Every year, on the first Sunday in August, along with its famous Sunday market, l'Isle sur la Sorgue lives to the sounds and colors of its floating market.
It takes place on the banks of the Sorgue, opposite the public garden, starting at around 9am and finishing around 12:30pm.
A little history...
The Marché Flottant was created in the 1960s. It was on his return from a trip to Thailand, where he visited one of Bangkok's many floating markets, that René Légier came up with the idea of holding the same event in L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, with the Nègo Chin. It was the first Sunday in August, and it was very early, 6 a.m., when the merchants, all local, began to set up on the Nègo Chin in traditional dress. From the very first edition, it was a great success, which was relayed by television at the time.
The ballet of the “nego chins
The “nego chins”, in French “qui noit son chien”, typical boats of Isle sur la Sorgue, glide from one bank to the other at the call of the public, offering a farandole of colors and scents of local produce such as fruits and vegetables, olives, melons, bouquets of flowers, cheese, wine, bread...
You can do your shopping and enjoy traditional Provencal costumes, live music and commentary...
A word of advice: get there early, as access is very difficult.
When the floating market ends, the nego chins gather in a line, along with all the participants in the traditional market, and together they sing the famous “Coupo Santo”, a song celebrating Provence.
Maison du Tourisme
Place de la Liberté,
84800 L'Isle sur la Sorgue
Tel.: 04 90 38 04 78
contact@oti-islesurlasorgue.fr
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