Peace embraces Saint-Rémy in winter like a comforting hug. In town, restaurants and popular venues take their congé annuel. A primary rue in centre ville is empty at noon. Traffic jams and lines at the boulangerie are shorter. Trimmed plane trees reveal the town’s distinctive architectural features. Panama hats disappear and puffy coats are par tout.
At home, activity retreats from the terrace to the fireplace. Soups replace salads. Vin rosé gives way to rouge. Walks in Les Alpilles begin later. The garden is browner, the pool greener. The cinema beckons more, the tennis court less.
Tourists have flown the coop. Nobody’s here but us chickens, leisurely bob-bobbing around the ol’ barnyard. Unless you count…
A renovation reviving an ancient stone house.
Cows catching some rays.
Grape growers pruning their precious crop. (Keep up the good work, guys!)
Pooches pausing after boar-chasing.
Almond trees blossoming on the Petit Crau.
Upscale Soleido redesigning–in preparation for the spring collection.
School kids abandoning their bikes on the cool concrete for bouillabaisse in a warm interior.
Trimmers having come and gone, leaving a tidy canal path for winter walkers.
A newly planted tree quietly taking root—while overseeing Saint- Rémy, a town not hybernating but calmly humming along.
Gayle Smith Padgett 