Vallabrègues (; oc, Valabrega) is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the Gard department in southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

Geography

Vallabrègues is the only commune of the Gard department located on the left bank of the river

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...

. It is located opposite the part of the territory of the commune of Beaucaire close to the confluence of the

Gardon The Gardon or Gard ( Occitan and French: ''Gardon, Gard'', , ) is a river in southern France. It is the namesake of the department of Gard. Several of its tributaries are also called ''Gardon''. It is long, and takes its source in the commu ...

. Its closest town is

Tarascon Tarascon (; ), sometimes referred to as Tarascon-sur-Rhône, is a commune situated at the extreme west of the Bouches-du-Rhône department of France in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Inhabitants are referred to as Tarasconnais or Taras ...

, where the Festival of the

Tarasque The Tarasque is a fearsome legendary dragon-like mythological hybrid from Provence, in southern France, tamed in stories about Saint Martha, such as the one told in Jacobus de Voragine's '' Golden Legend'' (13th century). The tarasque was des ...

monster is held every year on the last Sunday of June. Vallabrègues is about a 20-minute drive from Tarascon. It is also near the towns of Nîmes,

Arles Arles (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Arle ; Classical la, Arelate) is a coastal city and commune in the South of France, a subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the former province of ...

and Avignon. The area enjoys around 200 days of sunshine a year, and has a dry but warm

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...

Population

Features

Vallabrègues has a small dock for boats traveling on the Rhône River and has tennis courts, a campground, and the "Lac de Vallabrègues", a small pond surrounded by grass, a playground, picnic area and a trail for walking. The town hall contains the mayor's office which is surrounded by the kindergarten-primary school. On the same square is the post office and local Catholic church. There is one main supermarket, a butcher, two cafe/restaurants, two pizza restaurants and also a small open-air market on Thursdays. People enjoy playing ''

pétanque Pétanque (, ; oc, petanca, , also or ) is a sport that falls into the category of boules sports, along with raffa, bocce, boule lyonnaise, lawn bowls, and crown green bowling. In all of these sports, players or teams play their boules/balls ...

'', or ''boules'' in the sandy areas under shady trees near the town center. The streets of Vallabregues are too narrow for cars, and most villagers get around on foot or by bicycle.

Culture

Basket weaving Basket weaving (also basketry or basket making) is the process of weaving or sewing pliable materials into three-dimensional artifacts, such as baskets, mats, mesh bags or even furniture. Craftspeople and artists specialized in making baskets ...

is traditional and unique to Vallabrègues. They hold a festival every year during the month of August and home-made baskets are displayed in the street and on front of houses. There is a museum commemorating the unique tradition of the village. Vallabrègues used to be the biggest basket-producer in France, back when baskets were widely in use for transport, carrying etc. The village's proximity to the Rhône River ensured that willows grew near the village that were used for basket weaving after soaking. Nowadays, though, basket-weaving is fast disappearing. This is why, in 1990, Vallabrègues decided to hold a festival and parade every year, bringing basket-makers from all over Europe in a giant fair that gives an identity to an otherwise seemingly typical Provence town. However, Vallabregues is also captured in time because of the 2003 floods, "inondation" in French. Since then no new building is permitted in the town, because even though there are sophisticated warning systems to keep occupants safe the town is almost directly opposite where the river Gard enters the Rhone.

Geography

Population

Features

Culture

See also