At the beginning of June 2019, from 6 to 10 exactly, Nîmes will celebrate its Pentecost fair. An unmissable event, certainly the most important in the Gard city, and a perfect opportunity to discover this multicultural and historically rich city. We will take the time to discover its impressive heritage, to enjoy its cuisine with its many influences, to ride horses in the Camargue, but above all to celebrate the bullfighting, dancing flamenco and celebrating in the bodegas until the end of the night... Olé lé!
A little history
Located between the sea and the Cévennes, between Camargue and Provence, Nîmes is more than just a metropolis in the South. It is a land rich in legacies from the past, it is, to borrow from its native writer Christian Liger, a "crossroads of history and human relations". With its Gallo-Roman past, the city of Nîmes has preserved over the centuries remarkable ancient buildings such as the Arena, the Magne Tower, the Temple of Diana or the Square House. A whole topography that makes it the "French Rome". In the 11th century BC, Celtic populations began to settle and settle around Mount Cavalier. In the surrounding area, other tribes such as the Arécomique Volques settle on the oppidums of the Gardoise garrigue. On their promontories, the locals worship the god Nemausus (god associated with the sacred spring around which the city is formed), hence the current name of Nîmes. It was in 120 BC that the Nemausa colony passed, without resistance to the legions, under Roman rule. The Via Domitia, a road linking Italy to Spain, passes through Nîmes and would go back to the year 118 BC. Under Emperor Augustus, the city became the symbol of Romanesque in Gaul. To affirm the triumph (and hegemony) of the new civilization, it was decided to mint coins in Nîmes. In the 16th century, the Reformation under Francis I made Nîmes one of the most important Protestant communities in France, and was one of the bastions of resistance to the crown of Louis XIV during the Camisards' War (1702-1704): in 1703, Nîmes hosted the macabre spectacle of the massacre at the Agau mill (a mill burned down by the Catholic royal troops in which 300 Protestant dissidents were killed)
A multicultural heritage
Today, with annual festivals, bullfighting, flamenco, and Camargue cuisine, the city looks towards southern Spain, Cisalpine Italy and Occitania. It is the multicultural conjunction of a heritage that is at once Provençal, Cévennes, Lozère and Ardèche. A mosaic of cultures can therefore be found in Nîmes. Walk from the Feuchères alleys to the Esplanade, to the majestic Arena. Then along the great boulevard Victor Hugo, here you are already on the square in front of the ancient Maison Carrée, proudly standing facing the Carré d'Art, a futuristic setting for the Musée d'art contemporain and the Médiathèque. Then stop at the canal of the Jardins de la Fontaine, created in the 18th century on a Roman site on the hillside. It is in this garrigue that the temple of Diana and the baths were established. A harmonious whole where nature, architecture, water games are magnified to the north by the Jean Jaurès alleys. Visit the old town, enter the Crest, its vast pedestrian area, its narrow streets of the Middle Ages, its private mansions, its shops, its courtyards and patios. Not to be missed either, the Town Hall, the Archaeological Museum and the Museum of Old Nîmes, the former Jesuit College, the Cathedral of Notre-Dame-et-Saint-Castor. Nîmes, the capital of the Gard, with 264,000 inhabitants (with the community of municipalities), is therefore a crossroads of cultures in Latin Europe. Labelled a City of Art and History for its historical heritage and the enhancement of its architecture, the city has been defending its inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List for several years, and if it has not yet been done, it is only a matter of time
Let's eat!
A Roman city located in the Camargue, with its Hispanic and Languedoc accents, a Protestant stronghold historically oriented towards the Cévennes, the identity here is as strong as it is plural. The cultural mosaic from which Nîmes derives its identity has naturally opened up to a wide and rich cuisine rich in the most diverse inspirations. It was Nîmes, a place of exchange, that allowed the famous brandade to take place, with cod being exchanged in abundance for Camargue salt at the time. Brandade is still unshakeable today, and coupled with tapenade, anchovy and local picholines; it inevitably brings to the Costières, their fruity finesse and beautiful ruby colour. Most often grenache and syrah for a ruby and perfumed blend, with notes of red fruits and wild berries, to be drunk on the freshness of the fruit or taken home to mature for three to five years. But you will have to enjoy the wedding on the spot with a gardian, stewed with marinated bull meat, a speciality par excellence of the Camargue region. Zarzuela, brought by the Spaniards fleeing Francoism, is now also part of the pantheon of Nîmes gastronomy. And if you feel hungry, go through the halls and try the Nîmes pâté! You will also find it in some delicatessens and pastries in Nîmes
Long live the Pentecost feria!
Since the first fair held in Nîmes in 1952, we can only observe the evolution of one of the most important and essential events in the city of Nîmes. It is one of the greatest French festivals. The Pentecost Fair is the meeting place for lovers of the world of bullfighting and the flamenco atmosphere. This event lasts six days, during which many people from Gardois attend the meeting that is set for them each year. But not only that, because people come from far away to attend bullfights and party in the bodegas. From the Wednesday preceding Pentecost to Whit Monday (June 6 to 10 in 2019), several programs follow one another. In the arenas, aficionados can attend bullfights while in the streets of the city encierros and abrivados respect Camargue traditions. The festival begins with the Pégoulade, a kind of carnival on a specific theme that wanders through the streets of the city and ends in front of the arenas, preceded by the bands (peñas). During these six days, entertainment takes place throughout the city and in the evening, the bodegas open, some public, others private, in unusual places, usually closed to the public. It is here that the whole population and the joyful party people gather to drink sangria and dance flamenco until the end of the night. An unmissable event if you are in the area!
Smart info
When? When? Of course, Nîmes can be visited all year round. Winters are mild, summer can quickly become overcrowded, so spring and Indian summer are the ideal times. But this year, to enjoy the Pentecost fair, go to the Gard city from 6 to 10 June 2019
Getting there. By plane: Flights from Paris should be available from 70 €. A shuttle bus links the city centre. By train: Thanks to the TGV network, Nîmes is now less than 3 hours from Paris and Toulouse, 1 hour from Lyon and Marseille and 30 minutes from Montpellier. By road: A54 from Marseille and Italy, A7 from Avignon and Lyon, A9 from Montpellier and Spain.
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