Party Like It's 1399

Tarascon's annual Fête Médiévale runs through Sunday and if you like friendly natives in colorful costumes, this is the fête for you. Starting tomorrow, the Place du Chateau (the area around the castle) will be transformed into a medieval marketplace evoking the reign of King René, who built the castle in the 1400s. There will be jousting on horseback, knights in arm-to-arm combat, dancers, fire jugglers, troubadours, courtly dancing, geese being herded through town by sheepdogs...and 400 costumed revelers. On Saturday and Sunday evenings enjoy a sound and light show (just like the olde days!) with live traditional Celtic music. No medieval costume of your own? Buy one at one of the many stands selling period clothing and leather goods. Be sure to eat a hot spit-roasted pork sandwich, which you'll want to down with a drought of mead or beer...drunk from an animal's horn of course. This is also a great opportunity to pay a visit to the castle itself, with its beautiful walled garden and huge ceremonial rooms. The festival starts at 4 p.m. Friday with a pageant around the town and through the castle, which finishes up just before midnight. On  Saturday and Sunday, the Fête Médiévale runs from 10:15 a.m. until 10 p.m. For info email here, click here or call 04-90-91- 03-52. Better yet, just show up. 


To coincide with the festival, on Sunday Aug 22 from noon onwards, Jake and Angela Paltenghi will host a drop-in brunch and gallery show of Jake's series of paintings called Sur la Route vers Arles. The gallery, at 38 rue Charles Demery (opposite Soleiado headquarters)  is also open from 2:30 to 6 p.m. throughout August. For info: 04-90-52-28-41, abillows@gmail.com, JakePaltenghi.com.