wonderful place to commune with nature!