A Walk Through Old Town (Vielle Ville) of Aix-En-Provence, France

Aix's Old Town is perfectly poised to seduce the visitor with its winding streets, craft shops, boutiques, restaurants, elegant squares, refreshing fountains, markets - and all steeped in centuries, if not millennia, of history.

The Old Town or Vieille Ville fans out from the Cours Mirabeau, on the opposite side of the boulevard from the Mazarin Quarter. And it presents a sharp contrast to the latter's neat grid-pattern layout, sedate atmosphere and homogenous architectural style.

In the Old Town's maze of narrow alleys and hidden squares, all is hustle and bustle and a real mix of periods. Aix reached its height of glory under the leadership of Good King René (1409-1480). But "old" is a catch-all term spanning everything from Roman times to the 19th century.

You can get a free fold-out map from the Aix en Provence Tourist Office with brief notes on the most important buildings, but probably the most enjoyable way to experience this part of the city is simply to wander where the mood takes you.

It's also an excellent opportunity to browse Aix's numerous colourful daily markets at various squares dotted around the Old Town (details below) and shop for everything from salt cod to rare antiquarian books.

La Rotonde, at the bottom of the Cours Mirabeau, is a good place to start. From here, the first main sight you come across as you thread your way up through the back-streets is the place d'Albertas, a baroque/rococo square dating back to the mid 18th century with a superb fountain in the middle.

Often glamorously photographed, as in the picture, the square is, in reality, more dilapidated than it looks in the glossy tourist literature - but all the more full of character for it.

Just up the road, the large area known as the "trois places" ("three squares" - Verdun, Prêcheurs and Madeleine) has been the focus of an enormous - and very disruptive - three year long renovation project.

During this time various essential utility services were repaired and the entire space was redesgined and landscaped. Watch out for the glass tiles set in the pavement. Through them you can view the vestiges of mediaeval Aix uncovered by archeologists during the works. The project was finally completed in May 2019.

Among the historical buidings of interest here are the Palais de Justice (Law Courts), a monumental 19th century neo-classical pile that's France's most important Appeal Court after the one in Paris. Facing it is the Church of La Madeleine, a 13th century Dominican church with a 19th century facade.

Видео A Walk Through Old Town (Vielle Ville) of Aix-En-Provence, France канала Michael Jiroch