The South of France,
lived from within.
Imagine a table in the US, surrounded by a small group of people with familiar interests and genuine curiosity. A welcoming place to gather and exchange, in the most natural way, what makes French culture so rich — the language itself, the food, the wine, the cinema, the literature, the art, the architecture, and more. Together we will come to better understand French culture and life not through curriculum, but through open conversation — the way learning was always meant to happen.
Then, for those who wish, the table extends. We travel together to the South of France — and we continue the experience there, in the place itself, hosted by François-Xavier among his friends.
François-Xavier was born in Nîmes. Our home in the South of France is in Orsan, a small village in the Gard — the place the week unfolds from. The South of France is not a region we host you in. It is where we live.
The series is limited to twelve participants. The week in France, to three couples.
The series is not a prelude to the trip. It is half of the practice.
This is not a cultural program with an itinerary to follow. It is an invitation to share — genuinely, personally — what French life feels like from within.
Sessions run weekly, 90 minutes to two hours each. Small by design — never more than twelve participants. This is a gathering, not a class. French wine to open, something to taste, something to watch or read, always something to discuss.
François-Xavier leads each session from a place of genuine formation — not only as a scholar presenting content, but as someone who has spent a lifetime inside the culture. Questions are welcome. Tangents are expected. That is where the real exchange happens.
Sessions take place around various tables — in Florida, in Georgia, and beyond — in intimate settings chosen to feel like the experience itself: unhurried, warm, and genuinely shared.
Partage Provence is not a tour. It is a curated immersive gathering — led by a scholar, focused around a table each evening while we break bread, share a bottle of wine, and talk about literature, philosophy, history, and life as it is meant to be lived.
We break away from the common assumptions of travel — allowing the countryside, the food, and the people to speak for themselves.
We simply take you there. Walk through it with you. Discuss along the way — as if we are taking a stroll through what will become our very own lived story in the South of France.
You learn the way children learn, but with the advantage of age, perspective, and appreciation.
We are not only in the South of France. We become a part of it.
Participation is offered but never required. While we hope you will join us for everything, there is no obligation — if a nap and a book sound better on a given afternoon, that is exactly what the week is for.
Our home near Orsan, just outside Nîmes in the Gard, is the base. Not a rented villa. Not a hotel. Three couples — that is the limit, and how many our home can comfortably accommodate.
Mornings are slow, with breakfast fresh every morning from the village baker. Afternoons have direction — a Roman aqueduct, a medieval market town, a vineyard visit made possible by a phone call from someone trusted, an abbey where monks still grow lavender. One day is given to Nîmes, the city where François-Xavier was born. One day we walk to Saint-Rémy, where Van Gogh painted.
And then, in the evening, we return to the table.
Many of the moments of the week are made possible through personal connections built over years — introductions to winemakers, access to private estates, invitations that cannot be purchased. This is what it means to be a guest, not a visitor.
Three nights in the city, framed by everything we have already shared together. By the time you reach Paris, you are not arriving as a tourist. You are arriving as someone who has spent weeks inside French culture, who has broken bread in Provence, who knows what to look for and how to be present to it.
François-Xavier taught at the Sorbonne. He knows the intimate bookshops, the unremarkable-looking cafés that have been serving the same conversations for fifty years, the restaurants in old Paris that the guides tend to overlook. This is not a tour to the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower — those are yours to explore as you wish, and they are worth it. But this is something else: an unhurried three days through the narrow passages and quiet courtyards of a Paris that most visitors never find, in the company of someone who lived and worked inside it.
Because Paris is arranged in advance — reservations held, accommodations secured, restaurants booked — it is a choice made at the time of booking. The extension includes three nights of accommodation, all meals during the three days, and travel from Provence to Paris by TGV. Couples continuing to Paris travel with François-Xavier and Heather directly from Provence.
Everything we choose for these days is chosen with intention — the places not likely to be experienced by the average visitor on holiday, and that cannot be found without knowing where to look.
You have always been drawn to France — the food, the wine, the films, the way of life. You have visited. You want to go deeper.
You and your partner are looking for a shared experience that is genuinely meaningful — not a vacation, but something that changes how you see.
You travel to understand, not just to see. You prefer a conversation with a winemaker to a tasting room. A village market to a restaurant recommended by everyone.
You are planning an extended stay, a relocation, or a significant time in France. You want to arrive already inside the culture, not outside looking in.
Partage can also be offered as a retreat experience for teams and organizations — a shared immersion that builds cultural understanding from the inside. If you are interested in bringing Partage to your organization, we would welcome that conversation.
The following are offered as starting points — suggestions, not requirements. Every Partage group finds its own pace and its own references. These are simply the ones we return to.
Additional readings will be suggested during the sessions themselves — these are simply a starting point.
The vineyards below are a few that are well known to François-Xavier — potential visits will be made as guests, not as usual tourists. Access to places such as these, in this way, is not available through traditional booking services, but by invitation.
Every participant receives a preparation packet ahead of the trip — seasonal packing guidance, regional context, a suggested reading and viewing list curated for your cohort, and practical details about travel, rhythm, and what to expect. Nothing you need to do. Just what you might want to have in hand.
Partage is $10,500–$12,500 per couple for the week in Provence, depending on season and timing. The Paris extension is $4,000–$5,000 per couple, including three nights, meals, and travel from Provence. International travel is the participant's own. We are happy to walk through the practical details when you write.
Partage is offered to a small number of participants each season. If this sounds like something you have been looking for, we would be glad to hear from you.
hello@intersticeatelier.com