Les Baux respite and wonders

The idea of France — one of Europe’s greatest tourist destinations — being any kind of punishment is quite ridiculous. But I must confess, it is a little bit punishing right now here in the Val d’Enfer (Valley of Hell) of Provence.

We’re in a June heatwave. It was already 30C at 10am and it’s now creeping closer to 40C — not exactly ideal conditions for sightseeing and walking, particularly for a tour group like ours, where most are in their 60s and 70s.

Thankfully, we’re not being completely roasted. Laurent, the driver of our comfortable air-conditioned Albatross coach, drops us right beside the cooler confines of Carrieres des Lumieres, a digital art attraction in an abandoned Provencal quarry. Inside these chambers, it’s still T-shirt weather, though some visitors are wearing a cardigan or light jacket.

As spine-tingling instrumental music sounds around us, the limestone walls are sprayed with massive projections of paintings we know and love (and some we don’t).

Claude Monet is the headline act, his Impressionist masterpieces swirling around us. We see the water lilies in his garden at Giverny, the sea cliffs of Etretat, the sunrise over the harbour of Le Havre, the streetscapes of Paris and London, the canals of Venice and much more.

The Monet spectacle is followed by a similarly dazzling show starring the dreamlike paintings by French post-Impressionist artist Henri Rousseau (1844-1910).

Both his and the Monet exhibition will run until February 1, with yet-to-be-confirmed exhibitions starting later in 2026. Spanning 7000sqm of floor space, Carrieres des Lumieres (“Quarries of Light”) is operated by Culturespaces, which also runs immersive art draws in places like Paris, Bordeaux, Tokyo and New York.

This Provencal site closed as a quarry in the 1930s when demand for steel and concrete had usurped stone for construction projects.

A Czech-born stage designer, Joseph Svoboda, later transformed this site, which he saw as a perfect canvas for sound and light shows.

The French poet, playwright and director Jean Cocteau was also drawn to the Val d’Enfer and its dramatic rock formations, filming his final movie, “The Testament of Orpheus” (1960), here. This fantasy drama featured cameos by the likes of Yul Brynner and Pablo Picasso, who is among the artists to be showcased at Carrieres des Lumieres since its 2012 unveiling.

It’s on the outskirts of Les Baux, a traditional “perched village” of Provence, sitting at an altitude of 240m on a craggy hillside of the Alpilles, a small, low-lying mountain range between Arles and Avignon.

We’re transferred the short way by coach from the quarry to the village, where our group disperses again and eludes the midday sun in the shaded cafes, bars and craft stores.

After a ham baguette sandwich and an ice-cream, I put my cap on, slap on the sunscreen and wander around the village.

On one street corner is a large red slab that I initially think is an abstract piece of art. It was actually discovered in the quarries in 1821.

A mineral used for the extraction of aluminium, bauxite takes its name from this village, which is capped by a ruined medieval fortress, the Chateau des Baux-de-Provence.

This was a powerbase for the House of Baux, a clan of Provencal families that ruled the region in medieval times. It drummed up a reputation for hosting lavish courtly activities attended by knights and fair ladies, poets and troubadours.

You can visit the chateau ruins and also walk across the bumpy adjacent limestone plateau, admiring contemporary sculptures and panoramas of the surrounding countryside, a patchwork of olive groves, vineyards, lavender fields and oak and pine woodlands.

The hiking would be fantastic in the shoulder seasons of spring and autumn, while the mild-ish winters would be preferable for an active walk compared to now.

In fairness, it’s not that bad at the summit today. A strong wind is buffeting us around and, despite the scenery being rather different, the hot, dry, blustery weather reminds me of scorching January afternoons in Perth, when the “Freo Doctor” eases the discomfort.

Strolling back through Les Baux village to our Albatross coach, I connect to the on-board wi-fi and check the forecast for the coming days. Tomorrow looks more promising. We’ll be visiting the ancient Roman amphitheatre of Nimes, where the maximum temperature should “only” be 32C.