The Limouxins – that’s what they call the locals – are getting ready for next week’s Carnaval. It’s not exactly Venice or Rio, but so what. Limoux has the longest, oldest, longest-running and most incomprehensible carnival in the world, and it has been going on since the 1500s.
The carnival is sometimes called the Fècos (in Occitan that’s the name of a dance characteristic of the festival), or the Carnaval de Limoux in French.
Automata from Limoux
The villagers and tourists, many in ornate masks and fancy dress, dance in a fantasmagorical procession from one bar to the next around the Place de la République at the heart of the town.
Everything takes place under flaming torches, accompanied by the brass band and a king of the carnival, such as the stuffed figure of a fireman they had the other year, who is destined to be burned. You can get a taster of the band’s music on the festival website.
This two-month-long Occitan celebration of food, music and le savoir vivre carries on until the Sunday before Palm Sunday.
This year’s Fècos runs from Sunday 18 January to Sunday 29 March, and you can check out some videos of previous years’ festivities here.
More about LimouxLimoux (or Limós in Occitan) is in the heart of Cathar country, on the river Aude and less than 30 kilometres south of Carcassonne.
If you were thinking of living in this fairytale town, one French property website notes that “75% of properties were built before 1974″, “some houses in Limoux date from the Renaissance period”, and “in 2009, the average price for an ancient house is about €124,000.” Phew.
And if, like us two in the Evening Hérault, you’re not going to be in the region between now and March, Limoux has plenty of other things to offer during the rest of the year…
Animated puppets and piano museumsLimoux also has three rather exceptional museums:
- Le Musée Petiet is housed in a former paint shop, and includes 19th-century art from the impressionists to the pointillist Achilles Laugé.
- Then there’s l’Eglise St Jacques and la Musée du Piano. This piano museum has over a hundred instruments, and celebrates the great French piano makers including Pleyel and Erard.
- La Musée des Automates is in le quartier de la petite ville, on the eastern side of the town. It’s dedicated to large-scale animated puppets, and probably the biggest museum of automata in Europe.
Le musée des automates palpite dans un décor baroque et flamboyant, installé au sein d’une ancienne usine des années 30, au coeur de la petite ville. Martine et Jean Jacques, les deux artistes créateurs des automates vous accueilleront dans ce lieu qui réveillera sans doute votre imaginaire d’enfant. Le musée est ouvert tous les jours de 10 h à 12 h 30 et de 14 h à 19 h.
La Musée des Automates€5 per adult, €3.50 for kids
4 rue Anne-Marie Javouhey, 11300 Limoux. Tél. 06 70 39 01 74.
Don’t forget to check opening times in advance during off-season (November to March) Blanquette de Limoux
And, of course, the market town is famous for its bubbly white wine, Blanquette de Limoux. This is basically the forerunner of the Champagne and, as I’ve explained before, Dom Perignon basically nicked the recipe for his crowd up north.
Local winemakers also produce splendid chardonnays, syrahs and Crémant de Limoux, a blend of chardonnay and chenin grapes. Here’s how a local website describes the terroir:
The southern slopes of the hills surrounding Limoux, classified for the appellation vineyards of Limoux, present a light and stony combination of clay and limestone.
The natural geological protections on three sides of the Limoux appellation production area limit maritime climatic influences and create a transitional climate between the Atlantic ocean and the Mediterranean sea.
- Aude-vie.com
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