Place of the Month
St-Maximin-la-Ste-Baume
When
driving on the Highway of the Sun, l'Autoroute du Soleil, past
Aix-en-Provence, your eye will be caught by an imposing building that
sluggishly towers over its neighboring houses, like a Gulliver in
Lilliput. An earlier sign let you know that you were approaching the exit
for St. Maximin. If you feel tempted to explore this awkward giant, take
the exit (see map).
You will be rewarded with medieval gems, religious mysteries and
a friendly town of curving houses and an old Jewish quarter.
With some 9000 inhabitants, St. Maximin is a small town
with a huge basilica. That and the monastery next to it are its primary
attractions. The 
story
behind the building of the two structures is told in the page of Mary
Magdalene in Provence. Apart from its medieval architecture and
the legendary relics, the basilica is renowned for its magnificent organ,
considered one of the finest in France. During the revolution, it -- with
the entire basilica and monastery -- was saved from destruction by Lucien
Bonaparte, the brother of Napoleon, who lived in town for two years. He
used the church as a depot and regularly let the Marseillaise be
played on the organ.
The
Royal Convent, the Dominican monastery abutting the basilica, is an oasis
of medieval quiet. Especially impressive are the cloisters with their 32
bays. Today, you can have a coffee there and appreciate the
atmosphere. If you like, you can dine or stay the night. The monastery is
now a hotellerie with its own web
site.
Beyond
the basilica and the monastery, St. Maximin offers a typical town in
Provence where busy squares with fountains, outdoor cafés and even a traffic
light give way to quiet streets, lined with houses that seem to bend over
in deference to the history of the town. There's a medieval Jewish
quarter, where the 14th-century arcades are the last witness of that era.
In one of the squares you can f
ind
a lovely clock tower from 1476.
Read about the Basilica and Mary Magdalene!
Contacts:
Tourist Office: +33 4 94 59 84 59
Their fax: +33 4 94 59 82 92
