Rians, Var
Encyclopedia
Rians is a commune
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...

 in the Var
Var (département)
The Var is a French department in the region Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur in Provence, in southeast France. It takes its name from the river Var, which used to flow along its eastern boundary, but the boundary was moved in 1860...

 department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur or PACA is one of the 27 regions of France.It is made up of:* the former French province of Provence* the former papal territory of Avignon, known as Comtat Venaissin...

 region
Régions of France
France is divided into 27 administrative regions , 22 of which are in Metropolitan France, and five of which are overseas. Corsica is a territorial collectivity , but is considered a region in mainstream usage, and is even shown as such on the INSEE website...

 in southeastern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

.

Rians is a completely unspoilt provencal village in the Upper Var located just behind the Mont Saint Victoire. Whereas other villages in Provence have become totally dominated by tourism and so lost authenticity, Rians remains a true provencal town. The main employment is agriculture, predominantly wine, with several excellent local producers. The village itself is built on a hill that is dominated by an 12th Century bell tower and the church of Notre Dame de Nazareth. The Town is made up of concentric medieval streets that work their way down the hill. It is a maze of alleys, passages and beautiful squares. One particularly beautiful square is the Place Saint Laurent on which is the Summer Palace of the Bishops of Aix en Provence. Aix becomes unbearably hot in the summer and the Bishop would retire to Rians for the cooler,cleaner air. The central square boasts the classic combination of cafe with terrace under plane trees, boulangerie /patisserie, boucherie, and a wonderful poissonerie. Of course there are fountains sprinkled throughout the town.

Rians is very lively in the summer with dancing in the squares on July 14 and on the Fete de St Laurent August 8.

The Fete de la Courge in October should not be missed.
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