1/19/2020
(Above: We can see Aix’s largest fountain from our current Airbnb stay.)
Active Summary: This morning, I awoke and completed the morning routine of calisthenics and showering. Next, I ventured outside with my brother and searched for breakfast. We found it at a boulangerie (bakery) where he got some form of hazel-cream doughnut and I procured a small fruit tarte. A bit of walking ensued where we discovered that L’Isle’s local market occurred on Sunday.
We bought a couple fresh oranges from a cigarette smoking lady (looked like an actual producer/farmer), and then bought 4 very authentically cured sausage from an old guy who gave us very good descriptions* despite not knowing very much English. The oranges were less than a euro and the four sausages were 10 euros total. We did a little bit more market exploration, and it turned out that it was downright massive (more in commentary).
After getting a bit cold, especially in the hand region, my brother and I returned to the room where we ate breakfast before departing for Aix. The ensuing journey was only 1 hour and consisted of a drive through a valley that itself wound through the Luberons. Aix was at the end of that valley, and there we found a parking garage about 5 minutes away from the Airbnb we are presently staying.
Due to our early arrival, we left our bags at the room while the co-host cleaned the place up. As we waited, I led my brother ** on an exploratory journey. During this time, we found many eateries. Some were empty / not open, but many were open and also filled with a great number of people. The latter was surprising, because the city seemed mostly quiet aside from those places.
(8:39 PM Update:) This evening, my brother and I went on a hunt for food in Aix. There proved to be very many restaurants, and we decided to eat at a little open-air pizza place (they seated us under a nice ‘deck-warmer’). The first thing that I ordered there, a smoked-salmon pizza, was not able to be made due to a lack of salmon, so I next asked the waiter/part-owner what his recommendation was. He brightened up at this and recommended the ‘burger-pizza’. I ordered it, and he shook my hand before going to the kitchen see about the preparations. As it usually goes where recommendations are concerned, the pizza ended up being delicious. After dinner, my brother and I stopped at a bakery and procured some deserts to go. Also, on the way back to the room, I procured some clementines from a little produce stand. After eating that little orange, though, I’m afraid that the lemon meringue will have to wait. There’s no more room available at the moment.
Nighttime in an “Aixian” square. 
The so-called burger pizza with: mozzarella, cheddar cheese, spiced ground beef sausage, homemade barbecue sauce(not too sweet), and homemade tomato sauce. 
Four cheese and ‘white ham’. I’m not sure what all the cheese were, but I’m pretty sure there was mozzarella and some form of Gorgonzola. 
A clementine purchased on the way back to the room. 
The lemon meringue pie.
TIL: Today my brother and I learned about and experienced a fully functioning automatic public toilet for the first time. First, one puts the change in (make sure that no more than 50 cents is spent, because it does not give change back). Next, the individual steps in and presses the button to close the door. ‘Business’ is commenced and completed as is the hand-washing/drying. After stepping out, the machine sterilizes the entire chamber by washing it with hidden pressure-cleaners and drying it with powerful fans. Thus, when the next person steps in, the floor, toilet, and sink are all clean and dry. It’s akin to something one would see out of the future.
Commentary: The Sunday market at L’Isle sur la Sorgue was a pleasant surprise. It was amazing to me how many stalls were set up – it must have nearly been a hundred – throughout the small town’s winding cobblestone streets, and even more intriguing was the number of them that sold fresh & artisan food and the fact that the food was being bought and consumed primarily by locals. It simultaneously made me regret and appreciate the Harbison Farm Market back at home… Regret that such markets are not a more popular venue in Central Florida culture and appreciation that we at least have a little hub nearby where I can procure fresh produce like those people were in L’Isle were today.
Steam rising from a cold river on an even colder morning. 
The Sorgue river at dawn. 
Setting up for market day. 
Breakfast. 
My brother’s hazelnut creme doughnut. 
A berry tartine. It tasted like a Poptart, with a flavor profile about 1000 times more complex. 
Fresh navel orange. 
A hilltop manor on our way through the Luberon Vale. 
The first (minor) fountain we found in Aix. 
The second minor fountain we found in Aix. 
A closer look at foliage growing on fountain #2. 
Open space in the middle of the city. Perhaps used for markets? 
Uniquely formed corner-building. 
A pigeoned pylon. 
A shady courtyard with a fountain and three leafless trees. 
An ordinary street in Aix. 
Aix-en-Provence. 
There are many narrow streets, and they all appear similar. It would be easy to become lost if all the lanes did not lead back to the fountain. 
More narrow streets. 
A small fountain in a random alley. 
That boulangerie’s tempting wares. 
A large boulangerie (bakery) across the square. 
A larger street in Aix. 
Another courtyard – this one with a fountain – near our apartment in Aix. 
A narrow alley in Aix. 
The courtyard pylon just outside of our building. 
A cookie shop with only 4 different types of cookies. We did not eat there (yet) because we were building appetite for our late-day meal. 
Apartment’s main living space. 
Best bathroom thus far. 
An almost fully functional kitchen (none of these places seem to have ovens). 
Big bed in the sleep chamber. 
Bunkbeds in the sleep-chamber. 
The view out of our Airbnb’s window.
Final Note: Tomorrow, I believe there will be another walk around this quiet town along with some relaxation.
*e.g. He did not know the word for sheep, when pointing at one of the links he made a ‘bah’ sound. As for when it came to venison sausage, he said ‘bambi’. There were other types of sausage there as well, including: beef, donkey, chorizo (pig), and probably more.
**He made me lead.
I’m posting this comment before reading… the angle of your intro picture is dead on as the shadows radiate perfectly… great shot
Bambi sausage sounds okay to me, donkey not so much. I’d probably try both though… I like the looks of Aix, I haven’t seen a place I wouldn’t like to visit on your trip so far. Don’t expect I will either.