Aix-en-Provence, France

Last stop was Provence Aix, a chic city, with crowded bistros, boutiques and fountains.

If you leave Aix led Cezanne's footsteps, you will definitely get a flashback of his famous Impressionist paintings, many of which have Mount St.Victoire as a topic.

The main attractions for me in Aix were the markets with fruits, vegetables, cheeses, and fine herbs of Provence. Every market in Aix reminds me of a happy sunny summer day.

Arles, France

Long before arriving in Arles, I felt a strong bond with this city. And I wasn’t wrong. Van Gogh probably felt the same. He painted much of his work in Arles. It's a city where art has a special place, a city open to everything new, and which is recognized as a national center for photography.

What especially attracted me in Arles, was the light. There were few cloudy/rainy days while I was there, and even so, Arles was enveloped in a light I had never seen before. This was most apparent when walking along the Rhone River. 

The people of Arles are unique with many artists living in the city. My hosts, Eric, who teaches cooking lessons, and Augusto, who likes photography, proved once again that in France, life is strongly influenced by art and cuisine.

http://www.lauberginerouge.com/

My baking experience in Arles.

Also in Arles I learned to cook Rotatuille (one of the main traditional specialties of Provence).

Les Mees, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, France

A town so small and so charming at the same time! It is exiled from all the Provence touristy places and is not easy to get there. It would be much easier if you have a car. But I don’t regret, for any moment, my decision to take the De Pignes train from Nice to Digne du Bagne. The landscapes I saw from the train left me speechless.

http://www.trainprovence.com

Les Mees is known for Le Penitance, a group of rocks aligned along the village on the foothills of the Alps. These rocks rise, as if triumphant, to the sky.

I booked a nice Gite in a traditional Provencal house (B & B).
  

There, I decided to take a break from my daily activities, and enjoy Provence’s best offering: gastronomy. The plentiful breakfast (muffins, fresh fruit berries, and jams), the sophisticated preparations, and refined cheese plates.

That was what I did for a whole week while I was there. I ate, tried Madam Olga’s (my host) aperitif drinks, or got myself lost in a story from a novel by the pool.

Mylene Farmer - C'est une Belle Journée

Starea mea de spirit azi se aseamana cu a lui M. Farmer !

Inspiratie

Madam Gres - A  fost numita "La Grande Gres"" sau "L'Eminence Gres". Pliseurile ei din jerse sunt o legenda in haute couture. Dincolo de moda, Madame Gres rămâne un mit.

Sunt absolut indragostita de rochiile ei...

Nice, France

I always imagined the French Riviera as an exclusive place, for refined tastes. Well, my opinion has changed, once there. Nice seems an attractive place, if you don’t mind the migration of immigrants, who come there to try their luck at pick pocketing, etc. Frankly, the city seemed too crowded and noisy. But maybe it's just my opinion...?

Rapallo, Italy

For those who have not had the opportunity to go the Italian Riviera, I suggest you go. Portofino in Liguria is the ideal destination, but because Portofino doesn’t have a train station, I had to settle for Rapallo. However, I do not regret any moment! From Rapallo you can walk to Santa Margherita and Portofino. The town looks like a colorful dream in miniature.

Italians have every reason to believe Liguria is the "jewel" of Italy.

Once there, I recommend the Vesuvio boutique hotel. It has a good location and the restaurant is great!

http://www.hotelvesuviorapallo.it/

Toscany, Italy

As I had expected, Tuscany was very welcoming. Gentle slopes covered in grape vines and topped by medieval castles are leading my mind, somehow, to the welfare of local people. Most ordinary people seem "very casual" I would say, and very hospitable.

The food is simple, but very tasty. I noticed that Italians put great emphasis on the ingredients used in their dishes, which must be very fresh and organic.

I was particularly impressed by the Tuscan doors and their design.

• Montevarchi

http://www.chianti-farm.com/lacolombaia/

In Montevarchi (the town where I stayed), one of the major attractions, for me, was the open market. There, every Thursday farmers display their fresh local products: cheeses, fruits and vegetables, still covered by dew.

• Firenze

Florence is very close to my heart. It's the first place I visited after I left New York, and I admired all of the art and culture the city has to offer. There is so much culture, art, and architecture that you can feel them in the air.

My objectives were:

1. Uffizi Art Gallery

2. David, by Raphael (can be found in the Bargello Museum), Santo Spirito Church

3. Duomo, Palazzo Vecchio, Palazzo Pitti, Ponte Vecchio, Santa Maria Novella Church, Santa Croce, etc.

I booked a full day for Uffizi Gallery. Not because I had not had time to review every painting in hand, but because I was overwhelmed in front of works of art, which I had dreamed for a long time to see, "Primavera" by Botticelli, "Venus of Urbino" the Titian (Ingres breathe later in his "Odalisque"), "Adoration of the Magi" by Leonardo Da Vinci, and last but not least the works of Caravaggio (the effect of chiaro-scuro Carvaggio invoke so much drama, that one can be easily frightened and overwhelmed by his paintings).

For "David" I have long had a great weakness. I have never seen so much sexuality and femininity in a sculpture (even more because the subject matter is a man) then the work of Donatello.

If I decide to live for a while in Florence, I would definitely become a "local" in Santo Spirito. It seems that many of the young artists of Florence prefer to live near the northern part of the Arno River, especially in the Santo Spirito Piezza.

Basilica Santo Spirito, a fifteenth century architectural work of Brunelleschi whose facade was never finished, is most attractive due to its simplicity.  The interior is a reflection of the Renaissance period, the proportions are mathematical, and everything surrounding the Piazza (cafes, bars, restaurants) made me feel like a true Florentine artist.

• Siena

Every time I arrived at Piazza del Campo, early in the morning, the Piazza was almost deserted.  There was no fuss from tourists and their camera flashes.  I felt perfect enjoying a cup of coffee in silence of the morning, lying on the pavement in the middle of the plaza, letting the already hot sun to touch my skin. Around noon, Siena Palio starts to get crowded with all 17 Contrades, which form the city, plus a myriad of tourists. However, in the evening Piazza del Campo becomes calm once again, and is a favorite place for a young man with a guitar, trying to capture a young girl’s attention (who probably belongs to a different Contrada).

Also, the Duomo of Siena is not to be missed. Once inside the church, I had the opportunity to admire a pure Gothic style.

If you ever get to Siena, do not waste your time with maps. You can not get lost. As locals say, all streets lead to the Piazza del Campo.

• Pienza

Situated near Siena, Pienza is a small story book town. Very small (you can probably walk it in 20 minutes), but very "charming". It's touristy, with rooms for rent every step, and the birthplace of Pecorino cheese.